Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
-
- Rhetoric and Composition (61)
- Literature in English, British Isles (12)
- Classics (2)
- Creative Writing (2)
- Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (2)
-
- Literature in English, North America (2)
- Poetry (2)
- Social and Behavioral Sciences (2)
- American Literature (1)
- American Studies (1)
- Ancient Philosophy (1)
- Anthropology (1)
- Classical Literature and Philology (1)
- Family, Life Course, and Society (1)
- Folklore (1)
- History (1)
- History of the Pacific Islands (1)
- Literature in English, North America, Ethnic and Cultural Minority (1)
- Medieval Studies (1)
- Pacific Islands Languages and Societies (1)
- Philosophy (1)
- Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies (1)
- Sociology (1)
- Keyword
-
- Feminism (4)
- James Joyce (3)
- Poetry (3)
- William Shakespeare (3)
- 17th century English authors (2)
-
- Edgar Allan Poe (2)
- Emily Dickinson (2)
- Irish literature (2)
- John Milton (2)
- Light (2)
- Music (2)
- Poem (2)
- Poetics (2)
- Satan (2)
- Women (2)
- "Mansfield Park" (1)
- "The Darkling Thrush" (1)
- "The History of Tom Jones" (1)
- 16th century English poetry (1)
- 17th century English poetry (1)
- 18th Century Literature (1)
- 18th century literature (1)
- 20th century American writers (1)
- A Midsummer Night's Dream (1)
- A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1)
- Adam (1)
- African American men (1)
- African-American (1)
- Alexander Pope (1)
- America (1)
Articles 1 - 30 of 64
Full-Text Articles in Comparative Literature
“No Friend Like A Sister”: Christina Rossetti’S Fantastic Departure From Pre-Raphaelite Poetics And Art In “Goblin Market”, Anna M. Lee
The Criterion
Christina Rossetti’s poetics and artistic vision in her seminal poem, “Goblin Market,” have yielded a range of critical theories, from positions on sisterhood to the ambiguous position of capitalist markets. While considering the socioeconomic and cultural context behind the poem’s development and resonance among contemporary feminist movements, readers also ought to consider the actual “goblin brotherhood” — the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB) — behind Rossetti’s authorial ventures. This paper argues that Rossetti’s fantastical methods draw influence from and participate in the PRB’s poetics and artistic traditions, while subverting the same conventions within a feminist paradigm. Rossetti not only envisions a homosocial …
Moving “Passed” Life For Death, Gwyneth Morrissey
Moving “Passed” Life For Death, Gwyneth Morrissey
The Criterion
The paper Moving “Passed” Life for Death explores Emily Dickinson's poem #479, "Because I could not stop for Death," focusing on the theme of movement expressed through the word "passed." It analyzes the contradictory qualities of movement and stopping and how they interplay. At the same time, it looks into how the poem's periodic stopping points highlight the natural cycle of life and death, challenging the conventional and fearful understanding of dying. Dickinson's use of "passed" ultimately alludes to the persistence of life after death, altering readers' perceptions of mortality. The essay presents an intriguing interpretation of life, death, and …
The Search For Worth: How Relationship Conflicts Reveal The Universal Nature Of Insecurity, Grace C. Conroy
The Search For Worth: How Relationship Conflicts Reveal The Universal Nature Of Insecurity, Grace C. Conroy
The Criterion
Since the beginning of time, romantic relationships and their dynamics have taken center stage in media--whether in books, plays, or other forms of literature. In this essay, a comparison of couples' relationships in James Joyce's "The Dead" and Marina Carr's play "The Mai" reveals the core human element of insecurity, prevalent in moments of marital conflict.
