Literary Criticism
The Tale of Terror
The Tale of Terror by Edith Birkhead is a foundational exploration of the horror genre, tracing its evolution and impact on literature. This…
The Lesson of the Master
A promising young writer meets an older man whose works have inspired him, as well as a highly intelligent and attractive young woman, at a …
Prelude
Prelude invites listeners into the evocative world of Katherine Mansfield's childhood in New Zealand, capturing the essence of youth and the…
The Altar of the Dead
A fable of literally life and death significance, the story explores how the protagonist tries to keep the remembrance of his dead friends, …
The Last of the Valerii
An unnamed American painter resident in Rome serves as narrator in this story, watching as his god-daughter Martha, becomes the wife of Prin…
The Good Soldier
The Good Soldier (1915) "... is set just before World War I and chronicles the tragedies of the lives of two seemingly perfect couples.…
A Student's History of American Literature
Engaging history of American Lit from the 1600's up through the late 1890's. The author, who was a professor at Knox College, really put a …
Madame Bovary
Published in book form in April 1857, the novel focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her mea…
Characters of Shakespeare's Plays
This famous Shakespearean exploration illuminates its plays through the frame of character, while also weighing theme, mood, structure and p…
Tales From Dickens
Tales From Dickens offers a unique opportunity to explore the essence of Charles Dickens' most cherished works through the lens of Hallie Er…
The Passionate Friends
H. G. Wells is best known for his science fiction, but some of his greatest works were in other genres. The Passionate Friends is a love sto…
Emily Brontë
Emily Brontë (1818-1848) is best known for her only novel, "Wuthering Heights." She was born in Yorkshire, northern England, …
The Picture of Dorian Gray
The novel tells of a young man named Dorian Gray, the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward. Basil is impressed by Dorian's beauty …
Clayhanger
This first of a trilogy of novels is a coming-of-age story set in the Midlands of Victorian England, following Edwin Clayhanger as he leaves…
Mademoiselle Ixe
This is a story by the English writer Mary Elizabeth Hawker (1848-1908) entitled Mademoiselle Ixe, by[pseudonym] Lanoe Falconer. The manuscr…
The Wings of the Dove
"The Wings of the Dove," published in 1902, represents to my memory a very old--if I shouldn't perhaps rather say a very young--mo…
A Tale of a Tub
A Tale of a Tub was the first major work written by Jonathan Swift, composed between 1694 and 1697, that was eventually published in 1704. I…
In a German Pension
The first collected volume of short stories of the New Zealand modernist. Inspired by her own travels, Mansfield begins to refine her craft …
Lord Beaupre
What is a young man to do, when because of his pleasant disposition, and (of course) his considerable wealth, he finds himself besieged by b…
Life and Death of Harriett Frean
Harriett Frean is a well-to-do, unmarried woman living a life of meaningless dependency, boredom, and unproductivity as she patiently cares …