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

85147 total results

A Personal Evaluation of The Crucible, a Play by Arthur Miller (366 words, 1 pages)

Arthur Millers The Crucible isnt a play I can say that I enjoy. It deals with the Salem Witch Trials, which is a tough subject. I can say, however, that Cedarvilles cast did an excellent job performing it. They brought the characters to life. I empathized with Elizabeth and pitied ... Read More

The Fear and Loathing of the American Dream in the 1960’s in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson (1161 words, 4 pages)

Fear and Loathing of the American DreamThe nineteen sixties was a decade that embodied the youthful rejection of the conventional nineteen fifties social-norms. Teenagers all across America started to rebel against the cultural standards of their parents. When America joined the Vietnam War, tensions between the conservative parents and their ... Read More

An Analysis of the Story Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage (868 words, 3 pages)

Intimate Apparel is a story of a working class colored woman in her thirties who catches herself crawling through the mundane normalcy of a life not lived to its fullest. This woman, Esther, decides to change something about her life, and even though her decision is met with ridicule from ... Read More

A Review of Shiver, a Book by Maggie Stiefvater (630 words, 2 pages)

The book I am reading right now is called Shiver, written by MaggieStiefvater. It is a romance novel about a girl who becomes friends with awerewolf. She falls in love with him, and he with her. The main character,Grace, has to make many sacrifices in order to be with Sam, ... Read More

Gatsby as a Tragic Hero in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1022 words, 3 pages)

Tragic heroes are included in many different literary works and even movies today. For example, Star Wars and Harry Potter have a tragic hero in them. To be a tragic hero, the character must follow a specific set of guide lines in order to be one. The character that can ... Read More

The Life, Works, and Revolutionary Philosophy of Arthur Miller (1042 words, 5 pages)

Arthur Miller A Modern MindIn his novel, Once There Was a War, American author John Ernst Steinbeck writes that theatre is the only institution in the world which has been dying for four thousand years and has never succumbed, in fact, he continues, it requires tough and devoted people to ... Read More

The Insanity of Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire, a Play by Tennessee Williams (673 words, 3 pages)

American Horror Story Insane BlancheIn A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanches erratic, delusional behavior is a constant occurrence that affects the characters she interacts with. Based on her unfortunate past, Blanches continued insanity can be judged by most as reasonable. Throughout the work, it plays a large part in the dramatics ... Read More

The Portrayal of Lennie in the First Chapter of Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (945 words, 2 pages)

How does Steinbeck portray Lennie in the first chapter of Of Mice and Men?In the opening chapter of Of Mice and Men, Lennie is portrayed as childish, which is contrary to his huge appearance. Look, George. Look what Ive done, suggests that Lennie is fascinated by such small things, similar ... Read More

The Effects of the Great Depression on the 1930’s America in Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (1219 words, 3 pages)

Effect of Great Depression on America during the 1930sJohn Steinbecks novel Of Mice and Men, was set in 1930s America, during the Great Depression. The effects of Great Depression can be seen in the lives of two itinerant workers, George and Lennie, as they work under poor conditions and receive ... Read More

How James Grover Thurber’s Life Influenced His Approach to Writing Fantasy (2890 words, 10 pages)

James Grover Thurber, born on the 8th of December in 1894 in Columbus, Ohio is a renowned American writer as well as cartoonist (Buckley 61). He is a well-known writer in almost all the important genres of writing including contemporary commentary, fiction, short stories, and children's fantasy stories. Thurber was ... Read More

Puritan Society’s Perception of Sin in The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne (969 words, 4 pages)

Scarlet LetterSin is a deliberate violation against a religious principle. Sin is inevitable however, the way it is perceived and handled within a community differs. Nathaniel Hawthorne elaborates on how the Puritan societys perception of sin can affect an individual in the novel The Scarlet Letter. Arthur Dimmesdale, a minister ... Read More

An Analysis of Tim O’Brien’s Book The Things They Carried About the Experiences During the Vietnam War (970 words, 3 pages)

The Things They Carried is a book written by Tim OBrien and tells about the experiences he encounters during the Vietnam War. The title itself is a big part of the whole novel. When one hears the phrase the things they carried, it may be thought that just the physical ... Read More

Esther’s Life in the Story Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage (678 words, 2 pages)

Imagine a quiet room in a boarding house, where a middle aged black woman sits at her sewing machine with a frilly, lacey garment, the sounds of a party heard behind the closed door. Thats life for Esther, who takes us on her everyday journeys into the lives of Mrs. ... Read More

The Societal Influence of Mark Twain on the Character of Huckleberry Finn (1835 words, 6 pages)

Huckleberry Finns InfluenceAlmost every religion, era, and culture argues that relationships, and community, are amongst the most pertinent influences on a persons life, and they would be correct. However, relationships are not the only influence on a persons life, and when an author has the chance to write a character ... Read More

The Horrible Fraud of Mr. Bernard Madoff (627 words, 2 pages)

In the beginning, there was God. He created the Heavens and the Earth. God gave the world its shape and its purpose. He put plants and animals, streams and mountains on the Earth. Then, He put humankind on the Earth. God breathed life into Adam and gave Adam a wife- ... Read More

Family, Death and Promises in the Novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (516 words, 2 pages)

