top of page
Search


Oct 23, 20183 min read
Thoughts on Slaughterhouse Five
Kurt Vonnegjut, Jr.'s Slaughterhouse Five displays a monotonous indifference to death, human cruelty, and suffering. An extreme...


Oct 18, 20189 min read
The Quaker Influence in Anne Tyler’s The Accidental Tourist
Note: This paper provides literature students with an example of the biographical and mimetic approaches to literature. Elizabeth Evans,...


Oct 16, 201812 min read
Thomas Otway's Venice Preserv'd: An Ideal Source for a Tory Message
Note: The following analysis is an example of the historical biographical approach to literature. In his article "Political...


Oct 13, 20185 min read
Sound in Shakespeare's "Tempest": A Formalist Approach
This academic exercise takes a formalist approach to William Shakespeare’s play The Tempest. It is not intended to be a well-developed...


Oct 4, 20188 min read
A Historical/Biographical Approach to Sandra Cisneros's "Never Marry a Mexican"
Note: This is an academic exercise that takes a historical / biographical critical approach to Sandra Cisneros’s short story, "Never...


Oct 3, 20186 min read
A Freudian Analysis of Erin McGraw's "A Thief"
Note: This is an academic exercise that takes a psychological critical approach to Erin McGraw’s short story, "A Thief." This is not...


Oct 2, 20183 min read
A Feminist Approach to “Woman Hollering Creek”
Note: This is an academic exercise that takes a feminist critical approach to Sandra Cisneros’s short story “Woman Hollering Creek.” ...


Oct 1, 20186 min read
A Formalist Reading of "Woman Hollering Creek"
Note: This is an academic exercise that uses formalism (new criticism) to examine Sandra Cisneros’s short story “Woman Hollering Creek.” ...


Sep 29, 20188 min read
A Symbolic Approach to Kate Chopin's The Awakening
Note: This is an academic exercise that takes a symbolic approach to Kate Chopin’s novelette. This is not intended to be a...


Sep 26, 201811 min read
A Toolbox for Understanding Literature: Seven Critical Approaches
The toolbox of literary criticism offers us a variety of ways to tinker with the text until we have a better understanding. We can use...


Feb 12, 20183 min read
As Days Go By: A Reflection on a Hopeful Poet
During my twenty years as editor and publisher of Ancient Paths literary magazine, several thousand poems have come across my desk for...
bottom of page