Category: Character
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A Woman as a Resource: Emma’s Marital Status in Madame Bovary
Published in 1856, the novel Madame Bovary is one of the first to explore the issue of women’s disempowerment in a pointedly modern fashion. As a woman, the protagonist Emma experiences a number of obstacles that prevent her from reaching what she desires the most. Emma is viewed as a valuable asset, rather than as…
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Theme of Women Empowerment in “Little Women”
Around the time period of the Civil War, women in the U.S. had few rights but many expectations placed upon them. Women could not own land, vote, or sell property. Instead, society expected them to care for their families by cooking and cleaning, with little to no say in the finances of the family and…
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Mag’s Transition to Adulthood in Little Women
The influential 19th century novel Little Women by Louisa May Alcott expresses didactic tendencies, as well as qualities of sentimentalism, allowing it to be a compelling read for adolescent audiences. Following the story of the March sisters, readers track the growth and maturity of Alcott’s characters. Our first experience of the transition into adulthood being…
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The Scarlett O’hara’s Character Development
Scarlett O’Hara Scarlett O’Hara, a well-known name throughout literature, is the main character of the book and film Gone With the Wind. She is the daughter of Gerald O’Hara, and the two live on a plantation outside of Atlanta, Georgia during the time of the Civil War. Scarlett was not generally thought to be beautiful,…
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Caleb Williams: Realism Out of Romance
In William Godwin’s Caleb Williams, the titular protagonist Caleb is purportedly writing to prove his innocence after his former master, Mr. Falkland, destroys his reputation. However, in the postscript, once Falkland has died after being convicted for his crimes, Caleb appears to regret his actions. He represents himself and Falkland as idealized and romantic versions…
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An Analysis of Love Medicine’s “Lulu”
Lulu Nanapush Lamartine is a symbolic and admirable Chippewa Woman in Louise Erdrich’s Love Medicine. As a Native Woman character, Lulu reclaims and redefines space that is usually taken up by unfair stereotypes by using her shameless beauty and compassionate sexuality. Margaret Galloway argues that Lulu, as one of the most distinctive female characters in…
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Euripides’ Vision of Medea’s Character
Critics have noted that unlike his illustrious predecessors who also specialized in , Euripides bears a far greater sensibility towards the marginalized sections of society such that many of his prominent characters are seen to be either women or people belonging to the ‘lower classes’. This was in stark contrast to Greek dramatic tradition, which…
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Dark Past of The Characters in Fall on Your Knees and Man Gone Down
It is very common in literature, both in the past and modern-day, for characters to have dark backgrounds. Many authors choose this approach because it creates an approachable character with whom the reader can identify, and provides the reader with an admirable protagonist. This darkness is usually the result of one or many traumatizing events,…
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The Unsympathetic Cheryl Strayed
Cheryl Strayed is an unsympathetic character but a lovable person; this is not a contradictory statement. In her memoir Wild, she stars as a grief-stricken yet naïve young woman, making her the main (and unsympathetic) character of this story. In her podcasts, on the other hand, it is easier to get a sense of who…
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The Theme of Companionship in Herman Melville’s “Moby Dick”
Self-Development: Companionship Cultivation In Herman Melville’s novel, Moby Dick, Ishmael, the protagonist, undergoes a series of stages in the development of his personal qualities. As Ishmael ventures further out of his comfort zone and experiences life-changing moments together with his newfound acquaintance, Queequeg, Ishmael’s character is cultivated from an unaware, ignorant person to a much…