Free American Literature Essay Examples & Topics. Page 2

2,044 samples

“Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin

The narrator watches Sonny playing the piano in the club and concludes that this helps him deal with frustrations he has experienced in his life.
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1084

The Power of Women in the Society

The power of the woman does not exist for the sake of it but also has the power to appeal and attract those who are looking for solace.
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1241

“Soldier’s Home” by Ernest Hemingway

4
Harold's relaxed existence appears meaningless to his mother, who represents the traditional Protestant values of work and family, of everyone's life subordinated to the eternal laws of the Kingdom of God.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 638

Conflict in ‘The Most Dangerous Game’ by Connell

Rainsford went through an internal conflict when he was in the ocean and had to keep stay focused by not panicking and realizing that his clothes were not helping his strokes and he 'wrestled out [...]
  • Pages: 1
  • Words: 258

“A Pair of Silk Stockings” by Kate Chopin

Even when she "found herself the unexpected possessor of fifteen dollars" she did not want to spend the money for nothing and started carefully making plans trying to figure out what the best way to [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 612

“The Caretaker” by Anthony Doerr

Liberia descends to anarchy and lawlessness, and he runs for dear life and finds himself in a different country, thousands of miles from his.
  • Pages: 1
  • Words: 334

Literature Studies: Every Little Hurricane by Sherman Alexie

Talking about the relationships between Americans and the Natives has never been easy, mostly because of the notorious historic events that took place during the colonization of America, and the following misunderstandings between the Native [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 847

My papa’s waltz

3.5
The boy had to waltz with his father and as they did so, he hit his right ear on his father's buckle because he was a small one.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 568

“Everyday Use” by Alice Walker

5
This study therefore identifies there points; in that, Walker seeks to convey the principle that art is a living and breathing part of its origin, a significant cultural possession, and a critique of the postmodern [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 872

A Clean and Well-Lighted Place

5
Further, the paper shall attempt to compare and contrast the main characters of the story, that is, the old man, the younger and the older waiter.
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 1052

‘Burger Boy’ by Jerry Newman

The policy of the management to make the current workers in charge of assignments that were usually not their responsibility had led to the dissatisfaction with the service not only of the clients but of [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1146

Walt Whitman: Life of an American Poet

3
He highlighted the plight of the oppressed such as the slaves thus his works championed for democracy in the society to give all people a fair chance.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 593

The Things They Carried

Given the fact that he was the one in charge of the other soldiers' well-being, he felt he could have done something to prevent Lavender's death.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 629

Everyday Use by Alice Walker

The two hand-stitched quilts draw attention and become the center of conflict in the family of Mama and her two daughters.
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1705

“A Wall of Fire Rising” by Edwing Danticat

The author suggests that even the kind of history that the children of the oppressed Haitians learn in school is doctored to whitewash the atrocities colonizers meted on the natives, further emphasizing the systemic nature [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 862

Gender and Sexuality in Virginia Woolf’s Orlando

Using the book, the paper will support the argument that it is inaccurate to bind gender and sexuality. Orlando continues to break the convention of sex and gender and find her place as a woman [...]
  • Pages: 6
  • Words: 1903

An analysis of the poem titled Ballad of Birmingham

3
In this situation, the author is trying to give emphasis to the mother's view, regarding the participation of her daughter in the march. This essay had set out to explain the usage of literary techniques [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1128

“Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving

At the same time, the story draws a parallel to the uprising itself, with the tyranny of Rip's wife leading him to try and escape, only for this woman to disappear before his return.
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 843

The End of Poverty

Philippe Diaz's documentary, The End of Poverty, is a piece that attempts to dissect the causes of the huge economic inequalities that exist between countries in the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 555

The Short Story “Old Chief Mshlanga” by Doris Lessing

The award-winning Doris Lessing wrote the short story "Old Chief Mshlanga" literally to depict the aspect of discrimination that was prevalence in Southern Africa. One of the key themes of Lessing's short story is the [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 598

