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The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug. Observations like this make Mark Twain the most widely read and quoted American author. This guide utilizes quotes, excerpts, biographical information, and critical analysis in examining Twain s vast output of novels, personal memoirs, social criticisms, and essays, both serious and hilarious. It also demonstrates how Twain carefully...
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There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you. Maya Angelou's words in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings reveal her own need to tell stories, a lifelong passion that manifested itself in the form of memoirs and poetry as well as essays, film, and music. This in-depth guide utilizes the fascinating life story of Angelou, who was also an educator and activist, as a springboard for exploring the themes, motifs, and literary techniques...
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Jack London's stories of adventure in the early twentieth century captured the imagination of the American public. As he ventured around the United States and the globe, he documented his adventures through his writing. Through excerpts and critical analysis, readers will examine London's most famous works (The Call of the Wild, "To Build a Fire"), which are dramatic and compelling stories of man versus nature and versus himself. Other works explore...
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Students often approach the complex poetry of T. S. Eliot with some degree of trepidation, but as this comprehensive text demonstrates, that need not be the case. With its thoughtful analysis and engaging writing style, this guide provides readers with the tools they need to approach Eliot's works with confidence, while at the same time encouraging them to draw their own meaning from the words and sounds of the poetry. The text also explores Eliot's...
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The literary output of the Brontë sisters was small, but their novels remain immensely popular more than 150 years after their deaths. Each sister wrote a novel that challenged the ideas of the day on what was fit to print: Charlotte's Jane Eyre by examining the interior life of a young girl; Emily's Wuthering Heights by overturning the conventions of the novel, even while making use of traditional literary forms; Anne's The Tenant of Wildfell Hall...
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The world of J.R.R. Tolkien is one that is inhabited by hobbits, dwarves, elves, wizards, and dragons. As a young man, Tolkien created his very own language, and from there he went on to imagine an entire magical world and its detailed history. Students will take an in-depth and thought-provoking look at The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, as well as The Simarillion, which provides the foundation for his classic works. The text includes an insightful...
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Jhumpa Lahiri understands what it means to be caught between two cultures. Born in London to Indian immigrants, she has spent most of her life in the United States but still struggles to feel "American." This is the challenge facing many new Indian Americans, and it is the focal point of Lahiri's novels and stories, which examine various aspects of the culture clashes that come from being a newcomer in a foreign land. This insightful guide takes readers...
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As a child growing up in the Deep South, Tom "Tennessee" Williams escaped from his tumultuous home life by retreating into his imagination. His love for made-up stories would eventually translate into a propensity for writing drama and poetry. This compelling text places the playwright's work in the context of his life and times, allowing readers to gain a greater understanding of the two-time Pulitzer Prize winner. Featuring quotes, excerpts, and...
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As a young man, Eric Blair, better known as George Orwell, traveled to Spain to fight in that country's civil war. Although he was a British citizen, he felt the need to fight for the rights of the oppressed in that country. As the writer of the classics Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, Orwell used his pen to comment on power and corruption in government and how they affect society. This text takes an in-depth look at Orwell's novels and essays...
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Growing up poor in a small town in Georgia, Alice Walker became aware of the effects of prejudice and segregation at a young age. She would later call on these early experiences when writing her most famous novel, The Color Purple. But the themes of Walker's prose and poetry extend far beyond race, including women's issues, religion, relationships, and culture. This text explores the many themes of her work, as well as her use of characterization,...
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For most students, the images stirred by the word "poet" are those of an introverted individual removed from the crowd and devoted more to his or her work than engaging in the company of others. Walt Whitman spent a lifetime avoiding these commonly held notions of what a writer should be. From founding his own newspaper to acting as a volunteer nurse during the Civil War, Whitman encountered years of progress and turmoil that dramatically influenced...
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The subject of William Shakespeare, considered by many to be the greatest writer in the English language, is often approached with trepidation by students encountering one of his plays for the first time. This text explains Shakespeare's works by putting them into the context of the Elizabethan times in which he lived. Characters, themes, and literary devices are defined and examined as students are exposed to close readings of the histories, tragedies,...
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The works of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cormac McCarthy can be described as dark, mysterious, and violent. His unique writing style and Southern Gothic, post-apocalyptic brand of literature defy classification and make for a challenging and thought-provoking read. This text closely examines McCarthy's recurring styles, symbols, and themes through excerpts from his books as well as critical analysis. Students will learn how to read and interpret...
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Playwright Eugene O'Neill dominated American theater for the first half of the twentieth century, and inspired most of the important dramatists of its second half. This text tells the story of O'Neill's often troubled life, then ties it in with his work: complex, lengthy dramas unlike anything seen on Broadway before. The playwright's main themes, which he returned to throughout his career, are carefully detailed, as are the various styles he employed...
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Amy Tan was born to Chinese immigrants who worked hard to fulfill their own version of the American Dream. After tragedy befell her family when she was a teenager, a tumultuous period followed in which Tan and her mother often clashed. This text reveals how biographical elements like these largely influenced the recurring themes in many of her novels. Tan's unique view on the Chinese-American experience and mother-daughter relationships, along with...
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Jane Austen is one of the most beloved novelists of all time, yet despite her ever-growing popularity, there still remains a certain mystique about the woman herself. In this text, readers will get to know the novelist and her works in the context of Regency England society as well as the author's more intimate circle of family and friends. Students will come to a greater understanding of Austen's innovative writing style and universal themes through...
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Emily Dickinson's words may be well known to students, but they may know very little of her quiet solitary life. This text positions her work within the political climate in which she lived, the culture and expectations for an educated young woman of the day, and discusses what it meant to be a poet during the American Civil War. Through critical analysis of her themes, language, and style and direct quotations from Dickinson's many correspondences,...
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