Notes, Guide and Study material
Doctor Faustus as a Tragic Hero or Character Analysis of Dr. Faustus Whatever may be the cavils of critics Doctor Faustus is truly a great tragic hero. His sky-high ambition to gain limitless knowledge and power, his Renaissance curiosity – “to practice more than heavenly power permits,” and his yearning for enjoying sensual pleasures of … Read more
Comic scenes/elements in Doctor Faustus Some sort of comic relaxation provided after a succession of tense scenes in a play is known as comic relief. Aristotle and his followers insisted upon the unity of tone and impression and were strongly opposed to the admixture of the comic element in a tragedy. Sidney in his Apology … Read more
Hamlet’s Madness or Antic Disposition At the beginning of Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Hamlet is clearly a sensitive and idealistic young man: a scholar, a philosopher, and a poet too. But in course of the play, he acts like a mad man. This problem of madness is perhaps the most maddening problem in Hamlet. Certain critics … Read more
Comment on the Significance of the title “Measure for Measure” A good title of a play should indicate the theme of the play. It must also be such that it attracts attention like the signboard of a shop, it should give the readers an idea of the contents of the play. The title Measure for … Read more
Discuss the contribution of Victorian women novelists to the development of the English novel. Women writers and female characters had been part of novel-writing since the time of Aphra Behn, and it is commonplace that women were the main readers of the genre in the eighteenth century. After Sir Walter Scott made the novel popular … Read more
Critically analyse Shelley’s use of imagery in his “ode to the west wind.” Literarily imagery means imaginative language that produces pictures in the mind of people reading or listening. It refers to visual pictures of other sensory experiences evoked by the writer. It conveys word pictures. It evokes an imaginative, emotional response, as well as … Read more
Character Sketch of Lucie Manette in “A Tale of Two Cities” Lucie Manette is a typical Victorian heroine who is beautiful. gentle. frail, and given to fainting under stress, but she has a remarkable inner strength that is derived from practicing Christian virtues: She shows love and compassion for all mankind, in return, she is … Read more
Consider Measure for Measure as a problem play Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure has rightly been described as a problem play. The term “problem play” was suggested by the new drama initiated by Ibsen and shaw. A problem play is one that raises certain questions that remained unanswered. Like Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, Shakespeare’s Measure for … Read more
A House for Mr. Biswas: A Typical Caribbean Novel A number of indentured labourers of sugar estate migrated from India to the Caribbean islands long ago The families of those indentured labourers formed a community there. The protagonist of V.S. Naipaul’s A House for Mr. Biswas belongs to one of such families migrated to Trinidad … Read more
A House for Mr. Biswas: Naipaul’s art of characterization Characters constitute one of the vital constituents of a novel. Characters evolve on the basis of the novelist’s imagination and experience. The novelist endows them with distinct manners in order to create an illusion of reality. Since the facts of life are transmuted into fictional terms in … Read more