The Day They Burned The Book Summary

In this essay I will discuss and analyze the social forces that influenced American women writers of the period of 1865 to 1912. I will describe the specific roles female authors played in this period and explain how the perspectives of female authors differed from their male contemporaries.

Wollstonecraft’s use of nonfiction prose for A Vindication of the Rights of Woman sets her apart

Throughout American Literature, women have been depicted in many different ways. The portrayal of women in American Literature is often influenced by an author's personal experience or a frequent societal stereotype of women and their position. Often times, male authors interpret society’s views of women in a completely different nature than a female author would. While F. Scott Fitzgerald may represent his main female character as a victim in the 1920’s, Zora Neale Hurston portrays hers as a strong, free-spirited, and independent woman only a decade later in the 1930’s.

Ray Bradbury's 1953 novel, Fahrenheit 451 displays a setting where books are being burned instead of read. The novel initially begins with a detailed description of books being burned, with emphasis placed on describing the book as a "flapping pigeon" that slowly dies on a porch (1). The process of burning books is expanded throughout the novel, in which the government encourages the destruction of books by altering history and restructuring the original purpose of firemen: to put out fires. The process of burning books, does not only include setting paper on fire, instead it speaks of the destruction of each thought that are embedded within the paper of the book. Ray Bradbury wants to point out a much a larger critique that is prevalent

Analyzing the ways in which a piece of literature includes feminist ideologies can bring out the potential messages that the creators of these productions were attempting to portray, while allowing the reader to critique the literature from a feminist perspective.

Even though young Sarty despises his father’s (Abner) crimes, why does he keep these crimes to himself and not expose his father? Throughout the text of “Barn Burning”, Sarty seems to have repetitive feelings of grief and despair, yet he hesitates to out his father for his crimes. Sarty is hesitant to out his father for his crimes because he hopes his father will change, he fears his father will harm him physically or emotionally, and he places a priority on his family’s wellbeing before his own.

On the other side of the coin to Austen’s horrible men and just women is Hemingway’s The Sun Also rises, where Jake pours his heart out to Brett and gives her anything she wants and yet he isn't good enough. Brett even tells Jake that they can’t live together because “I’d just tromper you with everybody. You couldn't stand it." Showing that no matter what Jake does for Brett, no matter how much he cares, she doesn't. Brett is the “bad women” in the novel because she has various men in her life through out the novel, and yet whenever she needs help she runs back to Jake, for help. Jake even believes that because Brett doesn't love him back that all women are only good for friends. “Women made such swell friends. Awfully swell. In the first place, you had to be in love with a woman to have a basis of friendship. I had been having Brett for a friend. I had not been thinking about her side of it. I had been getting something for nothing. That only delayed the presentation of the bill. The bill always came. That was one of the swell things you could count on.” Hemingway is also giving that because men love more than women they always come out paying with there pain, and hearts broken, but women do not pay. This again makes women horrible seductresses. Another man that Brett uses in Hemingway’s novel is Mike. Whom believes that

The significance of the opening chapter or intro was to set up a tone and style of the author. The first chapter shows how the story may not be as happy and calm as it may seem. It talks about how cruel the world is and how houses are being burned down because of having books in your home. It was also made to attract the attention of the reader showing that this is different from a fairy tale . This also shows the authors style of imagery because Ray Bradbury is constantly giving extra details making the story a paradox itself because he writes in a way where the story is written as if someone was describing their dream, except the story is opposite from a dream. The opening scene also gives us a background of what may occur in the story because it is an introduction. It introduces the Firemen and what they do.

Child abuse has been a common occurrence throughout the times of this world. In the story Barn Burning that was written by the author William Faulkner, a story is told of a boy named Colonel Sartoris Snopes who lives with his family. His father is a man who has seen the brutality of war and has a very cold heart. His name is Abner Snopes. His heart is so cold that it is almost as if he is not even human. William Faulkner in the story uses words comparing Abner Snopes to a house fly, or stinging wasp and also says that he lifts his hand like a curled claw. This suggests that the Author was trying to give the readers an image of Abner Snopes being someone who lacked human qualities. Mainly he lacked

They throw the books down the stairs, pile them up, and pour kerosene everywhere. Not only were they willing to burn the books, but the woman as well, and the government doesn't care because they set the rules, and they think the ends justify the means. The means being burning everyone and everything, and the ends being that there are no books left, so they think it’s okay to have unjust control. Another example is on page 117, they make Montag burn his own house down and then tell him he’s under arrest. All of that just for owning some books? That’s ridiculous, cruel, and overly controlling. Page 33, another example, Montag asks Beatty “I-I've been thinking. About the fire last week. About the man whose library we fixed. What happened to him?” Beatty then says “They took him screaming off to the asylum,” this really is a good example of oppression, a man owned books, so they sent him to the mental ward of a hospital, and sometimes they send them to jail. It shows how the government has cruel treatment just because they are in control, and that’s how some things are today. At school, for a small scale example, we aren't allowed to use our phones between classes, it wouldn't hurt anything if we were allowed to, it wouldn't make it easier to cheat, or break any other rules, yet we aren't allowed to do it just because they say so, and the government, which has way more power, can, and does, do things just like this except on a much larger scale.

