Classic novels
Frankenstein, Gatsby, Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice and other novels.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Jekyll’s Secret and His Relationships
A literary analysis of how Jekyll’s concealment damages his relationships with Utterson and Lanyon, and how the resulting distrust illuminates the novel’s ideas about knowledge and moral accountability.
Huck Finn’s Moral Rebellion Against Slavery’s Social Rules
An analysis of how Huck’s conflict between learned social rules and personal loyalty to Jim challenges the moral assumptions of the society in Mark Twain’s novel.
Pride and Prejudice: Lydia’s Secret Elopement and Family Reputation
A literary analysis of how Lydia’s concealed departure with Wickham threatens the Bennet family’s reputation and prospects, while Darcy’s intervention complicates the novel’s account of responsibility.
The Scarlet Letter: Hester Prynne’s Memory of the Past
An analysis of how Hester’s remembered relationship with Dimmesdale shapes her choices after returning to the settlement, and how Hawthorne connects memory with responsibility, identity, and change.
The Picture of Dorian Gray: The Curtain and the Hidden Portrait
An analysis of how the concealed portrait connects Dorian Gray’s public image to his private moral life and shapes the novel’s structure.
Wuthering Heights: Catherine’s Memory and Heathcliff’s Grief
An analysis of how Catherine’s remembered presence shapes Heathcliff’s grief, his response to her ghostly return, and the novel’s portrayal of love as destructive fixation.
Jay Gatsby’s Rebellion Against Class Boundaries
A literary analysis of how Gatsby’s self-fashioning and pursuit of Daisy challenge class boundaries while revealing the limits of wealth as a route to acceptance.
Pride and Prejudice: Darcy’s Memory and Changed Judgment
An analysis of how Elizabeth’s rejection and criticism reshape Darcy’s conduct, and how Elizabeth’s reassessment makes Austen’s portrayal of self-knowledge reciprocal rather than one-sided.
Heart of Darkness: Kurtz’s Reinvention and Colonial Power
An analysis of how Kurtz fashions himself as an authority through possessive claims, and how Conrad uses that self-fashioning to expose colonial power while leaving parts of Kurtz’s history and motives uncertain.
Frankenstein: Walton’s Ambition and His Decision to Turn Back
An analysis of how Walton’s choice to heed his crew’s demand to return shapes Frankenstein’s conclusion and distinguishes his ambition from Victor’s destructive persistence.
Jane Eyre’s Need for Belonging and Independence
An analysis of how Jane’s search for emotional belonging and self-determination shapes her choices at Thornfield and Marsh End, and how the novel presents love as most meaningful when it respects autonomy.
Frankenstein: How Family and Isolation Shape Victor and the Creature
A literary analysis of how family, education, and social acceptance shape Victor Frankenstein and his creature, and what their divergent choices suggest about agency.