William Saroyan

Shakespeare portrays Lady Macbeth as an eloquent and pernicious character, between being a villain and a victim of her villainy, both manipulating and manipulated. Throughout the tragedy of ‘Macbeth’, she never actually kills anyone, in fact she cannot bring herself to commit the deed. Despite being responsible for instigating the idea of murder to Macbeth, she refers to the death of Duncan as ‘it’, indicating a hesitant confirmation of the deed. Would Macbeth himself alone have committed the…

The word personality is originally from the Latin word called “persona”. It means a theatrical mask worn by performers in order to project different roles or identities. Personality can be defined as the combination of qualities or characteristics which form an individual’s unique character that different from others. The differences are referring to the individuals’ pattern of thinking, feeling and behaving. In order to explain personality, it can be ranging from genetics to the roles of…

While sitting back and watching Othello murder Desdemona, most audiences ask themselves, “why would the moor kill his only flower”. The answer to the open question unfolds as the text is analyzed at a deep level. It is arguable that Othello’s motives were his character flaws, such as his pride & vanity, impulsiveness, and insecurities. Othello’s adventures and dangers being told with all confidence and pride wooed Desdemona’s heart. “She loved me for the dangers I had passed, and I love her…

Any Last Words? There is no escape. The villain corners the hero and projects a snarky smile. The brave hero stands before this evil, determined not to go down without a fight. Before the villain pulls the trigger on our destined hero, he asks in a mocking gesture, “Any last words?” These “last words” leave the reader or viewer in suspense, craving more. What now? Will the hero ever escape the villain? The greatest “last words” are ones that are carefully articulated by the author to allow…

Khaled Hosseini’s historical fiction novel, “The Kite Runner,” takes place in Afghanistan. Amir, a 12-year-old boy, wants to win a local kite tournament. In the end, he won the kite competition, but he witnesses the rape of his servant and friend Hassan. Amir then becomes guilt-stricken and wants Hassan to get out of his life. Then, once Amir grows up, he returns to Afghanistan on the path to redemption to get rid of his guilt and overcome his deception. One theme the story suggests is that…

The Animalization in The Metamorphosis Including Feelings of Isolation and Powerlessness in Comparison to “The Panther” The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, tells the story about a man’s transformation into a bug. Through his journey in his new life as a bug, he experiences many emotions such as isolation and powerlessness. His family is frightened and disgusted with him and he must learn how to adapt to his new life. “The Panther”, by Rainer Rilke, also displays feelings of isolation and…

Beowulf survives as one of the oldest poems in world literature. Originally written in Old English, the story of the long poem focuses on the epic and tragic hero, Beowulf. More specifically, the poem focuses on the three major battles the warrior fights. Each battle increases in difficulty while also testing different aspects and skills of Beowulf himself. While Beowulf’s three battles maintain the universal theme of the ongoing fight against good and evil, they also reveal attributes of…

“Through the Tunnel” In Doris Lessing’s short story, “Through the Tunnel”, the author teaches the reader about setting goals and achieving them. “Through the Tunnel” tells the story of a young English boy named Jerry who’s mother lets him go and allows him to explore the bay. While on the bay, he meets a group of boys who he ends up swimming with. While swimming with the boys, Jerry discovers that the boys are swimming through a tunnel underwater. Eventually, the boys go off somewhere else…

Henrik Johan Ibsen has a prominent place in the genre of realism in theatre. He is called the father of realism and modern drama. He was born on March 20, 1828 in Skien, Norway to Knud Ibsen and Marichen Altenburg. His father was a general merchant. Henrik Ibsen’s childhood was full of poverty because of his father’s financial setbacks. At the age of 15, he stopped going to school and joined as an apprentice in an apothecary in Grimstad. The poverty had a strong influence on his plays. He had…

Low visibility by Margaret Murphy The short story “Low Visibility”, written by Margaret Murphy in 2008, is about the main character called Laura, who is in an unhappy marriage with her abusive, dominant, husband, John. Laura, who is an anonymous person most of the time of the story, lives a depressing life. She is under the thumb of her husband, which is why she has become an insecure, wordless, obedient wife. You get the information that she used to be an energizing, ebullience and spirited…