Mir Afzal INTRODUCTION In this lesson, we will read the short story, A Cup of Tea, by Mansfield, who, despite being a New Zealander, is now accepted in the domain of English writers. She found her forte in the short story which is often seen as the occasional by-product of the novel. We have, however, already discussed … Read more
INTRODUCTION This lesson will introduce you to “Odour of Chrysanthemums†one of the best stories of D.H. Lawrence. Best known for his novels, Lawrence was also an accomplished poet, short story writer, essayist, critic and travel writer. The controversial themes for which he is remembered (namely the celebration of sensuality in an over intellectualised world) … Read more
The Bet By Anton Chekhov The story, “The Betâ€, is about a banker and a young lawyer who lay a bet with each other based on capital punishment and life imprisonment and whether the former is better than the latter. The story essentially deals with man’s progressive understanding of the useful precepts of life. Chekhov, … Read more
What is a Fable? This lesson aims to introduce you to the literary genre, namely, fable by dealing with three selected fables by Aesop. As discussed in the previous lesson, the fables serve as specimens of early short stories. Before we start discussing the three selected fables, we must understand what a fable is as … Read more
What is Short Story? INTRODUCTION Everyone loves a good story. You must have listened to your grandmother’s stories on cold wintry nights and felt happy or sad on hearing it. A story sometimes takes you to a world other than the one that you are living in and you are left fascinated by it. A … Read more
The Duchess of Malfia By John Webster About John Webster John Webster is mostly known for his plays The White Devil and The Duchess of Malfi. Writing at the end of the sixteenth century and the beginning of the seventeenth century, Webster wrote a few plays of his own but also collaborated with other writers. … Read more
Christopher Marlowe: Dr. Faustus The Elizabethan Age The Elizabethan Age denotes the period of Queen Elizabethan’s reign (1558-1603). This was the period of great development in England, especially in the fields of commerce, naval power and nationalistic feelings e.g. the event of the defeat of Spanish Armada (1588). It was also a great age of … Read more
The Prologue To The Canterbury Tales Summary Going through The Prologue To The Canterbury Tales is like visiting a portrait-gallery. In a portrait-gallery we see portraits of a large number of persons on display. These portraits impress us by a variety of dresses, and they impress us also with their vividness. Each portrait creates an … Read more
About the Poet Geoffrey Chaucer is regarded as the father of English poetry. He belongs to the late Middle English period. Born about 1343, Chaucer served as a soldier in France. He has business experience and served as Customs Controller, Justice of Peace, Member of Parliament and Works Officer. His literary contribution can be divided … Read more
A Critical Study of ‘Hecatommithi’ by Giraldo Cinthio To fully understand and appreciate these literary works, we should perhaps try to identify their necessary genre. It is not accurate to label them as simply ‘short stories’ which are often forums for experimentation and invention. These stories on the other hand are quite clearly instructive, and … Read more
Sartre and His Philosophy The great French literary critic Jean-Paul Sartre was born in Paris in 1905. This French Philosopher studied at the École Normale Superieure from 1924 till the year of 1929. He became the Professor of Philosophy at Le Havre in 1931. Based on a stipend from the Institute Francais he studied in … Read more
Important Questions and Answers of National Prejudices By Oliver Goldsmith Q. How does the writer spend his time while he travels? Give reasons for his choice. Ans. The writer is a traveller at his heart. While he travels, he loves spending his time in coffee houses, pubs and other public places because these places give … Read more