The Cult of Invalidism; Ophelia and Folly; Dead Ladies and the Fetish of Sleep
Gentlemen of the time took pride in sharing that their wives were invalid—an ideal of “conspicuous leisure.”
The Waking Hours
“The witching hour was a special moment in the middle of the night when every child and every grown-up was in a deep deep sleep, and all the dark things came out from hiding and had the world all to themselves.” – Roald Dahl
THE SUN ALSO RISES (CHAPTERS VIII–XII)
In Chapter 8, Jake’s friend Bill shows up and regales him with tales of his travels. They head out to eat and along the way, Bill notices a taxidermy shop. He tries to convince Jake to stop and buy something in a humorous exchange:
List: My Favorite Books
My top three favorite books are: Never Let Me Go, Sharp Objects, and The Reader.
The Shopkeeper’s Soul Keeper and the Cult of the Household Nun
“A man’s wife could, by staying at home, keep her husband’s personal virtue protected from the moral pitfalls inherent in the world of commerce.”
Sexism in the Sixties
In the story “A & P,” John Updike’s characterization of Sammy can be interpreted in a variety of ways, from an example of character growth to a sketch of a static, sexist, and condescending personality.
The Sadness of Pencils
The poet takes ordinary objects that could be found in an office or work setting and gives them human emotions. On the surface, this brings the objects to life and gives them importance. On a deeper level, however, the personification of objects in “Dolor” takes humanity away from people by placing objects and humans on the same level.
The Rhetoric of Evil: Satan’s Persuasive Strategies in the Bible, Literature, and Film
“Satan is one of us; so much more so than Adam or Eve.”
The Inverted Butterfly: D.H. Hwang’s Story of Transformation and Fantasy
David Henry Hwang’s play M. Butterfly is a transformed version of the opera Madame Butterfly. He puts the opera in the perspective of intercultural relations, racial and gender stereotypes, and power dynamics in order to critique and satirize the opera into a new tale.
The Paradox of Melancholy
The central paradox in Keats’ “Ode on Melancholy” rests in the desirability of melancholy and its elusiveness, and the idea that to truly experience melancholy, one must seek out beauty, joy, and delight.
Prose & Cons 