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

1237 total results

Authentic Irish Identity in the Powerful Text Cathleen Ni Houlihan by W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory (1481 words, 5 pages)

In an interview with Sean O Cuirreain, Ireland's first languagecommissioner, he says, "We have two simple choices - to look back at Irishas our lost language or forward with it as a core part of our heritage andsovereignty" (Mclntyre). Most of the texts that were read this semesterillustrate the struggle ... Read More

The Influence of Lord Henry on Dorian’s Search for His Secret Soul in The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde (1444 words, 4 pages)

"He would be able to follow his mind into its secret places". To what extent do you agreedisagree that Lord Henry has influenced Dorian to seek his secret soul.Could Lord Henry have been the one who showed him the doors of his mind which led into his secret and untouched ... Read More

A Biography of Samuel Beckett a Playwright (735 words, 2 pages)

Born in Ireland, Samuel Beckett was a playwright, a director, a poet and a novelist. He spent many years of his life living in Paris and learned to write in both English and French. Many of his plays involved Theatre of the Absurd, a form of theatre where the plays ... Read More

The Relationship between Intelligence and Power in The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli and Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift (373 words, 2 pages)

One might say that a creatures intelligence would coincide with a larger amount of power and violence but I somewhat disagree with that argument. I believe that intelligence could mean more power but less violence. This argument can relate back to Machiavellis The Prince when he talks about how you ... Read More

Accepting the Changes That Happen to Us in the Story Araby by James Joyce (1443 words, 4 pages)

It is undeniable that every person goes through several severe changes in their lifetime. These changes are chemical they cannot be controlled. What can be controlled, however, is accepting these changes. If people understand this, why are so many blind to reality and still stuck in their childhood illusions? One ... Read More

An Analysis of the Character’s Influence in the Picture of Dorian Gray, a Novel by Oscar Wilde (1079 words, 2 pages)

Influences and Impact in The Picture of Dorian Gray "...To influence a person is to give him a piece of one's soul. Hedoesn not think with his natural thoughts, or burn with his naturalpassions... He becomes an echo of someone else's music, an actor of a partthat has not been ... Read More

The Differences Between the Stories Araby by James Joyce and A&P by John Updike (1613 words, 6 pages)

Two Different Worlds In the stories Araby by James Joyce, and A P, by John Updike, they are both about two young men who are trying to chase after women. Both stories are about young love. However, these stories are set in different times and also in different places. Araby ... Read More

The Solutions to Poverty in A Modest Proposal, an Essay by Jonathan Swift (946 words, 3 pages)

Jonathan Swifts A Modern Proposal rocked the eighteenth century. This satire spared no thought when it came to how anyone would react. Swift took poverty, overpopulation, and famine and came up with a solution he thought could be able to fix everything. Similar to the saying kill two birds with ... Read More

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce: Dedalus’s Relationships with Women (473 words, 2 pages)

Stephen Dedalus and WomenFrom the very beginning of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Manand thus the beginning of Stephen Dedaluss memorieshis relationship with the women in his life is complicated. He clearly loves his mother, but does not know what to answer boys in the schoolyard when ... Read More

A View of Children as Commodities in Adult Societies in the Works of William Wordsworth and Jonathan Swift (1087 words, 4 pages)

Children as Commodities The Loss of Childhood in Wordsworth and SwiftThe child is the beginning of all men and women, so to speak, but it would seem that such an important role in the human life cycle was not always viewed as fundamental as it may be in our modern ... Read More

The Influence of Jonathan Swift’s Life in Ireland on the Writing of His Work, A Modest Proposal (693 words, 2 pages)

Jonathan Swift is debatably one of the most well-known authors known to write in the form of satire. During Swifts life, his home country of Ireland was under the control of Britain, but was denied formally uniting with the country. This created many trade restrictions for the Irish and severely ... Read More

Pickering as the True Character of Eliza in the Play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (1147 words, 3 pages)

The 1912 play Pygmalion written by George Bernard Shaw has a storyline that follows Henry Higgins teaching a young girl, Eliza Doolittle, how to act like a young lady. In the forefront of the play, we see Higgins as the teacher and Eliza as the student. If we look deeper, ... Read More

The Challenges of Frank in Angela’s Ashes, a Book by Frank McCourt (731 words, 2 pages)

In the story Angelas Ashes by Frank McCourt, Frank, the protagonist, faces many challenges throughout his life. His decisions factor the outcomes in both good ways and bad ways. One choice he made was when he decided to stand up for his mother against his father. Another was when he ... Read More

Hedda’s Character in the Play Hedda Gabler by George Bernard Shaw (837 words, 2 pages)

Hedda Gabler has and always will be a notoriously challenging character both to the reader and to the actress. After its debut in 1891, George Bernard Shaw commented on the complexity of Heddas character in a letter to her first incarnation in Elizabeth Robbins. The central difficulty of Hedda is ... Read More

The Theme of Hypocrisy in the Importance of Being Earnest, a Play by Oscar Wilde (724 words, 2 pages)

The Hypocrisy of the Upper Class in Victorian SocietyA major theme inThe Importance of Being Earnestis the hypocritical tendencies displayed throughout Upper-Class Victorian Society. Wilde's witty writing style is used to expose these tendencies through his use of epigrams and paradoxical situations. Many quotes and scenes found in the play ... Read More

The Lessons of the past in the Rising of the Moon, a Play by Lady Gregory (481 words, 1 pages)

