English Literature Essays (Examples)

1000+ documents containing “english literature”.


For some reason, English classes strike fear in the hearts of many students. You may be one of them. Do you find the rigid and irregular rules governing the use of “proper” English intimidating? Do you wish people could just write how ...

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To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;

For in that sleep of death what dreams may come

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

Must give us pause: there's the respect

That makes calamity of so long life;

For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,

The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,

The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,

The insolence of office and the spurns

That patient merit of the unworthy takes,

When he himself might his quietus make

With a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscover'd country from whose bourn

No traveller returns, puzzles the will

And makes us rather bear those ills we have

Than fly to others that we know not of?

Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;

And thus the native hue of resolution

Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,

And enterprises….

For the poet, Christianity must be devoid of the cultures of corruption and hypocrisy that prevailed during his time. Ideally, a religion, in order to be respected and followed by the people, must maintain a clean image -- that is, an image that reflects the truth of its teachings, wherein its religious principles are embodied by the people who make up the Church.
It is also through "Canterbury" that Chaucer was able to portray the theme of idealism as mirrored in the lives of the people of his times. With the pilgrims representing people from all walks of life in 15th century English society, "Canterbury" acts as a mouthpiece to every member of Chaucer's society, giving the readers a look into the kind of society that existed during that period. Thus, each tale narrated in "Canterbury," like the Pardoner's tale, was Chaucer's way of putting reality (i.e., each tale) against….

English Literature
Death in Venice - Cultural Criticism & eader esponse Criticism

eader-esponse Criticism is a legitimate, proven method for readers to use when digging into the deeper meaning of a piece of literature; it's always a good idea to broaden one's understanding of literature by gaining a grasp at how others view the same work. And meantime, employing the use of Cultural Criticism as research into the meaning of literature is an intelligent formula, as well. In this paper, the two, eader-esponse Criticism and Cultural Criticism, will be examined in terms of reaching a fuller understanding of Thomas Mann's Death in Venice.

Cultural Criticism

What is Cultural Criticism and why is it an important tool for comprehension and understanding? One thing it is not, according to author Naomi itter (172), is a structured university department established in order to examine "high brow" cultural activities such as ballet, symphony, opera, or art. Indeed, a….

Upon first meeting, Albert is not the most noble of men. However, we begin to see aspects of Albert that are more worthy as the novel progresses. e learn that Albert is quite devoted to his father Fernand. hen the Count of Monte Cristo speaks badly about Fernand, Albert reacts in a very noble way, wanting to fight the Monte Cristo for the harsh words he has spoken. Mercedes reveals the truth of Albert's father to Albert and thus he sees that he was wrong to treat the Count of Monte Cristo the way he did. Albert has the humility that his mother possesses and he also has the devotion to his father, even though his father lacks certain moral characteristics. It is this juxtaposition of father and son, two men who though related become totally different men and it shows that men are not the sum of their….


Case in Point: Interview with an Employer: Jon Lurie started his career almost 15 years ago as a sole proprietor of a computer trouble shooting expert who repaired computer connections for private clients by appointment in New York City. He eventually transitioned to installing the first cable modem configurations when they became available, and as more advanced computer technology filtered down to private users, he offered more and more services, such as installing home office routers and wireless interfaces. His business grew, largely by word of mouth from satisfied customers.

While he acknowledges that his technical skills were indispensable, he attributes his rapport with customers to the fact that he often conversed with them throughout much of his assignments, sometimes discussing things that had nothing to do with the work he performed for them. He says that he first became aware of the value of his ability to carry an intelligent….


First and foremost, the doctrine of separation of powers handicaps the Executive Branch from maintaining the confidentiality and security of decisions during wartime as well as decisions in postwar and pre-wartime planning in connection with subsequent wars initiated, by necessity, in the timely and efficient response to the global War on Terror throughout the next decade, at least. Understood in relation to the magnitude of the threat to this nation posed by the specter of escalating international terrorism, the voluntary ceding of congressional power to the Homeland Security Secretary in 2005 was a necessary but insufficient first step in this regard. To ensure the timely and efficient prosecution of the War on Terror, we must dispense with the limitation of the Secretary's waiver authority to specific projects, such as fence-related matters, and allow the Secretary to apply it, as deemed appropriately necessary for the War on Terror by the Office….

English Literature
Thin-is-in Culture, Mass Media, & Thin Body Ideals

Mass media affects the people who watch it. In the beginnings of mass media, there was no public research about how it affects people. In the late 20th and 21st centuries, there is now substantial research that shows that mass media affects consumers and that there are a variety of affects. Thus, it is not just that mass media affects people, we must consider how mass media affects people. Thin-is-in culture is fairly self explanatory. It is the elements of the culture that represents what is most popular, most trendy, and what is "in," specifically that excessive thinness is the ultimate physical achievement for women. There is a direct relationship or connection between mass media and thin-is-in culture. Mass media is often the vehicle by which thin-is-in culture is transmitted. Mass media is one of the biggest ways that people learn about….

