American novels

Minny Jackson, a significant character in the novel, an African American maid who has five children and unfortunately is married to Leroy. At the beginning of the novel, I automatically felt a deep connection to Minny. As a black maid she is expected to be submissive, silent and tower down to any Caucasians command, yet she does neither. In Minny’s conflict against society and working for white women she speaks what is on her mind and possesses physical and mental strength because “Minny could…

of combinations of themes, perspectives, characters, plot, and style that a novel can be written in, and each one of those factors can carry significant meaning in a novel. Perspective, for example, can show what a single character or multiple characters are thinking and feeling. It describes their commonalities in the psyche and their differences. Published in 1932, by William Faulkner, The Unvanquished, a Civil War novel, was written more than sixty years after the war ended, and deals…

a life of disappointments, setbacks, and injustices for African Americans who do everything right, yet still get their dreams taken away from them by a prejudiced society. Beckham highlights the gendered experience of racism by using Henry’s character to show the effects racism has on men’s masculinity and their ability to provide for their families. Each time Henry begins to lose hope, thoughts of baseball and…

been declared, the writer elucidates their goal throughout the entire novel. F. Scott Fitzgerald and Timothy Findley use purpose to inform the reader about previous events. For instance, in a historical drama novel, the author writes about past events and incorporates them to fit the everyday life of the characters. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald conveys that although individuals are living the American Dream,…

participants and spectators alike, much of its cultural importance lies in its frequent use as a metaphor not only for American democracy (see the above quote from F.T. Miller), but individual fulfillment. In his essay explaining the cultural context in which American sports literature was created, Wiley Lee Umphlett describes how in the early 20th century, when a large number of American schools first incorporated physical education and athletic programs, sports were used to indoctrinate…

of the usual progression found in most novels. The author uses contrast in the…

In the novel, The Crystal Frontier by author Carlos Fuentes narrates the experience of nine different people to show his readers the continuous relationship between the neighboring countries of Mexico and the United States of America. Throughout the novel the nine stories, all contain different people and their experience with however it’s not till the end when the stories all interact with one another, to fully understand what Fuentes was trying to portray by telling these stories. One person…

The film and novel of Pearl S. Buck’s The Good Earth differ in many ways, which include those related to the plot, the portrayal of characters, and the overall theme conveyed by the story. In my opinion, the novel more strongly conveys what I believe was Buck’s intended message, while the film shows a faster-paced plot that was likely more easily understood by the American public at the time of its release. Initially, the film appears to follow the novel’s plotline, but strays from the mood…

As I flipped through the pages of the novel Johnny Tremain, I pondered to myself whether or not all of the exciting events in my book truly happened. I decided to do some research and I found out that a lot of the events that happened in my book actually happened in history! As a matter of fact, not only the events in this novel seemed accurate, but some of the major characters and jobs in this book appeared accurate as well. The novel Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes depicts an accurate piece of…

winning novel The Sympathizer challenges many constructs of modern society through a narrator who is “… a man of two minds” (Nguyen 1). The half French, half Vietnamese narrator operates as a communist spy among the Southern Vietnamese troops. The narrator chronicles his life in the form of a confession to another communist within a reeducation camp. This unique stylistic technique allows Nguyen to delve into and dissect issues that remain culturally relevant, including representation, American…