Quizbowl Notes For Frequent Novels/Plays/Poems

Dubliners

Collection by James Joyce: Collection of 15 stories about life in Dublin and the Irish Middle Class (Just remember the names): Frequent Stories: "The Sisters" "Araby" "Eveline" "The Boarding House" "The Dead" "A Mother" Other Stories: "An Encounter" "After the Race" "Two Gallants" "The Boarding House" "A Little Cloud" "Counterparts" "Clay" "A Painful Case" "Ivy Day in the Committee Room" "Grace"

The Importance of Being Ernest

Comedic Play by Oscar Wilde: Characters: Jack Worthing - The play's protagonist. Jack Worthing is a seemingly responsible and respectable young man who leads a double life. Algernon Moncrieff - The play's secondary hero Gwendolen Fairfax - Algernon's cousin and Lady Bracknell's daughter. Gwendolen is in love with Jack, whom she knows as Ernest. Cecily Cardew - Jack's ward, she falls in love with Jack's "brother" Ernest Lady Bracknell - Algernon's snobbish, mercenary, and domineering aunt and Gwendolen's mother. Miss Prism - Cecily's governess. Lane - Algernon's manservant. Merriman - The butler at the Manor House, Jack's estate in the country. Plot Clues: - Miss Prism reveals it was she who accidentally left the protagonist in a handbag at Victoria Station when he was a baby, - play in which Algernon Moncrieff and Jack Worthing pretend to have the titular name. - Another character in this play ends up with Cecily Cardew, while Gwendolen Fairfax promises eternal love to Jack Worthing, though she knows him by another name Power Clues: - In this play, a character criticized for calmly eating muffins responds by saying eating them agitatedly would get butter all over his cuffs. - One character in this play proclaims, "The very essence of romance is uncertainty." - Another character in this play studies with Miss Prism - One character in this play believes it is impolite to listen to bad piano playing, - One character in this play has his true identity revealed by an inscription on a cigarette case - One scene in this play sees the butler Merriman instructed to tell a dogcart to return a week later.

Oedipus Rex

Greek Play by Sophocles: Characters: - Oedipus, Deserted and adopted as a baby, the protagonist who is the son of King of Thebes - Jocasta, Oedipus's mother and future wife - Laius, Oedipus's father and previous king of Thebes (Unknowingly killed by Oedipus) - Tiresias, the blind soothsayer of Thebes, who prophecies that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his mother - Antigone, Oedipus and Jocasta's daughter Plot Clues: - The title character believes himself to be the son of Polybus and Merope (Corinth king and queen who adopted Oedipus) - One character in this work murders a man and his servants at a crossroads in Phocis - An oracle in this play reveals that a plague affecting Thebes will only stop once the murderer of Laius is banished - This play ends with Creon offering the title character shelter after Jocasta hangs herself, causing the protagonist to use the pins from her dress to put out his own eyes Power Clues: - The title character of this play takes it upon himself to "drive pollution from this land" after a scene in which a procession of citizens offers wool-wrapped sticks to stop a plague - A character in this play claims "Wisdom is a dreadful thing when it brings no profit to its possessor. - In one scene in this work, an old slave is summoned from the countryside to testify about a murder, - The protagonist of this play decides to die on Mount Cithaeron, and accuses Tiresias of plotting against him Quotes: - "drive pollution from this land" - "Wisdom is a dreadful thing when it brings no profit to its possessor." - "What has a man to do with fear?"

The Stranger

Novel by Albert Camus: Characters: Meursault - The protagonist and narrator of The Stranger, to whom the novel's title refers. Marie Cardona - A former co-worker of Meursault who begins an affair with him the day after his mother's funeral. Raymond Sintes - A local pimp and Meursault's neighbor The Chaplain - A priest who attends to the religious needs of condemned men, The Arab - The brother of Raymond's mistress Plot Clues: - The main character in this work doesn't cry after his mother dies - The protagonist of this novel shoots an Arab five times after being threatened with a knife. - Meursault is executed for murdering an Arab on the beach in Algiers, Power Clues: - A question posed to the main character of this novel asks "Do you really live with the thought that when you die, you die, and nothing remains? - that character is released with a warning for beating his girlfriend after the protagonist testifies for him in court. - One character in this novel, Old Salamano, constantly beats his dog. - he protagonist of this novel goes to the movies with Emmanuel and eats lunch at Celeste's restaurant

The Call of The Wild

Novel by Jack London: Characters: Buck - A powerful dog, half St. Bernard and half sheepdog John Thornton - Buck's final master, a gold hunter experienced in the ways of the Klondike. Spitz - Buck's archrival and the original leader of Francois's dog team Perrault - A French Canadian who, together with Francois, turns Buck into a sled dog for the Canadian government. Francois - A French Canadian mail driver who buys Buck and adds him to his team. Mercedes, Hal, and Charles - Buy Buck and his team and try to drive them, but their inexperience makes them terrible masters Plot Clues: - novel about a canine named Buck - After the murder of John Thornton, the main character of this work decides to leave civilization - At the end of this work, the protagonist of this work becomes a legend among the Yeehats Power Clues: - During a trip to Dawson in this work, Hal and Mercedes were criticized for bringing "blankets for a hotel" on their journey - A character in this novel learns of "The Law of Club and Fang"

The Raven

Poem by Edgar Allen Poe: Characters: The Raven - Visits the man and taps on his window The narrator - The man who is visited by the raven Plot Clues: - That title figure of this work enters a room "with many flirt and flutter" before perching upon a bust of Pallas and proceeding to repeat "nevermore" to all questions asked of it. - The narrator calls it a "prophet" and "thing of evil" that evokes memories of Lenore. Quotes: - "is there balm in Gilead?" - "get thee back into the tempest and night's Plutonian shore - "sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain" - "bust of Pallas" just above the door - "Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floors" - "air grew perfumed from an unseen cancer".

The Tyger

Poem by William Blake: Tyger Tyger, burning bright, In the forests of the night; What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry? In what distant deeps or skies. Burnt the fire of thine eyes? On what wings dare he aspire? What the hand, dare seize the fire? And what shoulder, & what art, Could twist the sinews of thy heart? And when thy heart began to beat, What dread hand? & what dread feet? What the hammer? what the chain, In what furnace was thy brain? What the anvil? what dread grasp, Dare its deadly terrors clasp! When the stars threw down their spears And water'd heaven with their tears: Did he smile his work to see? Did he who made the Lamb make thee? Tyger Tyger burning bright, In the forests of the night: What immortal hand or eye, Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

Beowulf

Anonymous Epic: Characters: Beowulf - The protagonist of the epic, Beowulf is a Geatish hero who fights the monster Grendel, Grendel's mother, and a fire-breathing dragon. King Hrothgar - The king of the Danes. Hrothgar enjoys military success and prosperity until Grendel terrorizes his realm Grendel - A demon descended from Cain, Grendel preys on Hrothgar's warriors in the king's mead-hall Grendel's Mother - An unnamed swamp-hag, The Dragon - An ancient, powerful serpent, the dragon guards a horde of treasure in a hidden mound. Wiglaf - A young kinsman and retainer of Beowulf who helps him in the fight against the dragon while all of the other warriors run away. Plot Clues: - The end of this work describes the loyalty of Wiglaf during a fight with a dragon while the primary antagonist attacks the mead hall Heorot of King Hrothgar - The protagonist of this poem rips off the arm of a monster, which is displayed in King Hrothgar's Heorot hall. - The title character of this work defends the banquet hall Heorot from the monstrous Grendel. Power Clues: - The only character to not abandon the protagonist during a battle in the barrow Earnanæs in this work is the young Wiglaf. - This poem's title character tells of his victory in a swimming race against Breca - This avenger of Scyld receives the Naegling after diving to a bottom of the lake and finishing his task by the ninth hour Quotes: - "hunted down by a dark death-shadow." - "the light broke on her murdered dears"

Howl

Beat Poem by Allen Ginsberg: Poem divided into three sections: 1: The first section contains graphic details about life as a psychiatric patient, drug user, and homosexual. 2. The second section considers the god Moloch. 3. Section three is addressed to Carl Solomon, a friend of Ginsberg's whom he met in a psychiatric hospital. Plot Clues: - beginning "I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness" - in the next part, "the incomprehensible prison" is compared with Moloch. - The third section of this poem addresses the dedicatee by repeating "I'm with you in Rockland." Power Clues: - People dance barefoot on broken glass and smash German jazz records in one part of this poem - This poem describes people "surrounded by orange crates of theology" who "cast their ballot for Eternity outside of Time." - A section of this poem describes a group of people who "fell on their knees in hopeless cathedrals." - This poem describes a group "who broke down crying in white gymnasiums naked and trembling." - The final part of this poem extols the "crazy shepherds of rebellion" and "vast lamb of the middle class"

Decameron

Collection by Boccaccio: Characters: Members of the Brigata: Pampinea Filostrato Fiammetta Emilia Dioneo Other non-neccessary members . . . Saladin - sultan of Babylon who needs money in "First Day, Third Story." Plot Clues: - 14th-century collection in which a brigado of Florentines tell stories while fleeing the Black Death - With the exception of Diono, the brigata of characters like Pampiana and Fiammetta tell stories based on a chosen theme each day while fleeing the plague in Florence. Power Clues: - Saladin asks a character from this work to decide which Abrahamic religion provides true wisdom - One woman in this work pretends to throw herself into a well to trick her husband Tofano to come outside, allowing her to lock him out. - At the beginning of this work, Cepparello lies to a friar and becomes a saint after dying - In a story from this work, a woman's lover hides in a barrel that's then sold by the woman's husband for five ducats,

The Canterbury Tales

Collection of stories by Geoffrey Chaucer in the late 1300s: Characters: The Host - Harry Bailey, The leader of the group The Wife Of Bath - Bath is an English town on the Avon River, not the name of this woman's husband. She is a professional wife The Knight - The first pilgrim Chaucer describes in the General Prologue The Friar - Roaming priests with no ties to a monastery Many other characters with different professions . . . Plot Clues: - people meet at the Tabard Inn, where the Host offers to judge a storytelling contest between them - aforementioned pilgrims travel to the shrine of Thomas Becket - Characters with many professions tell stories - "What women desire most" is the subject of the Wife of Bath's narrative in this work Power Clues: - One character in this work switches the location of a baby cradle, causing the baby's mother to sleep in the wrong bed -In this work, Pluto restores the sight of a blind man - Another part of this work tells how three men who vow to kill Death find bushels of gold under an oak tree and murder each other over it. - In one part of this work, Canacee is given a brass horse, a mirror, and a ring that allows her to understand birds - One section of this work features Dorigen, who promises to sleep with the clerk Aurelius if he can clear a coast of rocks. - The prologue to this work notes that it begins after the month of March has "bathed every vein in...liquor."

Paradise Lost

Epic poem by John Milton: Characters: Devils in Hell: Satan - Head of the rebellious angels who have just fallen from Heaven. Beelzebub - Satan's second-in-command. Beelzebub discusses with Satan their options after being cast into Hell Belial - One of the principal devils in Hell. Belial argues against further war with Heaven Mammon - A devil known in the Bible as the epitome of wealth. He argues against war Mulciber - The devil who builds Pandemonium Moloch - A rash, irrational, and murderous devil. He argues in Pandemonium that the devils should engage in another full war against God and his servant angels. Sin - Satan's daughter, who sprang full-formed from Satan's head Death - Satan's son by his daughter, Sin. Angels in Heaven: Uriel (Regent of the Sun) - An angel who guards the planet earth. Abdiel - An angel who at first considers joining Satan in rebellion Raphael - One of the archangels in Heaven, who acts as one of God's messengers. Gabriel - One of the archangels of Heaven, who acts as a guard at the Garden of Eden. Michael - The chief of the archangels, Michael leads the angelic forces against Satan and his followers in the battle in Heaven Plot Clues: - This is a story of Adam and Eve's expulsion from the Garden of Eden. - One character in this work builds a city named Pandemonium and then declares that it is "Better to reign in hell than to serve in heaven." - Raphael and Michael speak in part to "justify the ways of God to men". Power Clues: - One character in this work has her bowels torn at by dogs begotten with her son - This poem notes that "no light, but rather darkness visible, served only to discover sights of woe." - A character in this work becomes fascinated by a reflection in a pond, not realizing that it is her own. - One character in this work has a flight blocked by a shapeless black being carrying a "fatal dart" and a woman who sprang from his head, with whom he committed incest. - A mountain-hurling stalemate between two armies in this work is broken by the discovery of gunpowder. Quotes: - "hand in hand, with wandering steps and slow." - "Better to reign in hell than to serve in heaven." - "vast abyss pregnant where it dove-like, sat'st brooding." - "I now must change / Those Notes to tragic". - "no light, but rather darkness visible, served only to discover sights of woe."

Odyssey

Epic written by Homer: Characters: Odysseus - The protagonist of the Odyssey. He fought among the other Greek heroes at Troy and now struggles to return to his kingdom in Ithaca. Telemachus - Odysseus's son. An infant when Odysseus left for Troy, Penelope - Wife of Odysseus and mother of Telemachus. Calypso - The beautiful nymph who falls in love with Odysseus when he lands on her island-home of Ogygia. Polyphemus - One of the Cyclopes. He imprisons Odysseus and his crew and tries to eat them Nausicaa - The beautiful daughter of King Alcinous and Queen Arete of the Phaeacians. Nausicaa discovers Odysseus ensures his warm reception at her parents' palace. Plot Clues: - Meanwhile, angered by Penelope's suitors, Telemachus investigates his father's return to Ithaca - The heroine of this work resists her suitors by weaving and unweaving a burial shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes - The hero of this work is held at Ogygia (oh-JI-jee-uh) by Calypso - The title character of this work takes a decade to return to his wife Penelope and his home Ithaca. Power Clues: - In one scene in this work, a beggar challenges the protagonist to a boxing match, but the protagonist wipes the floor with him. - The title character of this work is given a quiz about his bed after a staying with Nausicaa and the Phaeacians - In this literary work, the dog Argos recognizes his master although he is disguised as a beggar. - The protagonist of this work begins crying after listening to a blind singer tell his tale, - This work's characters sacrifice Helios' cattle to give thanks for successfully avoiding a monster named Scylla

Inferno

First Section of Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri: Characters: Dante - The author and protagonist of Inferno Beatrice - One of the blessed in Heaven, Beatrice aids Dante's journey by asking an angel to find Virgil and bid him guide Dante through Hell. Virgil - Dante's guide through the depths of Hell Minos - The king of Crete in Greek mythology, Minos is portrayed by Dante as a giant beast who stands at the Second Circle of Hell, Geryon - The massive serpentine monster that transports Dante and Virgil from the Seventh to the Eighth Circle of Hell. Lucifer - The prince of Hell, also referred to as Dis. Lucifer resides at the bottom of the Ninth (and final) Circle of Hell, Plot Clues: - An entrance in this work has a sign reading "abandon all hope, ye who enter here." - At the end of this work, the narrator, while being guided by Virgil, encounters Brutus, Cassius, and Judas next to Satan. - Name this first part of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. Power Clues: - In this work, the protagonist alludes to Phaeton and Icarus to describe his fear while riding on a hairy beast with the face of a man. - the protagonist discovers Saladin among those in limbo - The author begins this work with the line describes meeting a leopard, a lion, and a wolf in the dark forest. Quotes: - "Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita" - "halfway along our life's path" - "abandon all hope, ye who enter here."

Waiting for Godot

French Play by Samuel Beckett: Characters: Vladimir - One of the two main characters of the play. Estragon - The second of the two main characters. Vladimir calls him Gogo Pozzo - He passes by the spot where Vladimir and Estragon are waiting and provides a diversion. In the second act, he is blind and does not remember meeting Vladimir and Estragon the night before. Lucky - Pozzo's slave, who carries Pozzo's bags and stool. In Act I, he entertains by dancing and thinking. Boy - He appears at the end of each act to inform Vladimir that Godot will not be coming that night. Plot Clues: - Vladamir and Estragon wait for the titled character - The two protagonists of this play discuss hanging themselves from the solitary tree - A boy claims he is the messenger from Godot and that Godot will not come Power Clues: - A kidney illness causes one character in this play to "stink of garlic" - The second act of this play features a song about a dog being beaten to death - In this play, a man finds a bunch of carrots and turnips in his pockets. - One character in this play orders another to precisely place a stool. - In this play, a boy calls one character "Mr. Albert," Quotes: - "Nothing to be done." - "men are ignorant apes" - "tennis, the stones, so calm, Cunard, unfinished." - "There's an end to his thinking" - "A country road. A tree. Evening." - "To every man his little cross. Till he dies. And is forgotten."

She Walks in Beauty

Poem by Lord Byron: A Poem that describes an idealized woman . . . She walks in beauty, like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies; And all that's best of dark and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes; Thus mellowed to that tender light Which heaven to gaudy day denies. One shade the more, one ray the less, Had half impaired the nameless grace Which waves in every raven tress, Or softly lightens o'er her face; Where thoughts serenely sweet express, How pure, how dear their dwelling-place. And on that cheek, and o'er that brow, So soft, so calm, yet eloquent, The smiles that win, the tints that glow, But tell of days in goodness spent, A mind at peace with all below, A heart whose love is innocent!

Brave New World

Novel by Aldous Huxley: Characters: - John, The son of the Director and Linda, John is the only major character to have grown up outside of the World State. - Bernard Marx, An Alpha male who fails to fit in because of his inferior physical stature. - Helmholtz Watson, An Alpha lecturer at the College of Emotional Engineering, Helmholtz is a prime example of his caste - Lenina Crowne, She is an object of desire for a number of major and minor characters, including Bernard Marx and John. - Mustapha Mond, The Resident World Controller of Western Europe, one of only ten World Controllers. - Linda, John's mother, and a Beta. - The Director - The Director administrates the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre. John's secret father Plot Clues: - In this book, Podsnap's Technique is used to increase the birthrate of people created through Bokanovsky's Process -People in this book are divided into five castes based on their conception, the lowest being Epsilons and the highest Alphas. - In this novel, the word "Ford" is used in place of the word "Lord" in many of the same contexts - The majority of the world's population is addicted to the drug soma - At the reservation, a religious whipping ceremony is seen, and that action recurs at the end of this book, leading to John the Savage's suicide -Bernard Marx is exiled by World Controller Mustapha Mond for inviting two characters to London Power Clues: - One of the characters in this novel moves to an air-lighthouse and another character does not enjoy playing Riemann Surface Tennis and Obstacle Golf - One character in this book recalls watching the pornographic Three Weeks in a Helicopter, which dredges up bad memories of his mother's relationship with Pope - In this novel, the Bokanovsky Process is used to produce groups such as the "epsilon minus morons" and "alpha plus intellectuals." - One character in this novel tries to impress another by taking her on a trip to New Mexico, and that character is later exiled to a distant island by Mustapha Mond

The Three Musketeers

Novel by Alexandre Dumas: Characters: D'Artagnan - The central character of the novel Athos - The most important of the Three Musketeers, Athos is something of a father figure to d'Artagnan. Aramis - A young Musketeer, one of the great Three. Porthos - Porthos, the third of the Three Musketeers, Cardinal Richelieu - The King's most influential advisor Monsieur De Treville - The head of the King's Musketeers. Lady De Winter (Milady) - A mysterious, beautiful, dangerous, and ultimately evil Cardinalist agent. Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this novel insults a man's sash and schedules three duels in one day - that woman, Milady de Winter, is involved in a blackmail plot by Cardinal Richelieu, who is one of this novel's protagonists. - d'Artagnan joins the namesake group of Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, a work of Alexandre Dumas. Power Clues: - A character in this novel trained his servant Grimaud to never speak and hanged his wife after discovering she was a criminal because of the brand on her left shoulder. - This novel opens with its protagonist getting beaten and robbed by a group of men in an inn near Orléans - The antagonist of this novel has a maid named Kitty who falls in love with the hero

The Count of Monte Cristo

Novel by Alexandre Dumas: Characters: Edmond Dantès - The protagonist of the novel The Count Of Monte Cristo - The identity Dantès assumes when he emerges from prison and inherits his vast fortune Mercédès - Dantès's beautiful and good fiancée. Abbé Faria - A priest and brilliant thinker whom Dantès meets in prison. Monsieur Morrel - Morrel does everything in his power to free Dantès from prison and tries to save Dantès's father from death. The four antagonists: 1. Fernand Mondego - Dantès's rival for Mercédès's affections. 2. Baron Danglars - A greedy, envious cohort of Mondego. 3. Caderousse - A lazy, drunk, and greedy man. 4. Gérard De Villefort - The blindly ambitious public prosecutor responsible for sentencing Dantès to life in prison Plot Clues: - The title character was arrested on the day he was to wed Mercedes - The protagonist discovers Abbe Faria's fortune and adopts the title alias while seeking revenge for false imprisonment in the Chateau d'If by Villefort. - After meeting Abbe Faria while imprisoned for fourteen years, Edmond Dantes seeks revenge against 4 characters Power Clues: - In this novel, the false news of an uprising in Spain led by Don Carlos causes one character to lose a million francs - In this novel, Morrel is given money to save his shipping business due to the fact that he helped the title character's father - In this novel, the Saint-Merans are the first victims of Heloise's poisoning rampage. - One character in this novel spends his time in prison writing a Treatise on the Prospects for a General Monarchy in Italy

Great Expectations

Novel by Charles Dickens: Characters: Pip - The protagonist and narrator of Great Expectations Estella - Miss Havisham's beautiful young ward, She is Pip's unattainable dream throughout the novel. Miss Havisham - Miss Havisham is the wealthy, eccentric old woman Abel Magwitch ("The Convict") - A fearsome criminal, Magwitch escapes from prison Compeyson - A criminal and the former partner of Magwitch Joe Gargery - Pip's brother-in-law, the village blacksmith Jaggers - The powerful, foreboding lawyer hired by Magwitch to supervise Pip's elevation to the upper class. Herbert Pocket - Herbert becomes Pip's best friend and key companion Wemmick - Jaggers's clerk and Pip's friend. tender caretaker of his "Aged Parent." Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this work is scared into stealing food and a metal file for a convict he meets. - The protagonist of this novel loves Miss Havisham's ward Estella - That convict ends up being the benefactor of the protagonist of this novel, who eventually goes abroad to be a merchant. - The protagonist of this novel gives a pork pie and brandy to the escaped convict Abel Magwitch, and he eventually marries her illegitimate daughter, Estella Power Clues: - One character in this work is punished with "The Tickler". - In this novel, the protagonist's sister, Mrs. Joe, is killed by her husband's assistant - One character in this book drives his accomplice Arthur into madness and convinces his fiancee to buy a brewery; - A house in this work has all of the clocks stopped at the time its owner was left at the altar - A lawyer in this novel washes his hands obsessively to keep his hands clean from criminal activity, making him smell like soap - In this novel, "Aged P" responds to all questions with "All Right John!"

A Tale of Two Cities

Novel by Charles Dickens: Characters: Charles Darnay - A French aristocrat by birth. Twin in appearance with Sydney Carton Sydney Carton - An insolent, indifferent, and alcoholic attorney who works with Stryver. Doctor Manette - Lucie's father and a brilliant physician, Doctor Manette spent eighteen years as a prisoner in the Bastille. Lucie Manette - A young French woman who grew up in England Madame Defarge - A cruel revolutionary whose hatred of the aristocracy fuels her tireless crusade Plot Clues: - This work is about Sydney Carton and the French Revolution, which begins, "It was the best of times." - In this work, there is a strong resemblance between Sydney Carton and Charles Darnay, both of whom love Dr. Manette's daughter Lucie. - Divided into three sections titled Recalled to Life, the Golden Thread, and the Track of a Storm - When that character, Marquis Evrémonde, is murdered in his bed, the assailant leaves a note signed "Jacques" - Lucie Manette, and her lover, who is swapped with Sydney Carton just before he is scheduled to be guillotined Power Clues: - One character in this novel nicknames himself "resurrection man" since he unearths fresh bodies to sell to medical students. - Besides Jerry Cruncher, who works for the seedy Tellson's Bank as a runner - Another character in this novel gives a couple a gold coin after his carriage runs over their son. - this novel describes a man driven insane by his prison sentence - One character in this work obsessively makes shoes in order to relieve his guilt at not being able to save a man from the guillotine.

Jane Eyre

Novel by Charlotte Bronte: Characters: Jane Eyre - The protagonist and narrator of the novel, Jane is an intelligent, honest, plain-featured young girl forced to contend with oppression, Edward Rochester - Jane's employer and the master of Thornfield St. John Rivers - Along with his sisters, Mary and Diana, St. John (pronounced "Sinjin") serves as Jane's benefactor after she runs away from Thornfield Mrs. Reed - Mrs. Reed is Jane's cruel aunt, Bertha Mason - Rochester's clandestine wife who has become insane, violent, and bestial Blanche Ingram - Blanche Ingram is a beautiful socialite who despises Jane and hopes to marry Rochester for his money. Plot Clues: - The main character St. John Rivers and a chance to be a missionary's wife in India after hearing her former love call her name. - After leaving the Lowood School, this character saves a man from a mysterious fire that is blamed on the nurse Grace Poole -in this novel, Grace Poole is blamed for strange occurrences at Thornfield Hall that were actually done by Bertha Mason - A character in this novel goes blind during a fire at Thornfield - name this governess of Thornfield Hall who marries Edward Rochester Power Clues: - The titular character of this work learns of a fortune from her uncle John - This novel begins in Gateshead Hall, with John Reed bullying his cousin, who fights back and is taken to the red room as punishment. -A character has the word "Resurgam" placed on her tombstone after dying of consumption. - In this novel, a gypsy fortune teller at a party is revealed to be the male protagonist in disguise;

Things Fall Apart

Novel by Chinua Achebe: Characters: Okonkwo - An influential clan leader in Umuofia. Nwoye - Okonkwo's oldest son, whom Okonkwo believes is weak and lazy Ezinma - The only child of Okonkwo's second wife, Ekwefi. Ikemefuna - A boy given to Okonkwo by a neighboring village. Mr. Brown - The first white missionary to travel to Umuofia. Reverend James Smith - The missionary who replaces Mr. Brown. The District Commissioner - An authority figure in the white colonial government in Nigeria. Plot Clues: - The protagonist had in his youth defeated Amalinze the Cat in a wrestling contest and fears looking lazy and weak like his father. - The protagonist of this novel despises his flute-playing father and beats his wife during the Week of Peace. - The protagonist of this book begins a seven-year exile after killing his adopted son Ikemefuna and accidentally killing Ezeudu's son at Ezeudu's funeral - The protagonist ultimately hangs himself after the introduction of Christianity to Umuofia. Power Clues: - A character in this novel calls some men women because he "knows how to kill a man's spirit." - A character in this book dies after running toward his father and crying, "They have killed me!", - and another in it tells the story of a tortoise attending a feast of the birds. - The protagonist of this book shoots at his wife but misses when she makes a remark about his poor hunting ability. - in this novel, Mr. Brown builds a hospital and discusses religion with Akunna. - One character in this novel is renamed Isaac after converting to Christianity - Its main character gains respectability by throwing "the cat."

Robinson Crusoe

Novel by Daniel Defoe: Characters: Robinson Crusoe - The novel's protagonist and narrator. Crusoe begins the novel as a young middle-class man in York in search of a career Friday - A twenty-six-year-old Caribbean native and cannibal who converts to Protestantism under Crusoe's tutelage. The Portuguese Captain - The sea captain who picks up Crusoe and the slave boy Xury from their boat after they escape from their Moorish captors and float down the African coast Xury - A nonwhite (Arab or black) slave boy only briefly introduced during the period of Crusoe's enslavement in Sallee. Plot Clues: - This character travels with Xury before being rescued by a Portuguese captain. - He is based on the real-life Alexander Selkirk - Although inexperienced, he creates pottery and teaches a parrot to call him by name while living on "The Island of Despair." - That title character rescues a native from cannibals, teaches him about Christianity, and names him Friday. Power Clues: - In this novel, one character skins a lion with Xury and then sells the boy into ten years of indentured servitude. - This character is enslaved by Turks at Sallee in his early life, - This man relates that his father was from Bremen, and he claims to have escaped from captivity by throwing a man overboard while fishing. - A group of three hundred wolves attacks one group of characters in this novel. - In one novel, this man's former companion learns how to write the letter "o" from a woman who was once this man's lover.

Wuthering Heights

Novel by Emily Bronte: Characters: Heathcliff - An orphan brought to live at Wuthering Heights by Mr. Earnshaw, Heathcliff falls into an intense, unbreakable love with Mr. Earnshaw's daughter Catherine. Catherine - The daughter of Mr. Earnshaw and his wife, Catherine falls powerfully in love with Heathcliff Nelly Dean - Nelly Dean (known formally as Ellen Dean) serves as the chief narrator of Wuthering Heights. Plot Clues: - Mr. Lockwood has a nightmare in which he sees the ghost of Catherine trying to enter the house, and the next day learns the history of that house from Nelly Dean - This house is inherited by the cruel Hindley Earnshaw, whose abuse of an orphan motivates the action of the novel it appears in - This novel sees the protagonist marry Isabella to inherit Thrushcross Grange. Power Clues: - Servants at this house include the religious fanatic Joseph and the housekeeper Zillah. - The housekeeper Nelly Dean tells the story of this house to Lockwood - One character in this novel opens the side of his dead beloved's coffin and wills that one side of his coffin be opened facing her so their bodies can mingle - One character in this novel is bitten in the ankle by Skulker, which causes her to spend five weeks at Thrushcross Grange

All Quiet on the Western Front

Novel by Erich Maria Remarque: Characters: Paul Bäumer - A young German soldier fighting in the trenches during World War I. Stanislaus Katczinsky - A soldier belonging to Paul's company and Paul's best friend in the army Albert Kropp - One of Paul's classmates who serves with Paul in the Second Company. Müller - One of Paul's classmates. Tjaden - One of Paul's friends in the Second Company. Kantorek - A pompous, ignorant, authoritarian schoolmaster in Paul's high school Corporal Himmelstoss - A noncommissioned training officer who torments Paul and his friends during their training. Franz Kemmerich - One of Paul's classmates and comrades in the war. Gérard Duval - A French soldier whom Paul kills in No Man's Land. Leer - One of Paul's classmates and close friends during the war. Haie Westhus - One of Paul's friends in the Second Company. Plot Clues: - novel by Erich Maria Remarque about the experiences of German soldiers in World War One. - The protagonist was encouraged to enlist by his schoolmaster Kantorek. - A character receives Kemmerich's unused boots. - the protagonist of this book agonizes over killing the Frenchman Gerard Duval Power Clues: - One character in this novel, who misses his wife, asks the other characters to shoot some dying horses. - One character in this novel somehow manages to obtain four boxes of lobster and is killed by shrapnel while being carried to safety - In this novel, a Russian POW plays the violin - Leer and Kropp hook up with some French girls after swimming across a canal. - This work's author also wrote about the character Tjaden in its sequel, The Road Back - One character in this novel dies shortly after contracting gangrene and gives his boots to Muller.

