Genre Essays

‘Mid-Term Break’ by Seamus Heaney is a poem about the tragic loss of a young boy. Heaney wrote it as a result of his own infant brother’s (Christopher) death. Its content is dramatic and heart rendering in describing the feelings, emotions and reactions of Heaney himself, his relations and others post the tragic event. ‘Second […]

Neither Samuel Beckett’s Endgame nor Edward Bond’s Lear are described by their authors as tragedies, and it seems unlikely that Aristotle would recognise them as such. Nevertheless, both writers draw self-consciously on elements of classical tragedy – though with different aesthetic and moral intentions, and with strikingly different results. In this essay, I will discuss […]

The Winter’s Tale belongs to a small group of plays which have been labelled ‘the problem plays’ as they do not fit comfortably into the classifications of either Comedy, History or Tragedy. Therefore it joins Pericles, Cymbeline, and The Tempest in the list of the genre-defying later plays that are usually referred to as “romances […]

Graham Greene’s “The Heart of the Matter” follows protagonist Scobie and explores several important themes including Catholicism, adultery, corruption, responsibility, and sin. These themes are common in many of Greene’s religious novels, including “The Power and the Glory,” which features a character struggling to do good while also grappling with their love for God. Critics […]

Gloucester are similar to an extent of being tragic heroes, because they both experience the traditional features of a classic tragedy. Both characters go through the features of hubris, hamster and culminates with missionaries. Shakespeare employs the double plot in ‘King Lear’, the only Shakespearean tragedy to employ two similar plots which function in a […]

This morning, a premature explosion tragically resulted in the deaths of five workers. The news quickly spread throughout the small town, attracting a crowd near the accident site. However, due to ongoing rock and earth movement on the mountain, it was not possible for anyone to approach closely. Those of us who were working in […]

Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire is considered by most people to be his most flawless masterpiece. This is because Williams work blends both tragic and comic elements together. He shows the true nature of the hero and doesnt let the reader judge the characters based on one single action. Most readers think because there […]

King Lear is widely acknowledged as one of William Shakespeare’s great tragedies. This essay will identify and analyze a couple of key scenes from the play which makes a significant contribution to the overall development of plot, its character and the theme. Act 1 Scene 1 The very first scene from the first act is […]

Eugene O’Neill is the father of modern American drama. His vision of life was essentially tragic; the human dilemma is the theme of his plays, which are all, with one exception, tragedies. He is a great tragic artist, but with a difference. He writes tragedies of modern life which do not follow the traditional Aristotelian […]

INTRODUCTION Bhopal Gas Tragedy was the worst industrial catastrophe in the Indian History. It occurred in 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh. At the time of accident, UCIL was the Indian subsidiary of the U. S. company Union Carbide Corporation (UCC). UCC is now […]

Wu Jianren’s 1906 novella ‘Sea of Regret (originally titled Hen Bai) is a masterpiece of modern Chinese literature. The book is rich in themes of morality and the challenges of modernity and patriotism. Adopting a tone of sentimentality that is essential to the Chinese literary aesthetic the novella deals also with concepts such as chivalry […]

There are many themes in Candide which resonate with a contemporary audience. One of the recurrent attacks in the book has been against religious institutions and the politico-cultural power wielded by them. Although Voltaire was a deist, he did not espouse the view of the Optimists who believed that we inhabit a perfect world in […]

A Modern Tragedy – The Hairy Ape by Eugene O’Neill Inside Eugene O’Neill’s “The Hairy Ape” the main character, Yank, embodies the beleaguered working class of a capitalist culture. As Mr. O’Neill’s was understood to be a zealous socialist himself believing that a society should and can work together, as a whole, towards a better […]

In Hamlet, Shakespeare makes it clear that Prince Hamlet is insane or at least on the verge of “madness. ” However, Ophelia (daughter of Polonius, King of Denmark) begins to go mad, as well, after Hamlet kills her father, and the other numerous tragedies that plague her like a black cloud hovering about until her […]

“Slavery is known to be a condition where one has a full authority and absolute power over another person (Merriam Webster Dictionary). ” Slavery has been present in the life of Sayuri even at the start of the story in the novel. Sayuri, the main protagonist of the story unraveled a long journey before she […]

Canada, located in the northern hemisphere, has a frigid climate. Exploring its population and studying its literature allows for an examination of cultural differences between Canada and other cold regions. Canadian literature reflects the experiences of individuals deeply immersed in Canadian culture. By examining their literature, one can gain insight into how Canadians endure isolation […]

I came across these words one day: “Life is like a rollercoaster. It has ups and downs. But it’s your choice to scream or enjoy the ride”. I believe that your perspective on life shall change your ride into a comedy or a tragedy. If you are a thinker who contemplates life without involving your […]

Abstract Many issues currently are faced by the women who are into dating searching for the soul partner. Many decisions are taken in response to the choices that are made based on which fears are faced along with sorrows and grief. Dating and having a relationship with a married man is one such decisions that […]

The main focus here is not the term tragedy, which means “goat song” and has a connection to Dionysus’ ritual. Instead, we will primarily explore Aristotle’s concept of tragedy, which comes from the story of Dionysus and other sources. According to Aristotle’s Poetics, a crucial aspect of tragedy is the depiction of a noble and […]

Aristotle defines a tragic hero as someone, usually a male, who “falls from a high place mainly due to their fatal flaw. ” During the highest point of the tragic hero’s life, something is revealed to the protagonist causing a reversal in their fortune. This reversal of fortune is caused by the flaw in their […]

Intelligent, strikingly attractive, and distinguished by her deep moral sensitivity and passionate intensity, Tess is indisputably the central character of the novel that bears her name. But she is also more than a distinctive individual: Hardy makes her into somewhat of a mythic heroine. Other characters often refer to Tess in mythical terms, as when […]

Throughout the sixteenth century, many of Shakespeare’s most famous plays, including Hamlet, were tragedies that readers could feel strong emotional connections with. Because of the popular infatuation with these plays, audiences were heavily attracted to the Globe Theater with the desire to see these plays preformed. In modern-day literature, Hamlet is still appreciated and still […]