The Configuration Of Society In "The Dispossessed" And "Blindness", Patrick Ryan
The Configuration Of Society In "The Dispossessed" And "Blindness", Patrick Ryan
The Criterion
In both Ursula K. Le Guin's The Dispossessed and José Saramago’s Blindness, character’s are posited into scenarios where the structure of society is either foreign, dilapidated, or outright missing. This essay aims to rationalize why the authors arranged their respective worlds this way, and illuminate points of comparison and contrast between the two works. To achieve this goal, this essay specifically analyzes the types of societies seen within the two novels, and what role individual characters have in shaping them. Additionally, through a supplementary examination of related secondary sources, this essay hopes to answer fundamental questions about the portrayal …
Milton’S Exploration Of The Demonic Consciousness, Niall Mckenna
Milton’S Exploration Of The Demonic Consciousness, Niall Mckenna
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
The Facade Of Names In Benjamin Clark’S “The Emigrant”, Brad Donegan
The Facade Of Names In Benjamin Clark’S “The Emigrant”, Brad Donegan
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Downfall To Friendliness?: Analyzing Common Tropes In The Boy Who Loved Too Much, Heather Paglia
Downfall To Friendliness?: Analyzing Common Tropes In The Boy Who Loved Too Much, Heather Paglia
The Criterion
One of the most commonly held misconceptions regarding the disabled population is that living with any disability automatically decreases the quality of life. It is assumed that any deviation from society’s established norm for the perfect brain and body must be a burden. Both the physical and social implications associated with disability have forged in the minds of many the idea that a disabled life could not possibly be a good life. This overarching negativity, however, is turned on its head when considering Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder more accurately described as happy syndrome. This so-called disability is not …
Language And The Lord Of The Rings: The Expansion Of A Universe, Thomas Beutz
Language And The Lord Of The Rings: The Expansion Of A Universe, Thomas Beutz
The Criterion
Tommy Beutz’s essay, “Language and The Lord of the Rings: The Expansion of a Universe” explores J.R.R. Tolkien’s world-building through the lens of linguistics. Beutz argues that Tolkien’s creation of Middle-Earth, anchored in his invented languages, extends beyond the bounds of the text. Drawing on Tolkien’s background as a philologist, Beutz contends that the languages of Middle-Earth are not mere literary devices but rather the foundation of its entire mythology. By examining linguistic markers embedded in the primary text, Beutz reveals how Tolkien hints at a larger world outside the narrative. Through an analysis of historical accounts and characters’ …
Eliot’S Raid On The Ineffable, Louie Alexandris
Eliot’S Raid On The Ineffable, Louie Alexandris
The Criterion
In the poem Four Quartets, T.S Eliot employs a fragmentary form to dramatize the disjointed continuity of time. Within the poem though, the fluctuation or fragmentation of the form is also in service to the whole by showing the unending exploration of man to reach the “still point” of divine contemplation. For Eliot, the fragmentary nature of the form in Four Quartets is in service to the whole, because the continual fluctuation of musicality embodies a journey or exploration for the “still point” of the world to achieve true contemplation. In that sense, Eliot’s poem is an artistic success, …
What Is The Right Feeling? Keat's Poetic Representations Of Agentive Femininity, Brendan Bonner
What Is The Right Feeling? Keat's Poetic Representations Of Agentive Femininity, Brendan Bonner
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Heurodis's Body: Reading "Sir Orfeo" With Three Significant Losses, Grace J. Bromage
Heurodis's Body: Reading "Sir Orfeo" With Three Significant Losses, Grace J. Bromage
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
The (Ir)Reverent Social Roles Of Religion In The Work Of James And Wharton, Jannette Kazlauskas
The (Ir)Reverent Social Roles Of Religion In The Work Of James And Wharton, Jannette Kazlauskas
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
“A Disputant Of The Landscape:” Redefining The English Landscape In “To Autumn”, John Sager
“A Disputant Of The Landscape:” Redefining The English Landscape In “To Autumn”, John Sager
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Bawdy Works: Vulgar Humor And Bodily Autonomy In Austen's "Mansfield Park" And Fielding's "The History Of Tom Jones", Sloane Larsen
Bawdy Works: Vulgar Humor And Bodily Autonomy In Austen's "Mansfield Park" And Fielding's "The History Of Tom Jones", Sloane Larsen
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
The Gendered Shackles Of Clarissa Dalloway And Septimus Warren Smith, Abigail Coburn
The Gendered Shackles Of Clarissa Dalloway And Septimus Warren Smith, Abigail Coburn
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Tension In The Eye: Milton And Surveillance, Joseph Abrams
Tension In The Eye: Milton And Surveillance, Joseph Abrams
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Fated By A Fallen World, Danielle Dentremont
Enigmatic Nashe And The Subversion Of Romance, Louie Alexandris
Enigmatic Nashe And The Subversion Of Romance, Louie Alexandris
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Ownership Is Power, Madeleine Moino
The Exile Enigma And The Cycle Of Haunting, Caroline Boardman
The Exile Enigma And The Cycle Of Haunting, Caroline Boardman
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Awareness In Thomas Hardy's "The Darkling Thrush", Caroline Coffey
Awareness In Thomas Hardy's "The Darkling Thrush", Caroline Coffey
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
Christian Humanism In Flannery O'Connor's "Wise Blood", Grant Ward
Christian Humanism In Flannery O'Connor's "Wise Blood", Grant Ward
The Criterion
No abstract provided.
