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The Symbolism Of Trees In Stories
Trees in storytelling are symbolically interesting. Some trees have unusual characteristics (distinctive foliage, unusual flowering patterns). These are the trees most heavily mined for their symbolic meaning across culture and therefore narrative.
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An Ideal Family by Katherine Mansfield Short Story Analysis
“An Ideal Family” is a 1921 short story by modernist writer Katherine Mansfield. This is a young Mansfield writing about the tiredness of ageing as an elderly man who feels disconnected from his family.
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Writing Activity: Describe the Inside of a House
Describe a house, describe the inhabitants (or inhabitants since departed). Below are examples of house interiors from novels and short fiction. A RURAL COTTAGE IN 1950s ENGLAND The room downstairs at the front of this cottage would appear to serve Mr and Mrs Taylor as both dining room and general living quarters. It is a…
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About
I’ve disabled right-click and copy functionality on this blog after more than a decade without it. This was prompted by trackbacks from AI-powered paraphrasing sites. While it makes no difference to me personally if someone uses info on this site to get an essay written or whatever, these technologies can’t mean anything good for humanity…
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Summary: “The Princess” by Tennyson
“Princess Ida” (1847) is a long narrative poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Like many misogynist stories, Tennyson presents it as comedy. Well, technically this is ‘serio-comic’, or ‘comedy drama’.
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What is the meaning of simulacrum? Definition and examples
What is the meaning of simulacrum? What is the plural, and how is this word used metaphorically to illustrate ideas?
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The Empathy Gap and Authorial Intent
As much as possible, I try to avoid talking about what the author intends by doing such-and-such in a work of literature. Today I’d like to clarify why I personally think this is not a helpful way to approach a text. I’m hardly the first to criticise this approach, though I suspect some of my…
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The Red Shoes by Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tale Analysis
“The Red Shoes” (1845) is a — let’s face it — horrific literary fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen (1805 – 1875), built on a tradition of stories in which a female character is punished (by her ostentatious, sexually charged shoes) for her social deviation.
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Urban Legend Study: Vicks Vaporub For Everything
Certain products attract urban legends: Vicks Vaporub, WD-40, “miracle polish”… We love products which ostensibly achieve multiple tasks.
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What is an aphorism in simple terms?
An aphorism is an original thought, spoken or written in a concise form, designed to be memorable. The aphorism is ‘the takeaway point’ of a story, article or speech. Aphorisms should be somewhat surprising: “Oh yeah, that’s true actually. I hadn’t thought of it like that. Ha.”
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Symbols of Freedom in Literature
Do not allow yourselves to be deluded by the abstract word ‘freedom’. Whose freedom? It is not the freedom of one individual in relation to another, but the freedom of capital to crush the worker. Marx, On the Question of Free Trade 1848 The American West is more than a place. It’s a super powerful…
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Psychopaths, Sociopaths, Narcissists in Fiction
Let’s take a look at psychopaths, sociopaths and narcissists in fiction, or rather: How people with malignant personality disorders dominate popular culture.
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Writing Activity: Describe A Smell
Beginner writers are frequently told to make use of all senses when describing a setting. While this is a good place to start, keen readers will understand that there’s a time and a place to delve into the senses; some stories call for sensory lingering. Others don’t.
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Asexuality Reading List: Fiction
If you’re looking for aroace fiction, you should know about The Aroace Database. If you’re into fantasy or YAL you’ll be particularly well-served.
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Wilderness Tips by Margaret Atwood
“Wilderness Tips” (1991) is an ecological short story by Canadian author Margaret Atwood, full of duplicity, doubles and dark humour.