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

85147 total results

The Free-Spirited Sixo in Beloved, a Novel by Toni Morrison (951 words, 3 pages)

Never EnslavedIn Beloved by Toni Morrison, Sixo was never truly enslaved, he disconnected his body from his soul by not turning into an animal, refusing to accept mental dominance and rejecting the constraints of slavery. He demonstrated consistent humanity throughout his captivity in Sweet Home despite the Schoolteachers twisted methodology ... Read More

The Characteristics of the Middles Ages According to William Manchester (294 words, 1 pages)

William Manchester argues that the medieval world cannot be characterized as a civilization. He believed this because in his opinion, the meaning of civilization is a society that has a high level of cultural and technological development. The medieval world took place during the Dark Ages. It was known as ... Read More

An Interpretation of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby, a Novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald (901 words, 3 pages)

DreamsThe American Dream can be described in several ways. The first is defined as having two point five kids and a white picket fence. Another describes it as the ability to reach your full potential and be who you are without fear of repression, to an extent, anyway. Yet a ... Read More

Character Analysis of The Marquesa in the Bridge of San Luis, a Novel by Thornton Wilder (705 words, 3 pages)

Analysis of The MarquesaPart two of The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder begins with a tragedy, a young girl loved by none. The Marquesas childhood is plagued by societys isolation, this abandonment forms her very being which is then reflected upon her daughter to her eventual relationship ... Read More

A Review of A River Runs Through It, a Book by Norman Maclean (330 words, 1 pages)

A River Runs Through it Book ReportThis true story By Norman Maclean, begins with Norman and his brother Paul. They live in western Montana near the junction of the great trout rivers. Cold streams filled with trout captivate Paul and Norman from a very early age. Norman and Paul were ... Read More

An Analysis of the Story The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan (504 words, 1 pages)

The Joy Luck Club by Amy TanThe story, The Joy Luck Club is divided into four sections, and each section with four stories inside observing the relationship between a mother and daughter. Resulting in sixteen stories in this book. This story is organized and divided in a way of how ... Read More

The Struggle of an Athlete in Friday Night Lights by H. G. Bissinger (735 words, 3 pages)

Every great athlete must struggle to fulfill the expectations from his family, the religious beliefs, and the training requirements in a competitive sport. In FridayNight Lights by H.G. Bissinger, ambivalence is one major problem that Ivory has during and post-season. Ambivalence does not stick with a person for a short ... Read More

The Fear Dealt by the Character of Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire, a Play by Tennessee Williams (911 words, 3 pages)

Fear is a basic human emotion. Scared people do things they wouldnt normally do. I know what fears like. Its dark, pulse pounding. It makes knees quake, your heart pound. Fear feels like your drowning. The worst part though, is when fear makes you change. For a small girl, being ... Read More

An Analysis of the Narration Style in How, a Story by Lorrie Moore (542 words, 2 pages)

In How by Lorrie Moore, the narration style helps foster a deeper connection between narrator and audience through syntax and personal pronouns. This is vital in order to fulfill the authors purpose, helping the audience realize similarities between their own romantic relationships and the narrators.The author writes short sentences in ... Read More

A Comparison of The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane and A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway (1730 words, 6 pages)

The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane and A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway have similarities and differences that dealt with the authors style of writing and the content of the story. Both stories support the idea of how war is difficult and how it affected life and ... Read More

The Allegorical Lesson in the Mask of the Red Death, a Short Story by Edgar Allan Poe (335 words, 2 pages)

The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allen Poe is an allegory about a plague that struck Europe and nearby regions killing two-thirds of the population. This plague was called the Red Death because it caused victims to bleed from their painful sores. Prince Prospero tried to ignore all ... Read More

What It Means to Be Human in Grapes of Wrath, a Novel by John Steinbeck (651 words, 2 pages)

People are incredible. Its hard to see it right off, because things people are capable of can be terrible, horrifying. Things people are capable of can scar you for life. The surviving children of the Newtown massacre are scared forever by the horrors they witnessed at such a young age. ... Read More

An Analysis of Father-Son Relationship in Maus, a Novel by Art Speigelman (2353 words, 8 pages)

The graphic novel Maus by Art Speigelman displays an increasingly tense relationship between him and his father, Vladek. Although Vladek is initially portrayed as frivolous, contriving, self-pitying, detrimentally offensive to his loved ones, and compulsive, the reader eventually learns, through his recollection of the horrors of the Holocaust that Vladek ... Read More

Teen Depression in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (938 words, 4 pages)

Stuck In Between About 20 percent of teens will experience depression before they reach adulthood. Some signs of teen depression include irritability, avoidance of social interactions, and poor performance in school. The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, is a novel told from the view of Holden Caulfield ... Read More

The Pain of Losing a Father in Fun Home, a Book by Alison Bechdel (843 words, 3 pages)

In chapter two, pages 45-46 of Fun Home, Bechdel wrote about her fathers death and her reactions and feelings to it. The way she acted towards his death was unusual but it was somewhat expected. On page 45, Bechdel mentions that when the subject of parents came up in conversation ... Read More

A Personal Analysis of the Movie The Grapes of Wrath (696 words, 2 pages)

