Short Argumentative Essay Example

In "A&P" by John Updike, he uses imagery, setting, and symbolism to address the consequences of Sammy 's choices. Updike bases his short story A&P in a small town located in New England. The focus is a 19 year boy named Sammy and his coming of age, he goes from innocent and ignorance to mature and wise in just a few minutes. In the beginning of the story Sammy focuses on the physical appearance of the three girls that comes in A&P but by the end of the story he has matured and not only looks at…

are through dialogue, character description, language etc. “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver and “Shiloh” by Bobbie Ann Mason, both made characters very similar. However, with similarities also comes differences. Both husbands from Carver and Mason’s short stories both felt unwanted by their wives but in different ways. Carver made the husband feel unwanted by making him jealous while Mason made the character feel unappreciated. In “Cathedral”, Carver made the husband who is also the narrator,…

having to spend all your money on bills, is having to put up with the worst types of people simply because you desperately need a paying job. More aptly put, because that worst type of person is usually put in a position of power over you. In the short story “A&P” Sammy had to make a decision, though probably based majorly on his lower half rather than his actual brain, to quit his job due to a strong belief that his supervisor treated a customer unfairly. Sammy was lucky being young means most…

reason behind this act; however, most people are not aware of the reason behind it. Regardless, most people still follow this tradition. Similar to “Battle Royal,” Jackson, also portrays the effect of traditions and the traditions’ rituals in her short story, the Lottery. Although, the setting of the village and its people seem ordinary, initially, readers, later learn that behind this normality exists a dangerous ceremony, based solely upon a tradition. Jackson points out that “the lottery…

Psychoanalytic Criticism. One focus of the psychoanalytical approach to literature is "...the notion that human beings are motivated, even driven, by desires, fears, needs, and conflicts of which they are unaware..." (Tyson 14-15). Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story “The Birthmark”, represents such motivational desires and fears through its main character Aylmer, who develops a deadly relationship with his wife Georgianna and her existing birthmark. This paper will argue that Aylmer’s obsession…

Edgar Allen Poe’s short story, “The Cask of Amontillado”, features the story of Montresor and Fortunato in a horror story where one person seeks revenge over the other. Montresor is the main character, narrating his actions towards the readers. He describes the event taken place as he attempts to kill Fortunato for the unspecific injures Fortunato inflict on him (Poe). In this story, Montrestor faces the human condition of vengeance, seeking to attack others for past misdeeds. Moreover, Poe’s…

In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien breaks down the border between fact and fiction as he articulates a credible collection of war stories. O’Brien takes the unique role in the novel as an imaginary character created from a blend of real and fabricated elements, but he still makes sure to elucidate that the novel is merely a work of his imagination. Nevertheless, this style of autobiographical fiction forces readers to question the fictional nature of the novel. O’Brien himself…

selection continues until it is narrowed down to where each member in the chosen family selects a piece of paper. All begins to go downhill when Bill Hutchinson selects the dotted paper, resulting with the death of his wife Tessie Hutchinson. In the short story, Shirley Jackson uses matter-of-fact details about the setting, the townspeople, and the traditions associated with the yearly lottery to initially mask but then emphasize her theme that although society claims to be civilized it is, in…

In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin the author depicts the ideology of marriage in a negative view through the main character. This ideology ripples throughout the story, bringing to life the hardships and bondage that wives often unknowingly endured during the late 1800’s. The writer demonstrates this commonly unseen side of marriage through the use of three main literary elements. By using irony the author enables her audience to view marriage in an unconventional way for the time period…

Infidelity can cause psychological and sociological issues. In Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story “Interpreter of Maladies” and “The Lady with the Dog” by Anton Chekov these issues don’t effect only the family, but the cheater themselves. Megan Sweeney and Allan authors of “Infidelity, Initiation, and the Emotional Climate of Divorce: Are there Implications for Mental Health?” points out that “[a]dultery is one of the many key factors on a stressful dysfunctional family.”(297). And also stated by…