Compilation of Stories: American Lit PDF

**\ [THE OLD ENGLISH/ANGLO-SAXON ERA]** **BEOWULF** \- oldest surviving epic in English Literature. \- dated around 1010, housed in the **British Library.** \- reflects a **Pre-Christian Scandinavian** setting and plot but is intended for Christian audiences. \- it was not printed until 1815, i...

**\ [THE OLD ENGLISH/ANGLO-SAXON ERA]** **BEOWULF** \- oldest surviving epic in English Literature. \- dated around 1010, housed in the **British Library.** \- reflects a **Pre-Christian Scandinavian** setting and plot but is intended for Christian audiences. \- it was not printed until 1815, it has settings that includes mead halls as venues and story telling by **scops** (poet-singers) CHARACTERS: A. **The Geats** - **BEOWULF** - One of the highest-ranking nobles from Geatland (Southern Sweden), he comes to the aid of the King of the Danes, Hrothgar, who is plagued by an ogre. He is described as a mighty warrior whose grip is superhuman. He becomes King of the Geats. - **HEARDRED** - He is the son of Hygelac and Hygd, and is unfortunately killed in a feud, despite Beowulf's support. On his death Beowulf becomes King of the Geats. - **HYGELAC -** King of the Geats at the start of the poem, he is Beowulf's uncle. There was a King Hygelac who died in battle around 520 A.D. - **HYGD** - Hygelac's Queen, she is a perfect hostess and demonstrates the entire royal graces. - **WIGLAF -** The only Knight who stands firm with Beowulf against the dragon, he succeeds Beowulf as King of the Geats. B. **The Danes (Scyldings)** - **HROTHGAR** - The ageing King of the Danes who is menaced by Grendel the ogre, he regards Beowulf as being sent by God to rid him of this evil. He is characterized as a civilized monarch. - **SCYLD SCEFING** - The epic poem starts with the ship funeral of this mythical figure who is the founder of the tribe called the Scyldings. - **UNFERTH -** One of King Hrothgar's top Thanes, he insults Beowulf when he is drunk, but later gives crucial aid to Beowulf in the thick of battle. - **WEALHTHEOW -** The Queen of the Danes, she along with her husband Hrothgar, gives a warm welcome to Beowulf and his party. C. **Monsters** - **GRENDEL -** Described in the poem as a descendent of Cain in the Book of Genesis, Grendel is the epitome of evil. Translating Cain back into Hebrew, we have the word "Qayin" which means "creature". It is a common part of folklore that all such monsters and freaks that roam the earth are descended from Cain. He resents Hrothgar and the Danes enjoying themselves, and subjects them to twelve years of terror before Beowulf arrives. - **GRENDEL'S MOTHER -** She lives with her son in a dry cave beneath a lake. Although not as powerful as her son, she is still a formidable adversary. - **DRAGON -** This monstrous beast lives in Geatland and is angered when a fugitive steals a gold flagon from his hoard. Beowulf slays the dragon with the help of Wiglaf, but is mortally wounded. Beowulf takes place in a world of ancient warriors, kings, and monsters, set in a time when Anglo-Saxon society was still largely shaped by oral tradition, battles, and fate. The action unfolds in Scandinavia---mainly in the Kingdom of the Danes, ruled by King Hrothgar, and in Geatland (modern-day Sweden), Beowulf's homeland. **The First Battle: Grendel** The poem opens with King Hrothgar\'s kingdom in distress due to the monster Grendel, who has been terrorizing the Danes for twelve years. Grendel comes at night and attacks Hrothgar's mead hall, ***Heorot***, devouring Hrothgar's warriors and leaving the hall in ruins. Hearing of the suffering of the Danes, Beowulf, a young warrior from Geatland, decides to travel to Denmark with his men to confront Grendel. Beowulf arrives at Hrothgar's court and pledges to defeat the monster without the use of weapons. That night, Grendel attacks, but Beowulf fights him bare-handed. The battle is fierce, but Beowulf succeeds in tearing off Grendel's arm, mortally wounding him. Grendel retreats to his lair to die, and the Danes celebrate the hero's victory. **The Second Battle: Grendel's Mother** Grendel's mother, a monstrous creature seeking vengeance for her son\'s death, comes to *Heorot* the next night. She kills one of Hrothgar's closest advisors, Aeschere, before retreating to her underwater lair. Hrothgar implores Beowulf to pursue her and end the terror once and for all. Beowulf dives into the murky waters of the lake where the monster lives. There, he encounters a terrifying underwater battle and ultimately defeats Grendel's mother with the sword *Hrunting*, a blade given to him by a warrior named Unferth. After killing her, Beowulf finds Grendel\'s lifeless body and decapitates it, returning to Heorot with the monster's head as a trophy. **The Third Battle: The Dragon** Years pass, and Beowulf becomes King of the Geats. One day, a dragon is disturbed by a thief who steals a goblet from its hoard. The dragon rampages across the land, and Beowulf, now an older man, decides to confront it. Despite his advanced age, he ventures into the dragon's lair with a group of warriors. In this battle, Beowulf fights bravely, but the dragon's fiery breath severely injures him. As Beowulf is on the brink of death, his loyal follower *Wiglaf* comes to his aid, helping him slay the dragon. However, Beowulf is mortally wounded and knows he will not survive the fight. Before he dies, Beowulf asks Wiglaf to succeed him as king and ensure that the treasure is used to benefit his people. **Conclusion** Beowulf dies after a final battle with a dragon. In his old age, Beowulf becomes the king of the Geats and, despite his advancing years, he chooses to fight a dragon that has been terrorizing his kingdom. The dragon, angered by a thief who steals a cup from its hoard, unleashes fiery destruction upon the Geats\' land. Beowulf, with a group of warriors, confronts the dragon in its lair. Despite his strength, he is severely injured by the dragon's fiery breath and venomous bite. During the battle, Beowulf is nearly defeated, but his loyal warrior, *Wiglaf*, comes to his aid, helping him slay the dragon. Though Beowulf and Wiglaf manage to kill the dragon, Beowulf suffers fatal wounds from the dragon's venom. Knowing that his end is near, Beowulf asks Wiglaf to succeed him as king and to ensure that the dragon's treasure is used for the good of their people. After giving his final instructions, Beowulf dies from his injuries. His people mourn his death, and his funeral is marked by the traditional honor of burying him with the dragon\'s hoard of treasure, celebrating his heroic legacy. Wiglaf, after Beowulf\'s death, buries him in a barrow (a large burial mound) on a headland overlooking the sea. This location was significant, as it ensured that Beowulf\'s final resting place would be visible to all who sailed by, symbolizing his heroic legacy. The barrow was filled with the treasure Beowulf had won from the dragon, and a memorial to Beowulf was built there. The epic concludes with the Geats mourning the loss of their king, lamenting that there will be no more heroes like Beowulf to protect and guide them. The site of Beowulf\'s burial serves as a lasting tribute to his bravery and the great deeds he accomplished during his life. **[THE MIDDLE ENGLISH PERIOD]** **SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT (Poem)** During a New Year's Eve feast at King Arthur's court, a strange figure, referred to only as the Green Knight, pays the court an unexpected visit. He challenges the group's leader or any other brave representative to a game. The Green Knight says that he will allow whomever accepts the challenge to strike him with his own axe, on the condition that the challenger find him in exactly one year to receive a blow in return. Stunned, Arthur hesitates to respond, but when the Green Knight mocks Arthur's silence, the king steps forward to take the challenge. As soon as Arthur grips the Green Knight's axe, Sir Gawain leaps up and asks to take the challenge himself. He takes hold of the axe and, in one deadly blow, cuts off the knight's head. To the amazement of the court, the now-headless Green Knight picks up his severed head. Before riding away, the head reiterates the terms of the pact, reminding the young Gawain to seek him in a year and a day at the Green Chapel. After the Green Knight leaves, the company goes back to its festival, but Gawain is uneasy. Time passes, and autumn arrives. On the Day of All Saints, Gawain prepares to leave Camelot and find the Green Knight. He puts on his best armor, mounts his horse, Gringolet, and starts off toward North Wales, traveling through the wilderness of northwest Britain. Gawain encounters all sorts of beasts, suffers from hunger and cold, and grows more desperate as the days pass. On Christmas Day, he prays to find a place to hear Mass, then looks up to see a castle shimmering in the distance. The lord of the castle welcomes Gawain warmly, introducing him to his lady and to the old woman who sits beside her. For sport, the host (whose name is later revealed to be Bertilak) strikes a deal with Gawain: the host will go out hunting with his men every day, and when he returns in the evening, he will exchange his winnings for anything Gawain has managed to acquire by staying behind at the castle. Gawain happily agrees to the pact, and goes to bed. The first day, the lord hunts a herd of does, while Gawain sleeps late in his bedchambers. On the morning of the first day, the lord's wife sneaks into Gawain's chambers and attempts to seduce him. Gawain puts her off, but before she left, she steals one kiss from him. That evening, when the host gives Gawain the venison he has captured, Gawain kisses him, since he has won one kiss from the lady. The second day, the lord hunts a wild boar. The lady again enters Gawain's chambers, and this time she kisses Gawain twice. That evening Gawain gives the host the two kisses in exchange for the boar's head. The third day, the lord hunts a fox, and the lady kisses Gawain three times. She also asks him for a love token, such as a ring or a glove. Gawain refuses to give her anything and refuses to take anything from her, until the lady mentions her girdle. The green silk girdle she wears around her waist is no ordinary piece of cloth, the lady claims, but possesses the magical ability to protect the person who wears it from death. Intrigued, Gawain accepts the cloth, but when it comes time to exchange his winnings with the host, Gawain gives the three kisses but does not mention the lady's green girdle. The host gives Gawain the fox skin he won that day, and they all go to bed happy, but weighed down with the fact that Gawain must leave for the Green Chapel the following morning to find the Green Knight. New Year's Day arrives, and Gawain dons his armor, including the girdle, then sets off with Gringolet to seek the Green Knight. A guide accompanies him out of the estate grounds. When they reach the border of the forest, the guide promises not to tell anyone if Gawain decides to give up the quest. Gawain refuses, determined to meet his fate head-on. Eventually, he comes to a kind of crevice in a rock, visible through the tall grasses. He hears the whirring of a grindstone, confirming his suspicion that this strange cavern is in fact the Green Chapel. Gawain calls out, and the Green Knight emerges to greet him. Intent on fulfilling the terms of the contract, Gawain presents his neck to the Green Knight, who proceeds to feign two blows. On the third feint, the Green Knight nicks Gawain's neck, barely drawing blood. Angered, Gawain shouts that their contract has been met, but the Green Knight merely laughs. The Green Knight reveals his name, Bertilak, and explains that he is the lord of the castle where Gawain recently stayed. Because Gawain did not honestly exchange all of his winnings on the third day, Bertilak drew blood on his third blow. Nevertheless, Gawain has proven himself a worthy knight, without equal in all the land. When Gawain questions Bertilak further, Bertilak explains that the old woman at the castle is really Morgan le Fay, Gawain's aunt and King Arthur's half sister. She sent the Green Knight on his original errand and used her magic to change Bertilak's appearance. Relieved to be alive but extremely guilty about his sinful failure to tell the whole truth, Gawain wears the girdle on his