Sexuality has an inherent connection to human nature. Yet, even in regards to something so natural, societies throughout times have imposed expectations and gender roles upon it. Ultimately, these come to oppress women, and confine them within the limits that the world has set for them. However, society is constantly evolving, and within the past 200 years, the role of women has changed. These changes in society can be seen within the intricacies of literature in each era. Specifically, through analyzing The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, one can observe the dynamics of society in regards to the role of women through the lens of the theme of sexuality. In both novels, the confinement and oppression of women can be visibly seen as a result of these gender roles. Yet, from the time The Scarlet Letter was published to the time The Bell Jar was written, the place of women in society ultimately changed as well. Hence when evaluating the gender roles that are derived from sexuality, the difference between the portrayals of women’s oppression in each novel becomes apparent, and shows how the subjugation of women has evolved. The guiding question of this investigation is to what extent does the theme of sexuality reflect the expectations for women in society at the time each novel was written. The essay will explore how the literary elements that form each novel demonstrate each author’s independent vision which questions the

Shirley Jackson’s novel, The Haunting of Hill House, explores the cultural anxieties in the mid 20th century. Specifically, men use womanhood (societal norms) as purposely infantilizing women in order to confine the female mind. Jackson utilizes symbolism, metaphor, and anaphora in her novel in order to convey the message for men to stop infantilizing women. Moreover, Jackson spreads awareness that women are being confined by a system that men developed: womanhood. Hence, in effect, the novel serves as an informal protest against male repression through a medium that can be read by a wider audience —more importantly an indirect challenge to male readers. According to Krolokke, Second Wave Feminism became prominent due to cultural discontent with patriarchy during the mid 20th century. Moreover, Krolokke informs the readers that Second Wave Feminism influenced women to challenge traditional family roles and male ideologies about women not belonging in the workplace (11-12). Mid 20th century is also when Jackson published The Haunting of Hill House. So, with these historical and cultural contexts in mind, Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House ends the novel with Eleanor killing herself because she wants women to challenge the ideas of patriarchy into effect. Hence, Second Wave Feminism has a connection to Eleanor having a childlike personality (can not think for herself) because she wants women (especially young and single women) to explore their rights (their choices) and

American Literature has always been about men and for men. In this essay, we are going to analyze the women’s role in the book, as inferior and weaker gender.

An example of this notion is shown in Hope Leslie when Governor Winthrop, the landlord, reacts to Hope, the tenant, coming home late and refuses to reveal her reason why: “...Winthrop was not accustomed to have his inquisitorial rights resisted by those in his own household, and he was more struck than pleased by Hope’s moral courage” (184). Evidently, Winthrop’s reaction proves that women with “moral courage” are unladylike because moral courage is a manly trait. On the other hand, Esther Downing, another character in Hope Leslie, embodies the cult of true womanhood. Esther’s mere look at her love interest Everell is described as “a look of...pleased dependence, which is natural... and which men like to inspire, because --perhaps -- it seems to them an instinctive tribute to their natural superiority” (219). So, “Esther’s look … of dependence” confirms that the expectation that all women are supposed to have the same behavior, gestures and personality is meant to not only please men but to also hide their true form. Therefore, the cult of true womanhood presents an internal battle in female writers and Sedgwick presents this womanly struggle through the contrast between Hope and Esther. Society wants women to be quaint housewives but publishing a book defies the cult of true womanhood. Thus, defying the qualities rooted in the cult of true womanhood causes high risk of

The important idea of the power of literature is highlighted throughout the entire novel.  At the time black maids were victims of constant maltreatment from their employers, because of the beliefs of the communities in Mississippi  in 1960’s.  People of colour were never seen or treated as equal, leaving them with no escape from the harassment they endure.  An example of this is when Mrs. Holbrook accused a maid of stealing some silver cutlery.  This maid had no way of protesting or fighting against this injustice.  To release and express their feelings against the