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

85147 total results

Why Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables Became a Classic? (636 words, 1 pages)

Les Miserables Very few books in the history of our world have stood the test of time. In order to be enjoyed by generations, a book has to have certain qualities. The book has to touch the reader both in his mind and in his heart. Les Miserables by Victor ... Read More

The Elusive Love in A Rose for Emily, a Short Story by William Faulkner (485 words, 2 pages)

Love Knows No Boundaries A Rose for Emily When examining a story of murder, one must ask themselves if the killers motive is understandable or if the killer is simply deranged. This question arises after a person successfully reads William Faulkners A Rose For Emily. Faulkners tale of Miss Emily ... Read More

A Single Perspective of the Difficult and Complex Life of the Irish-American Community in Boston During the 1950’s in The Last Hurrah, a Novel by Edwin O’Connor (1151 words, 2 pages)

Edwin O'Connor's novel The Last Hurrah presents an effective view of the difficult and complex life of the Irish-American community in Boston of the 1950's. The author uses a number of characterizations to produce themes that relate to the political and social considerations of this era. He also provides most ... Read More

The Pathetic Character of Jay in The Great Gatsby, a Novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1286 words, 2 pages)

Pathetic is a term used to describe someone who is pitifully unsuccessful. Success is not necessarily measured in wealth or fame, but it is measured by how much one has accomplished in life. A successful person is one who has set many goals for himself and then goes out in ... Read More

The Life of the Colossus of Independence, John Adams in John Adams, a Book by David McCullough (1204 words, 2 pages)

In this prevailing, heroic life story, David McCullough unfolds the adventurous life-journey of John Adams, the brilliant, fiercely independent, often hot-tempered, always honest Yankee patriot The colossus of independence, as Thomas Jefferson called him, who spared nothing in his passion for the American Revolution who rose to become the second ... Read More

Emotional Wealth in The Jade Peony, a Novel by Wayson Choy (874 words, 1 pages)

Wealth When people talk about wealth they usually mean materialistic things such as money, however there is another type of 'wealth', emotional wealth. This is the wealth that people give to each other. Some examples can be spending time with people, lending a hand to someone you do not know, ... Read More

Comparing the Similarities and Differences of Kali and Jazzy, Jyoti and Jasmine, and Jane and Jase in Jasmine, a Cultural Book by Bharati Mukherjee (1088 words, 2 pages)

Bharati Mukherjees Jasmine is a cultural book that involves the concepts of Indian Literatures. Jasmine, a girl who is learning to become an American, takes on another roles, another names and reinvents herself every time she meets someone new. Jasmine is a school building that has new people coming in ... Read More

The Quest for Happiness in the Literary Works of J.D. Salinger (1504 words, 5 pages)

Jerome David Salinger, known as J.D., is an American short story writer and novelist. He was born on January 1, 1919 and is still alive at the age of 81. J.D. Salinger was born and raised in Manhattan. He went to prep school at Valley Forge Military Academy from 1934-1936. ... Read More

The Legendary Exploits of King Arthur in Le Morte d’Arthur, a Book by Sir Thomas Malory (1952 words, 6 pages)

Sir Thomas Malory wrote regarding the legendary exploits of King Arthur. Arthur was often debated as fact or fictional. (see Appendix I) He was the legendary British King who appeared in Medieval romances as the sovereign of a knightly fellowship. It has not been certain, however, if Arthur was fact, ... Read More

The Ideas of John Locke on the Preservation of Property (7566 words, 9 pages)

Locke says that the state has a responsibility to preserve people's private property. He (1688) says "The great and chief end, therefore, of men's uniting into common-wealths, and putting themselves under government, is the preservation of their property" (p. 262). The state has to set laws which establish the rights ... Read More

An Ethnography of an Iraqi Village in The Guests of the Sheik, a Book by Elizabeth Warnock Fernea (1127 words, 2 pages)

Elizabeth Warnock Fernea provides an overview of the ethnography of an Iraqi village in her work, The Guests of the Sheik. Within her book, Fernea considers the element of gender and its impact on the roles of women in Iraq, as well as the expectations based within the gender-specific social ... Read More

The Withering of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby, a Novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald (2950 words, 4 pages)

The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a portrayal of the withering of the American Dream. The American Dream promises prosperity and self-fulfillment as rewards for hard work and self-reliance. A product of the frontier and the west, the American Dream challenges people to have dreams and strive ... Read More

An Analysis of the Literary Aspects of The Great Gatsby, a Book by F. Scott Fitzgerald (3218 words, 12 pages)

Cultural Context The book takes place during the 1920's, the decade in American history as the "roaring twenties." This book epitomizes many of the characteristics of the time period, after the eighteenth amendment, the sale of alcohol became prohibited, but this movement, known as the temperance movement, did not achieve ... Read More

A Comparison of the Beginning of School to the Expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden in Genesis, a Poem by Bruce Dawe (905 words, 3 pages)

Bruce Dawe, an Australian poet, has written the poem 'Genesis'. The poem compares the beginning of school to Adam and Eve's expulsion from the Garden of Eden, hence the title 'Genesis'. Dawe has put the context of the poem into a modern day theme. Using the comparison of Adam and ... Read More

The Life and Works of George Wesley Bellows (2287 words, 4 pages)