arm as a reminder of his own failure. He returns to Arthur's court, where all the knights join Gawain, wearing girdles on their arms to show their support. **KING ARTHUR: The Sword in the Stone** by T.H White In **Book I, "The Sword and the Stone,"** we are introduced to the Wart, a young boy who eventually becomes King Arthur. The Wart grows up in the castle of Sir Ector, his foster father. The Wart spends his days in the company of Kay, Sir Ector's son and the heir to his title, amusing himself as best he can while Kay is instructed in the proper ways of knighthood. One night while lost in the forest, the Wart encounters the magician Merlyn, a befuddled but powerful old man who announces that he will be the Wart's tutor. During the next six years, Merlyn tries to instill some of his wisdom in the Wart, teaching him about virtue and the world by turning the Wart into various animals. Finally, Kay is knighted, and the Wart becomes his squire, a kind of servant who assists and attends to his master as the knight travels in search of adventure. When the king of England, Uther Pendragon, dies, he leaves no heir, and it is proclaimed that the next rightful king will be whoever can pull out a mysterious sword that has been driven into a rock. The Wart and Kay travel to London, where a tournament is being held so that the finest knights will have the opportunity to try to remove the sword. While running an errand for Kay, the Wart removes the sword from the stone, and he is declared the next king of England. **Book II, "The Queen of Air and Darkness,"** finds the young King Arthur, as the Wart is now called, trying to hold on to his power. Of the men rebelling against Arthur, his most notable enemy is King Lot of Orkney. As the war rages on in England, Lot's sons, Gawaine, Gaheris, Gareth, and Agravaine, compete for the affections of their mother, the beautiful but cruel Morgause. By a twist of fate, Morgause is also Arthur's half-sister, though he does not know it. Three knights from Arthur's court arrive at Orkney, and unaware that their king is at war with Lot, they proceed to bumble around the countryside. Although Gawaine, Gaheris, and Gareth are all decent at heart, they and their brother, Agravaine, are happiest when they are listening to stories about their proud heritage and dreaming about wars and bloody revenge. In England, Arthur begins to plan how he will rule when the battles are finally over. With Merlyn's guidance, he decides to use his own power and that of his fellow knights to fight for people who cannot defend themselves. Arthur creates an order of knights to fight for good, called the Knights of the Round Table. Then, with the help of two French kings, Bors and Ban, Arthur defeats Lot's army at the battle of Bedegraine. With her four children, Morgause travels to Arthur's court, supposedly to reconcile Arthur with Lot. While at the court, she uses magic to seduce Arthur. Arthur is not aware that Morgause is his half-sister, but the incest is still a great sin, and by sleeping with her, Arthur ultimately brings about his own destruction. **Book III, "The Ill-Made Knight,"** focuses on the great knight Lancelot and his moral conflicts. Lancelot is just a boy when King Arthur takes the throne, but he eventually becomes Arthur's greatest knight and best friend. Trying to escape his growing feelings for Queen Guenever, Lancelot embarks on a series of quests that establish his reputation. In the last of these, he is tricked into sleeping with a young girl named Elaine. Guenever grows increasingly jealous of Elaine, and her jealousy eventually drives Lancelot insane. He roams England for several years as a wild man, unrecognized and ill-treated by everyone he meets. Finally, Elaine discovers Lancelot and nurses him back to health. Although Lancelot does not want to feel obligated to Elaine, he does, and on two occasions he leaves Camelot to spend time with her and their son, Galahad. Meanwhile, Arthur's kingdom begins to unravel, and he tries to keep his knights occupied by sending them to find the Holy Grail. Only three knights, Sir Bors, Sir Percival, and Sir Galahad, are pure enough to find the holy vessel. Lancelot returns a humbled and deeply religious man. For a while, his love for God makes him stay away from Guenever, but after he rescues her from a kidnapper, they begin their affair again. In **Book IV, "The Candle in the Wind,"** the destruction of Camelot becomes inevitable. Mordred, Arthur's son by his incestuous union with Morgause, plots revenge against his father. Mordred and Agravaine trap Arthur into acknowledging the affair between Lancelot and Guenever, which forces Arthur to prosecute his queen and his best friend. Lancelot rescues Guenever from being burned at the stake, but in doing so, he kills two of Gawaine's brothers, Gareth and Gaheris. Arthur and his armies lay siege to Lancelot's castle. The pope sends an emissary to broker a truce, and Guenever returns to Arthur's castle at Camelot. Arthur and Gawaine, however, still want to avenge the deaths of Gareth and Gaheris, and they continue to besiege Lancelot. While they are away, Mordred usurps the throne. Arthur rushes back to reclaim his kingdom. The night before his final stand against Mordred, Arthur reflects on all he has learned since his youth and wakes up confident that although this day will be his last, his legacy will live on. **LE MORTE DE ARTHUR (Death of King Arthur)** by Thomas Malory *Le Morte d\'Arthur* tells the story of King Arthur and his Knights at the Round Table. Arthur, who is son of King Uther Pendragon but was raised by another family, takes his rightful place as king when, as a boy, he is able to pull the sword called Excalibur from the stone. Although he rules wisely and is counseled by Merlin the magician, Arthur makes enemies of other kings and is often at war. When Arthur marries Genevere, her father gives Arthur the Round Table, at which 150 men can sit. Genevere, who is often present at the convening of the Round Table, acts as a moral compass for the knights, rewarding knights who behave well and chastising those who choose poorly. Malory specifically relates the stories of Sir Gawain, Sir Tor, and Sir Pellanor as a means of introducing the concept of chivalry. Arthur is nearly betrayed by his sister Morgan le Fay, but he is helped by Nineve, a sorceress who learned her magic powers from Merlin before killing him. Arthur then fights the Romans when Emperor Lucius of Rome demands that Arthur bow to him. Although the war requires several battles, Arthur and his knights win and return to Guinevere and the other wives. Soon after, Launcelot establishes himself as the greatest knight in all the world by his virtue, loyalty, and bravery. At the same time, Sir Gareth, Gawain\'s brother, proves valiant in his adventures. Tristam (also known as Tristan), who is son of King Melyodas de Lyones and the sister of King Mark of Cornwall, is then introduced, and his adventures unfold. He kills Sir Marhault to free his uncle from a debt owed to King Angwyssh of Ireland, and then falls in love with Isode (also known as Isolde), Angwyssh\'s daughter. Isode marries Tristam\'s uncle Mark, but Tristam and Isode remain lovers. Tristam is exiled by Mark, which means he can no longer use his true identity; thus, he fights as The Knight with the Black Shield. Tristam duels and beats many of Arthur\'s knights, but is eventually thrown in prison and becomes ill. He escapes and eventually meets and fights Launcelot in a duel predicted by Merlin. They become the best of friends. Launcelot, who is in love with and completely loyal to Guinevere, rides one day in search of adventure. He kills a dragon, sees the Grail, and is tricked into lying with Pellas\' daughter Elayne, with whom he has a son, Galahad. Guinevere, upon hearing of the affair, has Launcelot banished from court; Launcelot then wanders from place to place in his grief. Elayne, through her father, heals Launcelot through the Grail, and he eventually returns joyously to Camelot and the Round Table. Launcelot introduces his son, Galahad, to the court, and Galahad takes the Sege Perilous, the seat at the Round Table that no knight has been worthy enough to fill. Galahad also draws the sword from the floating stone, establishing him as the best knight in the world, but also accepting the sword\'s curse --- that it will later cause a grievous wound. Most of the knights then set out separately on Grail Quest. During the Quest, Launcelot, Percival, and Bors experience deep religious conversion, while Ector and Gawain are told by a hermit that they are not pure enough to achieve the Grail Quest. Galahad, Percival, and Bors meet up and continue the Grail Quest, but they are briefly parted. Launcelot and Galahad continue to the Grail at Castle Corbenic, where Launcelot is shown to be unworthy of the Quest. When Sir Evelake dies after his embrace with Galahad, Galahad is identified as the knight who will achieve the Grail Quest. Galahad is made a king who dies shortly thereafter, while Percival becomes a hermit. Bors returns to King Arthur\'s court. Launcelot also returns to the court and continues his love for Guinevere. After a series of trials, Guinevere is convinced of Launcelot\'s love for her. Although Arthur knows of the affair and overlooks it, he is prompted by Aggravain and Mordred (Arthur\'s son by Lot\'s wife) to take action; Guinevere is sentenced to be burned at the stake. Launcelot rescues her and takes her to his castle, Joyous Gard, but in the battle, Launcelot kills Gareth and Gaheris, who are at the execution but are unarmed. Launcelot returns Guinevere to Arthur, but Launcelot is banished, along with his followers. Gawain swears vengeance for the death of his brothers and insists that Arthur attack Launcelot. Arthur agrees, but while Arthur and Gawain are away, Mordred makes himself King of England, claims Guinevere as his wife, and attacks Arthur\'s army. Gawain is mortally wounded and warns Arthur in a dream not to continue the battle. Through a misunderstanding, however, the battle continues; Arthur kills Mordred but is mortally wounded by him, as Merlin has prophesied. Launcelot and Guinevere both die of illness soon after, and Constantine becomes king. The Round Table is disbursed. **CANTERBURY TALES** by Geoffrey Chaucer The **Canterbury Tales** is a long poem made up of a general introduction ("The Prologue") and a series of stories, told in verse by a cross section of English men and women. It uses a frame tale, a story that provides a vehicle, or frame for telling other stories. The frame is about a pilgrimage, a trip made to a holy place for religious reasons or just for fun. **SOME TALES:** - Lais- Celtic tales of romance. (Arthurian Legends, Wife of Bath's tale.) - Exemplum- a story used to illustrate a moral point in a sermon or other work. (Pardoner's Tale) The Pardoner makes clear in his Prologue he tells his story to illustrate the evils of avarice or greed. - Fable- illustrates a moral lesson and often features animal characters. ("Nun's Priest's Tale). - Fabliau- a medieval verse tale characterized by comic, ribald (vulgar, irreverent) treatment of themes drawn from life. (Miller's Tale) **PARDONER'S TALE** **The Moral of \"The Pardoner\'s Tale\"** \"The Pardoner\'s Tale\" is an exemplum, a story that illustrates a moral lesson, in this case, the dangers of avarice. The narrative centers on three young men in Flanders who, upon hearing of a friend\'s death, drunkenly vow to slay Death itself. An old man directs them to a tree where they discover a cache of gold, which incites their greed and leads to a series of betrayals and their eventual demise. The tale\'s conclusion, ***\"Radix malorum est cupiditas\"* (Greed is the root of all evils)**, echoes the sermonizing tone of the Pardoner, who fails to apply this wisdom to his own life, thus highlighting the discrepancy between his message and his actions. **Symbolism and Themes in \"The Pardoner\'s Tale\"** The characters in \"The Pardoner\'s Tale\" are emblematic of broader themes that Chaucer explores throughout \"The Canterbury Tales.