American Literature Essays Examples For College & High School Students in PDF

85147 total results

How are the works of two completely different writers, Barn Burning by a white, male with an aristocratic background, and Their Eyes Were Watching God by a black, female with a humble background, so similar? The answer lies in the notion that both William Faulkner and Zora Neale Hurston create ... Read More

A Paper on Life Lessons and the Loss of a Loved One (1190 words, 2 pages)

This essay is about the lessons Ive learned growing up in . You can learn many different things when you grow up in a small town. Ive learned these lessons through painful times and others Ive learned through times of joy. All the lessons you learn in life are valuable. ... Read More

An Analysis of Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Jonathan Edwards (415 words, 1 pages)

Authors convey their tones by using a variety of rhetorical techniques. In Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Jonathan Edwards uses the rhetorical techniques, imagery, repetition and metaphors to show his sharp tone. Edwards uses repetition to express his sharp tone. In his sermon he repeats the word ... Read More

My Life at the Indiana Juvenile Detention Center (1527 words, 2 pages)

I had gotten out of jail not ten minutes before I committed another crime. The joint's worth of weed was taped to the inside of my pants leg, small enough not to be noticed when I was patted down upon admittance to the Marion County, Indiana Juvenile Detention Center. I ... Read More

Feminism and Slavery in the Work of Harriet Jacobs and Frederic Douglass (348 words, 2 pages)

Harriet Jacobs published under the pseudonym, Linda Brent. With pseudonyms she was able to protect herself, and the people within her book. If she had used her real name, it might have caused a huge controversy during the period in which she wrote. Jacobs had many anxieties on publishing her ... Read More

Masculinity and Femininity in Kristin Hunter’s Debut and John Wain’s Manhood (1229 words, 4 pages)

The short story "Debut" by Kristin Hunter and "Manhood" by John Wain both explore central issues like masculinity and femininity. Through the use of narrative conventions, such as point of view, characterisation, selection of detail, conflict, descriptive language and symbolisation, the authors present issues more effectively. By using social, cultural ... Read More

Should All Men Have To Pay Child Support? (676 words, 1 pages)

Should All Men Have To Pay Child Support I have been watching the television lately, and all they have been talking about how they are arresting many dads. The reason behind the arrest is over due child support. Now is that right? Most people would say yesI feel there is ... Read More

My Study of the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs (848 words, 1 pages)

Section I What I Want to Find Out A few days ago I went to the Air force Academy in Colorado Springs. It was fun to be there for only a few days, but I am not sure I want to live there for four years, since there isnt much ... Read More

Setting and Symbolism in Bret Lott’s Novel (1680 words, 2 pages)

Setting marks the beginning of the plot and is the most important aspect to consider when writing a novel. The setting is more than just the place where the plot occurs it can mean much more to the theme of the novel. Setting creates a mood that surrounds the characters ... Read More

An Essay on Canonical Literature (1041 words, 2 pages)

In school, whether it be at the high school or college levels, there are usually lists of books thought as being essential reading. Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.--a Pulitzer Prize winning historian--calls this list in his book The Disuniting of America, a 'canon' or 'canonical literature.' A problem exists with this ... Read More

A Review of Loretta Schwartz-Nobel’s Book Growing Up Empty (1751 words, 3 pages)

Schwartz-Nobel, Loretta. Growing Up Empty The Hunger Epidemic in America. New York, NY HarperCollins Publishers Inc. 2002 (248 pages) First, I would like to give my opinion of whether this book was worthwhile at the beginning of this book review. Because I believe this is one of the most moving ... Read More

A Paper on the Satire of Jonathan Swift (760 words, 3 pages)

he Satire of Jonathan Swift Revealed During the eighteenth century there was an incredible upheaval of commercialization in London, England. As a result, English society underwent significant, changes in attitude and thought, in an attempt to obtain the dignity and splendor of royalty and the upper class (McKendrick,2). As a ... Read More

A Paper on Revenge in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne (879 words, 2 pages)

Revenge is the act of retaliating in order to get even with someone for the wrongs they have done. In the novel The Scarlet Letter, the author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, uses Roger Chillingworth to reap revenge on Arthur Dimmesdale for his affair with his wife, Hester Prynne. Chillingworth becomes so devoted ... Read More

Puritan Society in the Novel The Scarlet Letter (1090 words, 2 pages)

The Scarlet Letter - Puritan Society- In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, life is centered around a rigid Puritan society in which one is unable to divulge his or her innermost thoughts and secrets. Every human being needs the opportunity to express how he or she truly feels, otherwise the ... Read More

A Paper on Sins in the Novel The Scarlet Letter (735 words, 1 pages)

Let me begin by quoting the most read book ever, the Bible. "Jesus does equate committing adultery with having lust in your heart (Matthew 527-28) and committing murder with having hatred in your heart (Matthew 521-22)." This excerpt from the Bible implies that all sins are equal, but only in ... Read More

A Paper on Human Nature in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter (2349 words, 3 pages)