The realistic fiction novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is about family, death and promises. The character of Scout Finch is a young girl and is also the narrator in the story. The character of Jem Finch is Scouts brother who is protective of Scout. The character Arthur ... Read More

A Comparison of The STory of an Hour by Kate Chopin and Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway (1129 words, 4 pages)

EssayComparison of Two Stories "The story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin and "Hills Like White Elephants" by Ernest Hemingway.The two stories "The Story of An Hour" and " Hills Like White Elephants" are different from each other and tell usabout different life events, however, if we trace all the ... Read More

The Quest for Identity in Fight Club, a Novel by Chuck Palahniuk (1336 words, 4 pages)

Fight Club and Herd InstinctMusician and blogger Cameron Harwick once wrote that Man is an undoubtedly social being. Nearly everything he does is in regard to another human being. The insight touches on the theme of group instinct, connecting it to Chuck Palahniuks novel Fight Club. At the heart of ... Read More

A Reflection of the Theme of Redemptive Violence in The Powers That Be, a Book by Walter Wink (1212 words, 5 pages)

Violence and RedemptionIn the profound book The Powers That Be, author Walter Wink reflects on the theme of redemptive violence and states that The story that the rulers of domination societies told each other and their subordinates is what we today might call the Myth of Redemptive Violence. It enshrines ... Read More

An Analysis of Bobrauchenbergamerica, a Play by Charles L. Mee (323 words, 1 pages)

Bobrauchenbergamerica is an abstract play about a group of people who live in the same neighborhood. Bobs Mom is ready with some slides to show us, Becker the homeless veteran has his beloved cardboard box, Phyllis and her girl are having some drinks in a bathtub, Susan and Wilson are ... Read More

The Meaning and Effectiveness of Three Symbols in Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes (861 words, 4 pages)

Symbols and motifs play an important role in Flowers for Algernon. Select at least 3 and explain their meanings and effectiveness.Flowers for Algernon is an intense story about a retarded man, Charlie Gordon, who after an experimental operation, has is intelligence triple. The story follows his journey to intelligence and ... Read More

The Social and Global Changes in a Community in Europe in Slave Ship, a Novel by Marcus Rediker (997 words, 5 pages)

Throughout the novel, Slave Ship, written by Marcus Rediker, the reader is introduced to the social and global changes within one community, Europe, as well as various inventions and expeditions. Specifically, Rediker focuses on the newer inventions as they come about we are later introduced to new people and areas ... Read More

Kurt Vonnegut’s Life Experiences Through His Science Fiction Novel Slaughterhouse Five (2281 words, 8 pages)

Many critics believe that Kurt Vonneguts famous science fiction novel, Slaughterhouse Five or The Childrens Crusade, describes his own life and experiences through the voice of Billy Pilgrim. Billy Pilgrim is a war veteran from the second world war.. Kurt Vonnegut is also a war veteran. Vonnegut knew that he ... Read More

A Review of The Help, a Novel by Kathryn Stockett (1587 words, 5 pages)

The Help Is it Really Helping?Kathryn Stocketts The Help is an inspiring novel about black maids who work for white families in Jackson, Mississippi in 1962. Publisher, Amy Einhorn Books said Its really hit a nerve, said Ms. Einhorn, whose imprint started off with The Help as its inaugural title. ... Read More

The Relationship Between the Narrator and Robert in Cathedral, a Short Story by Raymond Carver (740 words, 3 pages)

Cathedral, by Raymond Carver is a short story about a blind man named Robert who is friends with the narrators wife and comes to visit the two and stay overnight. The narrator is not happy about it because he does not want to have to worry about caring for a ... Read More

A Comprehensive Literary Analysis of William Faulkner’s A Rose for Emily (1290 words, 4 pages)

Plot Overview The story opens with the first person narrator recalling the funeral of an elderly spinster Emily Grierson who is vile, arrogant and cold hearted holding a nose higher than her social status, she was also lionized for being an isolation lover, though she cannot be blamed for such ... Read More

The Impact of Fate on Tess in Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy (2645 words, 8 pages)

In the book, Tess of The dUrbervilles by Thomas Hardy, the main character, Tess is put into dire situations more from fate than her own decisions. For much of the story, Tess is impacted by events that are very much outside of her control and these events lead her to ... Read More

The Oppression of Women in The Awakening by Kate Chopin and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gillman (1537 words, 5 pages)

Kate Chopins The Awakening and Charlotte Perkins The Yellow Wallpaper were both initially published in 1899 (Mahin). A time in which women were not seen as anything more than wives and mothers. Both texts present similar stories of the oppression of women within a certain society. They both contain a ... Read More

Human Condition in the Stories A Passion in the Desert by Honore de Balzac and Love of Life by Jack London (1230 words, 4 pages)

IntroductionWhen one asks of the human condition, the question is usually about our place in the world. Two stories have different points of view, but point towards the same conclusion. Honore de Balzacs A Passion in the Desert shows that, despite what others might try to say on the matter, ... Read More

The Insecurities of Meg in A Wrinkle in Time, a Novel by Madeleine L’Engle (1244 words, 4 pages)

In the story of A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine LEngle, Meg Murray is a 13 year old child who has a lot of insecurities about her personality and her intelligence. Meg starts off as the ugly duckling of the family you could say. She is not smart, or average, ... Read More

American Literature Essay Examples