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

27201 total results

Marriage in A House to Let, a Short Story by Charles Dickens (888 words, 2 pages)

Although they both have a common goal of securing a hand in marriage, the proposers in passage one, Mr. Collins, seeks to allure a woman into marriage by listing the benefits he might receive, while the speaker of the second passage expresses his authentic love for the proposee. Unlike the ... Read More

The Fabrication of Bravery in Brave New World, a Novel by Aldous Huxley (1585 words, 5 pages)

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is a very surface-level type of book. Many different themes are exposed mere moments after theyre underlined, like the conflict between utopia and dystopia, free choice and happiness, conflict and comfort, the list goes on and on. However, theres something that is overlooked by ... Read More

Effective Fear in a Futuristic Society in 1984, a Novel by George Orwell (2397 words, 6 pages)

Effective Fear through PlausibilityThe dystopian scene is a writing style with the express purpose to terrify the reader with a fictitiously horrible world of extreme and radical social stigmas and often times an opinionated look at some sort of political perspective. Perhaps it is a world gone awry due to ... Read More

Inequalities in the Social Class Structure in The Stolen Party, a Short Story by Liliana Heker (1337 words, 4 pages)

The Stolen Party Stolen MeaningThe Stolen Party is, unfortunately, a story without a happy ending. Much like works such as The Great Gatsby or 1984, the lack of any definitive victory for the protagonist helps to drive home the point. The title of the story is only truly important after ... Read More

Betrayal, Death, and Murder in Animal Farm, a Novel by George Orwell (552 words, 2 pages)

Animal FarmAnimal Farm, by George Orwell, is a novel that deals with betrayal, death, and murder. All are hard subjects to deal with, and take a mature mind to grasp. The novel also has a main scapegoat, Snowball, he is blamed for anything and everything that goes wrong on the ... Read More

Setting as a Symbol for Oppression of Women in Charlotte Bronte’s Novel Jane Eyre (494 words, 2 pages)

Explore the presentation of relationships in Jane EyreBronte uses setting to depict societys inhibition of women throughout the novel. Gateshead, where she first lived is perhaps one of the worst stages of her life, the term gate could suggest how this place and thus society is preventing her from flourishing ... Read More

The Theme of “Undesirable” in Jane Eyre and Never Let Me Go (3059 words, 8 pages)

Explore the ways in which Jane Eyre and Never Let Me Go present the undesirableIn the first chapter of Jane Eyre, we encounter the young Jane sitting next to a window reading a book about birds. She is struck by the illustration of a broken boat, stranded on a desolate ... Read More

The Conventions of Farce in Joe Orton’s Play Loot (729 words, 2 pages)

Explore Orton's use of the conventions of farce elsewhere in the textOrton employs absurdism throughout the play to give the piece a farcical nature. One primary example of this is the ridiculous amount of power that Truscott seems to command over the other protagonists. Truscott, claiming to be an employee ... Read More

Ideas About Identity in Never Let Me Go by Ishiguro (870 words, 2 pages)

How does Ishiguro explore ideas about identity in 'Never Let Me Go?Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once wrote that the human race is a monotonous affair. Most people spend the greatest part of their time working in order to live, and what little freedom remains so fills them with fear that ... Read More

The Dramatic Impact Created in an Extract From the Play Loot by Joe Orton (391 words, 1 pages)

How does Orton create dramatic impact in the extract (p53-57)?Orton uses McLeavy as the comic butt to create dramatic impact in this extract. The theme of naive conformity to institutions is very common throughout the play and McLeavy is often used by Orton to showcase this flaw he sees with ... Read More

Comparing the Differences Between the Book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and the Movie Frankenstein by Kenneth Branagh (946 words, 3 pages)

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, is a nail-biting yet captivating tale of how a man by the name of Victor Frankenstein gives life to an abomination of a monster. This pieced together creature seeks revenge for his unwanted creation and this brings a twisted suspense to the plot. Mary Shelleys book ... Read More

Why Marcus Brutus is a Tragic Hero of the Play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (1020 words, 3 pages)

What makes someone a hero? When looking at people, its easy to assume that heroes are a certain type of person, as if being heroic is an exclusive personality trait. However, a hero isnt defined by their identity, theyre defined by their actions. Throughout several of Shakespeares plays, a tragic ... Read More

The Function and Meaning of Power in the Story The Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1058 words, 4 pages)

PowerWith great power, comes great responsibility. When you put together a group of people, it is almost inevitable that there will be some type of power ranking amongst the group. One reason is that every human is different. No one is the same, not even the most identical twins on ... Read More

The Hurried and Rash Decisions Made by the Characters of the Play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (874 words, 3 pages)

Shakespeares play Romeo and Juliet tells the story of two young adolescents from rival households who fall in love instantaneously at a gathering and become star crossed lovers who try to defy the odds to be together but fail. Most all the characters in this play make quick decisions that ... Read More

Vulnerability in the Face of Social Collapse in 1984 by George Orwell and Metropolis by Fritz Lang (970 words, 3 pages)

By utilising foundational fixtures of their worlds, George Orwell's mid-Twentieth Century novel 1984 and Fritz Lang's early-Twentieth Century film Metropolis warp what is known to impart uncomfortable truths. In light of the Cold War's utilitarianism and the Weimar Republic's economic downfall, both Orwell and Lang position the reader in a ... Read More

The Character of Iago and His Methods of Achieving His Goals in the Play Othello by William Shakespeare (901 words, 3 pages)

