Modern Library 100 Best Novels

The picture of persuasion Vladimir Nabokov paints throughout Lolita cues the reader through its language, stylistic devices of repetition, metaphor and alliteration. This passage is no exception as the readers is thrown into a pool of ambiguity, left to their own devices and the seduction of Humbert Humbert to discern what is right or wrong? Worthy of forgiveness? Is Charlotte’s death Humbert’s fault? There are no clear answers and this is precisely what makes good literature what makes Lo lee ta the demonic nymphet. The passages weird interview which Humbert mentions is with the driver of the car who hit his wife and the offering of funeral payments he gives. His acceptance of the offer throws the ‘gentlemen’ off and foreshadows the way Humbert plays with us the audience as we are too thrown of by offers of innocence and guilt. Charlotte’s killer is refereed to as a gentlemen and although his offer of funeral payments is indeed kind it also superficially material and his surprise at Humbert’s acceptance indicates perhaps a want not to pay but rather as a feign of the societally correct behaviour. One must also not forget the fact that the man is indeed the killer of Charlotte and the note that he is a gentlemen although hierarchically true as the murderer of your wife you would think would be seen as the complete opposite. Or perhaps Humbert sees it as a favour that the man has done for him or Nabokov is playing with the idea of what he has painted a gentlemen to constitute…

In Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov writes about the filthy relationship between Lolita, a young girl, and Humbert Humbert, her pedophilic stepfather, and the lasting effect it has on both of them. Nabokov adopts a shameful tone in order to convey unhealthy obsession can cause major changes in one’s perception of reality. This excerpt demonstrates that this novel uses first person narrator. This author uses this narrator to reveal the theme that unhealthy obsession can cause major changes in one’s…

characters, Jay Gatsby and Holden Caulfield, who have faced similar obstacles, the lack of love. The two protagonists tried to gain attention from others, which they suffered from negative effects. The negativity had taken a huge affect on them because the characters became delusional to what reality. The outcome wouldn’t have happened if these two protagonists were just willingly to admit the obstacles that they had to overcome and should have not exacerbate their situation. Even though the…

Neil Gaiman, author of The Graveyard Book writes about a young boy named Nobody Owens or Bod who has a unique relationship with the dead. Throughout the novel Bod learns many things that the dead know about and don’t. With his guardian Silas, a mysterious figure who is neither living nor dead, Bod learns multiple things about life, the dead, and how powerful knowledge is. Knowledge is Power and power is what Bod seeks in order to protect himself, avenge his family, and put a stop to the Man…

Sun Tzu once said, “The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.” Victims of many situations usually are unaware of their trouble until the oppressor portrays it. Unfortunately, Nobody Owens from Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, always got into life-threatening incidents. In this novel, the man Jack, an extremely dangerous man to the Dorian family, goes to the Dorian household to avoid problems for himself in the future.…

Book are all of the main characters who died, were buried in the same graveyard, and came back to life. They are from several different time periods and ways of life, which adds depth to the story. It is also similar to Rime of the Ancient Mariner, in which the ghosts are the crewmates on the mariner’s ship. It also includes supernatural elements like sea monsters, ghost ships, and curses. The Graveyard Book, Hamlet, and Rime of the Ancient Mariner all fit in perfectly with the theme of ghost…

Even though the Tamils and Sinhalese may have different ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds, they are all human beings who are killing each other. While they may have different tenets and ideologies that make up their identities, they all share a country, they all breath the same air and they all are made up of a skeleton. The skeleton that receives the most attention throughout the novel is Sailor; Anil searches endlessly to find his identity. Anil’s quest for the truth of his identity…

of Francine Prose’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Can’t Read”, the topic of her argument appears to be one concerned with the failing education system, contributed, in part, by the failure of teachers to effectively teach literature, focusing on the moral values that can be taken from a particular work rather than focusing on the actual literary content, and the lack of literary works that encourage a love of literature and are complex in nature. However, Prose’s arranging of her argument allowed…

of game-time or trip to the cinema to see the latest blockbuster. This obsession subsided as he reached college and he became much more focused on writing and directing his own films. When he graduated from college he took up a job at a supermarket. The tedious and monotonous nature of the work made him yearn for a creative outlet, often writing short stories on crumpled up customer receipts. After a year of work he knew he wasn’t destined for retail, so he enrolled in a creative writing course…

Throughout The Golden Compass, the topic of fantasy is explored and applied to the storyline directly. From talking polar bears to bizarre personal companions, this novel certainly emphasizes the imaginative aspect of literature. The Golden Compass, written by Philip Pullman, is one of three books in the series titled His Dark Materials which exemplifies the nature of the fantasy genre by detailing completely absurd and surreal events (Pullman 2-198). In The Golden Compass, the protagonist,…