Tapping into a persons past can truly reveal their morals and beliefs. While talking to the Sergeant, the Ragged Man is able to understand that the sergeant has a rebellious side of him that goes back to his younger self, a part of the sergeant understood what he was fighting ... Read More

The Theme of Appearance in The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde (674 words, 2 pages)

Have you ever judged a book by it's cover? The Monster and Dorian are incredibly similar to each other, and it shows that, though, in appearance, they are opposite, their fate and evil behavior is significantly the same. In the two novels, they commit murder that brings out the nasty ... Read More

An Analysis of Life and Marriage in Lady Windermere’s Fan by Oscar Wilde (431 words, 2 pages)

Its a curious thing, Duchess, about the game of marriage-a game, by the way that is going out of fashion-the wives hold all the honors and invariably loose the odd trick. In the Lady Windermeres Fan by Oscar Wilde, life is just a series of socials and party, nothing matters ... Read More

The Mechanisms of the Fairy to Coax the Child from His Home in the Poem The Stolen Child by William Butler Yeats (697 words, 4 pages)

The Stolen Child In 1886, William Butler Yeats constructed the timeless piece calledThe Stolen Child. This piece is based on an Irish legend about faeriestaking children. Yeats wrote this poem during a time when the CelticRevival was a very important movement for Ireland. In this essay, I willexplore the mechanisms ... Read More

An Analysis of the Character of Marie in Translations, a Play by the Irish Playwright Brian Friel (408 words, 2 pages)

Maire is a strong minded, strong-bodied woman in her twenties. It seems that she is a very good example of a woman who is determined and extremely ambitious, especially in a time where the story was written. During those time, women were not so extrovert an open. But Maire is ... Read More

A Reflection on the Effects of Humor in Waiting for Godot, a Play by Samuel Beckett (1567 words, 6 pages)

After the second group presented, my understanding of the humor in the play had become much greater. Both Estragon and Vladimir portrayed types of humor that are classified as dark humor, as well as that, they also partook in vaudeville comedy. Dark humor is most notable between the two, It's ... Read More

Friendship, Hate, and Loyalty in the Novel The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne (485 words, 2 pages)

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a story about friendship, hate, andloyalty. It shows a powerful relationship between two boys, one beingGerman and the other being Jewish. This relates to the Jewish Holocaust andWW2 because the story takes place in Nazi Germany. After reading this noveland doing a book ... Read More

The Issue of Power in Society in the Play Major Barbara by George Bernard Shaw (1860 words, 7 pages)

A Play of Power PlaysWhen I first heard that we were to read Major Barbara for English class, I wasnt particularly thrilled. Because Ive found classic books to be boring in the past, I was wary of this plays classic masterpiece tag. Fortunately, I was proven wrong. Not only is ... Read More

A Critical Analysis of Gulliver’s Travels, a Book by Jonathan Swift (456 words, 2 pages)

In 1726, Jonathan Swift wrote the book Gullivers Travels. In the first part of the book, chapters one through eight, Gulliver spends his time on the island of Lilliput after his shipwreck. The people of Lilliput are miniature, all of them less than six inches tall. The Lilliputians take Gulliver ... Read More

The Use of History in Digging and Requiem for the Croppies, Two Poems by Seamus Heaney (486 words, 1 pages)

Poetry Essay History is sometimes used to determine the future, because the analysis of the past can help to prevent, continue, or improve events that could reoccur. Author usually make a historical connection to their novels to inform the readers, and give the people a better understanding of the time ... Read More

An Analysis of Dorian’s Descent into Darkness in Oscar Wilde’s Novel The Picture of Dorian Gray (839 words, 3 pages)

The Picture of Dorian Gray depicts the title character in his life ashe transforms from a perfect, model human being to an evil, selfishhedonist. He is introduced as a good friend and portrait model of BasilHallward, who paints his portrait. Secretly, Basil is enamored withDorian's beauty, which he encaptures in ... Read More

The Role of Women Characters in the Importance of Being Earnest, a Play by Oscar Wilde (1328 words, 4 pages)

The Importance of Being Earnest, a play written by Oscar Wilde, allows its audience to dive into the everyday Victorian lifestyle and adds twist of comedy and humor along the way. It focuses on two main characters, Jack and Algernon, who are bachelors who take on the role of double ... Read More

An Exploration of Religious and Moral Connotations in Dubliners by James Joyce (3556 words, 12 pages)

James Joyce and the Epiphany An Exploration of Religious and Moral ConnotationsJames Joyce revolutionized literature and ushered in the era of modern fiction. Joyce became famous for his revolutionary use of stream of consciousness narrative along with his abstract snippets he used to represent his different characters. His stories usually ... Read More

The Definition of Love in the Poem When You Are Old by W.B. Yeats (1293 words, 4 pages)

Even without knowing W.B. Yeats, one can quickly assume that he may have written When You Are Old to his past lover, someone he cares for, or someone he knows very well. But more than just that, the poem seems to suggest that it is very easy to overlook unconditional ... Read More

The Role of Women in the Novel Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, Short Story Eveline by James Joyce, and How to Escape a Leper Colony by Tiphanie Yanique (3002 words, 7 pages)

The Role of a Rebellious Woman in LiteratureLiterature has always been the mirror of the human psyche. It can be interpreted in various ways to understand perspectives and social trends. In todays changing world, where citizens are fast awakening and realizing the importance of fighting for equal rights, it has ... Read More

Irish Literature Essay Examples