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

27201 total results

Cleopatra and Antony by Shakespeare: Cleopatra’s True Feelings for Antony (1137 words, 3 pages)

As the play evolves so do Cleopatras feelings towards Antony. This creates an illusion of an allegory- though the basic interpretation of Antony and Cleopatras love was that it was a product of political motivation, after Antonys death Cleopatra contradicts this traditional idea, creating a deeper level to their historic ... Read More

The Contrasting Character Traits and Actions of Banquo in Macbeth, a Play by William Shakespeare (679 words, 2 pages)

Banquo Character StudyIn William Shakespeares play Macbeth, Macbeth acquires the kingdom of Scotland through murder and treason after being told by the three witches that he would be thane of Cawdor and Glamis as well as the King of Scotland. His ambitions get the better of him and he acts ... Read More

The Benevolent, Diplomatic, and Reserved Character of Old Misery in The Destructors, a Short Story by Graham Greene (358 words, 1 pages)

Imagine hearing the sound of destruction in the faint distance, awakening to the reality of your own world being torn down. Thats how Old Misery experienced when he woke to find his once beautiful home demolished. The Destructors, by Graham Greene describes the procedure of T and his gang as ... Read More

The Importance of Pairs in the Play Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare (755 words, 3 pages)

The Importance of Shakespearian PairsShakespearian plays, comedic or tragic, all follow a similar formula. He uses many writing devices to make the shows interesting and pleasing to watch. Some of these devices include puns, dramatic irony, alliteration, juxtaposition of classes, rhythm of speech (iambic pentameter), and use of pairs. One ... Read More

A Personal Evaluation of the Book A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (640 words, 2 pages)

A Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is an immortal story about politics and status. Many have heard of this book, but many run and hide from the notion of actually reading it. From a distance, the task seems rather daunting, but after further inspection, ... Read More

The Evil of Imperialism and European Colonization in Heart of Darkness, a Novel by Joseph Conrad (448 words, 2 pages)

Heart of DarknessHeart of Darkness is the narrative of a sailor named Marlow, who is telling his story to fellow shipmates on the Nellie. He describes how he became a riverboat captain for the Company in order to meet the idealistic Kurtz, and on his journeys he encounters the inefficiency ... Read More

The Portrayal of Victor Frankenstein as a Modern Prometheus in Mary Shelley’s Novel Frankenstein (694 words, 3 pages)

The Modern PrometheusThousands of years ago, the ancient Greeks told stories of a Titan who defied the gods by giving fire to the then primitive people of earth. He was called Prometheus, and as a result of his actions was brutally punished he was chained to a rock where birds ... Read More

Handling Teenage Love in the Play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (515 words, 2 pages)

Teenage love is hard to handle, you dont think right and you will do anything to be with your true love. Juliet's parents, Lady Capulet and Lord Capulet, are at fault for their daughters death and her lovers. Parents usually get in the way of love and they did in ... Read More

An Analysis of Pip’s Character in Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (502 words, 2 pages)

Failure Is Always an OptionDickens uses Pips embracing of corrupting and superficial Victorian ideals and his moral decay to illustrate the greater importance of affection and self-worth. While walking along the riverside and speaking with Biddy, Pip asserts that he wants to be a gentlemanhe has particular reason for wanting ... Read More

The Struggles of Women in Society in Pride and Prejudice, a Novel by Jane Austen (1289 words, 4 pages)

Life for women has always been hard, and continues to be hard to this day. While most people believe the societal pressures and roles of a woman have diminished in their criticism, the relationship between the lives of the strong female character, Elizabeth Bennet of Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice, ... Read More

Jack, the Beast, and the Deaths in Lord of the Flies, a Novel by William Golding (733 words, 3 pages)

Lord of the Flies Five Paragraph EssayThe book Lord of the Flies written by William Golding is about proper English school boys who get stranded on an Island. Through the book there are numerous ways that the boys have changed. As people read this book they will see the emotional ... Read More

The Complex Narration of The Warden, a Book by Anthony Trollope (1063 words, 3 pages)

Analysis on NarrationThe narration of The Warden is complex compared to a typical narration. The story is told in third person narration. However, the narrator switches from portraying himself as omniscient and being a physical person that the characters and readers can interact with. Most of the time, the narrator ... Read More

The Narrator in Mary Barton, a Novel by Elizabeth Gaskell (842 words, 3 pages)

Analysis on Mary BartonGaskell has the narrator address himself in first person to get a sense of closeness that the reader wouldnt otherwise feel with the narrator. He says, "I know that this is not really the case and I know what is the truth in such matters but what ... Read More

Uncertainty in Hamlet, a Play by William Shakespeare (512 words, 2 pages)

Throughout the play, Hamlet, Hamlet continues to postpone and elongate the time he has to avenge his father. The theme through the play is the impossible certainty people have when taking action. Every time Hamlet had a chance to kill Claudius until the duel at the end of the play, ... Read More

A Comparison of the Movie She’s the Man to William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night (1122 words, 4 pages)

Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them. William Shakespeare was born on April 23, 1564 and wrote some of the worlds most favorite plays. Many of William Shakespeares plays have been made into movies, whether it is the ... Read More

The Description of Maggie in The Mill on the Floss, a Novel by George Eliot (468 words, 2 pages)

