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

27201 total results

The Consequences of the Quest for Vengeance in the Play, Hamlet by William Shakespeare (1100 words, 4 pages)

A relationship, built from a foundation of suspicion and betrayal, can only evolve into immense hatred and lead to mutual destruction. This deep malice is precisely seen through William Shakespeare iconic play, Hamlet the rendering of what a lifetime of sorrows can do to a man in a brief duration ... Read More

The Human Nature of Savagery in the Novel, Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1930 words, 5 pages)

The year is 1954. World War II has ended nine years ago. It is duringthis time that William Golding writes his novel Lord of the Flies. The booktakes place on a tropical island. There are boys on the island who wereleaving England due to the war when their plane crashes ... Read More

An Analysis of Themes in the Boscombe Valley Mystery by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (637 words, 2 pages)

Within Sir Arthur Conan Doyles The Boscombe Valley Mystery, a plot of blackmail and murder unfolds. Mr. McCarthy, a wealthy but shrewd man, and Mr. Turner, a once-poor thief turned rich man, quarrel over the future of their respective children. McCarthy wants a marriage, and Turner does not. This argument ... Read More

The Role and Importance of the Character of Gandalf Throughout the Journey of Bilbo Baggins in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit (1130 words, 4 pages)

Gandalf the Grey is one of the most curious characters to appear in J.R.R. Tolkiens The Hobbit. He appears and disappears at seemingly random intervals throughout the Companys travels, always providing suspiciously well-timed help at exactly the right moment. Whenever the Company needs him most, Gandalf continued to be the ... Read More

The Incorporation of History in Richard III, a Play by William Shakespeare (1605 words, 5 pages)

The English playwright William Shakespeare is a foundational figure in English literature and any works in the English language that followed his time. He was well known for taking real-life historical circumstances and transforming them into plays of political satire (Ribner, p. 252). Shakespeares play Richard III is an example ... Read More

Hatred and Harsh Trickery with Extreme Consequences in the Play, Othello by William Shakespeare (1317 words, 4 pages)

The classic Shakespearean tragedy Othello contains hatred like no other and harsh trickery with dire consequences, all because one man thought another slept with his wife. Iagos deep hatred for Othello first shows as a resentment for not being chosen as the next-in-command, and quickly turns into a jealousy for ... Read More

An Analysis of the Poem, Astraea Redux by John Dryden (456 words, 3 pages)

Textual SummaryAstraea Redux by John Dryden is a poem about the restoration and return of Charles II to the throne. It begins with giving contextual history and ends with celebrating the return of the monarchy. The overall tone of the poem is happy. Drydens use of words such as quiet ... Read More

Character Analysis of John the Savage in Brave New World, a Novel by Aldous Huxley (1267 words, 4 pages)

An attempt was made to introduce a savage into our midst. We flew all the way to New Mexico in the United States, and brought back with us one of the inhabitants of the Savage Reservation. We brought him here to London, and showed him the wonders of our society. ... Read More

The Historical Context of Mansfield Park, a Novel by Jane Austen (1739 words, 6 pages)

Joseph Lews 1994 critical analysis essay of Mansfield Park, That Abominable Traffic Mansfield Park and the Dynamics of Slavery, originally published in History, Gender, and Eighteenth Century Literature, discusses historical background leading to the writing of Mansfield Park, the way family households can mimic governmental regimes, and how Mansfield Park ... Read More

The Power of Women in the Rings Trilogy, Three Novels by J. R. R. Tolkien (1351 words, 4 pages)

Women have often been the center of debate within Tolkiens trilogy, as they appear very sparsely and only for short amounts of time and interaction. However, the women shown so far are not simply the owner of a tavern or a field hand but instead elven ladies and wives of ... Read More

An Analysis of Macbeth’s Downwards Spiral in the Play Macbeth by William Shakespeare (1446 words, 4 pages)

In William Shakespeare's great tragedy Macbeth, the story ofMacbeth's downwards spiral from an honorable and brave warrior to a madruler is told. From the very start, it is the witches' prophecies that putthe idea of killing Duncan and taking the throne into Macbeth's head,successfully starting the downward spiral. Then Lady ... Read More

Character Analysis of Hamlet in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, a Play by Tom Stoppard (610 words, 2 pages)

Within Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead play,Hamlet is a cruel character Hamlet engages in acts that hurt fellowcharacters. To this end, Hamlet requests the king of England to putGuildenstern and Rosencrantz to death. In addition, Hamlet ignores thegreeting of Polonius. Moreover, Hamlet rejects Ophelia's love in a mannerthat ... Read More

An Evaluation of the Political Context of George Orwell’s Literary Thriller, 1984 (396 words, 2 pages)

Our New Big BrotherShakespeare once said that the pen is mightier than the sword. This is true in more ways than one can possibly imagine. It is even more certainly true in George Orwells 1984. In this literary thriller Orwell creates a totalitarian government, a world where a person is ... Read More

How Writers Have Used Narrative Voice and/or Characterization to Explore Social Concerns in Literature (1484 words, 3 pages)

How have writers used narrative voice andor characterization to explore a social or intellectual concern in the two works you have studied? For centuries, authors have strived to use their literary texts as a medium for social change and justice conveying their thoughts and ideas on a variety of key ... Read More

The Role of Materialism in Fueling the Practice of Physical Conditioning in Aldous Huxley’s Book, Brave New World (818 words, 4 pages)

Materialism in Brave New WorldIn our modern world, slavery is a concept that is abhorred. In Aldous Huxleys book Brave New Worlds society is entirely dependent on a form of slavery. This form of slavery is created entirely using conditioning. Conditioning practices instill physical and psychological qualities of the working ... Read More

