What are some differences and similarities between Bruno and Shmuel?

In the book The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, the two protagonists, Bruno and Shmuel, have a number of similarities and differences. They are age-mates, as they were both born on April 15th, 1934. They are also both forced to move from their homes, which they had been fond of: Bruno, from Berlin to Auschwitz due to his father’s role with the Nazis, and Shmuel from his home in Poland to the concentration camp...

In the book The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, the two protagonists, Bruno and Shmuel, have a number of similarities and differences. They are age-mates, as they were both born on April 15th, 1934. They are also both forced to move from their homes, which they had been fond of: Bruno, from Berlin to Auschwitz due to his father’s role with the Nazis, and Shmuel from his home in Poland to the concentration camp in Auschwitz as a Jewish prisoner. Additionally, both boys were educated: Bruno had a private tutor named Herr Liszt and Shmuel was taught by his mother who was a teacher by profession.

In terms of differences, the first obvious one is the fact that Bruno was born in Germany and was therefore German while Shmuel was born in Poland to his Jewish parents. Whereas Bruno lived in opulence, in a house with food, resources, and servants, Shmuel languished in impoverished conditions at the concentration camp. Finally, Bruno was ignorant of the activities that took place in the concentration camp and only wondered why and how the emaciated, pajama-clad people ended up there. Shmuel, on the other hand, was fully aware of what was happening and experienced the deplorable conditions firsthand.

Where can I find an analysis of Oliver Optic's Rich and Humble? (1863)

While there does not appear to be any substantial analysis online about Rich and Humble: Or The Mission of Bertha Grant by William Taylor Adams writing as Oliver Optic, at least one book has written about the novel and analyzed it a bit.

One such book is In the Company of Books: Literature and Its Classes in Nineteenth-Century America by Sarah Wadsworth. Wadsworth discusses the novel in the context of the foreword written by Adams, saying...

While there does not appear to be any substantial analysis online about Rich and Humble: Or The Mission of Bertha Grant by William Taylor Adams writing as Oliver Optic, at least one book has written about the novel and analyzed it a bit.

One such book is In the Company of Books: Literature and Its Classes in Nineteenth-Century America by Sarah Wadsworth. Wadsworth discusses the novel in the context of the foreword written by Adams, saying the most interesting thing about the book is "the explicit claim it makes to target a female audience." 

Wadsworth goes on to say that the novel does fulfill that description: it charts Bertha Grant's journey from luxury to poverty and back to luxury. However, she points out that James had written primarily for boys before Rich and Humble. There is also evidence in the text showing he wanted boys to have an entry point into the book—going so far as to address them in the foreword as well. She also points out that he includes multiple male characters and sporting events to maintain male interest.

There are several ways to approach analyzing the text when no previous analyses are available. One is to read it from a historical standpoint. The novel is set in New York. Learning about the sociopolitical climate of the time and relating it to the actions of the characters or the themes the author seems to be championing is one way to analyze it. You can also think of it with regards to the life of the author, examine the motives of a single character, or discuss one theme in the book and follow it from beginning to end. Just make sure to cite evidence from the text to support any claims you make.

How does Orwell describe his feelings about the British Empire, and about his role in it, both at the time he took part in the incident described,...

At the time of the incident, Orwell describes his feelings about the British Empire in very negative terms. He talks about imperialism being an "evil thing," for example, and how running the empire is "dirty" work. He also refers to the British as "oppressors." To illustrate these points, he gives the example of Burmese prisoners, locked up in "wretched cages" and scarred from beatings.

Regarding his role in the British Empire, Orwell feels an "intolerable sense of guilt." Moreover, although he hates his job, he cannot simply give it up, which further adds to his sense of guilt and feelings of hatred towards the British Empire.

After reflecting on the incident, there is some change in Orwell's attitude. He is "glad" to have been on the side of the oppressors, if only because it gave him legal justification and pretext for killing the elephant. Moreover, from his tone in the final line, he seems amused as he wonders if anyone realized his true motive for killing the elephant: that he didn't want to look like a fool.

How does Annie John relate vanity to her quest of identity ?

