Many people in our culture misunderstand the function of myth. We usually assume that there are two kinds of narrative, completely different from one another: a journalistic compilation of facts, all literally true and verifiable, or stories spun by a fiction writer for the purpose of entertainment only. Myth, we assume, falls resoundingly into the latter group. While primitive and superstitious people may have once […]

Most people are familiar with the phrase “it’s too good to be true”, dreams coming true is an example of this common misconception. In John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men, he uses numerous applications of juxtaposition, symbolism, foreshadowing, and other literary devices to prove dreams are unlikely to always come true because even the best plans can fail. Steinbeck highlights numerous dream failures between […]

In Bernhard Schlink’s 1955 novel, the reader, the conflict between condemnation and understanding is one of the overarching themes. In this story, Michael falls in love with Hannah Schmitz but further in the story realizes that she has played an important role in a terrible nazi event. He has trouble understanding what he is feeling. The book explores this conflict in court, this conflict between […]

Born from a white mother and a black father, Bessie Head grew up in the early stages of Apartheid South Africa. In Maru she reflects upon her own experiences of love, loneliness and prejudice. Prejudice spreads as one discriminates against another and creates false images. Love contradicts loneliness, which diminishes as the plot progresses. Prejudice affects love and promotes loneliness. Initially one may assume that […]

The significance of the title to the novel ‘The Pearl’. The novel ‘The Pearl’ by John Steinbeck is such a novel that really interest me as a reader. What is really appropriate is the title itself which incorporate ‘the pearl’, the essence of the story. The pearl is very significant to the title because without ‘the pearl of the world’, the story just would not […]

In this passage, a number of key themes are introduced into the novel. Waugh highlights Guy’s dislocation in society and his feelings of loneliness and exclusion. Waugh also satirises the upper class of society greatly throughout the novel and particularly in this passage. Other themes presented in the passage which are important to the novel as a whole are themes of selfishness and justice. In […]

Book Club Novel Study vs. Conventional Core Novel Study Although the Book Club approach and the conventional novel study approach are group discussion oriented, the Book Club method is a more efficient way of extracting thorough analysis from multiple perspectives. In the Book Club approach, students are forced to read because we are constantly being evaluated. During discussions, the teacher is always walking around evaluating […]

When we hear crimes of murder, rape or abduction of women, we usually judge the case relying on the credibility of those involved. In accordance to evidence law, we try to establish credibility of the personalities involved such as the offender, the victim, and the witnesses to see who is telling the truth. However, as trial prevails, relying on credibility sometimes acquits the offender, after […]

In the novel Rebecca, du Maurier uses techniques, such as dialogue and setting description, to create suspense and tension. But in the movie, Hitchcock uses different techniques, like music and scenery, to create the right kind of suspense and tension for his audience. The plots are the same, but the techniques are not. In the novel, the author uses a lot of dialogue to create […]

Romantic Traits in the 19th century Realistic Novel Great changes were brought into the world during the 19th century. Britain was transformed by the industrial revolution. In 1801, only about 20% of the population lived in towns, by 1851 the figure had risen to over 50% and by 1881 already about two thirds of the population lived in towns. By the late 19th century factories […]