\" The Pardoner himself symbolizes the corruption within the Church, while the three rioters represent the destructive power of greed and the impetuousness of youth. The enigmatic old man and the rioters\' misguided quest to defeat Death personify the inescapability of destiny and human obliviousness to mortality. Through these characters, Chaucer examines the vices that afflict society, providing a critique that remains relevant across the ages. **[THE RENAISSANCE (16^th^ Century)]** **DOCTOR FAUSTUS** by Christopher Marlowe (Play) [Doctor Faustus](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/doctorfaustus/character/faustus/), a well-respected German scholar, grows dissatisfied with the limits of traditional forms of knowledge---logic, medicine, law, and religion---and decides that he wants to learn to practice magic. His friends Valdes and Cornelius instruct him in the black arts, and he begins his new career as a magician by summoning up [Mephastophilis](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/doctorfaustus/character/mephastophilis/), a devil. Despite Mephastophilis's warnings about the horrors of hell, Faustus tells the devil to return to his master, Lucifer, with an offer of Faustus's soul in exchange for twenty-four years of service from Mephastophilis. Meanwhile, Wagner, Faustus's servant, has picked up some magical ability and uses it to press a clown named Robin into his service. Mephastophilis returns to Faustus with word that Lucifer has accepted Faustus's offer. Faustus experiences some misgivings and wonders if he should repent and save his soul; in the end, though, he agrees to the deal, signing it with his blood. As soon as he does so, the words "Homo fuge," Latin for "O man, fly," appear branded on his arm. Faustus again has second thoughts, but Mephastophilis bestows rich gifts on him and gives him a book of spells to learn. Later, Mephastophilis answers all of his questions about the nature of the world, refusing to answer only when Faustus asks him who made the universe. This refusal prompts yet another bout of misgivings in Faustus, but Mephastophilis and Lucifer bring in personifications of the Seven Deadly Sins to prance about in front of Faustus, and he is impressed enough to quiet his doubts. Armed with his new powers and attended by Mephastophilis, Faustus begins to travel. He goes to the pope's court in Rome, makes himself invisible, and plays a series of tricks. He disrupts the pope's banquet by stealing food and boxing the pope's ears. Following this incident, he travels through the courts of Europe, with his fame spreading as he goes. Eventually, he is invited to the court of the German emperor, Charles V (the enemy of the pope), who asks Faustus to allow him to see Alexander the Great, the famed fourth-century BCE Macedonian king and conqueror. Faustus conjures up an image of Alexander, and Charles is suitably impressed. A knight scoffs at Faustus's powers, and Faustus chastises him by making antlers sprout from his head. Furious, the knight vows revenge. Meanwhile, Robin, Wagner's clown, has picked up some magic on his own, and with his fellow stablehand, Rafe, he undergoes a number of comic misadventures. At one point, he manages to summon Mephastophilis, who threatens to turn Robin and Rafe into animals (or perhaps even does transform them; the text isn't clear) to punish them for their foolishness. Faustus then goes on with his travels, playing a trick on a horse-courser along the way. Faustus sells him a horse that turns into a heap of straw when ridden into a river. Eventually, Faustus is invited to the court of the Duke of Vanholt, where he performs various feats. The horse-courser shows up there, along with Robin, a man named Dick (Rafe in the A text), and various others who have fallen victim to Faustus's trickery. But Faustus casts spells on them and sends them on their way, to the amusement of the duke and duchess. As the twenty-four years of his deal with Lucifer come to a close, Faustus begins to dread his impending death. He has Mephastophilis call up Helen of Troy, the famous beauty from the ancient world, and uses her presence to impress a group of scholars. An old man urges Faustus to repent, but Faustus drives him away. Faustus summons Helen again and exclaims rapturously about her beauty. But time is growing short. Faustus tells the scholars about his pact, and they are horror-stricken and resolve to pray for him. On the final night before the expiration of the twenty-four years, Faustus is overcome by fear and remorse. He begs for mercy, but it is too late. At midnight, a host of devils appears and carries his soul off to hell. In the morning, the scholars find Faustus's limbs and decide to hold a funeral for him. **THE FAERIE QUEENE** by Edmund Spencer (Book) In *The Faerie Queene,* Spenser creates an allegory: The characters of his far-off, fanciful \"Faerie Land\" are meant to have a symbolic meaning in the real world. In Books I and III, the poet follows the journeys of two knights, Redcrosse and Britomart, and in doing so he examines the two virtues he considers most important to Christian life\--Holiness and Chastity. Redcrosse, the knight of Holiness, is much like the Apostle Peter: In his eagerness to serve his Lord, he gets himself into unforeseen trouble that he is not yet virtuous enough to handle. His quest is to be united with Una, who signifies Truth\--Holiness cannot be attained without knowledge of Christian truth. In his immature state, he mistakes falsehood for truth by following the deceitful witch Duessa. He pays for this mistake with suffering, but in the end, this suffering makes way for his recovery in the House of Holiness, aided by Faith, Hope, and Charity. With newfound strength and the grace of God, he is able to conquer the dragon that represents all the evil in the world. In a different manner, Britomart also progresses in her virtue of chastity. She already has the strength to resist lust, but she is not ready to accept love, the love she feels when she sees a vision of her future husband in a magic mirror. She learns to incorporate chaste resistance with active love, which is what Spenser sees as true Christian love: moderation. Whereas Redcrosse made his own mistakes (to show to us the consequences of an unholy life), it is not Britomart but the other characters in Book III who show the destructive power of an unchaste life. Spenser says in his Preface to the poem that his goal is to show how a virtuous man should live. The themes of Book I and Book III come together in the idea that our native virtue must be augmented or transformed if it is to become true Christian virtue. Spenser has a high regard for the natural qualities of creatures; he shows that the satyrs, the lion, and many human characters have an inborn inclination toward the good. And yet, he consistently shows their failure when faced with the worst evils. These evils can only be defeated by the Christian good. High on Spenser\'s list of evils is the Catholic Church, and this enmity lends a political overtone to the poem, since the religious conflicts of the time were inextricably tied to politics. The poet is unashamed in his promotion of his beloved monarch, Queen Elizabeth; he takes considerable historical license in connecting her line with King Arthur. Spenser took a great pride in his country and in his Protestant faith. He took aim at very real corruption within the Catholic Church; such attacks were by no means unusual in his day, but his use of them in an epic poem raised his criticism above the level of the propagandists. As a purely poetic work, *The Faerie Queene* was neither original nor always remarkable; Spenser depends heavily on his Italian romantic sources (Ariosto & Tasso), as well as medieval and classical works like *The Romance of the Rose* and *The Aeneid*. It is Spenser\'s blending of such diverse sources with a high-minded allegory that makes the poem unique and remarkable. He is able to take images from superficial romances, courtly love stories, and tragic epics alike, and give them real importance in the context of the poem. No image is let fall from Spenser\'s pen that does not have grave significance, and this gives *The Faerie Queene* the richness that has kept it high among the ranks of the greatest poetry in the English language. **SONG: TO CELIA** by Ben Jonson *'Song: to Celia' *by Ben Jonson is a beautiful love poem presenting the love the poet has for his beloved. Dejection in love was a major theme at that period when Jonson was writing this poem. It's not that, it doesn't have any appeal in the modern era. However, there is a saying the [manifestation](https://poemanalysis.com/literary-device/personification/) changes but the essence remains the same. A person's feelings for whom he adores the most remain the same. Likewise, in Jonson's "Song" there is a longing for his lady love. In the end, it proved to be unfruitful as the "rosy wreath", sent as a gift of love, was returned to the poet. *Drinke to me, onely, with thine eyes,* *And I will pledge with mine;* *Or leave a kisse but in the cup,* *And Ile not looke for wine.* *The thirst, that from the soule doth rise,* *Doth aske a drinke divine:* *But might I of Jove\'s Nectar sup,* *I would not change for thine.* *I sent thee, late, a rosie wreath,* *Not so much honoring thee,* *As giving it a hope, that there* *It could not withered bee.* *But thou thereon did\'st onely breath,* *And sent\'st it back to mee:* *Since when it growes, and smells, I sweare,* *Not of it selfe, but thee.* **HAMLET** by William Shakespeare The ghost of the King of Denmark tells his son Hamlet to avenge his murder by killing the new king, Hamlet\'s uncle. Hamlet feigns madness, contemplates life and death, and seeks revenge. His uncle, fearing for his life, also devises plots to kill Hamlet. The play ends with a duel, during which the King, Queen, Hamlet\'s opponent and Hamlet himself are all killed.  ### Act I Late at night, guards on the battlements of Denmark\'s Elsinore castle are met by Horatio, Prince Hamlet\'s friend from school. The guards describe a ghost they have seen that resembles Hamlet\'s father, the recently-deceased king. At that moment, the Ghost reappears, and the guards and Horatio decide to tell Hamlet. Claudius, Hamlet\'s uncle, married Hamlet\'s recently-widowed mother, becoming the new King of Denmark. Hamlet continues to mourn for his father\'s death and laments his mother\'s lack of loyalty. When Hamlet hears of the Ghost from Horatio, he wants to see it for himself.  Elsewhere, the royal attendant Polonius says farewell to his son Laertes, who is departing for France. Laertes warns his sister, Ophelia, away from Hamlet and thinking too much of his attentions towards her.  The Ghost appears to Hamlet, claiming indeed to be the ghost of his father. He tells Hamlet about how Claudius, the current King and Hamlet\'s uncle, murdered him, and Hamlet swears vengeance for his father. Hamlet decides to feign madness while he tests the truth of the Ghost\'s allegations (always a good idea in such situations).  ### Act II According to his plan, Hamlet begins to act strangely. He rejects Ophelia, while Claudius and Polonius, the royal attendant, spy on him. They had hoped to find the reason for Hamlet\'s sudden change in behaviour but could not. Claudius summons Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, old friends of Hamlet to find out what\'s got into him. Their arrival coincides with a group of travelling actors that Hamlet happens to know well. Hamlet writes a play which includes scenes that mimic the murder of Hamlet\'s father. During rehearsal, Hamlet and the actors plot to present Hamlet\'s play before the King and Queen.   ### Act III At the performance, Hamlet watches Claudius closely to see how he reacts. The play provokes Claudius, and he interrupts the action by storming out. He immediately resolves to send Hamlet away. Hamlet is summoned by his distressed mother, Gertrude, and on the way, he happens upon Claudius kneeling and attempting to pray. Hamlet reasons that to kill the King now would only send his soul to heaven rather than hell. Hamlet decides to spare his life for the time being.   Polonius hides in Gertrude\'s room to protect her from her unpredicatable son. When Hamlet arrives to scold his mother, he hears Polonius moving behind the arras (a kind of tapestry). He stabs the tapestry and, in so doing, kills Polonius. The ghost of Hamlet\'s father reappears and warns his son not to delay revenge or upset his mother.  ### Act IV Hamlet is sent to England, supposedly as an ambassador, just as King Fortinbras of Norway crosses Denmark with an army to attack Poland. During his journey, Hamlet discovers Claudius has a plan to have him killed once he arrives. He returns to Denmark alone, sending his companions Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths in his place.  Rejected by Hamlet, Ophelia is now desolate at the loss of her father. She goes mad and drowns.  ### Act V On the way back to Denmark, Hamlet meets Horatio in the graveyard (along with a gravedigger), where they talk of the chances of life and death. Ophelia\'s funeral procession arrives at the very same graveyard (what luck!). Hamlet confronts Laertes, Ophelia\'s brother, who has taken his father\'s place at the court.  A duel is arranged between Hamlet and Laertes. During the match, Claudius conspires with Laertes to kill Hamlet. They plan that Hamlet will die either on a poisoned rapier or with poisoned wine. The plans go awry when Gertrude unwittingly drinks from the poisoned cup and dies. Then both Laertes and Hamlet are wounded by the poisoned blade, and Laertes dies.  Hamlet, in his death throes, kills Claudius. Hamlet dies, leaving only his friend Horatio to explain the truth to the new king, Fortinbras, as he returns in victory from the Polish wars. **ROMEO and JULIET** by William Shakespeare An age-old vendetta between two powerful families erupts into bloodshed. A group of masked Montagues risk further conflict by gatecrashing a Capulet party. A young lovesick Romeo Montague falls instantly in love with Juliet Capulet, who is due to marry her father's choice, the County Paris. With the help of Juliet's nurse, the women arrange for the couple to marry the next day, but Romeo's attempt to halt a street fight leads to the death of Juliet's own cousin, Tybalt, for which Romeo is banished. In a desperate attempt to be reunited with Romeo, Juliet follows the Friar's plot and fakes her own death. The message fails to reach Romeo, and believing Juliet dead, he takes his life in her tomb. Juliet wakes to find Romeo's corpse beside her and kills herself. The grieving family agree to end their feud. ### Act I *Romeo and Juliet* begins as the Chorus introduces two feuding families of Verona: the Capulets and the Montagues. On a hot summer\'s day, the young men of each faction fight until the Prince of Verona intercedes and threatens to banish them. Soon after, the head of the Capulet family plans a feast. His goal is to introduce his daughter Juliet to a Count named Paris who seeks to marry Juliet.  Montague\'s son Romeo and his friends (Benvolio and Mercutio) hear of the party and resolve to go in disguise. Romeo hopes to see his beloved Rosaline at the party. Instead, while there, he meets Juliet and falls instantly in love with her. Juliet\'s cousin Tybalt recognises the Montague boys and forces them to leave just as Romeo and Juliet discover one another.  ### Act II Romeo lingers near the Capulet house to talk with Juliet when she appears in her window. The pair declare their love for one another and intend to marry the next day. With the help of Juliet\'s Nurse, the lovers arrange to marry when Juliet goes for confession at the cell of Friar Laurence. There, they are secretly married (talk about a short engagement).  ### Act III Following the secret marriage, Juliet\'s cousin Tybalt sends a challenge to Romeo. Romeo refuses to fight, which angers his friend Mercutio who then fights with Tybalt. Mercutio is accidentally killed as Romeo intervenes to stop the fight. In anger, Romeo pursues Tybalt, kills him, and is banished by the Prince. Juliet is anxious when Romeo is late to meet her and learns of the brawl, Tybalt\'s death, and Romeo\'s banishment. Friar Laurence arranges for Romeo to spend the night with Juliet before he leaves for Mantua. Meanwhile, the Capulet family grieves for Tybalt, so Lord Capulet moves Juliet\'s marriage to Paris to the next day. Juliet's parents are angry when Juliet doesn\'t want to marry Paris, but they don\'t know about her secret marriage to Romeo. ### Act IV Friar Laurence helps Juliet by providing a sleeping draught that will make her seem dead. When the wedding party arrives to greet Juliet the next day, they believe she is dead. The Friar sends a messenger to warn Romeo of Juliet\'s plan and bids him to come to the Capulet family monument to rescue his sleeping wife.  **Act V** The vital message to Romeo doesn\'t arrive in time because the plague is in town (so the messenger cannot leave Verona). Hearing from his servant that Juliet is dead, Romeo buys poison from an Apothecary in Mantua. He returns to Verona and goes to the tomb where he surprises and kills the mourning Paris. Romeo takes his poison and dies, while Juliet awakens from her drugged coma. She learns what has happened from Friar Laurence, but she refuses to leave the tomb and stabs herself. The Friar returns with the Prince, the Capulets, and Romeo\'s lately widowed father. The deaths of their children lead the families to make peace, and they promise to erect a monument in Romeo and Juliet\'s memory. **MERCHANT OF VENICE** by William Shakespeare Antonio, an antisemitic merchant, takes a loan from the Jew Shylock to help his friend to court Portia. Antonio can\'t repay the loan, and without mercy, Shylock demands a pound of his flesh. The heiress Portia, now the wife of Antonio\'s friend, dresses as a lawyer and saves Antonio.  ### Act I In Venice, a merchant named Antonio worries that his ships are overdue. As his colleagues offer comfort, his young friends---Bassanio, Graziano, and Lorenzo---arrive. Bassanio asks Antonio for a loan, so that he can pursue the wealthy Portia, who lives in Belmont. Antonio cannot afford the loan. Instead, he sends Bassanio to borrow the money on the security of Antonio\'s expected shipments. Act II Meanwhile, one of Shylock\'s servants, Launcelot, wishes to change masters and persuades Bassanio to employ him. Shylock\'s daughter, Jessica, also longs to leave home. She wants to become a Christian and marry Antonio\'s friend Lorenzo. Before he departs to serve his new master, Launcelot takes a letter to Lorenzo that contains plans for Lorenzo and Jessica to elope that night. When Shylock goes out, Jessica escapes to elope, taking gold and jewels with her. The following day, Bassanio sets sail for Belmont, while Shylock rages over the loss of his daughter and the treasures she has stolen. In Belmont, one of Portia's suitors (the Prince of Morocco) chooses the golden casket, while another (the Prince of Aragon) selects silver. Both chose the wrong casket and are unsuccessful. As Aragon leaves, Bassanio is announced. Portia eagerly goes to greet him. ### Act II Meanwhile, one of Shylock\'s servants, Launcelot, wishes to change masters and persuades Bassanio to employ him. Shylock\'s daughter, Jessica, also longs to leave home. She wants to become a Christian and marry Antonio\'s friend Lorenzo. Before he departs to serve his new master, Launcelot takes a letter to Lorenzo that contains plans for Lorenzo and Jessica to elope that night. When Shylock goes out, Jessica escapes to elope, taking gold and jewels with her. The following day, Bassanio sets sail for Belmont, while Shylock rages over the loss of his daughter and the treasures she has stolen.  In Belmont, one of Portia's suitors (the Prince of Morocco) chooses the golden casket, while another (the Prince of Aragon) selects silver. Both chose the wrong casket and are unsuccessful. As Aragon leaves, Bassanio is announced. Portia eagerly goes to greet him.  ### Act III After a few days, Shylock hears that his daughter Jessica is squandering her stolen wealth in Genoa. He begins to rail bitterly against Christians. He reminds Antonio\'s friends that if the loan is not repaid on time, he will insist on the original agreement of one pound of flesh.  Back in Belmont, Bassanio chooses the lead casket, and in so doing, he wins Portia. His friend Graziano asks for Portia\'s maid Nerissa to be his wife. Portia gives her ring to Bassanio, making him promise never to give it to another. As Lorenzo and Jessica come to Belmont, news arrives that Antonio\'s ships have been lost at sea, and he is now bankrupt. They are also told Shylock insists on the fulfilment of his bond and has had Antonio arrested. Bassanio and Graziano leave in haste to help Antonio. Portia and Nerissa resolve to follow afterwards, disguised as lawyers.  ### Act IV In the court in Venice, Shylock demands his pound of flesh. The Duke, presiding over the court, seeks legal advice from the lawyer \"Balthazar,\" who is Portia in disguise. Portia pleads for Shylock to have mercy on Antonio. Bassanio offers his wife\'s money, which would more than pay the debt, but Shylock refuses to accept. Antonio\'s death is only prevented as Balthazar explains the bond is for flesh but not for a single drop of blood. So Shylock cannot collect the pound of flesh.  For threatening the life of a Venetian, Shylock forfeits his goods to Antonio and Bassanio. Antonio refuses his share of compensation and asks for it to be put in a trust for Lorenzo and Jessica. He also demands that Shylock becomes a Christian. Broken and in submission, Shylock leaves the court. Bassanio and Graziano thank the lawyers, who ask for their rings as legal fees. Bassanio and Graziano refuse until Antonio intervenes and makes them give the rings to the lawyers.  ### Act V Undisguised, Portia and Nerissa return home at night to find Lorenzo and Jessica enjoying the tranquillity of Belmont. When their husbands arrive, Portia and Nerissa scold them for giving away their rings, pretending they had been given away to other women. Before long, they reveal themselves as the lawyers from the trial. Antonio receives news that his ships have returned safely after all (looks like we didn\'t need to go through all this mess in the first place!). The play ends as the three couples prepare to celebrate their marriages. **[THE RESTORATION (17^th^ Century)]** **OF STUDIES** by Francis Bacon Francis Bacon's essay Of Studies explores the value and purpose of reading, learning, and intellectual growth. The essay is concise yet insightful, offering practical wisdom on how to approach studies for personal and professional improvement. **[Main Ideas:]** *[Purpose of Studies:]* Bacon identifies three main purposes of studies: Delight: For personal enjoyment and enrichment. Ornament: To enhance communication and social interactions. Ability: To improve judgment and practical capabilities. *[Abuses of Studies:]* Studies can be misused in three ways: Excessive devotion: Spending too much time studying without practical application. Pretentiousness: Using learning only for show. Rigid dependence: Allowing studies to dictate one's thinking instead of developing independent judgment. *[Practical Approach to Studies:]* Bacon advises a balanced approach: Studies should be complemented by experience, as theories without practice are incomplete. Reading, discussion, and writing are interconnected and mutually reinforcing processes that enhance comprehension and critical thinking. *[Selection of Reading:]* Different books serve different purposes: Some books are to be tasted (skimmed), some to be swallowed (read casually), and some to be chewed and digested (studied thoroughly). This metaphor emphasizes the selective and purposeful approach to reading. *[Effect of Studies on the Mind:]* Studies shape the mind by addressing specific weaknesses and enhancing one's intellectual faculties: Reading improves judgment. Writing sharpens memory and clarity of thought. Discussion develops quick thinking and adaptability. *[Style and Legacy:]* Bacon's aphoristic style makes the essay memorable, with pithy statements like: \"Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man.