Listening to the apparent vents reveals no sound emanating from the object; that, and the apparent lack of any internal source of heat both seem to indicate that the object was powered off only relatively recently. The sides and back area of the object feel like hard plastic to the touch. They also respond to the fingernail tap test in the manner expected of hard plastics, producing a higher audible pitch and less vibration and "give" to slight pressure than the glasslike front panel. The hard plastic does not have any specific taste to it, but use of the tongue seems to confirm the prior observation that the surface was warm to the touch.
Likewise, the front panel has no specific taste but feels even cooler to the tongue than to the hand; it also reveals a layer of dust that was not originally perceptible to the hand. A swiping….

When death finally comes it comes as a respite for Aschenbach who is so far pushed by his infatuation with the young boy that he has no control over his conscious or subconscious behavior. He sheds his dignity completely when he decides to recapture his youth with makeup much like the bumbling old fool he had spotted (and secretly laughed at) on the steamship that brought him to the city. The journey from the derisive observer to the silly old hag is painful and uncompromising. The slow collapse, which drags Aschenbach from the one state to the other, is finally completed once death disintegrates him completely.
Like Aschenbach Gabriel Conroy's collapse begins early on in the story. The initial jolt he receives from the caretaker's daughter, Lily, is furthered at every stage of the text. Many of these he seems to bring upon himself. His hesitation over quoting rowning at….


Likewise, Joyce Caol Oates shot stoy, Whee Ae You Going, Whee Have You Been? also involves a basic stoy of violence with a moe symbolic meaning. To summaize Oates' style is to say he woks typically mix the themes of Gothic estangement and high social obsevations with violence being a cental theme, often to a sensationalist point. Inteestingly, she cites William Faulkne as one of he majo influences.

The stoy Whee Ae You Going, Whee Have You Been? is inspied by the Tucson mudes of Chales Schmid, a 1960's seial kille who killed between thee and fou individuals in the Tucson aea. Oates' also claims that the stoy was inspied by Bob Dylan (who she dedicated the anthology by the same name to) song entitled it's All Ove Now, Baby Blue. Futhe, the title of the stoy is in efeence to Judges 19:17 of the Old Testament, which states, "And the….


That dynamic was so familiar to the boy that he responded, probably automatically, by adopting the correspondingly appropriate demeanor on his part, as clearly evidenced by the following passage:

The woman was sitting on the day-bed. After a while she said, "I were young once and I wanted things I could not get." There was another long pause. The boy's mouth opened. Then he frowned, but not knowing he frowned. The woman said,

Um-hum! You thought I was going to say but, didn't you? You thought I was going to say, but I didn't snatch people's pocketbooks. Well, I wasn't going to say that." Pause. Silence. "I have done things, too, which I would not tell you, son -- neither tell God, if he didn't already know. So you set down while I fix us something to eat. You might run that comb through your hair so you will look presentable."

The natural….

The fact that 10 of the first 16 of the students who graduated from the first year of the course went on to continue their education at four-year colleges and that the rest were either attending community colleges or working fulltime strongly suggests that the program was beneficial. Even the fact that the one unemployed student was unemployed because she had tried to form a union at work suggests that she benefited from the course with respect to her confidence and her ability to think independently and to act politically.
Conclusion

There seems to be little reason to doubt that a program such as the Clemente Course implemented by Shorris is extremely beneficial in that it encourages poor individuals to appreciate education and to discover intellectual abilities they may not otherwise have the chance to discover. On one hand, the experience recounted by Shorris seems to prove the initial supposition that….

English Literature
Space, Confinement, & Women in "The Yellow Wallpaper"

I sometimes fancy that in my condition if I had less opposition and more society and stimulus -- but John says the very worst thing I can do is to think about my condition, and I confess it always makes me feel bad. So I will let it alone and talk about the house.

~The protagonist in "The Yellow Wallpaper"

Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote "The Yellow Wallpaper" in 1899. In the western world, this time was a period of significant change in many areas of society. It was the turn of the 20th century, one of the most historic centuries in modern history. It was the eve of the industrial revolution, an event with consequences that would cascade for decades into the future. In countries such as the United States, this was also a moment in history when women began to organize and express….

Meanwhile, T. was a different kind of leader. He wants his ideas to be followed and he led the gang to a dangerous and cruel mischief. The story also touches on the choice between good and bad as presented by Blackie's decision of whether or not join the destruction of Old Misery's house. Eventually, Blackie chose a purely egoistic choice basing his decision on the need for distinction.
Ironies are also presented in the story are numerous like how T. And Blackie burned the Old Misery's savings instead of dividing it among themselves during hard times when money is essential. Another example of an irony is how Old Misery takes care of his house not wanting to soil it and yet, in spite of his care, the gang destructed it. And towards the end of the story, it was ironic how the truck driver could laugh at Old Misery's misfortune.