A Farewell to Arms

Novel by Ernest Hemingway: Characters: Lieutenant Frederic Henry - The novel's narrator and protagonist. A young American ambulance driver in the Italian army during World War I, Catherine Barkley - An English nurse's aide who falls in love with Henry. Rinaldi - A surgeon in the Italian army and friend of Frederic Dr. Valentini - An Italian surgeon who comes to the American hospital and agrees on the knee surgery of Frederic Plot Clues: - World War I novel about the soldier Frederick Henry - After being wounded, the protagonist of this novel falls in love with a British nurse in Milan named Catherine Barkley -Its main female character dies in Switzerland after its protagonist flees the Battle of Caporetto Power Clues: - This novel's protagonist is challenged to a drink "by the corpse of Bacchus." - This novel's protagonist leaves his lover's dead body, which was "like saying goodbye to a statue," and walks back to the hotel in the rain - In this novel, bottles of kummel lead Miss van Campen to suspect the protagonist's jaundice was caused by his alcoholism - In this work, the protagonist's friend refers to his lover as a "cool goddess" - The protagonist of this novel plays billiards with Count Greffi

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Novel by Ernest Hemingway: Characters: Robert Jordan - An American volunteer for the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War Pablo - The leader of the guerrilla camp. Pilar - Pablo's part-gypsy "woman" Maria - A young woman with Pablo's band who falls in love with Robert Jordan Anselmo - An old, trustworthy guerrilla fighter. Primitivo - An elderly guerrilla fighter. Plot Clues: - Novel set during the Spanish Civil War following Robert Jordan - The protagonist of this novel is urged by Pilar to begin a relationship with Maria - The main character kills Anselmo when he blows up a bridge, after which he says goodbye to his love Maria. Power Clues: - One character in this work parodies Gertrude Stein by saying, "A rose is a rose is an onion." - Primitivo urges the protagonist to aid El Sordo during a battle. - One character in this novel leads the protagonist to El Sordo's camp.

The Great Gatsby

Novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald: Characters: - Nick Carraway, the novel's narrator and friend of Gatsby's - Jay Gatsby, the title character and protagonist of the novel - Daisy Buchanan - Nick's cousin, and the woman Gatsby loves - Tom Buchanan - Daisy's immensely wealthy husband - Jordan Baker - Daisy's friend, a woman with whom Nick becomes romantically involved during the course of the novel. Plot Clues: - That character earlier hosts a party in which he invites much of West Egg, including his love interest, Daisy Buchanan. - One other character cries over a pile of colorful shirts - T.J. Eckleburg are painted on a billboard near the auto repair shop of George Wilson - That wife, Myrtle, was having an affair with Tom Buchanan, which angered his wife Daisy; however, she herself was having an affair with the title character - After his wife is run over, a garage owner (*) in this novel hunts the title character and eventually shoots him in a pool Power Clues: -Towards the end of this novel, Meyer Wolfsheim refuses to attend the funeral for the title character - This novel's title character has a library of books that are mostly uncut, signaling that they haven't been read. - That narrator realizes it is his thirtieth birthday after the conclusion of a fight - Its narrator meets the drunken "Owl-Eyes" in the title character's residence - Klipspringer is a freeloader who calls the narrator about a pair of tennis shoes

The Metamorphosis

Novel by Franz Kafka: Characters: Gregor Samsa - A traveling salesman and the protagonist of the story. Grete Samsa - Gregor's sister. The Father - Gregor's father. The failure of his business has left him exhausted and emotionally broken The Charwoman - An elderly widow and the Samsa family's cleaning lady The Boarders - Three temporary boarders in the Samsas' house who become horrified when they see Gregor Plot Clues: - At the beginning of this story, the protagonist awakens from "uneasy dreams" to discover that he is no longer human. - The protagonist of this novella is paralyzed after his father strikes a sensitive spot on his back with an apple - Several boarders in this story threaten the central family with a lawsuit, which causes the violin-playing Grete to realize that her family must get rid of the central character Power Clues: - One character in this work is given a "bowl of sweetened milk" with floating pieces of bread. - This work ends with a trolley ride in the countryside - The protagonist of this story moves onto a painting of a woman fur after all of his furniture is removed from his room - The father of this work's protagonist gets a job as a bank guard, and the central family moves to a smaller apartment after three bearded boarders leave.

Crime and Punishment

Novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Characters: Raskolnikov - The protagonist of the novel. His name literally means split. Sonya - Raskolnikov's love and Marmeladov's daughter Dunya - Raskolnikov's sister Razumikhin - Raskolnikov's friend. Last Names to know: Marmeladov Ivanova Petrovich Luzhin Lebezyatnikov Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this novel attempts to murder a pawnbroker for her cash - Lizaveta finds out her sister Alyona has been killed with an ax by the protagonist before being killed herself. - Porfiry Petrovich investigates Raskolnikov's murder of a pawnbroker - Sonya encourages the protagonist to confess his murder of Lizaveta Power Clues: - A character in this novel nicknamed "Gunpowder" ironically shouts at the protagonist to "please stop shouting." - One character in this novel says he is "going to America" and shoots himself on a bridge. - In this novel, Lebezyatnikov exposes another character after he slips a hundred-ruble note in a girl's pocket. - In this work, Katerina Ivanovna (EE-vah-NAHV-na) throws a banquet for her husband - A group of spectators believe that the protagonist of this novel is crazy when he kneels on the ground and starts kissing it. - One mother in this novel forces her three poor children to sing "My Village"

Notes from Underground

Novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Characters: The Underground Man - The anonymous narrator and protagonist of the novel. Liza - A young prostitute whom the Underground Man tries to rescue after sleeping with her at a brothel. Simonov - A former schoolmate of the Underground Man, the only one with whom the Underground Man currently maintains a relationship. The Officer - A military officer who treats the Underground Man dismissively in a tavern one night Plots Clues: - this novel opens with the narrator claiming he is a sick and spiteful man. - Its protagonist attends a party at the Hotel de Paris with old classmates Ferfitchkin and Simonov for Zverkov - Other characters from it include the prostitute Lisa, to whom the narrator exclaims "They won't let me ... I can't be good!", as well as his servant Apollon. Power Clues: - One section in this work claims that the reader no doubt imagines the narrator wants to amuse him - while in another section a character obsesses over bumping into a policeman.

One Hundred Years of Solitude

Novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Characters: José Arcadio Buendía - The patriarch of the Buendía clan, José Arcadio Buendía is Macondo's founder Úrsula Iguarán - The tenacious matriarch of the Buendía clan Pietro Crespi - The gentle, delicate Italian musician Six more generations of Buendias . . . Plot Clues: - One man in this novel dreams of a city of mirrors, and a band of gypsies arrives annually in this novel, including Melquíades - a woman, Úrsula Iguarán, is the husband of José Arcadio, who founds the city of Macondo - this novel about seven generations of the Buendía family living in Macondo - this work concludes with the translation of a text by the gypsy Melquiades predicting the history of Macondo Power Clues: - One character in this novel is shot because he is thought to be a chicken thief - some others are identified by Ash Wednesday crosses on their foreheads - A character in this novel gives birth to a son in a convent and sends the baby floating down a river in a basket. - Two indistinguishable twins in this novel are buried in each other's coffins - In this novel, the great-great-grandmother of one character gave up walking in public - An eating competition with a woman known as The Elephant occurs in this novel - This novel also details a massacre of banana-farm workers. - One character in this novel eats plaster off the walls of her house and carries around a bag containing the bones of her parents. - One character in this novel has a habit of eating earth and is courted by Pietro Crespi.

1984

Novel by George Orwell: Characters: - Winston Smith - A minor member of the ruling Party in near-future London - Julia - Winston's lover, a beautiful dark-haired girl working in the Fiction Department at the Ministry of Truth - O'Brien - A mysterious, powerful, and sophisticated member of the Inner Party whom Winston believes is also a member of the Brotherhood, the legendary group of anti-Party rebels. - Mr. Charrington - An old man who runs a secondhand store in the prole district. - Emmanuel Goldstein - Leader of the Brotherhood. Plot Clues: - Mr. Charrington rents out the room atop his shop to two lovers right before Hate Week in this year - A book by Emmanuel Goldstein within this book describes how the Middle repeatedly overthrow the High with the Low's Help. - The narrator of this book reads about "Oligarchical Collectivism" and the creation of the "three great super-states" in a book procured from a coworker who initiated him into the secret "Brotherhood." - This book's protagonist works in the (*) Ministry of Truth and has an affair with a member of the Junior Anti-Sex League, Julia - This novel's protagonist is convinced by O'Brien to betray Julia after facing rats in Room 101 Power Clues: - The narrator of this work becomes obsessed with a piece of coral embedded in glass during a trip to an antiques store - One character in this novel has a dream that he is in a sinking ship with his mother and sister, and is told by another character "We shall meet in the place where there is no darkness. - A character in this novel is noticed to be no longer in Chess Club, leading the protagonist to suspect the death of the dictionary-writing Syme. - In this work, Ampleworth explains that the word "God" in a Kipling poem is the best of only twelve words that rhyme with "rod". Ampleworth also goes missing in this novel

Animal Farm

Novel by George Orwell: Characters: Napoleon - The pig who emerges as the leader of Animal Farm after the Rebellion. Based on Joseph Stalin Snowball - The pig who challenges Napoleon for control of Animal Farm after the Rebellion. Based on Leon Trotsky, Boxer - The cart-horse whose incredible strength, dedication, and loyalty Old Major - The prize-winning boar whose vision of a socialist utopia serves as the inspiration for the Rebellion Moses - The tame raven who spreads stories of Sugarcandy Mountain Mr. Jones - The often drunk farmer who runs the Manor Farm before the animals stage their Rebellion Plot Clues: - The Battle of the Windmill occurs in this book, which begins with Old Major teaching the song "Beasts of England" and features the loyal Boxer being sent to the knacker's. - Its Seven Commandments are eventually shortened to a single rule. -I will work harder" becomes the mantra of Boxer in this work which features the pigs Napoleon and Snowball Power Clues: - In this book, Moses tells the other characters stories about "Sugarcandy Mountain." - This novel is set between places named Pinchfield and Foxwood. - One character in this novel is told that liberty is worth more than ribbons, - One character in this work tells Mollie that ribbons are badges of slavery. - It is almost revealed that the words "with sheets" were clandestinely added to a wall. - Another character in this work, after reading Every Man His Own Bricklayer and two other books, designs a windmill.

Madame Bovary

Novel by Gustave Flaubert: Characters: Emma Bovary - The novel's protagonist, the Madame Bovary of the title. A country girl educated in a convent and married to Charles Bovary at a young age Charles Bovary - A terrible country doctor, kind, but simple, dull, and unremarkable. Monsieur Homais - The apothecary at Yonville; he helps Charles become established as a doctor in the town Leon - Emma's friend in Yonville, a law clerk in Yonville who later becomes her lover. Rodolphe - Emma's first lover, a wealthy landowner with an estate near Yonville Monsieur Lheureux - A sly, sinister merchant and moneylender in Yonville who leads Emma into debt Hippolyte - The crippled servant at the inn in Yonville. Berthe - Charles and Emma's daughter, who is condemned to a life of poverty Binet - The tax collector in Yonville. Djali - Emma's dog as a gift from one of Charles's patients Plot Clues: - That protagonist pretends to attend weekly piano lessons in order to carry out an affair with Léon after losing Rodolphe's affections - The title character's husband causes a gangrenous infection after attempting to cure Hippolyte's case of clubfoot - The protagonist of this novel is ultimately driven into debt by the merchant Lheureux - At the end of this novel, the title wife of the doctor Charles takes arsenic to kill herself. Power Clues: - In this novel, the title character and her husband attend a ball where the title character realizes that her husband is dull - The title character attends an opera named Lucia di Lammermoor - A tax collector in this novel makes napkin rings as a hobby - Homais' career takes off at the end of this book. - In this novel, a series of editorials leads a blind man to be thrown in an asylum - A character in this novel falls ill after receiving a break-up letter in a basket of apricots - At the end of this novel, the town chemist receives the Legion of Honour - Berthe, must support herself by working in a cotton factory. - A character works at a farm for 54 years - The Town fair occurs in this novel

To Kill a Mockingbird

Novel by Harper Lee: Characters: - Scout Finch, The narrator and protagonist of the story. - Atticus Finch, Scout and Jem's father, a lawyer in Maycomb - Arthur "Boo" Radley, A recluse who never sets foot outside his house, - Bob Ewell, A drunken, mostly unemployed member of Maycomb's poorest family.\ - Charles Baker "Dill" Harris - Jem and Scout's summer neighbor and friend. Dill is a diminutive, confident boy with an active imagination. - Tom Robinson - The black field hand accused of rape Plot Clues: - A mysterious figure wraps a blanket around the narrator as Miss Maudie's house catches fire; that same figure leaves gifts in a tree for the protagonists. - The narrator sees Link Deas and Mr. Raymond exhibit unusual sympathy, and she finally meets the recluse Boo Radley after an altercation in which, according to the sheriff, Bob Ewell fell on his own knife - Tom Robinson is still found guilty despite the efforts of his lawyer Atticus. Power Clues: - The garbage collector of the central town in this novel is Zeebo, who is the only one that can read at the First Purchase church - In this novel, the main character and her brother are taken to First Purchase Church by Calpurnia - In this work, Dolphus Raymond pretends to be drunk in order to explain living with his black mistress. - in this novel, Eunice Simpson is tied to a chair and left near a furnace during a game of Shadrach - Another character in this work is forced to read to Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose after wrecking her garden - In one scene, Cecil Jacobs ventures out and successfully scares two of the main characters. - Items that two characters in this book discover in a knot in a tree include figurines carved in soap and mint gum. - In this book, Walter's face shows the signs of hookworm, and Randolph drinks Coca-Cola from a bottle in a brown bag.

Uncle Tom's Cabin

Novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe: Characters: Uncle Tom - A good and devout christian, Uncle Tom is the protagonist of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Aunt Chloe - Uncle Tom's wife and the Shelbys' cook. Arthur Shelby - The owner of Uncle Tom in Kentucky Eliza Harris - Mrs. Shelby's maid, George's wife, and Harry's mother George Harris - Eliza's husband and an intellectually curious and talented. He confronts the slave hunter Tom Loker and does not hesitate to shoot him when he imperils the family. Augustine St. Clare - Tom's master in New Orleans and Eva's father, Eva - St. Clare and Marie's angelic daughter Senator And Mrs. Bird - Mrs. Bird is another example of the virtuous woman. Tom Loker - A slave hunter hired by Mr. Haley to bring back Eliza, Harry, and George Simon Legree - Tom's ruthlessly evil master on the Louisiana plantation. Plot Clues: - novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe that depicted the cruelness of slavery. - The protagonist becomes separated with his wife Aunt Chloe, but his fate turns when he saves Eva from drowning, impressing her father Augustine St. Clare. - Another character in this novel is sold by Eva St. Clare's mother to Simon Legree, who orders Quimbo and Sambo whips the title slave to death. - In this novel, Cassy reunites with her daughter in Canada after Eliza jumps onto ice blocks to cross the frozen Ohio river. Power Clues: - After gathering supplies, two characters in this novel hide in an attic garret and pretend to be ghosts. - In this novel, Mrs. Bird, who has just lost a child, chastises her husband for new legislation in the Senate - One character in this novel takes first pick of cakes from his Aunt Chloe, and later rides after this novel's title character to hand him a dollar. - Two characters in this work, Quimbo and Sambo, repent after viciously beating the protagonist. - Sympathetic characters in this novel include Rachel Halliday and Phineas Fletcher, a Quaker who gives the central characters shelter. - In addition to claiming that she "never was born," one character in this novel confesses to stealing Miss Feeley's ribbon, Miss Eva's necklace, and Rosa's earrings,

The Sun Also Rises

Novel by Hemingway: Characters: Jake Barnes - The narrator and protagonist of the novel. Jake is an American veteran of World War I working as a journalist in Paris Lady Brett Ashley - A beautiful British socialite who drinks heavily. Robert Cohn - A wealthy American writer living in Paris. Pedro Romero - A beautiful, nineteen-year-old bullfighter. Montoya - The owner of a Pamplona inn and a bullfighting expert. Plot Clues: - Characters in this novel travel to Pamplona to see the runnings of the bulls - Near the end of this novel, Pedro Romero gets beat up by Robert Cohn. - Lost Generation living in Spain in the 1920s Power Clues: - At the end of this novel, one character decides to marry her former fiance, Mike Campbell. - In Paris, the protagonist of this novel meets an aggressive former boxing champion named Robert Cohn - Earlier, the protagonist has a drink with the prostitute Georgette but refuses to kiss her due to "sickness" - One character in this novel alleges a love affair between Jefferson Davis and Ulysses S. Grant