Grapes of WrathThe Grapes of Wrath was a movie that left me with a series of emotions when it was finished. The many things that happened with Tom Joad and his family were obviously put in place in the movie to have the audience experience an array of emotions. After ... Read More

The Evolution of the Character of Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Novel The Scarlet Letter (1203 words, 4 pages)

Three pillars of AHave you ever seen a wretched person become an inspiration? Hester Prynnes character journeys through changes in Nathaniel Hawthornes novel, The Scarlet Letter. After committing the sin of adultery, Hester is thrown into a world of ignominy when the town decrees that the scarlet letter A will ... Read More

The Life and Death of Chris McCandless in the Novella Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (2485 words, 7 pages)

Exploring the inner sky can reveal many different reasons and explanations that justify our thoughts and actions. Every human, in some aspect, aligns with his or her astrological sign. Although events and experiences differ the lives between people, their natural subconscious mind will lead them to the path they were ... Read More

An Examination of Romanticism and Realism in the Poem Mock Orange by Louise Gluck (1014 words, 5 pages)

Realism and Romanticism in Mock OrangeRomantic sentiment reigns prevalent amongst the preoccupations of writers and artists. Volumes of works dedicate themselves to the matters of love and emotion thereafter. However, Louise Gluck protests such ideas of romantic frivolity and sexual union, instead likening them to objects of her own hatred. ... Read More

An Impact of Rumor and Accusations in American Society Using Arthur Miller’s the Crucible (792 words, 3 pages)

The CrucibleAn Icon for Mass HysteriaWritten during the Red Scare of the 1950s by Arthur Miller, The Crucible takes place in another era in American history which mass hysteria plays a crucial role. The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 saw twenty people killed after a group of young girls accused ... Read More

The Life and Death of Christopher Johnson in the Novel Into the Wild by Jon Krakaeur (460 words, 2 pages)

Christopher Johnson traveled into the wilderness of Mt. McKinley to test his endurance and strength. Christopher was a graduate from college. As a college student, Christopher would talk to the homeless and buy them meals. He never understood why such a wealthy country had people helpless and hungry. He was ... Read More

A Literary Analysis of the Novel The Marian by Andy Weir (303 words, 2 pages)

The Martian by Andy Weir was a story of a mission to Mars. On the mission, they left a man on the planet when evacuating because of a dust storm.Mark Watneyis the man. He struggled with living on a Mars. He had to learn how to grow food, produce water, ... Read More

An Analysis of the Tone in the Novel The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien (681 words, 3 pages)

Tone in The Things They CarriedIn stories, tone is used to set the mood for a scene and help convey the emotions that are present. These emotions are a large part of understanding the text as a whole and the purpose behind the text. It can also be used as ... Read More

The Book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Should Not Be Banned Because of the Social Issues Pertaining to the Life of the Workers in the 1930s (864 words, 4 pages)

The Ban of John Steinbecks Of Mice and MenThe book Of Mice and Men is one of the top ten most challenged books of the 21st Century. (Olson, 4) This means that many people, including parents and school administrators, request that school libraries remove the book from their catalogue. This ... Read More

The Different Works of Stephen King (514 words, 2 pages)

Stephen King is an author who has inspired and influenced my writing for many years. My personal taste revolves around classic science fiction and fantasy such as War of the Worlds, A Wrinkle in Time, and The Princess Bride, and horror has never been a genre which I appreciate. However ... Read More

A Critical Analysis of the View from 80, an Essay by Malcolm Cowley (1345 words, 5 pages)

What does it take to be old? Is there an age requirement? Do you start relying more on others? Are you old when people start offering you their bus seat? Cowley begins his essay with a long and accurate list of these conditions, yet even that barely scratches the surface. ... Read More

The Quest for True Identity in Bless Me, Ultima, a Novel by Rudolfo Anaya (885 words, 3 pages)

In this excerpt from Bless Me, Ultima, Antonio struggles to definehis identity as his parents pull him in different directions. Throughstrong images, the deliberate structure of the language, and powerfulsymbols, Rudolfo Anaya presents the idea that in order to find one's trueidentity, he or she must synchronize known truths. Anaya's ... Read More

The Idea of Postmodernism in the Novel The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien (2562 words, 9 pages)

Postmodernism Perspectives in The Things They Carried by Tim O BrienThe idea of postmodernism refers to a personal viewpoint that claims reality, in its essence, is constructed by unique experiences that are relevant only to ones self and therefore cannot be perfectly understood by others. Postmodernism opposes the central mindset ... Read More

An Analysis of the Life of the Lost Generation in the Sun Also Rises, a Novel by Ernest Hemingway (1125 words, 4 pages)

Dusk fell near the end of World War I. Misery filled the lives of the enchanted comingofage individuals, and the result was a lost generation. The depiction of meaningless lives during the Lost Generation was most prevalent throughout The Sun Also Rises written by Ernest Hemingway. As in the novel, ... Read More

The Role of Fear in the Crucible, a Play by Arthur Miller (964 words, 3 pages)

In "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller, fear was portrayed as an essential role in degrading the integrity of humans, through the different aspects of social, political, and religious perspectives. In the theocratic society of "The Crucible," fear engendered the first accusation made by Tituba, which served to imply the first ... Read More

American Literature Essay Examples