“The Last Hippie” by Oliver Sacks

Greg joined the cult in the 60s and was enchanted by the atmosphere, or as Sacks describes it the 'austere and charismatic figure of the Swami himself came like a revelation to Greg '.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 354

Dinner Guest: Me by Langston Hughes

In the second line of the poem, he says that "The Negro Problem", thus attempting to bring out some of the challenges that the Negros had to face in their endeavors to fit into the [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 584

The Grass is not Greener on the Other Side

1
Madame Loisel, does not value her lifestyle and heritage, and feels that she, "was by a mistake of destiny, born in a family of clerk", and yet desires to be equal to the great, rich [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 794

The Way to Rainy Mountain: Analysis of the Text

The way to Rainy Mountain is not a simple description of how the Kiowa people developed, learnt, and protected their knowledge. They got one simple right to live and be the people of Kiowa.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 545

Nancy Drew’s Character Analysis

This paper provides a discussion on changes in the young woman's character, addressing her salient traits that remain the same and outlining the differences in her personality across time and media.
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1372

Passing’ by Nella Larsen Literature Analysis

Therefore, the intention of Irene's passing is to enjoy the opportunities that are available to the white people. In this regard, Clare attempts to reach out to a person of the same identity is an [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1382

Orient and Occident: “Orientalism” by Edward Said

In the contemporary world, the West views the East in terms of oil and Islam. Occident reporters and scholars misrepresent the East and, therefore, propagate the notion that it is the moral duty of the [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 915

“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost

The analysis helps to understand the message of the poem and realize the author's vision of the world. The euphony facilitates the process of absorbing into the poem, and allows to experience with the narrator [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 965

Edgar Allan Poe’s Story “The Black Cat”

5
For instance, when the main character looked at the image of the cat on the wall, he saw it as "gigantic"; however, whether the size of the animal was an expression of paranormal or the [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 394

Impressions of an Indian Childhood

4
It is worth mentioning that the nineteenth century was a period of intensive upheaval of American Indian tribes, which was caused by the danger of disappearance of oral traditions because of the fragmentation of Indian [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1173

Feminism in The Yellow Wallpaper

5
In an attempt to free her, she rips apart the wallpaper and locks herself in the bedroom. The husband locks her wife in a room because of his beliefs that she needed a rest break.
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 890

The Hound of the Baskervilles

Clearly, the content of the mystery of the supernatural hound in the novel is not the only reason for the sustained popularity of the novel but it was for the cunning fiction formation of the [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1556

Daddy by Sylvia Plath

2
It is expressed through the eyes of a young girl, the persona, who tries to grapple with the disturbing memories of her late father. The disillusionment on the part of the persona is begotten by [...]
  • Pages: 9
  • Words: 2415

“Caviar” the Book by T. C. Boyle

The drive down to the dock in the '62 Rambler is a powerful phallic image culminating in the catch of the recently dead Sturgeon full of eggs, which were his and worth quite a lot [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 1022

“To Any Would-Be Terrorists” by Naomi Shihab Nye

While trying to address the extremist audience, the writer resorted to the strong methods of personification to be able to talk straight to each reading the letter. Despite the character of the text, the writer [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 929

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

He trained his sons on his approach to life and hoped they would follow and achieve his dream of success. Willy's life was a disappointment as he had the wrong ambitions and failed to teach [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 920

“Edge” by Sylvia Plath

As it is one of her last composed poems, there are a lot of discussions surrounding the influences of her near imminent death on the sad melancholic tone of the poem and is it is [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 571

“Sure Thing” by David Ives

The first scene is the best confirmation of the offered claim as searching for love people refuse take it when they have it in their hands. However, being a symbol of destiny, the bell helps [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 843

Gothic Tone in Poetry

Together with the regular rhyme scheme and the repetitive "o" sound in The Raven, the poet is able to heighten the melancholic atmosphere that is characteristic of gothic poems.
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 1005