Siddartha

Novel by Herman Hesse about finding enlightenment: Characters: Siddhartha - The novel's protagonist. Siddhartha sets out on a quest for enlightenment and tests the religious philosophies he discovers. Vasudeva - The enlightened ferryman who guides Siddhartha to a transcendent understanding of himself and the universe Govinda - Siddhartha's best friend and sometimes his follower but looks for teachers who can show him the way Kamala - A courtesan who instructs Siddhartha in the art of physical love. In addition to being Siddhartha's lover Gotama - An enlightened religious leader with many followers. Also known as the Buddha, Gotama is said to have attained Nirvana. Siddhartha ultimately rejects him Kamaswami - An older businessman who teaches Siddhartha the art of business. Young Siddhartha - Siddhartha's son with Kamala. He poses the final test Siddhartha must pass before enlightenment. Plot Clues: - This character silently stands in the rain, in thorn bushes, and under the sun in order to achieve his goal of becoming empty - In addition to being taught by the Samanas - This character also learns to listen to the flow of the river from the ferryman Vasudeva. - Near the end of this novel, Govinda kisses the forehead of the titular character and finds enlightenment. Power Clues: - Two bananas are placed in front of this character after he finishes searching for his son. - A woman steps on this character's foot as a mating gesture - The son he later has with that lover steals a raft and sails away. - This novel's protagonist becomes depressed because of his gambling addiction, and clings to a coconut tree while contemplating whether to jump off and commit suicide. - One character in this novel is fatally bitten by a snake after having a child with the protagonist

Moby Dick

Novel by Herman Melville: Characters: Ishmael - The narrator, and a junior member of the crew of the Pequod. Ahab - The egomaniacal captainof the Pequod. Ahab lost his leg to Moby Dick. Starbuck - The first mate of the Pequod. Queequeg - Starbuck's skilled harpooner and Ishmael's best friend. Daggoo - Flask's harpooner. Pip - A young black boy who fills the role of a cabin boy or jester on the Pequod. Father Mapple - A former whaleman and now the preacher in the New Bedford Whaleman's Chapel. Plot Clues: - This novel begins, "Call me Ishmael." - The protagonist of this book serves with characters like Starbuck, the tattooed cannibal Queequeg, and the maniacal Captain Ahab. - Captain Ahab's search for the title white whale. - The Pequod is destroyed by a giant white whale Power Clues: - In the opening of this book, Father Mapple provides a sermon about Jonah - Early foreboding signs in this novel include a painting in the Spouter Inn - Two consecutive chapters in this novel are both titled "Knights and Squires. - Pip and Daggoo are two of the black characters in this book - A man named Elijah asks this novel's protagonist if he has sold his soul to the devil to work for "Old Thunder."

The Old Man and the Sea

Novel by Herman Melville: Characters: Santiago - The old man of the novella's title, Santiago is a Cuban fisherman The Marlin - Santiago hooks the marlin, which we learn at the end of the novella measures eighteen feet Manolin - A boy presumably in his adolescence, Manolin is Santiago's apprentice Joe DiMaggio - Santiago worships him as a model of strength and commitment Pedrico - provides Santiago him with newspapers that report the baseball scores. Plot Clues: - The protagonist had gone 84 days without succeeding at his profession - That character, Manolin, takes care of the protagonist after he returns with the shark-eaten carcass of an 18-foot marlin. - After he breaks an eighty-four-day streak of bad luck, mako sharks eventually eat the marlin Santiago has been chasing for three days in - At the end of this work, two people in Pedrico's cafe observe the title character dreaming of lions on a beach. Power Clues: - One character in this book expresses his gratitude that he does not have to kill the sun, moon, or stars. - The main character of this work recalls a time when he arm-wrestled against a dockman from Cienfuegos - This book ends with the protagonist dreaming about African lions - One character in book work notes that eighty five is a lucky number - The title character of this novel is called "salao", the worst kind of unlucky,

The Catcher in the Rye

Novel by J.D Salinger: Characters: - Holden Caulfield - The protagonist and narrator of the novel - Ackley - Holden's next-door neighbor in his dorm at Pencey Prep - Stradlater - Holden's roommate at Pencey Prep. Stradlater is handsome, self-satisfied, and popular - Jane Gallagher - A girl with whom Holden spent a lot of time one summer - Phoebe Caulfield - Phoebe is Holden's ten-year-old sister, whom he loves dearly. - Allie Caulfield - Holden's younger brother. Holden is tormented by Allie's death and carries around a baseball glove on which Allie used to write poems in green ink. - Sally Hayes - A very attractive girl whom Holden has known and dated for a long time. Plot Clues: - The main character is irritated by the hygienic habits of Ackley and Stradlater, two of his classmates at Pencey Prep, - That character gets in a fight with the protagonist over a poem that describes green writing covering a baseball mitt. - The protagonist drops a Little Shirley Beans record after he meets a prostitute named Sunny and is beaten up by Maurice; he had bought that record for his sister Phoebe. - He later seeks advice from a former English teacher who strokes his head, Mr. Antolini. - His red hunting hat is eventually returned by his little sister Phoebe Power Clues: - One character in this novel borrows a houndstooth jacket from the protagonist to wear on a date with Jean - One character in this work relates how he was unable to kiss the lips of a girl who cries onto a checkerboard, and that protagonist is hustled out of five dollars by an elevator boy - One character in this novel passes gas loudly during Ossenburger's speech. - James Castle commits suicide by jumping out of a window. - Works of literature mentioned in this novel include Out of Africa and Of Human Bondage, although the protagonist mentions that he wouldn't want to call up Somerset Maugham. - One character in this novel remembers his stolen gloves while walking forty-one blocks to the Edmond Hotel - The narrator of this novel finds a notebook with the sentence "What has our government done to make life easier for the Alaskan Eskimos? - Horwitz appears as one of few characters to give sound advice in this novel, which sees the protagonist dance with Bernice and her friends. - One character in this novel asks where the ducks go in the winter

Pride and Prejudice

Novel by Jane Austen: Characters: Elizabeth Bennet - The novel's protagonist. The second daughter of Mr. Bennet, Fitzwilliam Darcy - A wealthy gentleman, the master of Pemberley Jane Bennet - The eldest and most beautiful Bennet sister. Charles Bingley - Darcy's considerably wealthy best friend. Bingley's purchase of Netherfield, George Wickham - A handsome, fortune-hunting militia officer. Mr. Collins - A pompous, generally idiotic clergyman who stands to inherit Mr. Bennet's property. Lady Catherine De Bourgh - A rich, bossy noblewoman. She attempts to order the middle-class Elizabeth away from her well-bred nephew. Plot Clues: - In this novel, Charlotte Lucas marries the clergyman Mr. Collins, and Lydia runs away from Longbourn with the militia officer George Wickham - Other characters who marry in this novel include Mr. Wickham and Lydia, as well as Jane and Mr. Bingley. - It ends with Elizabeth Bennet marrying Fitzwilliam Darcy. Power Clues: - This novel opens with a mother and father discussing the news of a wealthy party renting Netherfield Park - One character in this work concedes that her rival's "teeth are tolerable." - The protagonist of this work is upset after she is twice forced to dance with a clergyman. - One character in this novel is repeatedly mocked for describing another as having "fine eyes". - The protagonist stays with her aunt and uncle, the Gardiners

Of Mice and Men

Novel by John Steinbeck: Characters: - Lennie, A large, lumbering, childlike migrant worker, He completely depends on George. - George A small, wiry, quick-witted man who travels with, and cares for, Lennie. - Candy, An aging ranch handyman, Candy lost his hand in an accident and worries about his future on the ranch - Curley's Wife, The only female character in the story, - Crooks, The black stable-hand, gets his name from his crooked back - Curley, The boss's son, Curley wears high-heeled boots to distinguish himself from the field hands - Slim, A highly skilled mule driver and the acknowledged "prince" of the ranch, Slim is the only character who seems to be at peace with himself - Aunt Clara , Lennie's aunt, who cared for him until her death Whit - A ranch-hand. Plot Clues: - Before the beginning of this novel, the protagonists were forced to leave a town named Weed after one of them was accused of assaulting a woman in a red dress - Carlson finds his Luger missing after earlier suggesting using it to kill Candy's sickly old dog. - In this novel, a woman gets her neck broken after allowing a man to stroke her hair. - Curley then summons a mob to come for him, causing his friend to shoot him in the head. Power Clues: - In this novel, a can of insect poison is kept next to the bed of a blacksmith named Whitey. - Before the beginning of this novel, the protagonists were forced to leave a town named Weed after one of them was accused of assaulting a woman in a red dress - One character in this novel is a black man who gets his nickname from his crooked back. - Another character receives a new puppy, but is convinced by Carlson to have his old dog put down - Two characters in this work discuss whether or not a letter was written by an acquaintance named Bill Tenner.

Gulliver's Travels

Novel by Jonathan Swift: Characters: Gulliver - The narrator and protagonist of the story. Don Pedro De Mendez - The Portuguese captain who takes Gulliver back to Europe after he is forced to leave the land of the Houyhnhnms. Different Races: Lilliputians And Blefuscudians - Two races of miniature people whom Gulliver meets on his first voyage. Brobdingnagians - Giants whom Gulliver meets on his second voyage. Houyhnhnms - Rational horses who maintain a simple, peaceful society governed by reason and truthfulness Yahoos - Unkempthumanlike beasts who live in servitude to the Houyhnhnms. Laputans - Absentminded intellectuals who live on the floating island of Laputa. They research crazy projects. Glubbdubdrib - An island of sorcerers and magicians who can recreate heroes of history Plot Clues: - the title character visit fantastical lands. - This work includes the floating island of Laputa and the land of Lilliput, the latter of which is inhabited by tiny people. - Earlier, the title character had heard about a war that started between Little Endians and Big Endians, two different factions on the proper way to crack an egg - This surgeon visits a country in which horses lead men, called Hounyyhmms. Power Clues: - In this novel, Big-Endians and Little-Endians crack eggs over their heads - This novel's protagonist meets a scientist who is trying to extract sunlight from cucumbers, as well as an architect trying to build houses upside down. - One man whom he meets is the solitude-seeking Portuguese captain Pedro de Mendez - This work predicted the existence of Phobos and Deimos over a hundred years before their discovery. - This character describes projects like turning human feces back into food that are undertaken by "projectors" at the academy of Lagado.

Heart of Darkness

Novel by Joseph Conrad: Characters: Marlow - The protagonist of Heart of Darkness. Kurtz - The chief of the Inner Station and the object of Marlow's quest. Kurtz is a man of many talents General Manager - The chief agent of the Company in its African territory, who runs the Central Station Brickmaker - The brickmaker, whom Marlow also meets at the Central Station, is a favorite of the manager and seems to be a kind of corporate spy Cannibals - Natives hired as the crew of the steamer Russian Trader - A Russian sailor who has gone into the African interior as the trading representative of a Dutch company. Plot Clues: - In this work, a sailor on the River Thames describes his experiences in Africa - The ivory trader Kurtz is encountered by Marlow as he explores the Congo in this novel. - The narrator of this novel reads a report stating "Exterminate all the brutes!" that was written by an employee of "The Company" - In this novel, a character who lives in a compound surrounded by heads on stakes dies saying, "The horror! The horror!" Power Clues: - This novel's narrator encounters two women knitting black yarn while applying to take over a job for the Danish Fresleven - A doctor in this novel notes that "changes take place inside" and measures the protagonist's skull - Characters in this work include a man who was killed in a fight over hens and a Russian trader that reminds the narrator of a harlequin - This work describes a painting showing a blindfolded woman with a lit torch located at the Central Station - One character in this novel tells of how he stared at the blank spaces on a map as a child. - The protagonist of this work is sent to recover the bones of Fresleven, his predecessor,

Catch-22

Novel by Joseph Heller: Characters: Yossarian - The protagonist and hero of the novel. He is a captain in the Air Force and a lead bombardier in his squadron Milo Minderbinder - A fantastically powerful mess officer, Milo controls an international black-market syndicate Colonel Cathcart - The ambitious, unintelligent officer in charge of Yossarian's squadron Orr - Yossarian's often-maddening roommate. He almost always crashes his plane or is shot down on combat missions, but he always manages to survive. Plot Clues: - Set primarily on the island of Pianosa - Yossarian attempts to get out of flying more missions - Colonel Cathcart continues to raise the number of missions the 256th Air Force Squadron must fly - This novel presents a situation where an insane man can get out of flying missions, but only a sane man would ask to get out at all. - At the end of this novel, the protagonist is given the idea to escape to Sweden by his tent-mate Orr. Power Clues: - One of this novel's characters stuffs crabapples in his cheeks because they are "better than horse chestnuts;" - One scene in this novel sees a character accidentally sliced in two by McWatt - The protagonist of this novel takes off all of his clothes and climbs a tree in protest after being unable to save the life of Snowden. - In this novel, the protagonist is sent to consult with the psychiatrist Sanderson after sexually assaulting Nurse Duckett. - The death of a friend causes the protagonist of this novel to conclude that "The spirit gone, the rest is garbage."

The Awakening

Novel by Kate Chopin: Characters: Edna Pontellier - Edna is the protagonist of the novel, and the "awakening" to which the title refers is hers. Léonce Pontellier - Léonce Pontellier, a forty-year-old, wealthy New Orleans businessman, is Edna's husband Mademoiselle Reisz - Mademoiselle Reisz may be the most influential character in Edna's awakening. She devotes her life to her passion: music. Adèle Ratignolle - Edna's close friend, Adèle Ratignolle represents the Victorian feminine ideal. Robert Lebrun - He annauly plays attendant to a married woman and is the man with whom Edna falls in love. Victor Lebrun - Victor Lebrun is Robert's wayward younger brother. Alcée Arobin - He becomes Edna's lover while her husband is on a business trip to New York. Doctor Mandelet - Doctor Mandelet is Léonce and Edna's family physician. The Lady In Black and Two Lowers - Both are vacationers at the Lebrun cottages on Grand Isle. Plot Clues: - Set in Grand Isle about New Orleans housewife Edna Pontellier. - The protagonist of this novel has an affair with Alcee Arobin while her husband Leonce is away on business - After Robert Lebrun leaves her again, the protagonist of this novel drowns herself by walking into the Gulf of Mexico Power Clues: - In this novel, Victor's singing of the song "Ah! Si tu savais!" causes a woman to shatter a wine glass as she demands him to stop. - In this novel, an artist feels the protagonist's shoulder blades to see if wings are growing out. - One character in this novel is a talented pianist named Mademoiselle Reisz - The protagonist buys a "pigeon house" to establish her independence. - One character in this work "plays attendant" to one married woman annually

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Novel by Ken Kesey: Characters: Chief Bromden - The narrator of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Chief Bromden is the son of the chief of the Columbia Indians Randle McMurphy - The novel's protagonist. He is a big, redheaded gambler, a con man, and a backroom boxer. Nurse Ratched - The head of the hospital ward. Nurse Ratched Dale Harding - An acerbic, college-educated patient and president of the Patients' Council. Billy Bibbit - A shy patient. George Sorenson - A hospital patient, a big Swede. captain for the fishing excursion Sefelt And Frederickson - Epileptic patients. Candy Starr - A prostitute from Portland. She accompanies McMurphy and the other patients on the fishing trip, and then comes to the ward for a late-night party that McMurphy arranges. Plot Clues: - novel about Randall McMurphy's rebellion in a mental hospital in Oregon - Characters in this novel vote to go on a fishing trip and to watch the World Series. - At the conclusion of this novel, Billy's suicide sparks an attack on Nurse Ratched, who then orders the lobotomy of a character ultimately smothered by Chief Bromden. Power Clues: - One character in this novel seeks to make another "come apart at those neat little seams" and introduces himself as a "gambling fool" - The antagonist of this novel can control "fog", and is suspected as part of "The Combine". - In this book, one character commits suicide by castrating himself on a toilet. - One character, who is ashamed of his beautiful hands, saves Sefelt when he has a seizure during sex with Candy. - One character in this novel, George Sorensen, always washes his hands in the water fountain

Slaughterhouse-5

Novel by Kurt Vonnegut: Characters: Billy Pilgrim - A World War II veteran, POW survivor of the firebombing of Dresden, prospering optometrist Bernhard V. O'Hare - A wartime pal of Vonnegut. Roland Weary - A stupid, cruel soldier taken prisoner by the Germans along with Billy Edgar Derby - Another survivor of Dresden's incineration. Wild Bob - An army colonel in the German rail yard who has lost his mind. Paul Lazzaro - Another POW and the man responsible for Billy's death. Tralfamadorians - Aliens shaped like toilet plungers, each with one hand containing an eye in its palm Kilgore Trout - A bitter, unappreciated author of several cleverly ironic science-fiction novels that have a great influence on Billy Plot Clues: - The soldier Roland Weary is captured by Germans with the protagonist - In this novel, Roland Weary convinces Paul Lazarro to avenge his death, and Edgar Derby is executed for stealing a teapot. - The protagonist of this novel describes his travels through time, including time spent in a zoo on Tralfamadore - This novel ends with a bird saying "Poo-tee-weet" and everytime someone dies, the phrase "so it goes" is used. Power Clues: - One character in this novel dies of gangrene because he is forced to wear wooden clogs - The protagonist of this novel gets a pair of silver painted boots that were earlier used in a production of Cinderella - As a child, the protagonist of this book wets his pants looking at the grand canyon and is thrown into the deep end of a Y.M.C.A. pool by his father - In this book, the protagonist's obese wife rushes to the hospital to see him but dies of carbon monoxide poisoning along the way - The protagonist of this book becomes President of the Lions Club and is killed by Paul Lazzaro during a speech he gives in Chicago.