For most of her life, Annie's identity has been intimately bound up with the extraordinarily relationship she has with her mother. When she hits puberty and their relationship breaks down, she has to forge a new identity completely from scratch. Throughout the story, Annie is a pretty willful child with a strong sense of her own worth. None of the relationships she develops after the breach with her mom endure in any way. This is not simply because she is looking for something she had with her mom that is now irrevocably lost; it is also because she is fundamentally a vain person, believing herself to be much better than everyone else.

Annie's deep, loving relationship with her mother kept her vanity in check. Although they were more bosom buddies than mother and daughter, there was no doubt who the senior partner in the relationship really was. Annie's mom is very old-school when it comes to parenting. Her word is law, and the house is her domain. As long as Annie does as she is told, all will be well. God help her, though, if she ever steps out of line. Thank goodness, then, that they get on famously.

After Annie hits puberty, all that changes. Mom distances herself because she wants Annie to grow up and start acting like a lady. Annie is shocked and confused. Apart from anything else, she kind of thought that she was almost an equal in the relationship, her mom's "Mini Me," as it were. After all, they used to hang out together, go shopping, and even wear the exact same outfits. (They even have the same name). Annie already felt like a grown-up. Now she realizes that her mom thought of her as a little kid all along, and it hurts like hell.

At the same time, the breakdown of the relationship with her mom gives Annie the opportunity to let her real personality show. Now she can cut the apron strings, emerge from her mom's shadow, and start living like a real individual. However, there is really nothing to show; Annie's life has been so closely linked to her mom's identity that she has no true identity. The separation from her mom has left a gaping void in her soul which Annie somehow has to fill.

She really does not know how to do this. She throws herself into all kinds of adventures, desperately trying to cobble together something approaching an identity. First, Annie befriends Gwen. It is clear that she is looking for a mother substitute, and, initially, it seems that she has found one. This does not last long. The problem is that this is no relationship of equals. Neither was the relationship between the two Annies, but Annie John genuinely thought it was. There is no ambiguity this time, though. Annie is the mom and Gwen is the giggling, immature, little girl in the relationship.

However, we should not be too hard on Gwen. Annie's growing vanity is primarily responsible for their relationship not working out. She think she is a grown-up and wants to be with someone who makes her feel like a grown-up, just like her mom used to do. Gwen cannot do this. On the contrary, she acts as a reminder that Annie is still only twelve years old and just a kid.

This definitely is not a problem with the Red Girl. She has maturity way beyond her years. She shows that if you want to be considered as an adult, you have to act like one. You can gamble, you can steal, you can do whatever you like. After all, that is what adults seem to do all the time. There is no attempt by Annie here to replace her mom's affection. That ship has long since sailed. Now, she sees relationships purely in terms of self-gratification, as an opportunity to display her growing vanity and assuage her elevated sense of who she thinks she is. To hell with the consequences.

No one can ever truly match up to Annie's super fussy standards. She is the most important person in her own world. For a while, she thought her mom was amazing, but that is ancient history. Additionally, Antigua is such a little island, far too small a place to contain Annie's ever-growing ego. She needs a bigger stage to indulge her vainglorious visions. As a result, she leaves for England to work as a nurse. Not only will this allow her to indulge her morbid obsession with dead bodies, it will also give her the chance to be someone, a chance to create an identity in keeping with the superior self-image she has been attempting to develop ever since she fell out with her mother.

What were Lincoln’s general plans for Reconstruction?

Lincoln's overall approach to Reconstruction was gradual and inclusive. For Lincoln, the most important thing of all was to keep the Union from breaking apart. It was his prime motivation in conducting the Civil War, and it was uppermost in his mind when thinking about what would happen at the war's end. As a result, Lincoln wanted to incorporate the Confederate states back into the Union over a period of time. At no point did...

Lincoln's overall approach to Reconstruction was gradual and inclusive. For Lincoln, the most important thing of all was to keep the Union from breaking apart. It was his prime motivation in conducting the Civil War, and it was uppermost in his mind when thinking about what would happen at the war's end. As a result, Lincoln wanted to incorporate the Confederate states back into the Union over a period of time. At no point did he look upon the South as an enemy needing to be punished. They were to be defeated, yes, but not punished. 

Lincoln's approach to Reconstruction was encapsulated in the so-called "Ten Percent Plan." Under these proposals, rebel states would be allowed back into the Union if ten percent of its 1860 vote agreed to pledge allegiance to the Union and also abide by Emancipation.

