laura raines

Similar to a short story, a poem is ultimately the attempt to capture a single moment/focus on a particular experience; there is only room for a single arc, and this limits and sharpens focus. The...

The information provided by the other editor is valuable! She is correct; you can apply any criticism to any piece of literature. What "type" is most applicable will depend on your end goal. That...

Yes. The narrator is close-minded, fearful, judgmental, prejudiced, possessive, and unfriendly, not to mention a substance abuser; these are not generally attributes viewed as heroic. That said,...

The story is set in Groveland, Ohio. The action takes place at Mr. Ryder's fine home. There are several "themes" in this story. The story focuses on appearance v. reality, social life, racial...

Mr. Ryder is a sophisticated, learned, and seems very focused on appearances and social standing. His "informal" social group of "blue bloods" is made up of African Americans with lighter skin (and...

First, a bit of background: Edgar Allen Poe was an American author who was born and raised in Virginia, and later spent time living in New York City and Philadelphia. He died in Baltimore,...

Faulkner did not specifically tell us whether he chose the title before or after completing the  story, but the story's repeated rose imagery, its themes, and the underlying meaning contained...

At Battle School, Ender plays an open-ended adventure game that seems to have no clear point/ultimate goal. Ender is often frustrated by the game, and finds himself stuck at a particular point. He...

Although the main character does not realize it at first,  Arnold Friend is not what he appears (i.e., a rakish adolescent boy a la James Dean or Elvis). The story focuses on the contrast of...

Among critics, there has been some disagreement in regards to Chekhov's view of his main character, Olga. It is generally agreed that Chekhov meant to, as Tolstoy wrote, to sacrifice Olga -- that...

In Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl," a mother instructs her daughter on the how-to's of life -- from the everyday tasks to the moral stances she should take to the more abstract beliefs of her culture....

The female character in "Hills" actually does have a name -- "Jig" -- but it is used very sparingly by the male, and it may be a nickname rather than a proper name. Hemingway chooses, however, to...

It is also important to consider Faith's context -- the wearing of pink ribbons by a Puritan woman (who dressed very conservatively and avoided bright color) may be seen as an expression of joyful...

Concrete details are also general descriptive details that help create a strong sense of setting, place, and time -- colors, temperatures, descriptions of rooms, the quilt's looks, etc. When we ask...

The colonists are Puritans (a Calvinist-focused version of Christianity). Hawthorne was fascinated by the Puritan legacy, and became very interested in historical accounts of the Salem Witch Trials...

"Rip Van Winkle," a classic American Romantic tale, presents a hero that embodies several characteristics important to the ideal romantic hero. Rip is isolated and alienated by his long sleep, and...

In addition to the answer above, remember that Poe focused his fiction (and poetry) on the idea of a "unique and single effect." He believed that all elements in a piece should build tension (both...

While not "doomed" in a strict sense, the odds are certainly stacked against the pair. The trouble they have with communication would have certainly led to trouble without the intervention of Iago,...

Charlotte, who is in her mid-to-late twenties, is already an "old maid" by the standards of her day. She points out that she is not as fair as many of her friends; in addition, she has not received...

Since Pride and Prejudice is told from a third-person subjective point of view, the only private thoughts we're privy to are Lizzy's. Thus, we must base our opinions of other characters on their...