War and Peace

Novel by Leo Tolstoy: Last Names to know: Bezukhov Bolkonski Bolkonskaya Kuragin Karagina Rostov Drubetskaya Drubetskoy Kutuzov Dolokhov Plot Clues: -a gigantic novel about Pierre Bezukhov and other early Russians during the time of Napoleon - Natasha Rostova, eventually marries this book's protagonist, Pierre Bezhukov. - The protagonist joins the Freemasons after a duel with Dolokhov over that character, Elena Kuragin, and Andrei Bolkonsky dies after the Battle of Borodino. Power Clues: - A character in this novel wins 43,000 rubles playing faro; the loser is unable to marry his cousin Sonya, - Another character loses 40,000 roubles while gambling with his friend Dolohov - After a duel, a character in this work joins the Freemasons, - The beginning of the first epilogue of this work describes the movements of the "sea of European history" after "seven years had passed" - One character of this novel converts to Freemasonry and frees his serfs after meeting Bazdeev in a train station.

The Handmaid's Tale

Novel by Margaret Atwood: Characters: Offred - The narrator and protagonist of The Handmaid's Tale. Offred belongs to the class of Handmaids, fertile women forced to bear children for elite, barren couples The Commander - The Commander is the head of the household where Offred works as a Handmaid Serena Joy - The Commander's Wife, Serena worked in pre-Gilead days as a gospel singer, Nick - Nick is a Guardian, a low-level officer of Gilead assigned to the Commander's home, where he works as a gardener and chauffeur. Plot Clues: - In this work, plays Scrabble with the protagonist. - The wife Serena Joy is jealous of the protagonist's fertility - The protagonist sleeps with the chauffeur Nick, a member of the Mayday movement attempting to overthrow Gilead - The protagonist of this novel conducts a love affair with Nick, and lives in the horrifically misogynistic Republic of Gilead. Power Clues: - At the end ofthis novel, cassette tapes are transcribed and analyzed by Professor Pieixoto - A character frequents an illegal club in this novel known as Jezebel's, where Moira works as a prostitute after escaping the Red Center - One character in this work contracts scurvy in order to escape the Red Center - In this work, African-Americans are referred to as "Children of Ham,

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Novel by Mark Twain: Characters: Huckleberry "Huck" Finn - The protagonist and narrator of the novel. Tom Sawyer - Huck's friend, and the protagonist of Tom Sawyer. His half-brother is Sid. Widow Douglas And Miss Watson - Two wealthy sisters who live together in a large house in St. Petersburg and who adopt Huck Jim - One of Miss Watson's household slaves who becomes a friend of Huck Pap - Huck's father, the town drunk and ne'er-do-well. The Duke And The Dauphin - A pair of con men whom Huck and Jim rescue as they are being run out of a river town The Grangerfords - A family that takes Huck in after a steamboat hits his raft, separating him from Jim. Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this novel fakes his death by killing a pig in order to escape his father, Pap. - the title character's journey down the Mississippi river with a slave named Jim. - Before meeting the aforementioned Duke and Dauphin, the main characters are dismayed when a bout of fog causes them to pass Cairo and miss the entry to the Ohio River. - Near the end, that title character finds a companion in Sally Phelps' household who he'd earlier lost track of in heavy fog. Power Clues: - In this novel, one character is painted blue and is called the "Sick Arab" - In another scene, the brothers of the deceased Peter Wilks are impersonated by two boys who hold a play called "The Royal Nonesuch" and claim to be a duke and dauphin. - One character in this novel tells about his smallpox-laden family in order to gain passage onto the Walter Scott. - In this novel, the melodramatic poet Emmeline Grangerford is a member of a family that feuds with the (*) Shepherdsons.

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Novel by Mark Twain: Characters: Tom Sawyer - The novel's protagonist. Tom is a mischievous boy with an active imagination Aunt Polly - Tom's aunt and guardian. Aunt Polly is a simple, kindhearted woman who struggles to balance her love for her nephew with her duty to discipline him. Huckleberry Finn - The son of the town drunk. Becky Thatcher - Judge Thatcher's pretty, yellow-haired daughter. Joe Harper - Tom's "bosom friend" and frequent playmate. Injun Joe - A violent, villainous man who commits murder, becomes a robber, and plans to mutilate the Widow Douglas Plot Clues: - That title character witnesses the graveyard murder of Muff Potter by Injun Joe - The main character later attends his own funeral after he, Joe Harper, and Huckleberry Finn run away to an island - Ge also gets lost in McDougal's Cave, where he finds Injun Joe's dead body Power Clues: - One character in this novel answers "DAVID AND GOLIATH!" when asked who the first two disciples of Jesus were. - One of this character's lies is exposed after his half-brother points out the color of the thread in his collar. - That embarrassing event occurs after the title character of this novel acquires 1000 tickets to win a newly bound Bible

Frankenstein

Novel by Mary Shelly: Characters: Victor Frankenstein - The doomed protagonist and narrator of the main portion of the story. Elizabeth Frankenstein - The wife of Victor. The Monster - The eight-foot-tall, hideously ugly creation of Victor Frankenstein. Robert Walton - The Arctic seafarer whose letters open and close Frankenstein. Plot Clues: - This novel's title character studies Agrippa and Paracelsus at Ingolstadt, and sees his brother William and his friend Henry Clerval murdered by his creation. - That character had earlier forced Victor to make him a companion after that character had been rejected by everyone it met due to its hideousness. - The protagonist chases the murderer of his wife, Elizabeth, all the way to the Arctic, where he meets Captain Walton. Power Clues: -In this novel, a Christian Arab woman is taken in by a poor French family after leaving Islamic Turkey. - A character in this novel learns French by listening to Felix De Lacey read the book Ruins of Empires. - This work's antagonist is shot after saving a drowning girl, and before that learns of the love between Felix and the Turkish Safie. - One character in this novel is assaulted by Felix De Lacey, and shortly thereafter burns down his cottage - In this novel, a main character cites Paradise Lost, Plutarch's Lives, and Sorrows of Werther as the works that influenced him greatly.

Don Quixote

Novel by Miguel de Cervantes: Characters: - Don Quixote - The novel's tragicomic hero. Don Quixote's main quest in life is to revive knight-errantry in a world devoid of chivalric virtues and value - Sancho Panza - The peasant laborer—greedy but kind, faithful but cowardly—whom Don Quixote takes as his squire. - Rocinante - Don Quixote's barn horse - Dapple - Sancho's donkey. - Dulcinea- The unseen force driving all of Don Quixote's adventures and his love - Sampson Carrasco - A sarcastic student from Don Quixote's village. Sampson mocks Don Quixote at first but loses to him in combat and then dedicates himself to revenge. Plot Clues: - The title character is deeply in love with the peasant girl Dulcinea. - The protagonist of this novel uses the promise of an island governorship to gain his squire Sancho Panza. - Spanish knight who goes on adventures with his squire Sancho Panza - The main character of this work is defeated by the Knight of the White Moon Power Clues: - This character's books about Amadis of Gaul are burned by a priest at the beginning of the novel in which he appears. - In this novel, a duke and duchess offer the fake island of Barataria to one character, - At the beginning of this book, some traders on their way to buy silk at Murcia beat up the title character and leave him for dead. - One character in this novel is wrapped in a blanket when his friend refuses to pay for a stay at an inn. - At one point, this character drinks the balm of Fierabras - This character gets pranked by two others

The Scarlett Letter

Novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne: Characters: Hester Prynne - Hester is the book's protagonist and the wearer of the scarlet letter that gives the book its title. Pearl - Hester's illegitimate daughter Pearl is a young girl with a moody, mischievous spirit and an ability to perceive things that others do not. Roger Chillingworth - "Roger Chillingworth" is actually Hester's husband in disguise Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale - The actual father of Pearl is guilty of his affair and whips himself. He delivers the famous election speech. Narrator - The unnamed narrator works as the surveyor of the Salem Custom-House some two hundred years after the novel's events take place. Plot Clues: - Robert Chillingworth had earlier been married to the protagonist of this book, who falls in love with the Reverend Dimmesdale - Because of that affair, Hester Prynne is forced to wear the title item upon her breast in - Roger Chillingworth attempts to stop Arthur Dimmesdale from confessing to fathering Pearl at the end of this novel Power Clues: - This novel's opening contains a musing on the fact that people establish a cemetery and a prison as the first two buildings when they build a new colony - Two characters in this novel see a giant convex reflection of the title object in a suit of armor - another character washes away her father's kiss in a river and refuses to repeat a catechism. - Governor Bellingham is distressed when a child fails to name God as her creator - In this novel, a rose bush is also a powerful symbol of protagonist's daughter

Invisible Man

Novel by Ralph Ellison: Characters: The Narrator - The nameless protagonist of the novel. The narrator is the "invisible man" of the title Brother Jack - The white and blindly loyal leader of the Brotherhood, a political organization that professes to defend the rights of the socially oppressed Tod Clifton - A black member of the Brotherhood and a resident of Harlem. Ras The Exhorter - Ras frequently opposes the Brotherhood and the narrator, often violently, and incites riots in Harlem. Plot Clues: - This novel opens with a chapter in which the narrator is forced to box blindfolded with several other black men in a "battle royal." - This novel's protagonist meets the Sambo-Doll seller Brother Clifton and works for Liberty Paints - its narrator mingles at the Chthonian with the Brotherhood - its narrator stabs Ras the Exhorter during an apocalyptic race riot before descending underground to leech off of Monopolated Light and Power Power Clues: - This novel's protagonist hears a speech about the "vision" of a college's Founder from Reverend Barbee - This novel's yam-eating narrator (just like me) descends into an altered sense of time when listening to Louis Armstrong - In one episode from this novel, the narrator is tricked into jumping onto an electrified carpet in order to pick up gold coins.

Ivanhoe

Novel by Sir Walter Scott: Characters: Wilfred Of Ivanhoe - Known as Ivanhoe. The son of Cedric; a Saxon knight who is deeply loyal to King Richard I Cedric The Saxon - Ivanhoe's father, a powerful Saxon lord who has disinherited his son for following Richard to the Crusades. King Richard I - The King of England and the head of the Norman royal line Prince John - Richard's power-hungry and greedy brother Lady Rowena - The ward of Cedric the Saxon, a beautiful Saxon lady who is in love with Ivanhoe Rebecca - A beautiful Jewish maiden, the daughter of Isaac of York. Rebecca tends to Ivanhoe after he is wounded in the tournament at Ashby Brian De Bois-Guilbert [BWAH GEEL-bear] - A knight of the Templar Order. He and Ivanhoe are mortal enemies Plot Clues: - This novel sees that title knight knock the Templar champion from his horse after being banished by his father Cedric. - Isaac of York gives money to the title character, who defends the Jewish Rebecca from Brian de Bois-Guilbert - Cedric the Saxon's son marries Lady Rowena Power Clues: - In this novel's opening scene, a swineherd claiming to be the son of Beowulf intentionally gives a travelling party bad directions. - In this novel, a descendant of Harold Godwinson gets up out of his coffin during his funeral - A duel in this novel, fought to determine if a Jew was a witch, ends anticlimactically when Bois-Guilbert dies of a seizure - This novel coined the word "freelance."

Anna Karenina

Novel by Tolstoy: Characters: Anna Karenina - A beautiful, aristocratic married woman from St. Petersburg whose pursuit of love and emotional honesty makes her an outcast from society Russian Last Names to know: Karenin Vronsky Levin Kitty Oblonsky Koznyshev Varenka Stahl Plot Clues: - This novel begins "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." - The father of Annie falls off his horse Frou-Frou and loses the race against Gladiator - Levin eventually marries Kitty in this novel, though she earlier loved Vronsky. - The title character dies after jumping in front of a train Power Clues: - One character in this novel writes an unsuccessful book, so he joins the pan-Slav movement. - Another character breaks his horse Frou-Frou's back in a race against Gladiator. - Varenka but becomes disillusioned after learning Madame Stahl's illness is fake at a spa in Germany. - A protagonist of this novel finally realizes, in the final chapter, that he loves his son after seeing a lightning bolt strike a tree. - One character in this novel has a recurring dream of two masked men trying to harm her - In this work, Sergei Koznyshev visits his half-brother and castigates him for quitting an administrative post

Beloved

Novel by Toni Morrison: Characters: Sethe, the protagonist of Beloved, is a proud and independent woman who is extremely devoted to her children. Denver - Sethe's youngest child Beloved - Beloved's identity is mysterious. The ghost of Sethe's mother, or, most convincingly, the embodied spirit of Sethe's murdered daughter Paul D - The physical and emotional brutality suffered by Paul D at Sweet Home and as part of a chain gang has caused him to bury his feelings in the "rusted tobacco tin" of his heart. Plot Clues: - In this novel, Paul D. helps Denver's mother come to terms with the disappearance of a ghostly girl who shares her name with a tombstone inscription. - The title character disappears from 124 Bluestone Road when her mother attacks Mr. Bodwin with an ice pick after mistaking him for a sadistic schoolteacher and slave owner. - identify this novel about Sethe and the baby she killed when faced with slavers Power Clues: - One character in this novel is sent to a chain gang in Alfred, Georgia after he tried to kill Brandywine. - Years after she was ferried by Stamp Paid, another character in this novel experiences "re-memories" and lives at a "spiteful" edifice "full of a baby's - The protagonist of this novel worked on Mr. Garner's Sweet Home plantation in Kentucky with Paul D - Another character in this novel calls his heart a tobacco tin and fears a beautiful woman who walks fully dressed out of a stream.