Radical Republicans were sharply critical of Lincoln's plan. For one thing, they felt it was way too lenient; Lincoln seemed to forget that the rebels were criminals, guilty of open sedition against the legitimate authorities. As such, they should be treated as criminals and subjected to the appropriate punishment.

Lincoln's Reconstruction plans also did not involve the kind of root and branch change in Southern politics and society that the Radical Republicans demanded. The same kind of people with the same kind of prejudices would be left in charge of government at the statewide level with potentially disastrous consequences not just for the integrity of the United States, but also for the equality and civil rights of African Americans.

"The Adventure of the Speckled Band" features a woman with a distinct personality. Discuss the character of Helen Stoner, focusing on her levels of...

Helen Stoner in The Adventure of the Speckled Bandis a particularly independent and brave woman for her time. After her mother's death, she lives with her stepfather, Dr. Roylott, and is accustomed to doing all the housework herself. She says to Holmes and Watson, referring to herself and her sister, "No servant would stay with us, and for a long time we did all the work of the house." Helen Stoner is clearly not...

Helen Stoner in The Adventure of the Speckled Band is a particularly independent and brave woman for her time. After her mother's death, she lives with her stepfather, Dr. Roylott, and is accustomed to doing all the housework herself. She says to Holmes and Watson, referring to herself and her sister, "No servant would stay with us, and for a long time we did all the work of the house." Helen Stoner is clearly not spoiled and is hardworking. 

She is also a courageous woman, and she must endure the dreadful and violent temper of her stepfather. In addition, since her sister Julia's mysterious death two years before, she must endure living without any real companion. Her sister died in what Helen Stoner perceives is a frightful way--out of shock--after her sister heard a low whistle and a metallic sound. Helen tells Homes and Watson about her sister, “It is my belief that she died of pure fear and nervous shock, though what it was that frightened her I cannot imagine.” Still, Helen lives on in her stepfather's house, though the horror of what she has endured has made her hair turn white. 

Despite the barbarity of her stepfather, Helen Stoner tries to protect him. When Holmes rolls up the lace on Helen's hand, he finds the following: "Five little livid spots, the marks of four fingers and a thumb, were printed upon the white wrist." Her stepfather has clearly seized her violently, but Helen doesn't want to tell Holmes about her stepfather's cruelty because she is honorable and wants to protect him out of a misguided sense of loyalty.

Above all, Helen Stoner is intelligent. She is soon to marry and hears the low whistle in her room one night. She escapes from her room and comes to see Watson and Holmes right away, and she tells them her story in painstaking detail. When they undertake their investigation, she trusts them implicitly and allows them to stay in the room she has been staying in (while she retires to the room she used to use). By trusting them, she allows them to solve the mystery and discover that her stepfather has a snake called a swamp adder that he let loose through the ventilator passage to kill her sister (and that wound up killing him). Helen will likely now live a bright future married to her fiancé, and she will receive her mother's fortune that had been settled on her stepfather. She is clearly a bright, brave, and intelligent woman, and Sherlock Holmes surely respects her and finds her admirable and trustworthy. Holmes is capable of respecting an admirable woman like Helen Stoner.

Compare and contrast "Alone" and "Spirits of the Dead" by Edgar Allan Poe.

Both poems contain a somber tone and include supernatural elements. Edgar Allan Poe’s tragic backstory is woven into his poetry, and these two poems utilize a dark tone to express his complicated feelings about life. Poe uses these poems to wrestle with the pain he has experienced, whether it’s grieving over his dead wife or reminiscing about his youth. Also, each poem contains a reference to the supernatural, such as heaven, demons, and spirits. This...

Both poems contain a somber tone and include supernatural elements. Edgar Allan Poe’s tragic backstory is woven into his poetry, and these two poems utilize a dark tone to express his complicated feelings about life. Poe uses these poems to wrestle with the pain he has experienced, whether it’s grieving over his dead wife or reminiscing about his youth. Also, each poem contains a reference to the supernatural, such as heaven, demons, and spirits. This was common during the Gothic literature period, which influenced Poe’s melancholic writing style.

“Spirits of the Dead” addresses the death of Poe’s wife, while “Alone” is centered on Poe’s past. In terms of structure, “Alone” is a lyric poem with eleven rhyming couplets, while “Spirits of the Dead” is free verse with different rhyming patterns.