\" The essay reflects Bacon's pragmatic philosophy, emphasizing the utility of studies rather than their abstract value. *[Conclusion:]* In Of Studies, Bacon presents a timeless perspective on the importance of learning, advocating for its application in practical life. The essay remains relevant, encouraging readers to use studies as tools for personal growth and societal contribution. **PARADISE LOST** by John Milton \- A poem John Milton\'s *Paradise Lost* tells the epic story of the disobedience and fall of Adam and Eve, framed within the cosmic battle between good and evil. The poem explores themes of free will, divine justice, and redemption. Key Events: *Satan's Rebellion and Punishment:* After rebelling against God, Satan and his followers are cast into Hell. They construct Pandemonium, where Satan proposes corrupting God\'s new creation, humankind. He volunteers to undertake this mission. *God's Council in Heaven:* God foresees Satan\'s intentions and declares that humankind will fall but can be redeemed. The Son volunteers to sacrifice himself for humanity's salvation. *Satan's Journey and Entrance to Earth:* Satan travels through Chaos to reach Earth, disguised as a cherub to bypass Uriel, the angel guarding the sun. He sneaks into Paradise, where Adam and Eve live in bliss, and plans their corruption. *Adam and Eve's Daily Life:* Adam and Eve care for the Garden of Eden and obey God's command not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Satan, disguised as a toad, whispers temptation into Eve's dreams but is discovered and expelled by Gabriel. *Satan's Backstory:* The archangel Raphael visits Adam and Eve, warning them about Satan's rebellion and recounting the war in Heaven, Satan's defeat, and the Son's creation of the universe. *The Fall:* Satan returns as a serpent and convinces Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. She shares it with Adam, who chooses to fall with her out of love. Their innocence is replaced by lust and shame. *Punishment and Consequences:* God decrees punishment: the serpent must crawl, Eve will suffer in childbirth, and Adam must toil for sustenance. Sin and Death solidify their bridge from Hell to Earth. Satan returns to Hell triumphantly but finds himself and his followers transformed into snakes. *Redemption and Expulsion:* Adam and Eve repent, and God forgives them, offering hope for redemption through the Son. Michael shows Adam visions of humanity's future, including sin, death, the flood, and ultimate salvation through Christ. Adam and Eve leave Paradise hand in hand, ready to face the challenges of a fallen world. *Conclusion:* Paradise Lost is a profound meditation on human free will, divine justice, and the hope of redemption. Despite their fall, Adam and Eve's repentance and God's mercy highlight the possibility of grace and salvation for humankind. **PILGRIM'S PROGRESS** by John Bunyan Pilgrim\'s Progress was written in two parts. Each part is a long continuous narrative, without divisions. Consequently, the narrative will be dealt with in sections based on major scenes and incidents. **Christian**- A poor, ragged man who flees from the wicked City of Destruction, convinced that God is about to blast it for its sins, and sets out on a pilgrimage to find the Celestial City, where his soul will be saved and he can live for all eternity in the company of God, and of the Heavenly Host. **Evangelist**- Preacher of the Holy Word, always eager to help those who are seriously concerned about the state of their souls and about finding the way to Heaven. **Obstinate**- Who accepts things as they are, resisting any change, and thinks anyone undertaking a pilgrimage like Christian\'s is a fool, out of his mind. **Pliant** - A well-intention man who decides to join Christian on his pilgrimage but, having little courage and less resolution, turns back at the first obstacle. **Mr. Worldly Wiseman** - Knows the world and has come to terms with it on a high moral level. A generous and sympathetic man, he obeys the Ten Commandments and lives in great esteem among his friends and neighbors. With his plausibility he almost seduces Christian in advising him to settle down in the village of Morality instead of going on toward the Celestial City. **Good-will -** Keeper of the Wicket Gate, entrance to the Holy Way, or \"King\'s Highway,\" leading to the Celestial City on Mount Zion. **Interpreter -** The Holy Spirit which inhabits a large house that Christian visits and where he is shown many wonders and given a number of exhortations on the way he should go. **Three Shining Ones** **-** Angels who meet Christian at the Cross. **Formalist and Hypocris**y **-** Formalist is one of those who knows all the outward forms of religion, but not the inner spirit. The Gospel is in his head, not in his heart. Hypocrisy is what his name implies, being all things to all men. Both Formalist and Hypocrisy come to a bad end at the foot of Difficulty Hill. **Discretion, Prudence, Piety, and Charity -** Virgins in charge of Palace Beautiful, where Christian rests for several days and is shown the \"rarities\" of the place. **Apollyon** **-** A foul fiend whom Christian encounters in the Valley of Humiliation. The monster has scales like a fish, wings like a dragon, feet like a bear, and a mouth like a lion. Out of a hole in his belly belch smoke and flame. Christian has a narrow escape from death when Apollyon attacks him. **Faithful -** A townsman from the City of Destruction whom Christian meets as he emerges from the Valley of the Shadow of Death. The two Pilgrims go along together until Faithful meets his death by execution at Vanity Fair. **Mr. Talkative -** One of those willing to discuss anything, often very sensibly, but never willing to do anything. \"Good riddance,\" says Christian when Talkative decides to go his own way to salvation. Lord Hate-good The judge who sentences Faithful to a frightful death at Vanity Fair. Hopeful A refugee from Vanity Fair who joins Christian, and the two of them go on together all the way to the Celestial City **By-ends -** From the wealthy town of Fair-speech, By-ends likes religion when it \"goes in silver slippers,\" with the sun shining and the people applauding. By- ends is a nickname given to him by friends because of his knack in snatching every opportunity for profit that falls in his way. **Giant Despair -** Who surprises Christian and Hopeful while asleep in By-path Meadow, seizes them as trespassers, and throws them into the cellar dungeon in his stronghold, Doubting Castle. The prisoners are about to be killed by the giant when Christian suddenly remembers that he has a magic key that will open all the doors and gates of the castle, and they escape back to the Holy Way. **Knowledge, Experience, Watchful, and Sincere -** Shepherds tending the flocks of the Lord on the heights of the Delectable Mountains. The shepherds are very helpful to the Pilgrims, giving them exact directions to the Celestial City and telling them what to avoid along the way. **Ignorance -** A \"very brisk\" lad who comes down a little crooked lane from the Country of Conceit and encounters Christian and Hopeful in the Holy Way. They think he is all wrong in his ideas, but he tells them to mind their own business. Trailing along behind, Ignorance makes it all the way to the gates of the Celestial City. But as he does not have the proper credentials, the \"King\" (God) has him thrown down a side pit into Hell. **Turn-away -** An apostate who has been seized by seven devils, tied with seven stout cords, and is being carried off to be tossed down the side mouth to Hell which Christian and Hopeful had been shown, to their great fright, in the Delectable Mountains. **Flattere**r **-** A \"man black of flesh, but covered with a very light robe,\" who induces the two Pilgrims to follow him, leading them a circular course into a net from which there appears to be no means of escape. But a Shining One appears with a whipcord, cuts the net, and leads them back to the Holy Way. **Atheist -** Who laughs at the Pilgrims, telling them that he has made great search and there is no such place as the Celestial City, which greatly shocks Christian and Hopeful: \"What! no Mount Zion!\" **[AGE OF ROMANTICISM]** **THE SCARLET LETTER by Nathaniel Hawthorne (Novel/Book)** ***The Scarlet Letter* opens with a long preamble about how the book came to be written. The nameless narrator was the surveyor of the customhouse in Salem, Massachusetts. In the customhouse's attic, he discovered a number of documents, among them a manuscript that was bundled with a scarlet, gold-embroidered patch of cloth in the shape of an "A." The manuscript, the work of a past surveyor, detailed events that occurred some two hundred years before the narrator's time. When the narrator lost his customs post, he decided to write a fictional account of the events recorded in the manuscript. *The Scarlet Letter* is the final product.** **The story begins in seventeenth-century Boston, then a Puritan settlement. A young woman, [Hester Prynne](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/scarlet/character/hester-prynne/), is led from the town prison with her infant daughter, [Pearl](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/scarlet/character/pearl/), in her arms and the scarlet letter "A" on her breast. A man in the crowd tells an elderly onlooker that Hester is being punished for adultery. Hester's husband, a scholar much older than she is, sent her ahead to America, but he never arrived in Boston. The consensus is that he has been lost at sea. While waiting for her husband, Hester has apparently had an affair, as she has given birth to a child. She will not reveal her lover's identity, however, and the scarlet letter, along with her public shaming, is her punishment for her sin and her secrecy. On this day Hester is led to the town scaffold and harangued by the town fathers, but she again refuses to identify her child's father.** **The elderly onlooker is Hester's missing husband, who is now practicing medicine and calling himself [Roger Chillingworth](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/scarlet/character/roger-chillingworth/). He settles in Boston, intent on revenge. He reveals his true identity to no one but Hester, whom he has sworn to secrecy. Several years pass. Hester supports herself by working as a seamstress, and Pearl grows into a willful, impish child. Shunned by the community, they live in a small cottage on the outskirts of Boston. Community officials attempt to take Pearl away from Hester, but, with the help of [Arthur Dimmesdale](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/scarlet/character/arthur-dimmesdale/), a young and eloquent minister, the mother and daughter manage to stay together. Dimmesdale, however, appears to be wasting away and suffers from mysterious heart trouble, seemingly caused by psychological distress. Chillingworth attaches himself to the ailing minister and eventually moves in with him so that he can provide his patient with round-the-clock care. Chillingworth also suspects that there may be a connection between the minister's torments and Hester's secret, and he begins to test Dimmesdale to see what he can learn. One afternoon, while the minister sleeps, Chillingworth discovers a mark on the man's breast (the details of which are kept from the reader), which convinces him that his suspicions are correct.** **Dimmesdale's psychological anguish deepens, and he invents new tortures for himself. In the meantime, Hester's charitable deeds and quiet humility have earned her a reprieve from the scorn of the community. One night, when Pearl is about seven years old, she and her mother are returning home from a visit to a deathbed when they encounter Dimmesdale atop the town scaffold, trying to punish himself for his sins. Hester and Pearl join him, and the three link hands. Dimmesdale refuses Pearl's request that he acknowledge her publicly the next day, and a meteor marks a dull red "A" in the night sky. Hester can see that the minister's condition is worsening, and she resolves to intervene. She goes to Chillingworth and asks him to stop adding to Dimmesdale's self-torment. Chillingworth refuses.** **Hester arranges an encounter with Dimmesdale in the forest because she is aware that Chillingworth has probably guessed that she plans to reveal his identity to Dimmesdale. The former lovers decide to flee to Europe, where they can live with Pearl as a family. They will take a ship sailing from Boston in four days. Both feel a sense of release, and Hester removes her scarlet letter and lets down her hair. Pearl, playing nearby, does not recognize her mother without the letter. The day before the ship is to sail, the townspeople gather for a holiday and Dimmesdale preaches his most eloquent sermon ever. Meanwhile, Hester has learned that Chillingworth knows of their plan and has booked passage on the same ship. Dimmesdale, leaving the church after his sermon, sees Hester and Pearl standing before the town scaffold. He impulsively mounts the scaffold with his lover and his daughter, and confesses publicly, exposing a scarlet letter seared into the flesh of his chest. He falls dead, as Pearl kisses him.