In Cold Blood

Novel by Truman Capote: Characters: Perry Smith - Along with Dick, one of the two murderers of the Clutter family. Richard Hickock (Dick) - Along with Perry, one of the two murderers of the Clutter family Herbert Clutter - The father of the Clutter family. Bobby Rupp - Nancy Clutter's steady boyfriend, Bobby lives nearby. He is suspected at first but passes a lie detector Alvin Dewey - An investigator for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation Floyd Wells - An inmate at Lansing prison. He confesses Perry and Dick to the police Plot Clues: - Alvin Dewey's investigation into the murder of the Clutters by Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. - Both are imprisoned and sentenced to death row - The last chapter, "The corner", is about the two murderers as they are on death row Power Clues: N/A

Les Miserables

Novel by Victor Hugo: Characters: Jean Valjean - Cosette's adopted father. Valjean is an ex-convict who leaves behind a life of hatred and deceit and makes his fortune with his innovative industrial techniques. M. Myriel - The bishop of Digne. M. whom Jean steals from but forgives him Cosette - Fantine's daughter, who lives as Valjean's adopted daughter after her mother dies. Javert - A police inspector who strictly believes in law and order Marius Pontmercy - The son of Georges Pontmercy, a colonel in Napoléon's army. He successfully court the love of his life, Cosette. M. Thénardier - A cruel, wretched, money-obsessed man who first appears as Cosette's keeper and tormentor. Gavroche - The Thénardiers' oldest son. Azelma - The Thénardiers' younger daughter. Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this work is required to carry a yellow passport to note that he is a felon. - Javert attempts to apprehend Jean Valjean, - Earlier in this novel, the Thenardiers get free labor from a girl that is sent to them by her mother Fantine; - The protagonist settles down at Gorbeau House after confronting Thenardiers and retrieving Cosette, who promptly falls in love with a revolutionary named Marius Power Clues: - Azelma is the name of the younger daughter of a family in this novel that abuses an orphan. - A character in this work goes undercover as Monsieur Madeleine after stealing silver from Bishop Myriel. - In this work, two young brothers stay a night in a hollow elephant statue, and punching a window in Gorbeau leads Azelma to gash her hand. - In this novel, the Petit-Picpus is a convent of refuge, and the Friends of the ABC is a student group -One character in this novel must choose to defend the father of a woman he loves or the protagonist of this work - One character in this work, Petit Gervais, runs away after the protagonist refuses to give back his coin.

To the Lighthouse

Novel by Virginia Woolf: To the Lighthouse is divided into three sections: "The Window," "Time Passes," and "The Lighthouse." Each section is fragmented into stream-of-consciousness contributions from various narrators. Characters: Mrs. Ramsay - Mr. Ramsay's wife. A beautiful and loving woman Mr. Ramsay - Mrs. Ramsay's husband, and a prominent metaphysical philosopher Camelia, Andrew, and James - Children of the Ramsays Lily Briscoe - A young, single painter who befriends the Ramsays on the Isle of Skye. Paul Rayley - A young friend of the Ramsays who visits them on the Isle of Skye. Charles Tansley - A young philosopher and pupil of Mr. Ramsay who stays with the Ramsays on the Isle of Skye Augustus Carmichael - An opium-using poet who visits the Ramsays on the Isle of Skye. Plot Clues: - The first section of this novel describes the visiting poet Augustus Carmichael - children of this novel's main female character include novel include Camelia, Andrew, and James, whose lives are chronicled in its second section, "Time Passes." - In its third section, Lily Briscoe finishes a portrait before journeying to the title structure. Power Clues: - One character in this novel, Charles Tansley, states that women cannot paint or write - The first section of this novel describes the visiting poet Augustus Carmichael

Lolita

Novel by Vladamir Nabokov: Characters: Humbert Humbert - The narrator and protagonist of Lolita. Humbert is an erudite European intellectual with an obsessive love for nymphets (underage girls) Dolores (Lolita) Haze - The novel's eponymous nymphet. An adolescent, she is seductive, flirtatious Clare Quilty - Humbert's shadow and double. Quilty is a successful playwright and child pornographer who takes a liking to Lolita from an early age Charlotte Haze - Lolita's mother and Humbert's wife. Annabel Leigh - Humbert's childhood love Plot Clues: - novel's protagonist, who is devastated when his childhood love Annabel Leigh dies of typhus. - Charlotte dies after reading Humbert Humbert's diary, in which he details his attraction for Dolores - Clare Quilty abducts a character, who is called the "light of my life, fire of my loins" in the first sentence of the novel Power Clues: - A Packard motor car hits Charlotte after reading the diary of this novel's protagonist - One character (Lolita) in this novel has piano lessons with Ms. Emperor twice a week. - Another character in this novel attends the Beardsley School for Girls - A motif that had earlier been the name of a hotel reappears as the title of a play - One character in this novel is deeply affected by the death of his childhood friend Annabel Leigh

My Antonia

Novel by Willa Cather: Characters: Jim Burden - The author of the youthful recollection that makes up the body of the novel. Ántonia Shimerda - The focus of Jim's recollection, and one of his closest childhood friends. Mr. Shimerda - The patriarch of the Bohemian immigrant family who commits suicide Lena Lingard - A Norwegian immigrant's daughter and a friend of Ántonia's. Otto Fuchs - The Burdens' hired hand, who looks like a cowboy Jake Marpole - Another hired hand of the Burdens Harling Family - Ántonia takes a job as a housekeeper with this neighboring family Wick Cutter - The leading moneylender in Black Hawk and a shady character who tries to molest Antonia Cuzak - A Bohemian immigrant to America who marries Ántonia and raises a large family with her. Plot Clues: - Set in Black Hawk, Nebraska - it opens with Jim Burden remembering the title member of the Shimerda family. - The title character's violinist father commits suicide - The title character works for the Harling family, and is later impregnated and abandoned by Larry Donovan. - The protagonist ends up in a happy marriage with Anton Cuzak in this novel Power Clues: - One protagonist of this novel meets the hired hands Otto Fuchs and Jake Marpole - The narrator of this novel dedicates his commencement address to the title character's father. - That character later sleeps in the title character's bed to protect her from Wick Cutter. - The title character works for the Harling family - The narrator of this novel earns admiration for killing a gigantic snake with a hoe and later gets into a fight with the title character's brother Ambrosch.

The Sound and the Fury

Novel by William Faulkner: Characters: Caddy - The second oldest of the Compson children and the only daughter. Quentin - The oldest of the Compson children and the narrator of the novel's second chapter. Jason - The second youngest of the Compson children and the narrator of the novel's third chapter. Benjy - The youngest of the Compson children and narrator of the novel's first chapter Dilsey - The Compsons' "Negro" cook Luster - Frony's son and Dilsey's grandson who entertains Benjy The Man With The Red Tie - The mysterious man with whom Miss Quentin allegedly elopes. Plot Clues: - work about the Compson family - This novel begins with Luster and Benjy walking along the golf course - The narrator of this work is castrated for embracing a schoolgirl, thinking that it was his sister Caddy. - A Harvard student in this novel commits suicide in the charles river after his sister, Caddy, becomes pregnant with the child of Dalton Ames. Power Clues: - One character in this work delivers phony checks to his mother, who immediately burns them. - One character in this work runs off with a carnival pitchman wearing a red tie after stealing money - One character in this novel is castrated after an incident arising from an unlocked gate. - brother's decision to commit suicide by jumping into the Charles River. - The final section of this novel describes a sermon delivered by Reverend Shegog.

Lord of the Flies

Novel by William Golding: Characters: - Ralph, The novel's protagonist, the twelve-year-old English boy who is elected leader of the group of boys marooned on the island - Jack, The novel's antagonist, leader of the hunters - Simon, A shy, sensitive boy in the group. Simon, in some ways the only naturally "good" character on the island - Piggy, Ralph's "lieutenant." A whiny, intellectual boy - Roger, Jack's "lieutenant." A sadistic, cruel older boy who brutalizes the littluns and eventually murders Piggy by rolling a boulder onto him. - Sam And Eric, A pair of twins closely allied with Ralph Plot Clues: - Many characters in this novel venture to "The Scar" to build a fire with one character's glasses - The discovery that the beast in this novel is actually a dead parachutist is made by the innocent boy Simon. - Characters in this novel chant "Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Bash her in" while circling around another character. - In this novel, a boulder rolled by Roger crushes a conch shell and kills an asthmatic boy whose glasses are used to start fires - At the end, an officer comes to rescue the boys Power Clues: - During one incident in this novel, a sand castle is destroyed by Maurice and Roger - an unnamed character in this novel who has a "mulberry-marked face" disappears following a forest fire - Stephen King stole the name "Castle Rock" from this novel - One character's breathing is mocked in this work with the phrase "sucks to your ass-mar. - This book's title figure "expands like a balloon" until a black mouth surrounds its conversational partner - In this novel, "a streak of phosphorescence" accompanies a body as it is carried away by the tide - Near the end of this novel, an officer says "I know. Jolly good show. Like the Coral Island. - Two characters in this work claim they have found a beast when they come upon the body of a downed pilot

Vanity Fair

Novel by William Thackeray: Characters: Rebecca Sharp - The protagonist of the novel, Becky is a strong-willed young woman obsessed with status and wealth. Amelia Sedley - Amelia is a good-natured person, and she is easy to like. As a young girl, she makes many friends at Miss Pinkerton's school. Joseph Sedley (Jos) - Amelia's elder brother and a tax collector in India. George Osborne - He is Amelia's love interest and the man she has been promised to since childhood. Lord Steyne - A marquis from a long line of wealthy nobles. He is one of the many men who falls for Becky's schemes. Plot Clues: - It focuses on the good-natured Amelia Sedley and the anti-heroine, Becky Sharp. - The action of this novel begins after the central characters have completed their education at Miss Pinkerton's Academy for Young Ladies - The protagonist pursues relationships with the Marquis of Steyne and Jos after a failed marriage with Rawdon Crawley in this work Power Clues: - One character in this book gave another character a note asking her to elope. - One character in this novel has his name crossed out of the family bible after he marries a woman behind his father's back. - At a party, one character in this work plays Clytemnestra during a game of charades. - The protagonist of this work throws a dictionary out the window in the beginning, - Jos buys a carriage at an over-inflated price in this book while trying to flee the Napoleonic Wars. - One character in this novel sells horses at inflated prices to those fleeing a war-torn city.

The Charge of the Light Brigade

Poem by Lord Tennyson: Poem Summary: The poem tells the story of a brigade consisting of 600 soldiers who rode on horseback into the "valley of death" for half a league Quote Clues: - Opening with "Half a league, half league" - The speaker of this poem claims that "Someone had blunder'd" but the title group didn't care because "Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die" - This poem asks "Was there a man dismayed?" and repeats the phrases "All the world wondered" and "Volley'd and thunder'd." This poem describes its setting as "the jaws of Death" and "the mouth of hell." - "Cossack and Russian / Reeled from the saber stroke," leading the author to ask, "When can their glory fade? Power Clues: - Rudyard Kipling wrote a sequel to this poem about the title group's visit to the author asking him to writeanother poem in their honor. - In the first section of To the Lighthouse, Mrs. Ramsay suddenly recalls this poem's line "Someone had blundered."

The Cherry Orchard

Play by Anton Chekhov: Characters: Ranevsky - Mrs. Ranevksy is a middle-aged Russian woman, the owner of the estate and the cherry orchard around which the story revolves. Varya - Varya is Ranevksy's adopted daughter Anya - Ranevksy's biological daughter Charlotte Ivanova - Anya's governess Yermolay Lopakhin - A businessman, and the son of peasants on Ranevsky's estate. Leonid Gayev - Gayev is Ranevsky's brother Peter Trofimov - A student at the local university Pishchik - A nobleman, and fellow landowner, who is, like Ranevsky, in financial difficulties Firs - Ranevsky's eighty-seven-year-old manservant. Dunyasha - A maid on the Ranevsky estate. Plot Clues: - Varya has a mysterious relationship with Lopakhin, who eventually buys the land of Madame Ranevskaya - Madame Ravensky returns to her family estate in this play as it's auctioned off - At the end of this play, Firs lies down on a couch after being locked in an empty house as the sound of axes is heard. Power Clues: - A character in this play admits a sin of prodigally spending on sweets before popping one in his mouth. - In Act Three of this play, a character claims he and Anya are "above love" - One character in this work is called "little cucumber" by her lover - another character in this work accosts her adopted mother for giving a homeless tramp gold. - In this work, the governess Charlotta performs magic tricks and ventriloquy at a party, - In this play, a character who delivers an ode to an old cupboard plays imaginary games of billiards. - In the last section of this work, the failed investor Pishchik pays off his debts when Englishmen find white clay on his estate, - One character in this play is given the title "twenty-two calamities,"

Death of a Salesman

Play by Arthur Miller: Characters: Willy Loman - An insecure, self-deluded traveling salesman. Ben - Willy's wealthy older brother. Ben has recently died and appears only in Willy's "daydreams." Linda Loman - Willy's loyal, loving wife. Biff Loman - Willy's thirty-four-year-old elder son. Happy Loman - Willy's thirty-two-year-old younger son. Charley - Willy's next-door neighbor. Charley owns a successful business Bernard - Bernard is Charley's son and an important, successful lawyer. The Woman - Willy's mistress when Happy and Biff were in high school. Stanley - A waiter at Frank's Chop House. Plot Clues: - After seeing the Woman having an affair with his father in this play, Biff angrily gives up on his football career. - the discovery of a rubber hose indicates that the protagonist of this play is contemplating suicide. - That son, who later steals a fountain pen from a former employer after failing to promote Happy's "Florida idea," is Biff. - Willy Loman kills himself for the insurance money Power Clues: - In the opening scene of this play, the protagonist asks his wife why she bought American cheese when he prefers Swiss. - After walking in on an affair, one character in this play fails summer school. - one character in this play accidentally turns on a tape recording of a child reciting state capitals. -A man in this play yells at the waiter Stanley before asking him about seed stores in the area. - In this play, flute music accompanies the appearance of the protagonist's rich older brother. - The protagonist of this play brings his sons a punching bag signed by Gene Tunney as a present - The protagonist of this play is annoyed to see the anemic Bernard succeed with the help of Charley.

The Crucible

Play by Arthur Miller: Characters: - John Proctor, A local farmer who lives just outside town with a hidden sin of affair - Abigail Williams, Reverend Parris's niece. - Reverend John Hale, A young minister reputed to be an expert on witchcraft. - Reverend Parris, The minister of Salem's church - Judge Danforth, The deputy governor of Massachusetts and the presiding judge at the witch trials. - Tibuta - Slave Plot Clues: - The sudden illnesses of Ruth and Betty fuel the action in this play, after they are caught dancing in the forest. - Abigail Williams instigates the main events of this play after accusing the slave Tituba of helping her and others to cavort with the Devil. - After Abigail accuses one character of witchcraft, John Proctor is hanged at the end of this work. -This allegory for Joe McCarthy's anti-Communist scares, Power Clues: - A character in this play struggles to remember the Ten Commandments. - A character in this play believes that the cows wandering the highroads are to blame for the sorrow of one character - One character ends this play by exclaiming he cannot sign his name to a piece of paper because he has already given up his soul. - Mary Warren is almost beaten in this play due to the gift of a "poppet." Quotes: - "preach nothin' but golden candlesticks," - "I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me." - "God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat," - "I have given you my soul; leave me my name!"

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf

Play by Edward Albee: Play in three acts: "Fun and Games", "Walpurgisnacht," and "The Exorcism" Characters: George - A 46-year-old member of the history department at New Carthage University. George is married to Martha Martha - Martha is the 52-year-old daughter of the president of New Carthage University. She is married to George but attempts to have an affair with Nick. Nick - Nick has just become a new member of the biology faculty at New Carthage University. He is married to Honey. Honey - Honey is the petite, bland wife of Nick. She is 26 years old, has a weak stomach, and is not the brightest bulb of the bunch. Plot Clues: - play about terrible party hosts George and Martha - A story is invented in this play in which a non-existent son crashes into a tree to avoid hitting a porcupine. - A character in this play constantly complains about genetic engineering to a genetics professor. - Games of "Get the Guest" and "Humiliate the Host" ensue in this play with Honey and her husband, the new biology professor Nick, Power Clues: - One character in this play describes a sixteen-year-old who made bar-goers laugh by ordering "bergin and water," - The daughter of a rich preacher in this play starts peeling labels off liquor bottles once it's revealed that she only married after having a false pregnancy. - A "mousy" character in this work continually drinks brandy even after throwing up - A History professor mistakes a member of the Biology Department for one of Math in this play - A conflict in this play occurs when part of a woman's body is first described as "angelic" but then as "monkeylike,"

Long Day's Journey Into Night

Play by Eugene O'Neill: Characters: James Tyrone - The husband of Mary and the father of Jamie and Edmund, he was once a famous actor. He has a strong work ethic and an appreciation for money Mary Tyrone - The wife of Tyrone and mother of Jamie and Edmund, she struggles from a morphine addiction Jamie Tyrone - The elder Tyrone son, he is in his early thirties. He squanders money on booze and women Edmund Tyrone - The younger Tyrone son. He learns during the play that he is afflicted with consumption (tuberculosis) Cathleen - The Tyrone family maid. Doc Hardy - A quack (pretend) doctor who diagnoses Edmund with TB Plot Clues: - a stingy character throws away his acting potential by only playing one role for most of his career. - Jamie's difficulty finding work leads to chiding from his father James, and Edmund's tuberculosis is cause for concern for Mary, who is addicted to morphine. - Every time one character goes upstairs, she injects morphine. - The cheery Cathleen sneaks whiskey from the central family Power Clues: - At the end of this play, one character remembers being "so happy for a time" and praying to the Virgin while wearing her wedding dress - An insomniac in this play is sensitive about her swollen rheumatic hands and her husband's snoring. - Doc Hardy's competency is challenged in this play, in which a stingy character throws away his acting potential by only playing one role for most of his career. - A character in this play reflects that she had two dreams: to become a nun, and to become a professional pianist. - In this work, after sending a servant to the drugstore ostensibly for her arthritic hands, one character begins to discuss her dislike of fog and foghorns.

Pygmalion

Play by George Bernard Shaw: Characters: Professor Henry Higgins - He is a professor of phonetics who plays Pygmalion to Eliza Doolittle's Galatea. Mrs. Higgins - Professor Higgins' mother Eliza Doolittle - She is transformed from a sassy, smart-mouthed kerbstone flower girl with deplorable English Alfred Doolittle - Alfred Doolittle is Eliza's father, n elderly but vigorous dustman who has had at least six wives Colonel Pickering - Colonel Pickering, the author of Spoken Sanskrit, is a match for Higgins Freddy Eynsford Hill - He becomes lovesick for Eliza, and courts her with letters. Plot Clues: - play named after a mythical character that fell in love with one of his sculptures - This play centers on a phonetics professor's bet with Colonel Pickering - Professor Higgins tries to teach Eliza Doolittle to speak like a duchess - Freddy Hill is taken with the main character's way of speaking and eventually marries her. Power Clues: - The protagonist of this play explains that she she was turned out by her sixth stepmother - In this play, one character inherits a fortune after a millionaire is convinced that he is the "most original moralist" of England - This play derives its name from a mythological character who sculpted his idealization of Galatea. - This play's opening scene includes characters called "The Sarcastic Bystander" and "The Note-Taker." - Clara is impressed with the "new small talk" of a girl who hurls slippers at another character in this play Quotes: - "Men! Men! Men!" - "I'm a good girl, I am." - "How do I know what might be in them?"

Faust

Play by Goethe: Characters: Mephistopheles - the play's antagonist. He makes a deal with the Lord to tempt Faust Faust - The play's protagonist. He is a scholar and alchemist falls into despair because he feels as though he has exhausted the limits of his knowledge. Wagner- he is Faust's companion in the first third of the play. Gretchen - she is a peasant girl with whom Faust falls madly in love. Martha - is Gretchen's neighbor who provides the means by which Mephistopheles is able to concoct Faust and Gretchen's love affair. Valentine - Gretchen's brother and a soldier returning home from war. He receives word of his sister's sexual indiscretion, and when he meets Faust, they fight. Plot Clues: - The title scholar gives his soul to Mephistopheles - The title character drinks a potion that takes thirty years off of his life and seduces Gretchen, and he later has a son Euphorion with Helen of Troy. - Gretchen goes insane and refuses to escape with the protagonist - This character's soul is rescued by angels and led into heaven by the soul of Gretchen Power Clues: - Early in the work in which he appears, this character complains, "Here I stand, [...] no wiser than before." - After this character kills Valentine and causes his lover to poison her mother - As an old man, this character builds his castle on land reclaimed from the sea through dykes - One encounter involving this character sees him followed home by a poodle which ends up in his study - In this work, the title character is entertained at Auerbach's Cellar, and is then taken to the Witch's Kitchen. - One character in this work shows a chest of jewelry to her friend Martha - The title character has a son named Euphorion with Helen of Troy.

A Doll's House

Play by Henrik Ibsen: Characters: Nora - The protagonist of the play and the wife of Torvald Helmer. Torvald Helmer - Nora's husband. Torvald delights in his new position at the bank, Krogstad - A lawyer who went to school with Torvald and holds a subordinate position Mrs. Linde - Nora's childhood friend Plot Clues: - The protagonist had financed a trip to Italy by borrowing money from the lover of Ms. Linde and that man, Krogstad - At this play's conclusion, the main character claimed that "she could receive nothing from a stranger" before walking out on her husband, Torvald - Nora Helmer discovers her husband's true personality and leaves the title construct Power Clues: - in this work, the protagonist is renowned for her ability in dancing the Tarantella - The main character of this play denies eating macaroons in the first act - Before the action of this play occurs, one of its characters had forged her father's signature to borrow money to travel to Italy - The protagonist is called a "twittering lark" and a squirrel before being accused of wasting money again - Dr. Rank, informs the protagonist that he will leave a calling card with a black cross on it when he is about to die from his "tuberculosis of the spine"

A Raisin in the Sun

Play by Lorraine Hansberry: Characters: Walter Lee Younger - The protagonist of the play. Walter is a dreamer. Beneatha Younger ("Bennie") - Mama's daughter and Walter's sister. Lena Younger ("Mama") - Walter and Beneatha's mother. Ruth Younger - Walter's wife and Travis's mother. Travis Younger - Walter and Ruth's sheltered young son. Joseph Asagai - A Nigerian student in love with Beneatha. George Murchison - A wealthy, African-American man who courts Beneatha. Karl Lindner - The only white character in the play. Willy Harris - A friend of Walter and coordinator of the liquor store plan. Mrs. Johnson - The Youngers' neighbor Plot Clues: - The central family receives ten thousand dollars of insurance money - George Murchison and Joseph Asagai court Beneatha in this play - Karl Lindner tries to get Ruth and Walter not to spend an insurance check on a house in a white neighborhood of Chicago. - Walter Lee decides to move his family into Mama's new house in Clybourne Park. Power Clues: - A character in this play is described as having "murder in her eyes" after seeing her husband give her son fifty cents. - Act 2 of this play begins with some Nigerian music being played by a woman who then shows off her new Afro. - Another character sings a song about how "All God's Children got wings" before giving his mother a new set of gardening tools. - A character in this play performs a dance while yelling "OCOMOGOSIAY," - The original version of this play did not feature Mrs. Johnson

Our Town

Play by Thornton Wilder: Characters: Stage Manager - The host of the play and the dramatic equivalent of an omniscient narrator. George Gibbs - Dr. and Mrs. Gibbs's son. A decent, upstanding young man, George is a high school baseball star who plans to attend the State Agricultural School Emily Webb - Mr. and Mrs. Webb's daughter and Wally's older sister. Emily is George's schoolmate and next-door neighbor, then his fiancée, Simon Stimson - The choirmaster, whose alcoholism and undisclosed "troubles" have been the subject of gossip in Grover's Corners Plot Clues: - play that is narrated by the Stage Manager and set in Grover's Corners - Emily Webb dies in childbirth in this play, after her marriage to George Gibbs. - In its final act, dead residents of the title location gather in a cemetery, Power Clues: - In this play, one character imagines the plays of William Shakespeare and the Sentinel newspaper being placed beneath a new bank. - In this play's first act, one character gushes about an amazing speech she gave about the Louisiana Purchase and admires the heliotropes planted by her future mother-in-law. - The second act of this play is titled "Love and Marriage" --Near the end of this play, one of the main characters re-lives her 12th birthday - Milkman Howie Newsome appears each morning in each act. Quotes: - "matter-of-fact, without sentimentality, and, above all, without lugubriousness" - "Blessed Be The Ties That Bind." - "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?

Julius Caesar

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: - Brutus, A supporter of the republic who believes strongly in a government guided by the votes of senators. He Opposes Caesar - Julius Caesar, A great Roman general and senator, recently returned to Rome in triumph after a successful military campaign -Antony, A friend of Caesar. At Caesar's funeral he persuades the audience to withdraw its support of Brutus and instead condemn him as a traitor. - Cassius, A talented general and longtime acquaintance of Caesar. He slyly leads Brutus to believe that Caesar has become too powerful and must die - Octavius, Caesar's adopted son and appointed successor. - Calpurnia, Caesar's wife. Plot Clues: - This play which opens with the line "friends, Romans countrymen, lend me your ears" - In this play, a statue with a hundred wounds spouting blood is dreamt by Calpurnia. - A character claiming, "The fault...is in our stars, not ourselves" persuades another to murder the title character, who is warned by a soothsayer to beware the Ides of March - Cassius and Brutus plot the assassination of the title ruler - It ends with the protagonist and Cassius committing suicide Power Clues: - Later, the protagonist and his fellow conspirator reconcile; - That protagonist is earlier prompted to remember his ancestor's overthrow of Tarquinus Superbus when he reads a series of forged letters Quotes: - "O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts, and men have lost their reason" - "The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones." - "The fault...is in our stars, not ourselves"

Hamlet

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: - Hamlet, The protagonist and Prince of Denmark - Claudius, King of Denmark (Hamlet's uncle) - Gertrude, Queen of Denmark (Hamlet's Mother) - The Ghost, Specter of Hamlet's recently deceased father - Horatio, Close friend of Hamlet who remains alive to tell Hamlet's story - Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, friends of Hamlet - Ophelia, Hamlet's Love Plot Clues: - A ghost tells the main character to revenge his father's death - Later, this character murders Polonius while visiting his mother Gertrude - The central character swaps execution letters before entering England, leading to the deaths of two friends from Wittenberg - The title character mourns a "fellow of infinite jest," Yorick, in this play's "graveyard scene" - The main character kills his uncle Claudius in revenge for the murder of his father and usurpation of the Danish throne Power Clues: - "Now pile your dust upon the quick and dead" - A work based on this play opens with two minor characters from this play flipping a coin - A character's last line in this play is: "The rest is silence" Quotes: - "Now pile your dust upon the quick and dead." - "frailty, thy name is woman." - "followed my poor father's body Like Niobe" - "more like a weasel," and then "more like a whale." - "there is a special providence in the fall of a sparrow" - "too much i' the sun," - "There are more things in heaven and earth... than are dreamt of in your philosophy." - "The rest is silence." - "Neither a borrower nor a lender be." - "one part wisdom and ever three parts coward" - "What's Hecuba to him, or him to Hecuba? - "native hue of resolution is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought"

Romeo and Juliet

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: - Romeo, The son and heir of Montague and Lady Montague. - Juliet, The daughter of Capulet and Lady Capulet. - Friar Lawrence, A Franciscan friar, friend to both Romeo and Juliet - Mercutio, A kinsman to the Prince, and Romeo's close friend - Tybalt, A Capulet, Juliet's cousin on her mother's side. - Capulet, the patriarch of the Capulet family, father of Juliet - Paris, A kinsman of the Prince, and the suitor of Juliet most preferred by Capulet. - Prince Escalus, The Prince of Verona. A kinsman of Mercutio and Paris. As the seat of political power in Verona, he is concerned about maintaining public peace at all costs. - The Apothecary, An apothecary in Mantua who sells poison to Romeo - Rosaline, The woman with whom Romeo is infatuated at the beginning of the play. Plot Clues: -One protagonist of this play is initially infatuated with Rosaline - During this play, the deaths of Tybalt and Mercutio cause to tensions rise between the Capulets and the Montagues in Verona - Friar Lawrence prepares a potion in this play that makes one character appear dead for twenty-four hours. - One character later ventures to a great tomb where his lover, the other title character, is kept-near death on Friar Lawrence's advice Power Clues: - One character in this play rails against "calm, dishonorable, vile submission" and declares "you shall find me a grave man" as he dies (Mercutio - One message in this play is undelivered because its deliverer is stuck in a quarantine house for plague (Friar John). - This play's first scene sees Abram get into a fight with Sampson and Gregory, resulting in a judgment from Prince Escalus - One character in this work (Mercutio) bemoans "these strange flies, these fashion-mongers, these perdona- mi's." When that character dies, another exclaims "fire-eyed fury be my conduct now." Quotes: - "calm, dishonorable, vile submission" - "you shall find me a grave man" - "Parting is such sweet sorrow" - "That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet." - "Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona." - "doth teach the torches to burn bright." - "these strange flies, these fashion-mongers, these perdona- mi's." - "fire-eyed fury be my conduct now."

A Midsummer Nights Dream

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: Puck - Also known as Robin Goodfellow, Puck is Oberon's jester, a mischievous fairy who delights in playing pranks on mortals. Oberon - The king of the fairies, Oberon is initially at odds with his wife, Titania, because she refuses to relinquish control of a young Indian prince whom he wants for a knight. Titania - The beautiful queen of the fairies Lysander - A young man of Athens, in love with Hermia. Demetrius - A young man of Athens, initially in love with Hermia and ultimately in love with Helena. Hermia - Egeus's daughter, a young woman of Athens. Hermia is in love with Lysander Helena - A young woman of Athens, in love with Demetrius. Nick Bottom - The overconfident weaver chosen to play Pyramus in the craftsmen's play for Theseus's marriage celebration Plot Clues: - Puck, a fairy messing around with the feelings of four lovers in the woods. - That character gives a love potion that causes Demetrius and Lysander to vie for Helena instead of Hermia. That love potion also makes Titania fall in love with Bottom - in this play, Lysander and Demetrius eventually fall in love with Hermia and Helena - Nick Bottom's staging a play called Pyramus and Thisbe Power Clues: - One character in this play uses the lantern to portray Moonshine; he is part of a theater troupe called "The Mechanicals." - One character in this work procures a juice from the love-in-idleness flower Quotes: - "Jack shall have Jill. Nought shall go ill." - "The lunatic, the lover, and the poet." - "Lord, what fools these mortals be!" - "tedious, brief, merry, and tragic"

The Merchant of Venice

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: Shylock - A Jewish moneylender in Venice. Angered by his mistreatment at the hands of Venice's Christians, Portia - A wealthy heiress from Belmont. Antonio - The merchant whose love for his friend Bassanio prompts him to sign Shylock's contract and almost lose his life. Bassanio - A gentleman of Venice, and a kinsman and dear friend to Antonio. Bassanio's love for the wealthy Portia leads him to borrow money from Shylock Nerissa - Portia's lady-in-waiting and confidante. She marries Gratiano and escorts Portia on Portia's trip to Venice by disguising herself as her law clerk Launcelot Gobbo - Bassanio's servant. A comical, clownish figure who is especially adept at making puns. Plot Clues: - Portia helps rescue Antonio, who owes a pound of flesh to a moneylender - Jewish moneylender Shylock sues Antonio - Bassanio then goes to Belmont to court Portia, who disguises herself in the trial of Antonio - Portia helps rescue Antonio, Power Clues: - A character in this work demands a ring as payment after disguising herself as a lawyer sent by Doctor Bellario. - Two women in this play give their husbands rings that those husbands must never give away - One character in this play confides in her father's servant Lancelot and runs off with her mother's turquoise ring to marry Lorenzo. - In act 2 of this play Lancelot Gobbo leaves his master and then meets his father Quotes: - "My daughter! My ducats" -, "If you prick us, do we not bleed?" - the quality of mercy...droppeth like a gentle rain from heaven."