“His Own Was Ampler:” Dickinson And Whitman’S Sunset Poetry, Devyn Forcina
“His Own Was Ampler:” Dickinson And Whitman’S Sunset Poetry, Devyn Forcina
The Criterion
Although they are utterly dissimilar poets, Dickinson and Whitman made sunsets frequent subjects of their work. Dickinsonian sunset poetry attempts to imitate the natural phenomena and evokes tension and competition. A kind of closure is forced upon her unwilling speaker, who struggles against the inevitable ending of the day. In contrast, Whitmanian sunset poetry sings and celebrates the finale of the setting sun and delights in the cyclical nature of time. While Dickinson acknowledges the temporary quality of a single sunset, Whitman rejoices in their immortal occurrence. Both poets preserve the imagery of sunsets as photographers would, while imbuing them …
Women, Writing, And Storytelling In Medieval England And The Canterbury Tales, Sadie O'Conor
Women, Writing, And Storytelling In Medieval England And The Canterbury Tales, Sadie O'Conor
The Criterion
For a woman to succeed in an academic sphere, it is never enough for her to be clever-- she must be brilliant. “The Second Nun’s Tale” in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales explores the metaphorical brilliance (in sexual purity, intelligence, and faith) of St. Cecilia. The tale is also a mechanism for the Second Nun to advocate for her own vocation of “holy work,” for the sake of the learned religious women who preserved such writings. The themes of her tale are quite different from those espoused by the Wife of Bath, but the Wife also argues to have her voice …
Shakespeare’S Staging And The Self In The Sonnets, Xiani Zhu
Shakespeare’S Staging And The Self In The Sonnets, Xiani Zhu
The Criterion
This essay examines the theatricality of Shakespeare’s young man sonnets and how he uses the “stage” as a shortcut to deliver abstract ideas such as the concept of beauty, time, and love that are otherwise difficult to express. On a micro level, he frames each individual sonnet as a stage, where each specific setting and scenario allows dramatic tension to arise between the characters on stage, and from there, abstract ideas and emotions are naturally presented without being directly stated. On a macro level, the entire young-man sonnet sub-sequence — being in love with a beautiful young man — itself …
Injustice In Childhood: Jane Eyre And The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass, Christian Barkman
Injustice In Childhood: Jane Eyre And The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass, Christian Barkman
The Criterion
Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre and Frederick Douglass’ Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, are autobiographical novels narrated by the fictional Jane Eyre and the real Frederick Douglass. Both stories evoke an outpouring of pity for their respective narrator: Jane, for the unmerited abuses dealt against her by family and school administrators, but most of all Douglass, who reserves the greater portion of lament on account of his dreadful persecution under the evil of slavery. The environments Jane and Douglass inhabit throughout their childhood inflict an immense burden on their physical body and psyche. This essay specially examines the …
Marilynne Robinson’S Housekeeping Read Through The Conceptual Prism Of “Tethers”, Sarah Street
Marilynne Robinson’S Housekeeping Read Through The Conceptual Prism Of “Tethers”, Sarah Street
The Criterion
Marilynne Robinson’s novel, Housekeeping, follows her central protagonist, Ruth, her sister Lucille, and her aunt Sylvie as they work to establish their place up against a greater surround. This paper attempts to read the novel through the conceptual prism of the word “tethers.” I argue that the characters' relationships with the surround shifts as they work through their trauma and grapple with the notion of impermanence by reconciling with both those things that tether them, those tethers that do not exist or have been released, and the tethers from which they want to break free. Ultimately I argue that …