Literature itself has no defined meaning. In the beginning introduction of Literary Theory: An Introduction, Eagleton states numerous definitions of literature to prove the point that there has yet to be one specific definition. Eagleton's definition of literature involves a text that is written in a language that sounds different from the reader's one: "If everyone used phrases like 'unravished bride of quietness' in ordinary pub conversation, this kind of language might cease to be poetic" (5). Eagleton's definition connects literature and society by giv...

• Word Count: 2612
• Approx Pages: 10
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Thus, an analysis of the relationships between nature and physical sensations, and their roles in the formation and function of imagination in Wordsworths "Tintern Abbey" and Anna Barboulds "A Summer Evenings Meditation," demonstrate the ways in which these poems constitute Romantic lyrics. ... Indeed, one way in which "Tintern Abbey" constitutes Romantic lyrics is in its emphasis on the power of the aesthetic beauty of nature, rather than the excitement of rapid communications "extraordinary incidents," to provoke and satisfy the imagination. ... Another way in which "Tintern Abbey" constitu...

• Word Count: 3484
• Approx Pages: 14
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Alexie opens each chapter with Blues lyrics, each song lamenting some wretched aspect of Native American life and relating to foregoing chapter. ... Grassian further argues that Alexie was reclaiming the Blues music for the Native Americans as he suggests that the Blues were actually created by horses (whom Big Mom taught to sing) when after the slaughter of the horses "the song" [they sang] "sounded so pained and tortured that Big Mom could never have imagined it before the white men came" thus Grassian stating that "the blues originated with the colonization of the l...

• Word Count: 2551
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

A recent study done by Anderson, Carnagey, and Eubanks (2003) tested the "effects of songs with violent lyrics on aggressive thoughts and hostile feelings."The study, which was divided into five experiments, had undergraduate students listen to songs that either had violent lyrics or minimal to no violent lyrics, but were the same length and genre, either hard or soft rock" (Anderson, Carnagey, &Eubanks;, 2003). ...

• Word Count: 2512
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Our cultural knowledge and values that are central to the blues form the thematic and rhetorical understanding of The Bluest Eye, as the narrative's structure appears to follow a pattern common to traditional blues lyrics. Morrison moves the different aspects of the culture in a pattern that can be compared with traditional blues lyrics, starting with an initial emphasis on loss and concluding with a resolution of grief through motion. Moses allows us to understand his perception that Claudia's role as a storyteller is supported by the blues lyrics that punctuate the narrative at cri...

• Word Count: 2626
• Approx Pages: 11
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Although it is easy to see the political meaning behind the fifth symphony and other cantatas, songs and operas, Shostakovich also composed fifteen quartets, and it can be argued that a string quartet that has no lyrics cannot be political for the simple reason that without the lyrics, there is no possible way for the listener to successfully interpret the meaning the composer intended the piece to have. ... Orff never actually belonged to any Nazi party but his work was considered to be some of the greatest examples of Nazi art, and unlike Shostakovich, Orff never wrote music in praise of his...

• Word Count: 2701
• Approx Pages: 11
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Through readings and viewing of other texts such as the movies Ali and Remember the Titans and the lyrics of the song "When We Were Kings" viewers are able to form or reinforce positive attitudes upon the social commentaries of individuality, growth, freedom and individuality. ...

• Word Count: 2667
• Approx Pages: 11
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

During the early 20th century, Britain began to see the spread of education, across all levels of society, molding the public to be more literate. In the 1930's, Britain saw a boom in literature publications with poets writing about and during the war. The horrors of World War 1 created an immense m...

• Word Count: 2929
• Approx Pages: 12
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The term "punk" was derived in 16th century Europe as a way to address a prostitute or harlot. Centuries later, the word became commonly used prisons, used when a male prisoner was perceived to be the property of another male prisoner; forced to acquiesce to dehumanizing demands put upon him, including submission to homosexual assaults and torture. In the 1970's the word "punk" became synonymous with unconventional behaviors which were considered socially unacceptable, disrespectful of standard conservative values, and shocking and appalling to the mainstream society of the time. Intole...

• Word Count: 3241
• Approx Pages: 13
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate