English Language and Literature Commons^™

Cabell's Rational Morality As Expressed Through The Dream-Vision Technique In Jurgen, Ruth Macdonald Stevenson

Master's Theses

The various parts of this study deal with various episodes in Jurgen, episodes in which Jurgen progresses from one region to another and from one set of circumstances to another with no very immediately apparent relationship between any two of his adventures. This apparent lack of unity is deceiving. What witness, if we are perceptive, is not an aimless progression to region after region but a series of related allegories, each of which concerns it­self with some aspect of reality, the moral values involved therein, and man's "reasonable" adjustment to these realities. The unity of this thesis rests upon the …

The Symbolism Of The Holy Grail : A Comparative Analysis Of The Grail In Perceval Ou Le Conte Del Graal By Chretien De Troyes And Parzival By Wolfram Von Eschenbach, Karin Elizabeth Nordenhaug

Honors Theses

Both works, Chretien's and Wolfram’s, are literary masterpieces of the Middle Ages. The story of the Grail can be placed along side of Dante's Commedia in symbolical content. Like most medieval writings the Grail romances are full of allegory, remote allusions to symbolic relationships, and striking analogies, all of which leave us with a sense of wonder and amazement. First of all we wonder whether or not a connection, which we might find symbolical was put there accidentally or not; we wonder whether we are seeing too much or too little symbolic value. It is characteristic of the authors never …

Milton And Socinianism, Joseph Johnson Collins

Master's Theses

The seventeenth century was a period of enormous scholarship and erudition. In the wake of the Reformation and the Humanist movements great interest was awakened in the field of Biblical scholarship, Many of the scholars, lay­ men, and divines began to devote much of their time and energy to the new Biblical exegesis. The doctrine which was receiving much attention during this period suggested that one might assure that the strongholds of the reformed religion were sufficiently fortified through improved trans­lation and qualified Biblical exegesis.

This was the era which produced John Milton 's method­ ical and learned tractate of …

The Dramas Of Byron : An Evaluation, Welford Dunaway Taylor

Master's Theses

After considering Byron's relation to the theatre as an amateur actor and committeeman, viewing his dramatic concepts, and comparing him to other poets of his own day who attempted dramas, it can be clearly seen that both from an acting and a literary standpoint, his dramas are of an inferior quality. There can be no doubt of Byron's disappointment and disillusionment, as he had devoted so much time and energy at the prime of his life to them. At first he had said that this work was not for the stage, wishing all the time that he might capture the …

A Survey Of The Novels Of Charles Brockden Brown, George C. Longest

Master's Theses

Before 1790 there had been little fiction written in America. Since Charles Brockden Brown was the first American to rely on his pen for an income, the term "Father of American Literature" belongs logically to him.

An Introduction To The Victorian Woman : A Comparative Study Dealing With Poetical And Historical Sources, Lois Iffert Rudge

Master's Theses

The purpose of studying the Victorian women in poetry has been to find some relation between the historical woman and the literary woman. Louise E. Rorabacher in a similar thesis considered only the novels of the day (Victorian Women in Life and Fiction, University of Illinois, 1942). Her purpose was to determine the validity of the concept of the woman in the novel in terms of historical fact. She concluded that the fictional woman was real, in a narrow, myopic sense, but that she did not reflect the social change. The picture of her social and conservative home life was …

The Contemporary American Short Story (A Study Of The Best American Short Stories, 1950-1959), Gertrude Carrick Curtler

Master's Theses

The purpose of this paper is to analyze and review the contemporary short story by means of an intensive study of The Best American Short Stories of the past ten years. The obvious weakness of the project is that all these two hundred and forty-five short stories were selected as the best of each year by one person, Martha Foley. While she is generally respected as a critic, still her opinions are based on her own taste and judgement alone. It is possible that she leans too much toward avant­-garde stories, or even that she may prefer stories of one …

Actuality And Realism In The Poetry Of George Crabbe, Gerald Meredith Garman

Master's Theses

It ia a generally accepted fact among critics that George Crabbe was a realist. It will be the purpose of this paper to examine this conclusion for its validity. More exactly, I shall compare the poetry of Crabbe with the historical records of his era and measure how closely Crabbe came to reproducing, realistically, his own times. The paper is really a study of Crabbe's realism as reflected in his poetry with a view toward questioning the verdict of the critics.

In this work I have attempted to dispel several misconceived notions about Crabbe's poetry, but the general conclusions will …

The Portrayal Of Historical Character In Browning's Poetry, Claudius Williams Griffin

Master's Theses

Robert Browning is one of the most popular of the English poets, in his day and ours. There are Browning Societies and Browning lovers all over the world, from England and America to Africa and South America. He is also popular with scholars. There are at least twelve biographies, three handbooks to interpret his poetry, and six or more collections of his letters to his wife and friends. What accounts for Browning's popularity? He was not a lyric poet like Shelley, nor was he a nature lover like Wordsworth. Much of his poetry is difficult and requires careful reading. Some …

Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889), Helen Levine Berkowitz

Master's Theses

Gerard Manley Hopkins' reputation as a poet has been almost wholly posthumous. He did not "arrive" in a critical way until the l930's when interest seemed to be centered more on the religious implications of his work than on the poetic. Today we are beginning to accept Hopkins as a major poet and to assess his virtues and limitations somewhat more objectively.

A Study Of Hypnotism In The Works Of Nathaniel Hawthorne, Helen Lei Hsu

Master's Theses

I propose in this study to examine the uses of hypnotism in two of Hawthorne 's tales: "Ethan Brand" and "The Prophetic Pictures"; and three of Hawthorne's romances: Fanshawe, The House of the Seven Gables, and The Blithedale Romance. My aims are generally these: to investigate Hawthorne's interest in hypnotism with reference to the manifested popularity of hypnotism in his time; to identify Hawthorne's implication of hypnotism in the above tales and romances; and to analyze Hawthorne 's art of interweaving his themes with the practice of hypnosis.

The Short Ghost Story : A Critical And Historical Survey, Cameron Dunlop Hall

Master's Theses

This thesis is an attempt to evaluate the work of the outstanding British and American short story writers from the early 1800's to the present. No attempt has been made to make a precise historical survey of the development of the ghost story. This paper is limited to the short ghost story in fiction; all fairytales, folk-lore, supposedly authentic anecdotes, plays, novels, and poems of the supernatural are omitted. All pseudoscience stories, horror stories, and weird fantasy are also omitted.

In the introductory part of this paper an attempt has been made to ascertain some of the factors which determine …

Serious Domestic Drama As Tragedy : A Study Of The Protagonist, Charles Turney

Master's Theses

Domestic drama is the most popular genre employed by the modern dramatist. The question may arise as to whether or not tragedy is any longer desired by the playgoer. In these representative plays, taken from many countries and written on a variety of themes all centered around domestic life, as judged by the criteria established in the first chapter, few of these dramas succeed as tragedies. This is not to be interpreted to mean that the so-called "tragic impulse" is dead. Those plays which are classed as tragedy are pure tragedy-- dramas at the peak of intensity demanded by the …

John Milton : Religious Independent, Allen Herbert Scott

Master's Theses

In the preface to -De Doctrina Christiana John Milton makes it clear that his religious views underwent a continual process of revision throughout his lite, and he assures us that at no time during his life did he follow any heresy or sect. During the century and a half prior to the discovery of !!! DOctrina Christiana in 1823, however, Milton was regarded as one of the highest figures in English literature, passing as an orthodox Protestant of the Calvinistic faith.

A Study Of The Color And Imagery Of The Poetry Of William Morris, Kenneth Hugh Byron

Master's Theses

The artistic development of William Morris (1834•1896), dictated by an extreme sensitiveness to color and craftsmanship is almost wholly contained in the first well-defined period of his life. Until 1877 Morris was principally concerned with poetry and the fine arts, and from that time he concentrated on combating the rise of drabness, the result of Victorian capitalism, and worked for the cause of social reform. However,despite the great variety of Morris' achievements a unity was maintained in his love of beauty for its own sake. The scope of this paper, then, is limited to the first period of his life. …

A Reconstruction Of The Utopia Of William Morris From His Later Prose Romances, Edagr Fitz Randolph Erdman

Master's Theses

In her book, William Morris, Medievalist Revolutionary, Margaret R. Grennan says, "What the invention of the telescope did for space in the seventeenth century, the sense of the past accomplished for time in the nineteenth." In- other words, this "sense of the past, " though not a mechanical instrument like the telescope, nor aimed at discoveries within the realm of physical science, nevertheless served such men as Carlyle, Ruskin, Arnold, and Newman in much the same fashion as the telescope had served Galileo and Kepler some two hundred years earlier. If not renowned natural scientists, Carlyle, Ruskin, Arnold, and …

A Study Of The Moral Tone Of Restoration Comedy, Herbert Robinson Blackwell

Master's Theses

The so called "Restoration period" in English literature stands as an age of comic production that ranks as one of the most brilliant in the history of the English stage, second perhaps only to the preceding Elizabethan period. Restoration comedy has been famed for its indecency and immorality, and critical Judgment has always been influenced by concern over the "excesses" which the playwrights introduced into their works.

Morality is a relative term. What is sinful in one age is commonly accepted in another. Semantic differences may cause different moral connotations to be placed on certain words. Thus, in considering whether …

Religion In The Life And Works Of Longfellow, Morris Edward Cather

Master's Theses

An author's work is generally colored by the presence or the lack of religious convictions. The poetry and prose of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow indicate a deep-seated faith in God. Although this faith is most clearly manifested in the works of the man, its source is found in the life and character of the poet himself. It is the aim of this paper to discover the various contributing factors, to ascertain their effect upon the poet and his writings, and to draw certain conclusions concerning his religious faith.

Theatrical Criticism Of Addison And Steele, Virginia Marion Lewis

Master's Theses

The purpose of this paper in to bring together in one body all, or as many as possible, of the references made by Addison and Steele to the theater in The Tatler, The Spectator, and Tho Guardian. In order to do this, it has been necessary to scan all of the papers included in these three periodicals to find those which contained a mention of the theater, for only rarely did Addison or Steele devote an entire paper to any one subject. It is hoped, therefore, that in going through these essays no significant comments on the theater have been …

A Study Of Tennyson's Historical Trilogy, Robert Caudius Markham

Master's Theses

Although Alfred Tennyson ls not one of the great dramatists of English Literature. I feel that a study of his historic trilogy is worthwhile and beneficial. Probably we shall never understand completely the mystery of his turning to the form of the drama at the age of sixty-five. We can, however, recognize his growth and development in this field of literature and perceive hie political fervor and religious opinion from the trilogy.

The purpose of this work is to present a study of Tennyson's trilogy demonstrating the degree of dramatic development he achieved.

A Study Of Chaucer's Influence On English Literature Through Dryden, Elder Blair Apperson

Master's Theses

Geoffrey Chaucer is one of the greatest poets of our English literature. If Shakespeare stands apart as our greatest, then it is John Milton who must dispute with Chaucer the honor of second place. Milton undoubtedly surpasses Chaucer in the grandeur of his imagination and the sublimity or his poetic style; but "he cannot equal him in the range and variety of his art." On one hand we have Chaucer, the grave and serious poet.always keenly conscious that "our human life is a shifting quicksand of mutability, that lasting happiness can never be our earthly portion;" whereas we have but …

The Treatment Of Animals In Poetry From Pope To Wordsworth, David Kingsley Johnston

Master's Theses

The general topic of the treatment of Nature in poetry has be­come somewhat shopworn . Miss Reynolds' excellent coverage of that transitional period from Pope to Wordsworth has crossed the lending library desk into the hands of students and interested readers many times. Her effort is one of the first to reveal in a scholarly fashion a love or Nature and the manners of its expression.