Hawthornes human nature Purity and evil is the duality that exists within human nature, but who is to judge the degrees of good and bad that are present within human actions? In Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter, the author, a rebellious Puritan, sets before the reader the consequences of sin, ... Read More

A Paper on the Punishment Quote in the Novel The Scarlet Letter (836 words, 1 pages)

Punishment Quote Only the man who has enough good in him to feel the justice of the penalty can be punished the other can only be hurt. This is a very interesting quote, and depending what you make of it, it can be very confusing. To most people this quote ... Read More

A Paper on Characters in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Novel The Scarlet Letter (739 words, 1 pages)

The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, contains many profound characters. The townspeople intrigue the reader because they gradually evolve throughout the book, as would any solitary character. In the beginning of the novel, they are generally rigid and judgmental towards Hester, because she has committed adultery. Throughout the novel, ... Read More

An Analysis of the Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne (361 words, 1 pages)

My Evaluation of the Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism. The symbols help the reader visualize exactly what is happening. Three key symbols in the novel are the actual scarlet letter, the rosebush, and Hesters daughter Pearl. The scarlet letter was an important symbol in the ... Read More

A Paper on Hawthorne’s Presentation of the Puritans in the Novel The Scarlet Letter (2034 words, 4 pages)

Discuss Hawthornes presentation of the Puritans throughout the novel The Scarlet Letter. You may wish to consider P Hawthornes links with the Puritans P The presentation of Puritanism in the novel The narrative methods through which Hawthorne presents Puritanism. The Puritans are complex characters and throughout the course of the ... Read More

A Paper on Sarty Snopes’s Reliability as a Narrator in Faulkner’s Barn Burning (971 words, 2 pages)

Sarty's Reliability as Narrator in "Barn Burning" The question of whether or not Sarty Snopes is a reliable narrator is sure to raise debate among various literary critics. Although the story is told from Sarty's perspective twenty years later, Faulkner also leads the reader to believe the events taking place ... Read More

Brief History of the Life and Works of Sandra Cisneros (347 words, 1 pages)

Sandra Cisneros Sandra Cisneros was born in Chicago in 1954, to a Mexican father and a Chicana mother she has six brothers and is the only daughter in the family. She moved frequently during her childhood and visited Mexico often, to visit her paternal grandmother. Like Esperanza, the main character ... Read More

Saravejo after the Bosnian-Serbian Conflict (716 words, 2 pages)

The ride through the countryside was quite amazing. If you did not know, you would swear you were driving down a back road in Pennsylvania. The only visible difference were signs written in Cyrillic for little shops along the road. As the contours of Sarajevo came into focus, you could ... Read More

Comparison of Poems Written by William Blake and William Wordsworth (1696 words, 3 pages)

The years between 1757 and 1837 marked the romantic period in literature. Romanticism was a reactionary period of history when its seeds became planted in poetry, artwork and literature. The Romantics turned to the poet before the scientist to convey their thoughts and ideals. Romanticism allowed people to get away ... Read More

An Essay on the Movement of Romanticism (5758 words, 8 pages)

Romanticism is an intellectual artistic and philosophical movement that originated in late 18th century Western Europe, and redefined the fundamental ways in which people in Western cultures thought about themselves and about their world. The term 'Romanticism' derives ultimately from the fictional romances written during the middle ages and involved ... Read More

Questions in a Book Review Assignment (772 words, 2 pages)

1.Why do you think the author wrote this book? I think the author wrote this book to try to demonstrate what it might feel like being the father of a daughter who committed an act of terrorism. What kind of feelings he might be going through a person like this, ... Read More

A Review of William Faulkner’s Tale A Rose for Emily (653 words, 1 pages)

William Faulkners dark sultry tale, A Rose for Emily, relies heavily on foreshadowing to relay its overall theme. Societys tendency to allow special civil liberties to those with wealth or power is a valuable theme presented in this story. Faulkners old southern town is a societal microcosm that lives oblivious ... Read More

A Paper on Role Models and Heroes in Jenny Lyn Bader’s Essay Larger than Life (657 words, 1 pages)

In the essay Larger Than Life, one of Jenny Lyn Baders arguments is that we should stick to role models instead of heros. (728). Role models may live next door, while a hero might be a courageous head of state, a saint, a leader of armies, a role model might ... Read More

A Paper on Female Characters’s Relationship with Male Characters in Novels The Man Within and The Catcher in the Rye and in Movies Fight Club and American Beauty (1819 words, 6 pages)

Theres a famous saying that goes like this Behind every great man, there is a great woman. However, not all men are great. All men have flaws and women help men get through tough times and problems so they can come to resolutions. In the novels The Man Within, Lord ... Read More

The Achievement of Desire by Richard Rodgriguez (1295 words, 2 pages)

Richard Rodriguez while writing The Achievement of Desire faces a difficult obstacle of working with a prior text. Rodriguez uses Hoggarts concept of a scholarship boy and applies it to his own life. Yet something is missing, there is something not right about the scholarship boy Rodriguez claims to be. ... Read More

American Literature Essay Examples