Study Guides

"WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH”

These words are the slogan of the Party, the all-powerful political group that rules the world of 1984. They may seem strange, confusing, or simply wrong, but in George Orwell's envisioned future, a place where critical thought is forbidden, morality is hopelessly distorted, and all remnants of objective truth have been squelched, these words are the law of the land.

William Shakespeare's first great tragedy, Julius Caesar, tells the story of one of the most famous historical events of all time. Set in Rome in 44 B.C., the play depicts the conspiracy to kill Caesar, his brutal assassination, and the ensuing civic violence.

Divine justice. Does it exist? Is the Christian belief that good will be rewarded and evil will be punished accurate? Or is this simply wishful thinking? William Shakespeare dared Elizabethan audiences to ponder these questions in December 1606 when King Lear was performed on stage for the first time.

Written between 1599 and 1608, William Shakespeare's Othello, The Moor of Venice is one of the playwright's best and most disturbing tragedies. Disturbing because it offers us such a penetrating and unsparing look at romantic and sexual relationships. The mechanics of being in a relationship, being out of a relationship, and sex all feature prominently in this play. The hero is Othello, Venice Italy's greatest general and soldier, happily wed to the beautiful Desdemona. They are both, at the play's beginning, totally in love.

It is the Dark Ages of medieval Europe. Warrior peoples — the Danes, the Geats, and the Swedes — live in small groups huddled around the misty shores of the northern seas. There are bloodthirsty monsters in these lands, but there are also great heroes with the strength and courage to defeat them. One of these warriors is Beowulf, who deeds will live on in the poetic traditions of the English, long after both he and his people are gone.

Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice has been one of the most loved and widely-read novels ever published. Some have described this novel as a simple Cinderella story, but others argue that it rivals Shakespeare in its development of characters, its use of language and its social satire. Pride & Prejudice is not only a true "Comedy of Manners" it also creates one of the most unforgettable literary characters in Elizabeth Bennet, the novel's heroine.

Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein when she was just nineteen years old. It was her first novel and was nothing short of a work of genius. Frankenstein was and still is a classic, because it speaks to modern concerns just as it spoke to the concerns of the 19th century.

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