history and criticism

Contains articles that provide information about twenty short stories for students, each with an introduction to the story and its author, a plot summary, descriptions of important characters, analysis of main themes, an explanation of literary techniques and movements, and historical and critical essays.

Profiles sixteen short stories--and their authors--often studied in high schools and colleges, presenting biographical and bibliographical information and several selections of significant criticism on each work included. Authors include Zora Neale Hurston, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Katherine Mansfield, Alice Walker, and Ernest Hemingway.

An in-depth exploration of some of Shakespeare's most memorable passages from some of his most often-read plays. Also includes an investigation of the different types of plays that make up Shakespeare's body of work: tragedies, comedies, histories and romances.

Looks at Shakespeare's unique use of language in both prose and verse, including the new phrases he coined, his word arrangement, and his use of puns and metaphors.

An exploration of some of Shakespeare's greatest characters, including Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, Brutus, King Lear, and Romeo and Juliet. Investigates some of the different types of characters that can be found in Shakespeare's plays. Learn how the playwright used language to create both villains and lovers.

When sax player Charlie "Bird" Parker and trumpeter Dizzy "Diz" Gillespie play together, they toss notes back and forth, pushing each other to create a new kind of music.

A collection of eight critical essays on Chaucer's "Knight's Tale," arranged chronologically in order of their original publication.

Offers critical analyses of eighteen novels and other works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry that have proven to be newsworthy, such as "No Country for Old Men" and "Eragon," each with an author profile, plot summary, discussion of characters, themes, and style, and historical context, with critical assessments.

A collection of nine critical essays on Chaucer's "The Pardoner's Tale" arranged in chronological order of publication.