The Tempest

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: Prospero - The play's protagonist, and father of Miranda. Miranda - The daughter of Prospero. She has never seen men other than her father and Caliban Ariel - Prospero's spirit helper. Caliban - Another of Prospero's servants. Caliban, the son of the now-deceased witch Sycorax Ferdinand - Son and heir of Alonso. He falls in love with Miranda Alonso - King of Naples and father of Ferdinand Antonio - Prospero's brother. Antonio quickly demonstrates that he is power-hungry and foolish. Trinculo & Stephano - Trinculo, a jester, and Stephano, a drunken butler, are two minor members of the shipwrecked party Plot Clues: - a play featuring the exiled Duke of Milan, Prospero who conjures the title storm - Ferdinand and Miranda fall in love - In this work, Trinculo and Stephano attempt to help Caliban overthrow his master Power Clues: - In one scene in this play, a jester and a butler give alcohol to one of the main characters for the first time - In the second scene of this play, a character sings a song that begins "Full fathom five thy father lies." - some of its characters had previously attended Claribel's wedding to the king of Tunis. - One character in this work is forced to gather pig nuts and carry wood after one mishap Quotes: - "the third man that e'er I saw;" - "Hell is empty / And all the devils are here." - "Full fathom five thy father lies" - "To be your fellow you may deny me, but I'll be your servant whether you will or no." -"Let your indulgence set me free." - "our little life is rounded with a sleep" - "we are such stuff as dreams are made on."

Macbeth

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: - Macbeth, Scottish general and future king who is led to wicked by three witches - Lady Macbeth, Macbeth's wife who urges her husband to kill Duncan and seize the crown. - The Three Witches, "black and midnight hags" who plot mischief against Macbeth using charms, spells, and prophecies - King Duncan, the good king of Scotland - Banquo, the brave, noble general whose children, according to the witches' prophecy, will inherit the Scottish throne. Plot Clues: - Title character murders Banquo and King Duncan, and is advised by three witches - A key scene in this play features a sleepwalking woman envisioning a spot of Duncan's blood on her hands (Lady Macbeth's guilt of killing Duncan) -While an army disguised as Birnam Wood approaches Dunsinane, the title character is defeated by Macduff. Power Clues: - The title character hires three men to kill Fleance, but he escapes. - The title character sees an armed head some time after viewing a floating dagger - A comedic scene in this play sees a porter pretending to be Hell's gatekeeper - Near the end of this play, the title character muses about the creeping of "tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow" - One woman in this play sleepwalks and washes invisible blood off her hand - A character fears that another character's nature is "too full o' th' milk of human kindness," Quotes: - "resembled my father as he slept," - "spoils the pleasure of the time." - "too full o' the milk of human kindness," - "Screw your courage to the sticking place." - "smiling in my face / Have plucked my nipple from his boneless gum / And dashed the brains out." - Out, damn'd spot! Out, I say!". - "security is mortals' chiefest enemy." - "By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes" - "Genius is rebuk'd, as ... / Mark Antony's was by Caesar," - "Life's but a walking shadow." - "poor cat in the adage"

Othello

Play by William Shakespeare: Characters: - Othello, The play's protagonist and hero, however, he is black - Desdemona, The daughter of the Venetian senator Brabanzio. Desdemona and Othello are secretly married before the play begins - Iago, Othello's ensign and the villain of the play. While his ostensible reason for desiring Othello's demise is that he has been passed over for promotion to lieutenant. - Michael Cassio, Othello's lieutenant. Lago uses Cassio's youth, good looks, and friendship with Desdemona to play on Othello's insecurities about Desdemona's fidelity. - Roderigo, A jealous suitor of Desdemona. - Bianca, a prostitute in Cyprus - Duke Of Venice, the official authority in Venice, Plot Clues: - This is part of Iago's elaborate plan to destroy the title protagonist - Bianca, is angered when Cassio makes her copy the embroidery of another woman's handkerchief - In this play, the title character mishears a discussion about a planted handkerchief and becomes convinced his wife Desdemona is unfaithful. - This character is warned about "jealousy, a green eyed monster" before he smothers his wife with a pillow. Power Clues: - One character in this work warns that the protagonist is "making the beast with two backs" to discredit his position among the senators. - That same villain starts a drunken brawl by getting Cassio drunk. - The title character of this play smacks his wife and calls her a devil after she expresses excitement about returning home - One character in this play declares that he has "lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial"; that speech about reputation is made after one character fights Montano while drunk. Quotes: - "making the beast with two backs" - "lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial" - "on horror's head horrors accumulate."

A Streetcar Named Desire

Play set in New Orleans by Tennessee Williams: Characters: Blanche DuBois (Protagonist) - Stella's older sister, who was a high school English teacher in Laurel, Mississippi, Stella Kowalski - Blanche's younger sister Eunice - Stella's friend, upstairs neighbor, and landlady Stanley Kowalski - The husband of Stella. Harold "Mitch" Mitchell - Stanley's army friend, Shep Huntleigh - A former suitor of Blanche's Plot Clues: - Stanley Kowalski rapes the protagonist - This play's protagonist loses her home of Belle Reve, falls in love with Mitch, and is taken away to an insane asylum - Play about Stanley and Stella Kowalski that concludes after Blanche DuBois declares "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers"? Power Clues: - In the prologue to this play's first act, a blue piano "expresses the spirit of the life which goes on here." - A character in this play describes the possibly fictional affections lavished onto her by Shep Huntleigh. -A character in this play buys a paper lantern and constantly takes baths to calm her nerves. - A former English teacher in this work is fired because of an affair with a 17-year-old student (Pizza Dood) - One character in this play is kicked out of the Flamingo Hotel due to her immoral behavior. - One character in this play gives the protagonist a bus ticket to Laurel as her birthday present - A character in this work covers a lightbulb with a Chinese lantern so others don't see her in an unflattering light. Quotes: -"expresses the spirit of the life which goes on here." - "poker should not be played in a house with women" - "My baby doll's left me!" - "not clean enough to bring in the house with my mother" - "And if God choose, / I shall love thee better after death." - "Don't hang back with the brutes!"

Ode on a Grecian Urn

Poem by John Keats: Plot Clues: - This poem addresses a subject "That leaves a heart high-sorrowful and cloyed" because of its "All breathing human passion far above." - One section of this poem asks "What men or gods are these?" and "What maidens loth?" to a "Sylvan historian." - It ends with "Beauty is truth, truth beauty." Quotations: - "foster-child of silence and slow time," - ye soft pipes, play on." - "Thou, silent form, dost tease us out of thought / As doth eternity." - "still unravish'd bride of quietness," - "What leaf-fringed legend haunts about thy shape." - "mysterious priest," - "cold pastoral" - "little town by river or sea-shore" is "emptied of its folk this pious morn." - "old age shall this generation waste"

Ode to a Nightingale

Poem by John Keats: Plot Clues: - it opens with its narrator exclaiming that he felt like he just drank hemlock because his senses are numb and his heart aches. - The seventh stanza of this poem mentions the sad heart of Ruth standing in tears "amid the alien corn" - In its fourth stanza the poet states he will fly, not "charioted by Bacchus" but instead on the "viewless wings of Poesy". - This poem ends by asking "Do I wake or sleep? Quotations: - "Thou wast not born for death, immortal Bird! " - "I have been half in love with easeful Death," - "Was it a vision or a waking dream." - "light-winged Dryad of the trees " - "Away! away! for I will fly to thee, " - "Adieu!"

Dover Beach

Poem by Matthew Arnold: The sea is calm tonight. The tide is full, the moon lies fair Upon the straits; on the French coast the light Gleams and is gone; the cliffs of England stand, Glimmering and vast, out in the tranquil bay. Come to the window, sweet is the night-air! Only, from the long line of spray Where the sea meets the moon-blanched land, Listen! you hear the grating roar Of pebbles which the waves draw back, and fling, At their return, up the high strand, Begin, and cease, and then again begin, With tremulous cadence slow, and bring The eternal note of sadness in. Sophocles long ago Heard it on the Aegean, and it brought Into his mind the turbid ebb and flow Of human misery; we Find also in the sound a thought, Hearing it by this distant northern sea. The Sea of Faith Was once, too, at the full, and round earth's shore Lay like the folds of a bright girdle furled. But now I only hear Its melancholy, long, withdrawing roar, Retreating, to the breath Of the night-wind, down the vast edges drear And naked shingles of the world. Ah, love, let us be true To one another! for the world, which seems To lie before us like a land of dreams, So various, so beautiful, so new, Hath really neither joy, nor love, nor light, Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain; And we are here as on a darkling plain Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight, Where ignorant armies clash by night.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge: Characters: The Mariner - The protagonist (and in many ways the antagonist) of the poem The Wedding Guest - a man on his way to a wedding celebration who is told the story Life-in-death - This haunting figure is found, along with Death, on the ghost ship that approaches the Mariner and the Sailors when their own ship is becalmed after the Mariner's killing of the albatross. The Sailors - are the nameless crewmembers that accompany the Mariner on his journey. First voice and second voice - The voices are supernatural spirits introduced in sixth part Plot Clues: - The speaker tells the Wedding-Guest that he shot an Albatross. - Due to the fog, the title character of this poem accidently shoots an albatross and is forced to wear the dead bird on his neck as punishment. - Afterwards, the speaker saw two hundred companions drop one by one - The title character notes that there is "water, water, everywhere / nor any drop to drink," Power Clues: - In one part of this poem, the title character bites his arm and sucks out blood in order to make clear that an object is approaching. - The sixth part of this poem begins as a dialogue between "First Voice" and "Second Voice." - At the end of this poem, the protagonist encounters a Hermit, a Pilot, and the Pilot's boy, who laughs crazily and thinks he is the devil. Quotes: -"The Devil knows how to row" -"water, water, everywhere / nor any drop to drink," - "He prayeth best, who loveth best / All things both great and small" - "a sadder and a wiser man." - "slimy things did crawl with legs / upon the slimy sea," - "I fear thee and thy glittering eye, and thy skinny hand so brown! - "What manner of man art thou?" - "see how graciously [the moon] looketh down on the ocean" - "green and blue and white", - "singeth loudly his godly hymns / That he makes in the wood,

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Poem by T.S. Eliot: Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this poem wears a "necktie rich and modest," - A character in this poem states that his job is "to swell a progress, start a scene or two" - he is "at times, the Fool." - The speaker of this poem worries about people reacting to a bald spot in his hair Quotations: - "the eternal Footman hold my coat." - "I am Lazarus, come from the dead." - "squeezing the universe into a ball" - "time yet for a hundred indecision / And for a hundred visions and revisions." - "I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be." - "measuring out his life with coffee spoons" - "yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes". - "stretched on the floor, here between you and me." - "Have the strength to force the moment to its crisis"

The Waste Land

Poem by T.S. Eliot: Summary: Part I (The Burial of the Dead) opens with the famous line, "April is the cruellest month." The speaker, Marie, is a young woman who bears witness to the physical and emotional devastation caused by the war. Parts II (A game of chess) and III (The Fire Sermon) describe the inside of a wealthy woman's bedroom and the garbage-filled waters of the Thames, respectively. Part IV (Death by water) eulogizes a drowned man named Phlebas. In the fifth (What the thunder said) and final part of the poem, the speaker "translates" the thunderclaps cracking over an Indian jungle. The poem ends with the repetition of the Sanskrit word for peace: "Shantih shantih shantih. Plot Clues: - It begins with an epigraph in which the Cumean Sibyl states "I want to die," which immediately precedes its opening line "April is the cruelest month - That character, Madame Sosostris, warns of death by drowning, a fate later suffered by Phlebas the Phoenician. - This work features the Unreal city - The words "Shantih shantih shantih" appear in the last section of this poem, Power Clues: - In the first section Marie is told to "hold on tight" while sledding - The speaker of this work echoes Ophelia at the end of the second section, saying, "Goodnight Bill. Goodnight Lou. Goodnight May. Goodnight." - This work notes that "Dry bones can harm no one" before a rooster crows, "Co co rico co co rico". - The fully capitalized phrase "HURRY UP PLEASE IT'S TIME" appears five times in this poem

O Captain! My Captain!

Poem by Walt Whitman: Poem about a captain who resembles Abraham Lincoln . . . O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done, The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won, The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting, While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring; But O heart! heart! heart! O the bleeding drops of red, Where on the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead. O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills, For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding, For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning; Here Captain! dear father! This arm beneath your head! It is some dream that on the deck, You've fallen cold and dead. My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still, My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will, The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done, From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won; Exult O shores, and ring O bells! But I with mournful tread, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead.

Candide

Satirical Novel by Voltaire: Characters: Candide - The protagonist of the novel, Candide is a good-hearted but hopelessly naïve young man Pangloss - Pangloss is a philosopher and Candide's tutor. His optimistic belief that this world is "the best of all possible worlds" Martin - Martin is a cynical scholar whom Candide befriends as a travel companion. Cunégonde - Cunégonde is the daughter of a German baron whom Candide loves Baron Thunder-Ten-Tronckh - The baron who owns the castle in Westphalia and father of Cunegonde Cacambo - Cacambo becomes Candide's valet when Candide travels in South America. Plot Clues: - This character is expelled from the castle of Baron Thunder-Ten-Tronckh for kissing Cunegonde - In this novel, the protagonist and his tutor experience an earthquake in Lisbon, after that tutor is hanged and the protagonist flogged. - One character in this work survives a hanging because the hangman failed to tie a proper knot - A character and his servant, Cacambo, leave El Dorado with one hundred red sheep to track down Lady Cunégonde in this story. - The end sees the four on a farm together Power Clues: - In this story, an Italian eunuch laments his lack of testicles after he is unable to rape that pope's illegitimate daughter. - This novel opens in the country of Westphalia - That baron's daughter is later saved from her captors by the daughter of Pope Urban X, an old woman with one buttock. - This character chooses to be beaten 72,000 times, rather than get twelve bullets in his skull, but he only makes it through 4,000 - In this work, the pirate Mynheer Vanderdendur steals sheep from the protagonist - One character in this work survives a hanging because the hangman failed to tie a proper knot - This character loses a bet and determines that a couple is unhappy

The Necklace

Short Story by Guy de Maupassant: Characters: - Mathilde Loisel - The protagonist of the story who borrows the necklace. Her one night of radiance cost her and Monsieur Loisel any chance for future happiness. - Monsieur Loisel - Mathilde's husband and clerk in the Ministry of Education - Madame Forestier - Mathilde's wealthy friend. Madame Forestier lends Mathilde the necklace for the party Plot Clues: - one character borrows a diamond necklace from her friend Madame Forestier then loses the necklace - The protagonist must work for ten years to pay off a replacement. - Mathilde replaces the title piece of jewelry only to find that it was an imitation, Power Clues: - In this work, the protagonist dances until four in the morning while her husband and his friends are asleep by midnight. - The protagonist of this story washes dishes for ten years in order to pay off a ruinous debt - Its protagonist requests four hundred francs to buy a new dress - At its opening, this work states that women have no caste or class after describing the protagonist's marriage to a clerk in the Ministry of Education

The Red Badge of Courage

War novel by Stephen Crane: Characters: Henry Fleming - The novel's protagonist; a young soldier fighting for the Union army during the American Civil War. Jim Conklin - Henry's friend; a tall soldier hurt during the regiment's first battle. Wilson - A loud private; Henry's friend in the regiment. The Tattered Soldier - A twice-shot soldier whom Henry encounters in the column of wounded men. The Lieutenant - Henry's commander in battle, Plot Clues: - The protagonist of this novel is hit on the head by a rifle, causing an injury that leads his peers to believe he was grazed by a bullet during the Battle of Chancellorsville, which he fled. - Henry Fleming wishes to redeem himself by obtaining the title injury. - At the end of this novel, the 304th Regiment is victorious. Power Clues: - The protagonist of this novel is "still a man" because he "had performed his mistakes in the dark." - A character in this novel calls a group of men "mule drivers" and "mud diggers" after they cause the enemy to retreat. - The protagonist abandons a "tattered man" and his colleague Jim Conklin.