Newest Literature Essays

Memento is a film directed by Christopher Nolan, a thriller which tackles the epistemological issues of identity relating to memory. The main character, Leonard, lacks the ability to create short-term memories and struggles to self-identify after...

Tithonus, written by Lord Tennyson in 1833, is a poem about a Trojan prince who is granted immortality. Tennyson wrote this poem as a dramatic monologue so that any criticism of his Romantic style would be directed to the characters themselves....

Universal suffering and pain is the ultimate aftermath of war; this is the fundamental message Euripides strives to display in his tragedy, ‘The Women of Troy’, performed to an audience of Athenian men in 415BC, a year progressing the atrocities...

Richard Wagamese’s Indian Horse illustrates the dark Canadian history of residential schools and demonstrates the lasting effects that forced enrollment had on its protagonist, Saul Indian Horse. Indian Horse emphasizes the psychological trauma,...

In the poetry of Thomas Hardy, one can note that the poet conveys a deep sense of sadness. Throughout his poetry, the Going, for instance, Hardy makes use of authorial methods in order to heighten the tragedy, and thus, allow his poems to convey a...

One of the most influential devices since the primordial times has been literature. Books, essays, journals and articles are just a few of the things used to gain knowledge. But, what makes these elements so effective? As a contemporary American...

During the 1940s in the midst of World War Two, the Nazi regime occupied much of Italy as the dictator Benito Mussolini allied with Germany; however, in 1943, the Italian resistance assassinated Mussolini marking the collapse of his fascist...

In the play, Fences, author August Wilson’s symbolism whispers figurative words of meaning to the audience, painting a more nuanced and extraordinary picture of the characters and the events in the story. The use of symbolism creates a deeper...

Toni Morrison decided that if she were to write stories with white characters, as she had been asked to, she would not give their perspective any dominance or privilege over that of the black characters. The voices of white characters have...

In its depictions of Tristan and Isolde, Gottfried’s Tristan explores the idea that idealized sexual love produces greater virtue than either social conformity or religious obedience can, and consequently Isolde’s and Tristan’s violations of...

Snow is cold, yet brings people together seeking warmth; beautiful, but muddies after only days. Loved by some and despised by others, snow is the mascot of winter. Each flake that falls is unique, yet many choose to see it as a lump of white....

People often say, “when writing the story of your life, don’t let anyone else hold the pen,” but inevitably, when people see others, they form their own judgements and push those assumptions onto them: writing their stories for them and forcing...

Toni Morrison explores the legacy of slavery and the price for freedom and motherly love within her novel Beloved through her main character, Sethe. For Sethe, her vision of freedom equals the ability to love her children as much as she wants...

When grappling with the concept of home within Toni Morrison’s novel, Beloved, one should first constitute what does not make a home. Paul D encapsulates the irony of the plantation name at Sweet Home when he describes that “it wasn’t sweet and it...

Initially, a scene of harmony seems to be broken by a melancholy illustrating the changing seasons and a knowledge that Thomas has captured only a singular beautiful moment in time. As you read more deeply into the poem, it becomes evident that...

The protagonist Ivan Dmitrich Aksionov undergoes a multitude of changes throughout the short story “God Sees the Truth, but Waits”. By utilizing specific characterization and character development in order emphasize contrast throughout the story...

‘What do we mean by saying that existence precedes essence? We mean that man first of all exists, encounters himself, surges up in the world – and defines himself afterwards. If man as the existentialist sees him is not definable, it is because...

In Baruch Spinoza’s The Ethics, he attempts to prove that God is the only substance. While the main point of his argument is found in Proposition 14, he relies heavily on the definitions, axioms, and propositions that come before it. Overall,...

What does Ian McEwan’s novel Saturday and the Matthew Arnold poem “Dover Beach” have in common, one may ask? Well, besides that arguably the most memorable scene in the novel revolves around the recitation of Arnold’s poem, the two works seem to...

If there is anything constant in this world, it is change. Even when the world is in tatters, life keeps evolving; Margaret Atwood stresses this throughout her MaddAddam trilogy. As GMOs, technology, and male dominance overrun the world, they soon...

Titles of literary works do not exist frivolously. Just like any other literary element, titles enhance a reader’s understanding of the novel; unlike other literary elements, the title is a “stand-alone” element in that it is the first impression...