** **SHE DWELT AMONG THE UNTRODDEN WAYS by William Woodsworth** *She dwelt among the untrodden ways* *Beside the springs of Dove,* *A Maid whom there were none to praise* *And very few to love:* *A violet by a mossy stone* *Half hidden from the eye!* *---Fair as a star, when only one* *shining in the sky.* *She lived unknown, and few could know* *When Lucy ceased to be;* *But she is in her grave, and, oh,* *The difference to me!* She Dwelt among the Untrodden Ways by William Wordsworth describes a woman named Lucy who lived a quiet, isolated life near the springs of Dove. Throughout the poem, the poet compares her to a hidden violet, a lone star, and more. He notes her beauty, uniqueness, and the fact that she's largely unnoticed. The poet also notes how impactful the woman's death was on him and how different things are now that she's gone. - This poem is divided into three stanzas and is **four lines long**, also known as **[QUATRAIN.]** - It follows a rhyme scheme of ABAB. - This poem alternates between iambic tetrameter (four iambs, six syllables) in the odd-numbered lines and iambic trimester (three iambs, six syllables) in the even-numbered lines.  **THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (Poem)** **The poem begins by introducing the Ancient Mariner, who, with his "glittering eye," stops a Wedding Guest from attending a nearby wedding celebration. The Mariner stops the young man to tell him the story of a ship, providing no introduction but simply beginning his tale. Despite the Wedding Guest's efforts to leave, the Mariner continues to speak.** **The Mariner's story begins with the ship leaving harbor and sailing southward. A tremendous storm then blows the ship even further to the South Pole, where the crew are awed as they encounter mist, snow, cold, and giant glaciers. An Albatross breaks the pristine lifelessness of the Antarctic. The sailors greet it as a good omen, and a new wind rises up, propelling the ship. Day after day the albatross appears, appearing in the morning when the sailors call for it, and soaring behind the ship. But then as the other sailor's cry out in dismay, the Mariner, for reasons unexplained, shoots and kills the albatross with his crossbow.** **At first, the other [Sailors](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters/sailors) are furious with the Mariner for killing the bird which they believed a god omen and responsible for making the breezes blow. But after the bird has been killed the fog clears and the fair breeze continues, blowing the ship north into the Pacific, and the crew comes to believe the bird was the source of the fog and mist and that the killing is justified. It is then that the wind ceases, and the ship becomes trapped on a vast, calm sea. The Sailors and the Mariner become increasingly thirsty, and some sailors dream that an angered [Spirit](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters) has followed them from the pole. The crew then hangs the albatross around the Mariner's neck.** **In this terrible calm, trapped completely by the watery ocean that they cannot drink, the men on the ship grow so thirsty that they cannot even speak. When the Mariner sees what he believes is a ship approaching, he must bite his arm and drink his own blood so that he is able to alert the crew, who all grin out of joy. But the joy fades as the ghostly ship, which sails without wind, approaches. On its deck, [Death](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters) and [Life-in-Death](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters/life-in-death) gamble with dice for the lives of the Sailors and the Mariner. After Life-in-Death wins the soul of the Mariner, the Sailors begin to die of thirst, falling to the deck one by one, each staring at the Mariner in reproach.** **Surrounded by the dead Sailors and cursed continuously by their gaze, the Mariner tries to turn his eyes to heaven to pray, but fails. It is only in the [Moonlight](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/symbols/the-sun-and-moon), after enduring the horror of being the only one alive among the dead crew that the Mariner notices beautiful Water Snakes swimming beside the ship. At this moment he becomes inspired, and has a spiritual realization that all of God's creatures are beautiful and must be treated with respect and reverence. With this realization, he is finally able to pray, and the albatross fell from his neck and sunk into the sea.** **The Mariner falls into a kind of stupor, and then wakes to find the dead Sailors' bodies reanimated by angels and at work on the ship. Powered by the Spirit from the South Pole, the ship races homeward, where the Mariner sees a choir of angels leave the bodies of the deceased Sailors. After this angels' chorus, the Mariner perceives a small boat on which a [Pilot](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters), the [Pilot's Boy](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters), and a [Hermit](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/rime-of-the-ancient-mariner/characters/hermit) approach. As they get closer, the Mariner's ship suddenly sinks, but he wakes to find himself in the Pilot's boat. When the Mariner speaks, the Pilot and Hermit are stunned, by fear. The Hermit prays. The Mariner, in turn, saves his own saviors, and rows them to land, where he begs the Hermit to grant him absolution for his sins. The Hermit crosses himself, and asks the Mariner "what manner of man art thou?" The Mariner then feels compelled to tell his story.** **The Mariner concludes his tale by explaining that as he travels from land to land he is always plagued by that same compulsion to tell his tale, that he experiences a peculiar agony if he doesn't give in to his urge to share the story, and that he can tell just from looking at their faces which men must hear his tale. He ends with the explicit lesson that prayer is the greatest joy in life, and the best prayers come from love and reverence of all of God's creation. Thus he moves onward to find the next person who must hear his story, leaving the Wedding Guest "a sadder and a wiser man."** **PRIDE AND PREJUDICE by Jane Austen (Book)** **The news that a wealthy young gentleman named Charles Bingley has rented the manor of Netherfield Park causes a great stir in the nearby village of Longbourn, especially in the Bennet household. The Bennets have five unmarried daughters---from oldest to youngest, Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia---and Mrs. Bennet is desperate to see them all married. After Mr. Bennet pays a social visit to Mr. Bingley, the Bennets attend a ball at which Mr. Bingley is present. He is taken with Jane and spends much of the evening dancing with her. His close friend, Mr. Darcy, is less pleased with the evening and haughtily refuses to dance with Elizabeth, which makes everyone view him as arrogant and obnoxious.** **At social functions over subsequent weeks, however, Mr. Darcy finds himself increasingly attracted to Elizabeth's charm and intelligence. Jane's friendship with Mr. Bingley also continues to burgeon, and Jane pays a visit to the Bingley mansion. On her journey to the house she is caught in a downpour and catches ill, forcing her to stay at Netherfield for several days. In order to tend to Jane, Elizabeth hikes through muddy fields and arrives with a spattered dress, much to the disdain of the snobbish Miss Bingley, Charles Bingley's sister. Miss Bingley's spite only increases when she notices that Darcy, whom she is pursuing, pays quite a bit of attention to Elizabeth.** **When Elizabeth and Jane return home, they find Mr. Collins visiting their household. Mr. Collins is a young clergyman who stands to inherit Mr. Bennet's property, which has been "entailed," meaning that it can only be passed down to male heirs. Mr. Collins is a pompous fool, though he is quite enthralled by the Bennet girls. Shortly after his arrival, he makes a proposal of marriage to Elizabeth. She turns him down, wounding his pride. Meanwhile, the Bennet girls have become friendly with militia officers stationed in a nearby town. Among them is Wickham, a handsome young soldier who is friendly toward Elizabeth and tells her how Darcy cruelly cheated him out of an inheritance.** **At the beginning of winter, the Bingleys and Darcy leave Netherfield and return to London, much to Jane's dismay. A further shock arrives with the news that Mr. Collins has become engaged to Charlotte Lucas, Elizabeth's best friend and the poor daughter of a local knight. Charlotte explains to Elizabeth that she is getting older and needs the match for financial reasons. Charlotte and Mr. Collins get married and Elizabeth promises to visit them at their new home. As winter progresses, Jane visits the city to see friends (hoping also that she might see Mr. Bingley). However, Miss Bingley visits her and behaves rudely, while Mr. Bingley fails to visit her at all. The marriage prospects for the Bennet girls appear bleak.** **That spring, Elizabeth visits Charlotte, who now lives near the home of Mr. Collins's patron, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, who is also Darcy's aunt. Darcy calls on Lady Catherine and encounters Elizabeth, whose presence leads him to make a number of visits to the Collins's home, where she is staying. One day, he makes a shocking proposal of marriage, which Elizabeth quickly refuses. She tells Darcy that she considers him arrogant and unpleasant, then scolds him for steering Bingley away from Jane and disinheriting Wickham. Darcy leaves her but shortly thereafter delivers a letter to her. In this letter, he admits that he urged Bingley to distance himself from Jane, but claims he did so only because he thought their romance was not serious. As for Wickham, he informs Elizabeth that the young officer is a liar and that the real cause of their disagreement was Wickham's attempt to elope with his young sister, Georgiana Darcy.** **This letter causes Elizabeth to reevaluate her feelings about Darcy. She returns home and acts coldly toward Wickham. The militia is leaving town, which makes the younger, rather man-crazy Bennet girls distraught. Lydia manages to obtain permission from her father to spend the summer with an old colonel in Brighton, where Wickham's regiment will be stationed. With the arrival of June, Elizabeth goes on another journey, this time with the Gardiners, who are relatives of the Bennets. The trip takes her to the North and eventually to the neighborhood of Pemberley, Darcy's estate. She visits Pemberley, after making sure that Darcy is away, and delights in the building and grounds, while hearing from Darcy's servants that he is a wonderful, generous master. Suddenly, Darcy arrives and behaves cordially toward her. Making no mention of his proposal, he entertains the Gardiners and invites Elizabeth to meet his sister.** **Shortly thereafter, however, a letter arrives from home, telling Elizabeth that Lydia has eloped with Wickham and that the couple is nowhere to be found, which suggests that they may be living together out of wedlock. Fearful of the disgrace such a situation would bring on her entire family, Elizabeth hastens home. Mr. Gardiner and Mr. Bennet go off to search for Lydia, but Mr. Bennet eventually returns home empty-handed. Just when all hope seems lost, a letter comes from Mr. Gardiner saying that the couple has been found and that Wickham has agreed to marry Lydia in exchange for an annual income. The Bennets are convinced that Mr. Gardiner has paid off Wickham, but Elizabeth learns that the source of the money, and of her family's salvation, was none other than Darcy.** **Now married, Wickham and Lydia return to Longbourn briefly, where Mr. Bennet treats them coldly. They then depart for Wickham's new assignment in the North of England. Shortly thereafter, Bingley returns to Netherfield and resumes his courtship of Jane. Darcy goes to stay with him and pays visits to the Bennets but makes no mention of his desire to marry Elizabeth. Bingley, on the other hand, presses his suit and proposes to Jane, to the delight of everyone but Bingley's haughty sister. While the family celebrates, Lady Catherine de Bourgh pays a visit to Longbourn. She corners Elizabeth and says that she has heard that Darcy, her nephew, is planning to marry her. Since she considers a Bennet an unsuitable match for a Darcy, Lady Catherine demands that Elizabeth promise to refuse him. Elizabeth spiritedly refuses, saying she is not engaged to Darcy, but she will not promise anything against her own happiness. A little later, Elizabeth and Darcy go out walking together and he tells her that his feelings have not altered since the spring. She tenderly accepts his proposal, and both Jane and Elizabeth are married.