There is no greater description of Maggie than in this passage, inwhich the narrator describes the battles that Maggie has within herself.She says, "While Maggie's life struggles had lain almost entirely withinher own soul, one shadowy army fight another, and the slain shadows forever rising again..." (Book 5 ch.2 p. ... Read More

The Language of the Narrator on Death in A Christmas Carol, a Book by Charles Dickens (634 words, 2 pages)

An Analysis of A Christmas Carols languageAt the end of Stave 3, Scrooge meets the two children Ignorance and Want. The narrator says, They were a boy and girl. Yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling wolfish but prostrate, too, in their humility. The fact that Ignorance and Want are children is interesting ... Read More

Anne Elliot’s Personal Growth in the Novel Persuasion by Jane Austen (1746 words, 6 pages)

Anne Elliot, EmbodiedJane Austens 1818 novel Persuasion has been interpreted by critics as either a parody on upper-class vanity or a maturing love story. While the novel does contain elements of both themes, one should not forget the main narrative Anne Elliots personal growth into a poised, openhearted woman. Unlike ... Read More

The Impact of Music in the Play The Tempest by William Shakespeare (883 words, 3 pages)

The Tempest Music ImpactThe Tempest is a play about an island, containing its very own wizard, monster and prince. Furthermore, it is more than a fairytale because of its supernatural theme intertwined into the plot to produce a play so widely diverse that it is considered to be one of ... Read More

The Protagonist’s Loss of Virtue and Downfall in Hamlet, a Tragic Play by William Shakespeare (1150 words, 4 pages)

In Shakespeares classic play, Hamlet, the young prince is on a quest to make right on behalf of everyone elses wrong. Hamlet wants to show everyone who has wronged him the consequences of their actions, in order to bring back the virtue to Denmark. Hamlet has been wronged by his ... Read More

The Criticism and Possibilities of the Use of J. K. Rowling’s Novel Series Harry Potter in Classrooms (2537 words, 8 pages)

From evolution to witchcraft, education pushes the traditional parent away from some parts of lessons because of religious or personal opposition. In every classroom, decisions need to be made that pit students learning against parents disapproval in importance. While parental involvement is undeniably vital, students can miss out on important ... Read More

My Reaction to The Red and the Black, a Book by Stendhal (1131 words, 4 pages)

The book, The Red and The Black by Stendhal, is a beautifully written novel revolving around Julien Sorel and his tragic love story. That is, if this novel can be classified as a love story at all with its tragic ending. Stendhal truly captures feeling in his writing and that ... Read More

An Analysis of Religious Extremes in Jane Eyre, a Novel by Charlotte Bronte (1791 words, 5 pages)

Religious Extremes in Jane EyreReligion has many forms for many people, and in literature, these forms can be used to mold a characters personal views on religion and spiritual practice. In Jane Eyre, Jane begins her life at Gateshead with a moderate Christian lifestyle where she sometimes reads the bible, ... Read More

The Knowledge of Heaven and Hell in Christopher Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus (1127 words, 4 pages)

Judgments regarding Heaven and Hell have, traditionally, been answered by Gods view of ones life on earth and mortal soul. However, many stories test the limits of Gods ultimate authority on fate and pose the question, Is not thy soul thine own? This curiosity of humankind leads many, in both ... Read More

A Critique of the Fallacies and Logic Presented in The Politics of the English Language, an Essay by George Orwell (832 words, 4 pages)

Critque of George Orwells The Politics of the English LanguageGeorge Orwells The Politics of the English Language was written in 1946, close to World War II. In this essay, Orwell tries to explain to the reader that political language, which was especially prevalent during the war, has caused a decline ... Read More

The Important Role of Duality in Sense and Sensibility, a Novel by Jane Austen (762 words, 3 pages)

In Jane Austens Sense and Sensibility, duality plays a major role. The title creates a dichotomy between the values of sense and sensibility, or as they are commonly identified today, rationality and passion. The two protagonists, sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, personify these traits. The beginning of the book establishes ... Read More

Juliet’s Passion in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (753 words, 2 pages)

My only love sprung from my only hate (Shakespeare 1.5.140). Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is the story of two star-crossed lovers. Derived from two feuding families, the Montagues and the Capulets, Romeo and Juliets love is forbidden. The teenagers relationship speeds up within the span of a day, ... Read More

Sensuality and the Views of Women in the Past in Dracula, a Novel by Bram Stoker (1106 words, 4 pages)

The Sensuality of Draculas WomenWhen looking into the classic horror stories, many people with automatically think of the tale of the original vampire, Dracula. This 1897 novel, written by Bram Stoker, started the worlds fascination with vampires. A fascination which has continued for over a century now. This story outlines ... Read More

The Quest for the Answer to Why People Worry About Different Things (854 words, 3 pages)

Terrorists over in Syria? We worry about it. Global Warming threatening our grandchildrens future? We worry about it. Poisonous stingrays in the ocean while we swim? We worry about it. Outbreak of a rare disease in Africa? We worry about it. Economies in a downward spiral? We worry about it. ... Read More

A Literary Analysis of The Garden of Forking Paths, a Short Story by Jorge Luis Borges (1193 words, 5 pages)

Various commendable authors have contributed to the worlds collection of classic literature. There are so many ways in which a piece of literature can be considered a classic there is no particular or specific formula. A classic can be a combination of memorable characters, an authors distinct style, an original ... Read More

English Literature Essay Examples