The Difference between the Book and Movie Interpretation of the Ents, a Character Created by J. R. R. Tolkien (1015 words, 3 pages)

The adaptation of a book into a film includes many changes, which mostly turn on out to be cosmetic. However, some of the minute changes can make a massive impact in the telling of the intended story, and such is the case of the Entmoot. The idea of good versus ... Read More

A Portrayal of the Female Villains in Jacob Grimm and Wilhem Grimm’s Hansel and Gretel (678 words, 3 pages)

Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm's "Hansel and Gretel" story depicts twofemale characters as villains these two women engage in evil deeds. Forexample, a certain Old Witch detains a boy named Hansel with the intentionof eating him. Moreover, this Old Witch tries to bake and eat a girl namedGretel. Like the ... Read More

A Discussion on the Government’s Suppression of Freedom in 1984 by George Orwell (1247 words, 5 pages)

The respect and commitment of our founding fathers to the preservationof democracy, liberty, and human rights led our small country of rebelliouscolonies to become a world power in 100 years and the strongest nation bothmilitarily and economically 100 years after that. As great as our countrymay seem we are in ... Read More

An Analysis of the Lack of Social Freedoms in 1984 by George Orwell (1592 words, 7 pages)

1984 Why it is Still Relevant Today Out of the many twentieth century writers George Orwell's writingsstand out for their haunting nature. Orwell was known as a staunch anti-totalitarian writer whose works include novels such as 1984 and AnimalFarm, as well as many essays and articles. Although some might pass ... Read More

An Analysis of the Power of Secrecy Spanning From All Generations in Richard III by William Shakespeare and The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (1153 words, 4 pages)

The concept of seeing versus believing, a notion used over many hundreds of years to create secrecy amongst large groups or individuals, gives great power to those privy to the secrets. Richard III by William Shakespeare and The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer both portray the power of secrecy spanning ... Read More

An Analysis of Dracula by Bram Stoker as an Example of a Well Constructed Novel (1452 words, 5 pages)

In Bram Stokers novel Dracula, the first chapter presents the audience with the narrator Jonathan Harker describing a sunny day is Munich, however as Mr. Harker prepares to go for a drive his coachman Johann is warned to be back before nightfall because it is Walpurgis Nacht. While on his ... Read More

An Analysis of the Speech of Lady Macbeth in Act 1 Scene 5 of the Play Macbeth by William Shakespeare (558 words, 2 pages)

Lady Macbeths speech in Act 1 Scene 5 reveals to the reader through vivid language and motifs who the true villain of the play is while also foreshadowing the death of King Duncan and Macbeths imminent destruction.Lady Macbeths speech reveals that she, not Macbeth, will be the true villain of ... Read More

The Significance of Both Lucky and Unlucky Numbers in Our Society in Terry Pratchett’s Novel The Color of Magic (481 words, 2 pages)

Color of Magic Unlucky Number 8Terry Pratchetts the Color of Magic is a unique fantasy novel. The novel takes place on the Discworld, a flat earth-like disc carried on the backs of four elephants that are carried by the turtle, Great Atuin. The story revolves around the wizard Rincewind who ... Read More

A Comparison of the Essays, Living Like Weasels by Annie Dillard and The Death of the Moth by Virginia Woolf (1295 words, 5 pages)

Comparison EssayAlthough Annie Dillard and Virginia Woolf both use forms of descriptive language in their respective essays Woolf provides a more effective use of the pair in describing a phase of life.Both of the essays use living things to provide a look into two different phases of life. In Living ... Read More

An Analysis of Amy Herckerling’s Speech About Jane Austen’s Novel Emma in the Film Clueless (653 words, 2 pages)

Clueless Speech How has Amy Herckerling used her film Clueless to say something new about Jane Austens novel, Emma? One of the first things that came to mind was the use of an accepting community. While in Emma, it was common to disdain others who were different to you (this ... Read More

Claiming of Lucy Westenra’s Life in Bram Stoker’s Dracula (658 words, 2 pages)

Lucy Westenra Draculas Easy TargetIn Bram Stokers Dracula the monstrous vampire claims the life of Lucy Westenra within the first few chapters after his arrival in London. Lucy proved to be an easy target for Dracula because of her innocent curiosity towards men and her sleep walking habits exposing her ... Read More

The Themes of Rebelling of Adolescence, Political Repression and Government Propaganda in George Orwell’s Animal Farm (840 words, 3 pages)

Animal Farm EssayAnimal Farm, a novel about animals taking control of their farm from their owners, has captivated readers for decades. However, with such an unorthodox story line for a book written for older audiences how has it managed to remain popular for so long? With a plot line with ... Read More

The Theme of Action and Consequence in William Shakespeare’s Play, Hamlet (840 words, 3 pages)

Where there is an action, there is a consequence. William Shakespeares play, Hamlet revolves around this theme of an action and consequence. The play is about a young prince, who has gone through many challenges to get revenge on his uncle, who killed his father and married his mother. A ... Read More

The Elements of Conflict in Antigone by Sophocles, Hamlet by William Shakespeare and Dollhouse by Henrik Ibsen (1071 words, 4 pages)

No matter how you approach writing a piece of literature, you cannotavoid recreating certain themes or conflicts. The conflicts that aroseduring the three dramas, Antigone, Hamlet and Dollhouse are no exception,they contained similar conflictual elements. These elements are the powerof males, doing the morally right thing regardless of consequences, and ... Read More

The Motif of Blood in the Classic Novel, Dracula by Bram Stoker (1655 words, 5 pages)

Vampires have continuously dominated human curiosity. This is especially evident in popular culture. Shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and True Blood as well as book series like Stephenie Meyers, Twilight, have gained huge followings by building upon the idea. Although published over a century ago Bram Stokers classic ... Read More

English Literature Essay Examples