“Impulse” Short Story by Conrad Aiken

Many of the works of Aiken have a reflection on his interests about the psychoanalysis and the progress of identity. However, what the main character did is a mere expression of what he feels at [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1387

Conceptual Inconsistency in “Night” by Elie Wiesel

For people who have not been completely deprived of their ability to utilize their sense of logic, as a result of being continuously brainwashed by hawks of political correctness, it does not make a whole [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1303

The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Poe

This metaphor is necessary to show that the feeling of guilt distorts his perception of reality. This is one of the details that can be distinguished.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 577

Jack London’s The Call of the Wild

3
The purpose of the essay is to summarize the story of The Call of the Wild, describe its characters and themes, express the opinion regarding the background story behind key characters' relationship, and get an [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1239

“Animal Farm” by George Orwell

After the revolution in the Animal Farm, the animals establish the philosophy of Animalism in order to be different from human beings.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 717

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

There is also a profound difference in the plot and the setting of the story and the film. In both the film and the story, Ichabod Crane is the main character.
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1357

Parallelism in the Declaration of Independence

This is the technique that Jefferson uses in writing the Declaration of Independence. In using this technique Jefferson enumerates to illustrate the patience of an oppressed people.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 556

American Literature and the Two World Wars

They both post-war kinds of literature of America represent the revolutionary transformation in the world view of the literary figure and the employment of the most modern tools of interpreting the war-affected world.
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1730

Church Going

The poem is an exposition of the erosion of the old beliefs of the religious institution delimited by the church. The narrator is contemptuous of the habit of visiting churches and derides the various instruments [...]
  • Pages: 5
  • Words: 1396

Laura Wexler’s Book “Fire in a Canebrake”

Wexler discusses the murder of Roger and Dorothy Malcolm and George and Mae Dorsey in detail, while paying much attention to the causes of the killings, to the racial component, and to the personalities of [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 810

Feminism in the “The Bell Jar” by Sylvia Plath

This piece of writing reveals the concept of gender in general and "the role of female protagonists in a largely patriarchal world" in particular. In Plath's novel, the bell jar is a metaphor used to [...]
  • Pages: 7
  • Words: 1909

Trends in “Love is a Fallacy”

The raccoon coat seems to have been the trend associated particularly with the college male student at the time that the writer is in college.
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 741

Black Boy By Richard Wright [Text Analysis]

As is clear from the summary of Richard Wright's "Black Boy," Ella's hard work causes her to develop health problems leaving Richard with the option of looking for odd jobs to provide for the family. [...]
  • Pages: 7
  • Words: 1997

Compassion in “Bartleby the Scrivener” by Melville

Regardless of his moral stature, the narrator is forced to ignore Bartleby as the scrivener declines any reasonable assistance and refuses to help himself. The narrator sees that Bartleby "fully [comprehends] the meaning" of his [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1195

Gilman’s ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’: Point of View

Through the means of it, the readers empathize with the Narrator as they follow the progression of the story. The Narrator's point of view gives the reader a mental picture of the setting for the [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1082

Critical Analysis of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”

5
This book was authored in the period before the Civil War and the consequent abolishment of slave trade. One of the most apparent issues in this book is the author's wish to portray slaves as [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 887

Use of Language in Susan Glaspell’s ‘Trifles’

The play begins as the County Attorney and the Sheriff have come to investigate the murder and find the motive. Irony helps Glaspell to unveil women's right to suffrage and dramatize the situation.in the play, [...]
  • Pages: 4
  • Words: 1167

“Lusus Naturae” by Margaret Atwood

It turns out that a family is ready to kill their blood and flesh in order to show society that they are one of them and that they are not on the side of something [...]
  • Pages: 2
  • Words: 562

Relationships in “A Mercy” by Toni Morrison

The women portrayed in the story are Rebekka, the wife of the farm owner Jacob Vaark, Florens, a black slave sold to the farmer, Lina, the Indigenous servant, and Sorrow, the woman with an unknown [...]
  • Pages: 3
  • Words: 850