** **SHE WALKS IN BEAUTY by George Gordon Byron (Poem)** **\"She Walks in Beauty\" is a famous poem by British Romantic poet Lord Byron, first published in 1815. The poem praises and seeks to capture a sense of the beauty of a particular woman. The speaker compares this woman to a lovely night with a clear starry sky, and goes on to convey her beauty as a harmonious \"meeting\" between darkness and light. ** ***She walks in beauty, like the night *** ***Of cloudless climes and starry skies; *** ***And all that's best of dark and bright *** ***Meet in her aspect and her eyes; *** ***Thus, mellowed to that tender light *** ***Which heaven to gaudy day denies. *** ***One shade the more, one ray the less, *** ***Had half impaired the nameless grace *** ***Which waves in every raven tress, *** ***Or softly lightens o'er her face; *** ***Where thoughts serenely sweet express, *** ***How pure, how dear their dwelling-place. *** ***And on that cheek, and o'er that brow, *** ***So soft, so calm, yet eloquent, *** ***The smiles that win, the tints that glow, *** ***But tell of days in goodness spent, *** ***A mind at peace with all below, *** ***A heart whose love is innocent!*** **ODE TO THE WEST WIND by Percy Bysshe Shelley (Lyric Poem)** "Ode to the West Wind" is a poem written by the English Romantic poet, Percy Bysshe Shelley. According to Shelley, the poem was written in the woods outside Florence, Italy in the autumn of 1819. In the poem, the speaker directly addresses the west wind. The speaker treats the west wind as a force of death and decay, and welcomes this death and decay because it means that rejuvenation and rebirth will come soon. In the final two sections of the poem, the speaker suggests that he wants to help promote this rebirth through his own poetry---and that rejuvenation he hopes to see is both political and poetic: a rebirth of society and its ways of writing. ***I*** ***O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn\'s being,*** ***Thou, from whose unseen presence the leaves dead*** ***Are driven, like ghosts from an enchanter fleeing,*** ***Yellow, and black, and pale, and hectic red,*** ***Pestilence-stricken multitudes: O thou,*** ***Who chariotest to their dark wintry bed*** ***The winged seeds, where they lie cold and low,*** ***Each like a corpse within its grave, until*** ***Thine azure sister of the Spring shall blow*** ***Her clarion o\'er the dreaming earth, and fill*** ***(Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air)*** ***With living hues and odours plain and hill:*** ***Wild Spirit, which art moving everywhere;*** ***Destroyer and preserver; hear, oh hear!*** ***II*** ***Thou on whose stream, mid the steep sky\'s commotion,*** ***Loose clouds like earth\'s decaying leaves are shed,*** ***Shook from the tangled boughs of Heaven and Ocean,*** ***Angels of rain and lightning: there are spread*** ***On the blue surface of thine aëry surge,*** ***Like the bright hair uplifted from the head*** ***Of some fierce Maenad, even from the dim verge*** ***Of the horizon to the zenith\'s height,*** ***The locks of the approaching storm. Thou dirge*** ***Of the dying year, to which this closing night*** ***Will be the dome of a vast sepulchre,*** ***Vaulted with all thy congregated might*** ***Of vapours, from whose solid atmosphere*** ***Black rain, and fire, and hail will burst: oh hear!*** ***III*** ***Thou who didst waken from his summer dreams*** ***The blue Mediterranean, where he lay,*** ***Lull\'d by the coil of his crystalline streams,*** ***Beside a pumice isle in Baiae\'s bay,*** ***And saw in sleep old palaces and towers*** ***Quivering within the wave\'s intenser day,*** ***All overgrown with azure moss and flowers*** ***So sweet, the sense faints picturing them! Thou*** ***For whose path the Atlantic\'s level powers*** ***Cleave themselves into chasms, while far below*** ***The sea-blooms and the oozy woods which wear*** ***The sapless foliage of the ocean, know*** ***Thy voice, and suddenly grow gray with fear,*** ***And tremble and despoil themselves: oh hear!*** ***IV*** ***If I were a dead leaf thou mightest bear;*** ***If I were a swift cloud to fly with thee;*** ***A wave to pant beneath thy power, and share*** ***The impulse of thy strength, only less free*** ***Than thou, O uncontrollable! If even*** ***I were as in my boyhood, and could be*** ***The comrade of thy wanderings over Heaven,*** ***As then, when to outstrip thy skiey speed*** ***Scarce seem\'d a vision; I would ne\'er have striven*** ***As thus with thee in prayer in my sore need.*** ***Oh, lift me as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!*** ***I fall upon the thorns of life! I bleed!*** ***A heavy weight of hours has chain\'d and bow\'d*** ***One too like thee: tameless, and swift, and proud.*** ***V*** ***Make me thy lyre, even as the forest is:*** ***What if my leaves are falling like its own!*** ***The tumult of thy mighty harmonies*** ***Will take from both a deep, autumnal tone,*** ***Sweet though in sadness. Be thou, Spirit fierce,*** ***My spirit! Be thou me, impetuous one!*** ***Drive my dead thoughts over the universe*** ***Like wither\'d leaves to quicken a new birth!*** ***And, by the incantation of this verse,*** ***Scatter, as from an unextinguish\'d hearth*** ***Ashes and sparks, my words among mankind!*** ***Be through my lips to unawaken\'d earth*** ***The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind,*** ***If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?*** **ODE TO A NIGHTINGALE by John Keats (Poem)** **\"Ode to a Nightingale\" was written by the Romantic poet John Keats in the spring of 1819. At 80 lines, it is the longest of Keats\'s odes (which include poems like \"Ode on a Grecian Urn\" and \"Ode on Melancholy\"). The poem focuses on a speaker standing in a dark forest, listening to the beguiling and beautiful song of the nightingale bird. This provokes a deep and meandering meditation by the speaker on time, death, beauty, nature, and human suffering (something the speaker would very much like to escape!). At times, the speaker finds comfort in the nightingale\'s song and at one point even believes that poetry will bring the speaker metaphorically closer to the nightingale. By the end of the poem, however, the speaker seems to be an isolated figure---the nightingale flies away, and the speaker unsure of whether the whole experience has been \"a vision\" or a \"waking dream.\"** **[THE VICTORIAN AGE]** **IN MEMORIAM by Alfred Tennyson (Elegy)** **Summary** **The poem begins as a tribute to and invocation of the "Strong Son of God." Since man, never having seen God's face, has no proof of His existence, he can only reach God through faith. The poet attributes the sun and moon ("these orbs or light and shade") to God, and acknowledges Him as the creator of life and death in both man and animals. Man cannot understand why he was created, but he must believe that he was not made simply to die.** **The Son of God seems both human and divine. Man has control of his own will, but this is only so that he might exert himself to do God's will. All of man's constructed systems of religion and philosophy seem solid but are merely temporal, in comparison to the eternal God; and yet while man can have knowledge of these systems, he cannot have knowledge of God. The speaker expresses the hope that "knowledge \[will\] grow from more to more," but this should also be accompanied by a reverence for that which we cannot know.** **The speaker asks that God help foolish people to see His light. He repeatedly asks for God to forgive his grief for "thy \[God's\] creature, whom I found so fair." The speaker has faith that this departed fair friend lives on in God, and asks God to make his friend wise.** ***XXVII*:** **Here the speaker states that he feels no jealousy for the man who is captured and does not know what it means to feel true rage, or for the bird that is born with in a cage and has never spent time outside in the "summer woods." Likewise, he feels no envy for beasts that have no sense of the passage of time and no conscience to check their behavior. He also does not envy those who have never felt pain ("the heart that never plighted troth") or those who complacently enjoy a leisure that they do not rightfully deserve. Even when he is in the greatest pain, he still realizes that " 'Tis better to have loved and lost / Than never to have loved at all."** ***LVI*:** **After having asserted in Section LV that Nature cares only for the survival of species ("so careful of the type") and not for the survival of individual lives, the speaker now questions whether Nature even cares for the species. He quotes a personified, feminine Nature asserting that she does not attend to the survival of the species, but arbitrarily bestows life or death on all creatures. For Nature, the notion of the "spirit" does not refer to any divine, unearthly element, but rather to the simple act of breathing.** **The poet questions whether Man, who prays and trusts in God's love in spite of the evidence of Nature's brutality ("Nature, red in tooth and claw"), will eventually be reduced to dust or end up preserved like fossils in rock: "And he, shall he, Man\...Be blown about the desert dust, Or sealed within the iron hills?" The thought of this evokes a notion of the human condition as monstrous, and more terrifying to contemplate than the fate of prehistoric "dragons of the prime." The speaker declares that life is futile and longs for his departed friend's voice to soothe him and mitigate the effect of Nature's callousness.** **The Last Duchess by Robert Browning** - Browning was a poet during the Victorian age and is noted for his mastery of **[Dramatic Monologue]** and **[Psychological Portraiture. ]** **A TALE OF TWO CITIES by Charles Dickens (Book/Novel)** **The year is 1775, and social ills plague both France and England. Jerry Cruncher, an odd-job man who works for Tellson's Bank, stops the Dover mail-coach with an urgent message for [Jarvis Lorry](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/jarvis-lorry/). The message instructs Lorry to wait at Dover for a young woman, and Lorry responds with the cryptic words, "Recalled to Life." At Dover, Lorry is met by [Lucie Manette](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/charles-darnay-and-lucie-manette/), a young orphan whose father, a once-eminent doctor whom she supposed dead, has been discovered in France. Lorry escorts Lucie to Paris, where they meet [Defarge](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/monsieur-ernest-defarge/), a former servant of [Doctor Manette](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/doctor-manette/), who has kept Manette safe in a garret. Driven mad by eighteen years in the Bastille, Manette spends all of his time making shoes, a hobby he learned while in prison. Lorry assures Lucie that her love and devotion can recall her father to life, and indeed they do.** **The year is now 1780. [Charles Darnay](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/charles-darnay-and-lucie-manette/) stands accused of treason against the English crown. A bombastic lawyer named Stryver pleads Darnay's case, but it is not until his drunk, good-for-nothing colleague, [Sydney Carton](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/sydney-carton/), assists him that the court acquits Darnay. Carton clinches his argument by pointing out that he himself bears an uncanny resemblance to the defendant, which undermines the prosecution's case for unmistakably identifying Darnay as the spy the authorities spotted. Lucie and Doctor Manette watched the court proceedings, and that night, Carton escorts Darnay to a tavern and asks how it feels to receive the sympathy of a woman like Lucie. Carton despises and resents Darnay because he reminds him of all that he himself has given up and might have been.