Meanwhile,….


I had my hopes up for the exam and I was well aware of the fact that the competition would be tough. Yet I studies as we had been taught in college, in the most academic way possible. Yet now I realize that it was not enough. More than that, I know now that the world of academic studies is a different world from that of the practical world of politics or of the diplomatic practice. Contrary to my own consideration of my qualities, the grade I had for the exam was sufficient for the next step which was the interview. That moment though was crucial for shaking the reality which surrounded me. Although I wrote everything I considered to be suited for answering the exam questions, it was not enough. Now, years later, I know better.

The interview proved to be another important step in my life and in my….

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4 Pages
Term Paper

Literature

English Literature When Surveying the

Words: 1129
Length: 4 Pages
Type: Term Paper

To die, to sleep; To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must…

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5 Pages
Term Paper

Literature

English Literature Chaucer & Shakespeare

Words: 1396
Length: 5 Pages
Type: Term Paper

For the poet, Christianity must be devoid of the cultures of corruption and hypocrisy that prevailed during his time. Ideally, a religion, in order to be respected and…

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4 Pages
Case Study

Literature

English Literature Death in Venice - Cultural

Words: 1207
Length: 4 Pages
Type: Case Study

English Literature Death in Venice - Cultural Criticism & eader esponse Criticism eader-esponse Criticism is a legitimate, proven method for readers to use when digging into the deeper meaning of a…

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2 Pages
Essay

Literature

English Literature Danglars Is the

Words: 752
Length: 2 Pages
Type: Essay

Upon first meeting, Albert is not the most noble of men. However, we begin to see aspects of Albert that are more worthy as the novel progresses. e…

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5 Pages
Term Paper

Careers

English Literature - Argument the

Words: 1476
Length: 5 Pages
Type: Term Paper

Case in Point: Interview with an Employer: Jon Lurie started his career almost 15 years ago as a sole proprietor of a computer trouble shooting expert who repaired computer…

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3 Pages
Term Paper

Terrorism

English Literature - Satire Proposal

Words: 840
Length: 3 Pages
Type: Term Paper

First and foremost, the doctrine of separation of powers handicaps the Executive Branch from maintaining the confidentiality and security of decisions during wartime as well as decisions in postwar…

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8 Pages
Research Paper

Communication - Journalism

English Literature Thin-Is-In Culture Mass Media &

Words: 2649
Length: 8 Pages
Type: Research Paper

English Literature Thin-is-in Culture, Mass Media, & Thin Body Ideals Mass media affects the people who watch it. In the beginnings of mass media, there was no public research about how…

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3 Pages
Essay

Literature

English Literature - Inanimate Object

Words: 872
Length: 3 Pages
Type: Essay

Listening to the apparent vents reveals no sound emanating from the object; that, and the apparent lack of any internal source of heat both seem to indicate that…

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3 Pages
Term Paper

Literature

English Literature Both the Stories

Words: 885
Length: 3 Pages
Type: Term Paper

When death finally comes it comes as a respite for Aschenbach who is so far pushed by his infatuation with the young boy that he has no control…

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4 Pages
Term Paper

Literature

English Literature the Two Short

Words: 967
Length: 4 Pages
Type: Term Paper

Likewise, Joyce Caol Oates shot stoy, Whee Ae You Going, Whee Have You Been? also involves a basic stoy of violence with a moe symbolic meaning. To summaize Oates'…

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3 Pages
Term Paper

Sports - Women

English Literature - Short Stories

Words: 913
Length: 3 Pages
Type: Term Paper

That dynamic was so familiar to the boy that he responded, probably automatically, by adopting the correspondingly appropriate demeanor on his part, as clearly evidenced by the following passage: The…

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5 Pages
Essay

Teaching

English Literature -- Reading Response

Words: 1531
Length: 5 Pages
Type: Essay

The fact that 10 of the first 16 of the students who graduated from the first year of the course went on to continue their education at four-year…

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5 Pages
Essay

Sports - Women

English Literature Space Confinement & Women in

Words: 1513
Length: 5 Pages
Type: Essay

English Literature Space, Confinement, & Women in "The Yellow Wallpaper" I sometimes fancy that in my condition if I had less opposition and more society and stimulus -- but John says…

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3 Pages
Essay

Urban Studies

English Literature-g Greene & DH

Words: 1099
Length: 3 Pages
Type: Essay

Meanwhile, T. was a different kind of leader. He wants his ideas to be followed and he led the gang to a dangerous and cruel mischief. The story…

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2 Pages
Essay

Government

English Literature There Are Some

Words: 678
Length: 2 Pages
Type: Essay

I had my hopes up for the exam and I was well aware of the fact that the competition would be tough. Yet I studies as we had been…

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