Have you ever seen a painting of two fighters going at it hot and heavy on a stag night? If you have, then chances are that you have just seen a painting of George Bellowss from Tom Sharkeys Athletic Club in New York City. Prizefights were among some of his ... Read More

The Life and Literary Works of Edwin Arlington Robinson (1140 words, 5 pages)

Edwin Arlington Robinson was a poet who has long been popular among lay readersthe non-literary publicbut the tremendous scope of his work and the power of his mastery over words marks him as one of the greater poets of his time. In spite of its consistent tone his works showed ... Read More

A Soldier’s Struggles to Return to Normal Life in Soldier’s Home, a Short Story by Ernest Hemingway (1525 words, 2 pages)

A person's return from war is always a frustrating experience. Facing the normalcy of everyday life while the memories of the gruesome struggles still rage inside a person's mind can wreak emotional havoc on a person's well being. The situation becomes much more dire when the environment he is coming ... Read More

The Misconception That Video Games Promotes Violent Behavior Among Children (1335 words, 6 pages)

In todays society video games play an important role in a childs life. Most children play games when they are bored and think nothing of them. Even though children engage in playing video games, these games do not cause the violence among children but it is the children themselves. Society, ... Read More

Drunkenness as a Social Problem in Crime and Punishment, a Novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky (5670 words, 8 pages)

Crime and Punishment was the second of Fyodor Dostoevsky's most important, mature fictional works. It was first published in the conservative journal The Russian Messenger, appearing in twelve monthly installments in 1866. Dostoevsky left three full notebooks of materials pertinent to Crime and Punishment. These have been published under the ... Read More

The Acceptance of Death in the Texts of Sappho and Gilgamesh (2292 words, 3 pages)

The only thing life guarantees is death. Some accept death for what it is while others so foolishly try to avoid it. This notion is clearly depicted in the texts of Sappho and Gilgamesh. Both explore death, but only Sappho accepts it. She is fearless towards the unknown and is ... Read More

The Rise and Fall of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby, a Novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald (2032 words, 3 pages)

Many people claim that "The Great Gatsby" is the quintessential American novel. This is due to the reoccurring theme of the book of the rise and fall of the American dream. The book is very significant because of its relation to the time period in which it was written and ... Read More

The Concept of a Dying Man in the Middle of the African Safari in The Snows of Kilimanjaro, a Short Story by Ernest Hemingway (1015 words, 3 pages)

The Marvelous thing is that its painless, he said. Thats how you know when it starts (Hemingway 3). A dying man in the middle of the African Safari, is the concept of Ernest Hemingways, The Snows of Kilimanjaro. Hemingway, in this story more than any other of his works, used ... Read More

My Mother as an Example of a Critical Thinker in my Life (813 words, 1 pages)

We have meet many people, perhaps we might think that all of them think but how many have you meet that are critical thinkers? In this paper I will use someone who is very close to me as an example of a critical thinker and I will show why I ... Read More

The Internal Conflicts and Trials of Rev. John Hale in The Crucible, a Play by Arthur Miller (1093 words, 2 pages)

Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible in response to a period in American history when there was widespread fear of communism. It is set in the sixteen nineties, during the infamous Salem Witch Trials. Salem was governed as a Theocracy, rule by God or a priestly order. In this time many ... Read More

A Review of Crest of the Green Leaf: Entry Five (590 words, 1 pages)

16th Day of the 3rd Month I don't know how Father managed to endure the monotony. All day it was nothing but debating. Round and round we went the Counselors endlessly repeating themselves. It's impossible to determine whether they are for or against a war with Black Arrow. Speaking thus, ... Read More

The Undertow That Breaks the Force of the Arching Wave in Astronomer’s Wife, a Short Story by Kay Boyle (572 words, 1 pages)

In the opening paragraph of Kay Boyle's Astronomer's Wife, Boyle depicts a woman who is oppressed of an equal, intelligent conversation with her spouse. Mrs. Ames sees to all matters of running a successful household, while the astronomer sleeps late and is a loner. His profession makes it clear that ... Read More

An Erotic Encounter at the Beach (1630 words, 2 pages)

The only sound that can be heard is the gently lapping of the waves rolling into the beach. She lay naked in the sand slick with sweat in the hot afternoon sun. Alone on the beach, she stretches sensually and gets to her feet. She walks slowly to the water, ... Read More

Friendship in Of Mice and Men, a Novel by John Steinbeck (2480 words, 7 pages)

John Steinbeck celebrated friendship it mapped the contours of his life and art. "In every bit of honest writing in the world," he noted in a 1938 journal entry, "...there is a base theme. Try to understand men if you understand each other you will be kind to each other. ... Read More

The Theme of Survival in Canadian Literature (1642 words, 5 pages)

The Short Story "Be Fruitful and Multiply", by Madeleine Ferron, may in itself seem to be merely the story of one young woman's fervor for creating a family of many children and grandchildren. Due to it being extremely short and marginally descriptive one might have a difficult time discerning little ... Read More

Respect and Wisdom Despite a Young Age in Eleven, a Short Story by Sandra Cisneros (771 words, 1 pages)

The irony of life is that as you grow older you want to experience your youth again, while at the time you are young all you want is to be older. In "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros, Rachel is only eleven years old, yet she would rather be one hundred and ... Read More

American Literature Essay Examples