Iago is the key villain in Othello, the play by William Shakespeare. His envy and jealousy makes him rescind the life of his wifes boss and the boss himself, Othello. Most often, people work to achieve goals which at times proves difficult watching others, who are mostly less accomplished achieve ... Read More

Secular Law and Cosmic Justice in the Tragedy of Hamlet, a Play by William Shakespeare (1051 words, 3 pages)

Shakespeares Seventeenth Century Revenge Tragedy, Hamlet, stands opulent among its peers due to its representation of the ambiguity of achieving legitimate justice, wherein the conflict between personal desires, secular law and cosmic justice express the indefinable nature of morality. Desire as an impetus to secular order is illustrated through the ... Read More

An Analysis of Act 3 Scene 1 Lines 52-77 of the Play Macbeth by William Shakespeare (660 words, 2 pages)

Macbeth Commentary In Act 3 Scene 1 lines 52-77, this soliloquy, delivered by Macbeth, takes place after Macbeths coronation, followed by the interview of Macbeth and the two murderers. Macbeth has just finished asking questions and says farewell to Banquo. Macbeth is alone when greed and anger overtakes him. Shakespeare, ... Read More

Unselfishness in A Tale of Two Cities, a Novel by Charles Dickens (889 words, 2 pages)

A Tale of Two Cities Book Report "A Tale of Two Cities," written by Charles Dickens, takes place inthe time of the French Revolution. It covers a family's plight as they tryto survive in both England and France. Throughout this book, there is amajor lesson to be learned Unselfishness. It ... Read More

The Moral Issues and Concepts in Mere Christianity, a Book by C.S. Lewis (1405 words, 6 pages)

Different philosophers taught on ethics, morality, and views of humanity to the world. Such education focused on doing well to others, whether as servants or masters. Different religious and social groups express different understanding of the term worldview. Individuals needed to coexist in their communities in customs that make them ... Read More

How the Choices of Authors Make an Impact on Their Texts (2133 words, 7 pages)

All of the decisions an author makes, whether small or large, contribute to the overall rhetorical situation of their text. Whether it be the audience, purpose, or context of the text, or the word choice and sentence structure that the author chooses, they each are factors in the larger rhetorical ... Read More

A Comparison of the Differences in the Author’s View of Ethics in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (2205 words, 7 pages)

Charles Dickens novel A Christmas Carol (1843) and Wilkie Collinss novel The Moonstone (1868), both show different messages about their authors view of ethics. The Victorian era was an era when the ethical view of the world and the people in it was undergoing a period of massive change. Both ... Read More

The Signs of Being Prideful and Having Prejudice in Pride and Prejudice, a Novel by Jane Austen (618 words, 2 pages)

In the Book Pride and Prejudice both main characters, Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy, show many signs of being prideful and having prejudice. Mr. Darcy, showing pride and Elizabeth Bennet showing prejudice. Each reflect on this throughout the book until reaching the end when they see the truth about one ... Read More

The Failure of Monarchy in King Lear, a Play by William Shakespeare (1009 words, 4 pages)

A Failed Attempt at Governing An Analysis On Why Monarchy Is An Inadequate Form Of Governing As Seen In King LearThroughout history, civilizations have debated over ways to govern people. Monarchy, democracy, communism, socialism, fascism, and dictatorships have been attempted by rulers. Through trial and error, most people in society ... Read More

The Change of the Views on Macbeth and Lady Macbeth Throughout the Play by William Shakespeare (1006 words, 2 pages)

How do our views on Macbeth and Lady Macbeth change over the course of the play?The relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth is certainly an odd one. Shakespeare initially describes Macbeth as a brave soldier by labelling him brave Macbeth and noble Macbeth. It is surprising then that Lady Macbeth ... Read More

Prejudice as a Motivator in Othello, a Play by William Shakespeare (420 words, 2 pages)

In Shakespeare's Othello, prejudice plays the single motivator for all cruelty demonstrated throughout the work. The society is predominantly composed of white male political figures that view differences in culture and gender with disdain. They have constructed a social hierarchy near impossible to climb and cast away any person or ... Read More

The Governess in Jane Eyre, a Novel by Charlotte Bronte (3421 words, 10 pages)

The treatment of our most vulnerable population is something that has changed throughout the ages. While no one argues that children are the future of society, how one educates children to prepare for the daunting task of becoming a successful citizen of the world has varied through time. In the ... Read More

An Analysis of The Knight’s Tale in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (942 words, 3 pages)

The Knights Tale In the literary classic, The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer includes The Knights Tale to teach the lesson that breaking the basic societal codes of life leads to suffering and must end in justice. In The Knights Tale, two knights from Thebes, sworn to brotherhood, fall in love ... Read More

Hamlet’s Struggle on Whether to Live or to Commit Suicide in the Play Hamlet by William Shakespeare (892 words, 3 pages)

To be, or not to be That is the question, is the beginning of arguably the most famous soliloquy of all time in Shakespeares Hamlet (III. i. 64). In this speech, Hamlet speaks to himself and contemplates if there truly is a point to living. He laments over the pains ... Read More

The Depiction of Childhood in The Go-Between by L.P. Hartley (708 words, 2 pages)

In the book, The Go-Between by L.P. Hartley, Leo Colston looks back on his childhood. The story starts with Leo looking through some of his old belongings, namely, his diary. However, he can barely bring himself to look through that diary because of the memories he has, and the memories ... Read More

English Literature Essay Examples