Myra Reynolds considers all aspects of Nature. She seems to leave no stone of intonation unturned. In stating the paramount characteristics of the treatment of Nature as handled by the classical poets, she notes …

F. Scott Fitzgerald : His Materials And His Methods, Clifton Lanier Warren

Master's Theses

From the time I was first introduced to Fitzgerald's writing through a reading of This Side of Paradise, when I was a freshman in college, his subject matter and technique as a novelist have interested me intensely. After reading the first novel, I was not satisfied until I had voraciously read his other novels. With each reading of another of his books, my interest increased. Later, when Mizener's valuable biography appeared, I was introduced to Fitzgerald the man and have found his life as fascinating as his writings. However I felt that none of the books about Fitzgerald completely presented …

Tennessee Williams And The Tragic Tradition, Edgar E. Macdonald

Master's Theses

This thesis is an attempt to ascertain to what extent Tennessee Williams has accepted or rejected traditional precepts, concepts, and symbolism in the theatre.

Inasmuch as his dramas reanimate certain older forms with newer freedom, it is thought by many that he is changing the direction of the modem theatre. Just as Ibsen at one time rebelled against the conventions of romanticism, thereby founding a new school of thought in drama, today Tennessee Williams is leading a revolt against tho restrictions of realism. It is hoped that an analysis of his work at this time will help to determine the …

A Comparison Of The Uses Of Astrology In The Works Of John Gower And Geoffrey Chaucer, George Rufus Wyatt Jr.

Master's Theses

The literary interest in astrology which had been gradually increasing during the fourteenth century in England, culminated in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer and John Gower. It is not surprising that these two poets have used astrology very extensively in writing stories for their medieval audiences since the average man in the Middles Ages believed that life depended upon the influences of the seven planets in their positions in the zodiac. It is the purpose of this thesis to present a comparison of the uses of the astrological material in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer and John Gower. In this …

A Survey Of The Critical Opinion Concerning The Effect Of Edgar Allan Poe's Life Upon His Literary Work, Alice Mary Griffith

Master's Theses

In this thesis I hope to present a picture of the effect the life of Edgar Allan Poe had upon his writing. Poe was and still is a controversial figure. Many of his biographers and critics agree that the illnesses and deaths of those dearest to him and the constant pressure of outer tragic circumstances played a great part in what he put down upon paper. Others feel his drinking and dope-taking colored his outpourings. There is much emphasis placed upon his childhood days in England. Some attention is paid to his life in Richmond as a boy. There are …

Art And Religion In Milton's Critical Theory, Otto Leonhart Brenner

Master's Theses

Unquestionably, behind Milton's writings stands his critical theory. Without it he could never have been great. His ability to select what was basic in the production of art was a prime factor in giving him the remarkable proficiency and power he displays in handling poetic forms in such a way that they ideally represent the thought and emotions experienced in nature.

A Treatment Of Plant Life In Eighteenth-Century Poetry, William Melvin Maxey

Master's Theses

A critic of English literature, writing about nature in poetry, has said that the subject-matter ot poetry may be divided into three main groups: man, God, and nature. This paper is primarily concerned with the last division, and more especially with a treatment of plant life in eighteenth-century poetry. Such a treatment must of necessity require wide reading and careful selection of the material to be covered, since the chief aim of the writer is to present the subject in such a manner that it is representative of the whole period of English poetry from 1700 to 1800.

Ernest Hemingway, A Writer Of Episodes, Robert Alexander Chermside Jr.

Master's Theses

In this thesis my purpose is to analyze and review some of Hemingway's episodes and short scenes, which I believe to be his most valuable work, in order that their value may become evident. I then intend to show that the author's novels are in most cases dependent on these episodes for their literary success. In accomplishing this, it would be useless to consider everything Hemingway has written. I shall deal only with his fiction and shall confine myself to selections which most amply illustrate my point.

An Introduction To The Poetry Of T.S. Eliot : A Selective Handbook, Jean Katherine Collins

Master's Theses

T. S. Eliot, one of the most discussed poets of our time, has registered a deep and sincere concern for the plight of modern society. That concern is mirrored in his poetry where he has spoken his message to those who will hear it. He seems to have put a supersensitive finger on the pulse of the world's ills, and has suggested what he believes to be the only solution.