Short Story Essays

In “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Dimmesdale confronts the conflict between passion and his responsibilities by taking out his emotions on himself so that he can keep his obligation to his congregation by being a pure priest. The conflict takes up a great magnitude of Dimmesdale’s energy and in …

Sinclair Ross responds to the issue of isolation, in his short story, “The Lamp at Noon.” The author focuses on the theme of how not to deal with isolation. This notion is reinforced by the setting (mood/physical), characters, and symbolism that he describes so vividly. The first method the author …

 time of transition; the ending of the long mundane day, entering into the excitement of the unknown. Alice Elliott Dark’s collection of ten short stories titled “In the Gloaming: Stories” chronicles “”the distraction of human love” in its many guises. These stories especially focus on the complexity of the relationship …

Edgar Allen Poe, master of the macabre, was one of the most prolific authors of his time. His short stories explore the dark side of life, touching on the realms of insanity, death, terror, and fear. In the psychological thriller, The Fall of the House of Usher, Poe examines the …

We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are”. This quote relates to the short story “The Country Husband” by John Cheever. As the quote states it is very obscure to not become biased towards certain views. John Cheever’s attitude toward Shady Hill is candid. He …

There are just some things that distinguish the good authors from the bad ones. Those things include character development, language choice, plot development, and making a story relate to everyone. Because Paul Beatty has all four of these in his book, “The White Boy Shuffle”, he must be classified as …

Ambiguity, which is doubleness or inconclusiveness of meaning, is an important characteristic of Hawthorne’s style in The Scarlet Letter. Constantly used throughout the story, ambiguity continually keeps the readers attention. Examples of ambiguity are clearly seen throughout the book. When Hester Prynne is leaving the prison, Hawthorn briefly describes a …

Differences Being different could mean many things, such as being different in appearance, having a different life-style or doing things that are different. Most people who are different suffer through many punishments that are not very fair. People who are different consider themselves as normal and find nothing wrong with …

To the uninitiated, the significance of Flannery O’Connor’s Parker’s Back can seem at once cold and dispassionate, as well as almost absurdly stark and violent. Her short stories routinely end in horrendous, freak fatalities or, at the very least, a character’s emotional devastation. Flannery O’Connor is a Christian writer, and …

Part 1: Toronto & Pondicherry – Chapters 1-361). Pondicherry was the birth place of Pi the protagonist of the story. It was during Pi’s time in Pondicherry that he has suffered intensely and found comfort in religion and zoology; which proves to be the basis of the stories plot. With …