** **In France, the cruel Marquis Evrémonde runs down a plebian child with his carriage. Manifesting an attitude typical of the aristocracy in regard to the poor at that time, the Marquis shows no regret, but instead curses the peasantry and hurries home to his chateau, where he awaits the arrival of his nephew, Darnay, from England. Arriving later that night, Darnay curses his uncle and the French aristocracy for its abominable treatment of the people. He renounces his identity as an Evrémonde and announces his intention to return to England. That night, the Marquis is murdered; the murderer has left a note signed with the nickname adopted by French revolutionaries: "Jacques."** **A year passes, and Darnay asks Manette for permission to marry Lucie. He says that, if Lucie accepts, he will reveal his true identity to Manette. Carton, meanwhile, also pledges his love to Lucie, admitting that, though his life is worthless, she has helped him dream of a better, more valuable existence. On the streets of London, Jerry Cruncher gets swept up in the funeral procession for a spy named Roger Cly. Later that night, he demonstrates his talents as a "Resurrection-Man," sneaking into the cemetery to steal and sell Cly's body. In Paris, meanwhile, another English spy known as John Barsad drops into Defarge's wine shop. Barsad hopes to turn up evidence concerning the mounting revolution, which is still in its covert stages. [Madame Defarge](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/character/madame-defarge/) sits in the shop knitting a secret registry of those whom the revolution seeks to execute. Back in London, Darnay, on the morning of his wedding, keeps his promise to Manette; he reveals his true identity and, that night, Manette relapses into his old prison habit of making shoes. After nine days, Manette regains his presence of mind, and soon joins the newlyweds on their honeymoon. Upon Darnay's return, Carton pays him a visit and asks for his friendship. Darnay assures Carton that he is always welcome in their home.** **The year is now 1789. The peasants in Paris storm the Bastille and the French Revolution begins. The revolutionaries murder aristocrats in the streets, and Gabelle, a man charged with the maintenance of the Evrémonde estate, is imprisoned. Three years later, he writes to Darnay, asking to be rescued. Despite the threat of great danger to his person, Darnay departs immediately for France.** **As soon as Darnay arrives in Paris, the French revolutionaries arrest him as an emigrant. Lucie and Manette make their way to Paris in hopes of saving him. Darnay remains in prison for a year and three months before receiving a trial. In order to help free him, Manette uses his considerable influence with the revolutionaries, who sympathize with him for having served time in the Bastille. Darnay receives an acquittal, but that same night he is arrested again. The charges, this time, come from Defarge and his vengeful wife. Carton arrives in Paris with a plan to rescue Darnay and obtains the help of John Barsad, who turns out to be Solomon Pross, the long-lost brother of Miss Pross, Lucie's loyal servant.** **At Darnay's trial, Defarge produces a letter that he discovered in Manette's old jail cell in the Bastille. The letter explains the cause of Manette's imprisonment. Years ago, the brothers Evrémonde (Darnay's father and uncle) enlisted Manette's medical assistance. They asked him to tend to a woman, whom one of the brothers had raped, and her brother, whom the same brother had stabbed fatally. Fearing that Manette might report their misdeeds, the Evrémondes had him arrested. Upon hearing this story, the jury condemns Darnay for the crimes of his ancestors and sentences him to die within twenty-four hours. That night, at the Defarge's wine shop, Carton overhears Madame Defarge plotting to have Lucie and her daughter (also Darnay's daughter) executed as well; Madame Defarge, it turns out, is the surviving sibling of the man and woman killed by the Evrémondes. Carton arranges for the Manettes' immediate departure from France. He then visits Darnay in prison, tricks him into changing clothes with him, and, after dictating a letter of explanation, drugs his friend unconscious. Barsad carries Darnay, now disguised as Carton, to an awaiting coach, while Carton, disguised as Darnay, awaits execution. As Darnay, Lucie, their child, and Dr. Manette speed away from Paris, Madame Defarge arrives at Lucie's apartment, hoping to arrest her. There she finds the supremely protective Miss Pross. A scuffle ensues, and Madame Defarge dies by the bullet of her own gun. Sydney Carton meets his death at the guillotine, and the narrator confidently asserts that Carton dies with the knowledge that he has finally imbued his life with meaning.** **TREASURE ISLAND by Robert Louis Stevenson (Book/Novel)** **Jim Hawkins is a young boy who lives at his parents' inn, the Admiral Benbow, near Bristol, England, in the eighteenth century. An old sea captain named Billy Bones dies in the inn after being presented with a black spot, or official pirate verdict of guilt or judgment. Jim is stirred to action by the spot and its mysterious, accurate portent of Billy's death. Hastily, Jim and his mother unlock Billys' sea chest, finding a logbook and map inside. Hearing steps outside, they leave with the documents before Billy's pursuers ransack the inn.** **Jim realizes that the contents he has snatched from the sea chest must be valuable, so he takes one of the documents he has found to some local acquaintances, Dr. Livesey and Squire Trelawney. Excited, they recognize it as a map for a huge treasure that the infamous pirate Captain Flint has buried on a distant island. Trelawney immediately starts planning an expedition. Naïve in his negotiations to outfit his ship, the *Hispaniola*, Trelawney is tricked into hiring one of Flint's former mates, Long John Silver, and many of Flint's crew. Only the captain, Smollett, is trustworthy. The ship sets sail for Treasure Island with nothing amiss, until Jim overhears Silver's plans for mutiny. Jim tells the captain about Silver and the rest of the rebellious crew.** **Landing at the island, Captain Smollett devises a plan to get most of the mutineers off the ship, allowing them leisure time on shore. On a whim, Jim sneaks into the pirates' boat and goes ashore with them. Frightened of the pirates, Jim runs off alone. From a hiding place, he witnesses Silver's murder of a sailor who refuses to join the mutiny. Jim flees deeper into the heart of the island, where he encounters a half-crazed man named Ben Gunn. Ben had once served in Flint's crew but was marooned on the island years earlier.** **Meanwhile, Smollett and his men have gone ashore and taken shelter in a stockade the pirates have built. Jim returns to the stockade, bringing Ben with him. Silver visits and attempts a negotiation with the captain, but the captain is wary and refuses to speak to him. The pirates attack the stockade the next day, and the captain is wounded. Eager to take action, Jim follows another whim and deserts his mates, sneaking off to hunt for Ben's handmade boat hidden in the woods.** **After finding Ben's boat, Jim sails out to the anchored ship with the intention of cutting it adrift, thereby depriving the pirates of a means of escape. He cuts the rope, but he realizes his small boat has drifted near the pirates' camp and fears he will be discovered. By chance, the pirates do not spot Jim, and he floats around the island until he catches sight of the ship drifting wildly. Struggling aboard, he discovers that one of the watchmen, Israel Hands, has killed the other watchman in a drunken fit. Jim takes control of the ship, but Israel turns against him. Jim is wounded but kills Israel.** **Jim returns to the stockade but finds it occupied by the pirates. Silver takes Jim hostage, telling the boy that the captain has given the pirates the treasure map, provisions, and the use of the stockade in exchange for their lives. Jim realizes, however, that Silver is having trouble managing his men, who accuse him of treachery. Silver proposes to Jim that they help each other survive by pretending Jim is a hostage. However, the men present Silver with a black spot and inform him that he has been deposed as their commander.** **In a desperate attempt to gain control of his crew, Silver shows them the treasure map to appease them. Silver leads Jim and the men to the treasure site, but they are shocked to find it already excavated and the treasure removed. The men are angered and near mutiny again. At that moment Dr. Livesey, Ben Gunn, and the others fire on the pirate band, which scatters throughout the island. Jim and Silver flee, and are guided by the others to Ben's cave, where Ben has hidden the treasure, which he had discovered months before.** **After spending three days carrying the loot to the ship, the men prepare to set sail for home. There is a debate about the fate of the remaining mutineers. Despite the pirates' submissive pleas, they are left marooned on the island. Silver is allowed to join the voyage, but he sneaks off the ship one night with a portion of the treasure and is never heard from again. The voyage home comes to a close. Eventually, Captain Smollet retires from the sea, and Ben becomes a lodge-keeper. Jim swears off treasure-hunting forever and suffers from nightmares about the sea and gold coins.** **[\ ](https://playwire.com/?utm_source=pw_ad_container)THE JUNGLE BOOK by Rudyard Kipling** **The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling is a collection of stories, originally published in 1894, that revolve around animals and humans coexisting in the Indian jungle. The most famous stories focus on Mowgli, a boy raised by wolves. Here's a summary of the key parts:** **[Mowgli's Stories]** **\"Mowgli's Brothers\"\ Mowgli, a human child, is found in the jungle by Father Wolf and Mother Wolf, who adopt him into their pack. The tiger Shere Khan claims Mowgli as his prey, but the wolves refuse to surrender him. Mowgli is taught the ways of the jungle by Baloo the bear and Bagheera the black panther. As he grows, tensions with Shere Khan rise, and eventually, Mowgli uses fire---\"the red flower\" feared by all animals---to defeat the tiger and assert his place in the jungle.** **\"Kaa's Hunting\"\ Mowgli is kidnapped by the Bandar-log (monkeys), who take him to their city. Baloo and Bagheera enlist the help of Kaa, the python, to rescue him. Kaa hypnotizes the monkeys, allowing them to save Mowgli and teach him the dangers of straying from his allies.** **\"Tiger! Tiger!\"\ After being cast out of the wolf pack due to Shere Khan\'s manipulations, Mowgli goes to live in a human village. He struggles to adapt to human life but eventually defeats Shere Khan by luring him into a trap set by water buffalo. This story highlights Mowgli's identity struggle as he feels torn between the jungle and human worlds.** **[Other Stories]** **\"The White Seal\"\ Kotick, a rare white seal, seeks a safe haven for seals away from human hunters. He travels far and wide and eventually finds a remote island where seals can live in peace.** **\"Rikki-Tikki-Tavi\"\ A mongoose named Rikki-Tikki-Tavi protects his human family from cobras, Nag and Nagaina, showcasing his bravery and loyalty.** **\"Toomai of the Elephants\"\ Little Toomai, a young elephant handler, witnesses the secret dance of the elephants, a mystical event no human has ever seen.** **\"Her Majesty's Servants\"\ Set in a military camp, this story offers insight into the thoughts and conversations of working animals, including camels, horses, and elephants, during a war effort.** **20^th^ CENTURY** **Quality** by John Galsworthy - "Quality," a short story written by John Galsworthy in 1912, revolves around the experiences of a narrator who frequents a small boot shop owned by the Gessler brothers, two dedicated German shoemakers. The narrative is set against the backdrop of a changing marketplace where traditional craftsmaship struggles to survive amidst the rise of mass production and advertising. ***Plot Summary of \"Quality\"*** Quality is a short story that revolves around the narrator\'s experiences with a highly skilled but struggling shoemaker named Mr. Gessler. The narrator, who is a regular customer of Mr. Gessler\'s shoe shop, reflects on their rel