The Hound of the Baskervilles Persuasive Essay Example For Students

The Hound of the Baskervilles Persuasive Essay How does Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle develop and maintain an eerie atmosphere throughout his novel The Hound of the Baskervilles? Sir Arthur Conan-Doyles novel, the Hound of the Baskervilles, was originally published as a novel in 1902. This was an age when many people were interested in historical matters to do with things like ancient documents and there ancestors. Many of the popular books were in the supernatural and detective genres. These books were particularly popular with male readers and this is often due to the amount of main characters being male. The Hound of the Baskervilles was originally published episodically in the Strand magazine from August 1901 through to April 1902. Each month the chapter would end with a cliff-hanger, this was mainly so people would buy the next issue to find out what happens subsequently in the story. After the serialised version of the story it was then published as a novel buy George Newnes Ltd in London, 1902. Not only was The Hound of the Baskervilles popular as book, it was also popular as a film. In 1939 the Hound of the Baskervilles was released for the first time as a film. We will write a custom essay on The Hound of the Baskervilles Persuasive specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now The film was directed by Sidney Lanfield and starred Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. It was then filmed again and released in 1959 when it was directed by Terrence Fisher with Peter Cushing and Andre Morell starring. Most recently the story was filmed for the BBC as a Christmas Special in 2002 for its centenary year. Even The Hound of the Baskervilles is over 100 years old it is still a popular book, it is the only one of Sir Arthur Conan-Doyles books not to be out of print and this is why it is regarded as his best novel. In Chapter 2 the curse of the Baskervilles is first introduced, the curse is that Hugo Baskerville captured a young maid from an unguarded farm and took her back to Baskerville Hall. He locked the maid away. That night he had a party with friends of his, Hugo and his friends drank lots of wine and he boasted of this girl he had captured. He staggered upstairs to get the girl, when he unlocked the room he saw that she had escaped. Hugo was furious and ordered for his Horses to be ready for riding, Hugo rode ahead and his friends followed over the moorlands, they passed a Shepard who told of Hugo riding past him. The pack continued on to find Hugo lying on the floor next to the maid with a large beast standing over Hugo, there stood a foul thing, a great, black beast, shaped like a hound, yet larger than any hound that ever mortal eye has rested upon and it was plucking at his throat. The tale of the Hound plagued the Baskerville family ever since.

Sample Topics for Comparison Contrast Essays

Sample Topics for Comparison Contrast Essays In high school and college literature classes, one common type of writing assignment is the comparison and contrast essay. Identifying points of similarity and difference in two or more literary works encourages close reading and stimulates careful thought. To be effective, a comparison-contrast essay needs to be focused on particular methods, characters, and themes. These ten sample topics demonstrate different ways of achieving that focus in a critical essay. Short Fiction: The Cask of Amontillado and The Fall of the House of UsherAlthough The Cask of Amontillado and The Fall of the House of Usher rely on two notably different types of narrator (the first a mad murderer with a long memory, the second an outside observer who serves as the readers surrogate), both of these stories by Edgar Allan Poe rely on similar devices to create their effects of suspense and horror. Compare and contrast the story-telling methods employed in the two tales, with particular attention to point of view, setting, and diction.Short Fiction: Everyday Use and A Worn PathDiscuss how details of character, language, setting, and symbolism in the stories Everyday Use by Alice Walker and A Worn Path by Eudora Welty serve to characterize the mother (Mrs. Johnson) and the grandmother (Phoenix Jackson), noting points of similarity and difference between the two women.Short Fiction: The Lottery and The Summer PeopleAlthough the same fundamental conflict of tradition vers us change underlies both The Lottery and The Summer People, these two stories by Shirley Jackson offer some notably different observations about human weaknesses and fears. Compare and contrast the two stories, with particular attention to the ways Jackson dramatizes different themes in each. Be sure to include some discussion of the importance of setting, point of view, and character in each story. Poetry: To the Virgins and To His Coy MistressThe Latin phrase carpe diem is popularly translated as seize the day. Compare and contrast these two well-known poems written in the carpe diem tradition: Robert Herricks To the Virgins and Andrew Marvells To His Coy Mistress. Focus on the argumentative strategies and specific figurative devices (for example, simile, metaphor, hyperbole, and personification) employed by each speaker.Poetry: Poem for My Fathers Ghost, Steady as Any Ship My Father, and Nikki RosaA daughter investigates her feelings for her father (and, in the process, reveals something about herself) in each of these poems: Mary Olivers Poem for My Fathers Ghost, Doretta Cornells Steady as Any Ship My Father, and Nikki Giovannis Nikki Rosa. Analyze, compare, and contrast these three poems, noting how certain poetic devices (such as diction, repetition, metaphor, and simile) serve in each case to characterize the relationship (however ambivalent) between a daughter and her f ather. Drama: King Oedipus and Willy LomanDifferent as the two plays are, both Oedipus Rex by Sophocles and Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller concern a characters efforts to discover some kind of truth about himself by examining events from the past. Analyze, compare, and contrast the difficult investigative and psychological journeys taken by King Oedipus and Willy Loman. Consider the extent to which each character accepts difficult truthsand also resists accepting them. Which character, do you think, is ultimately more successful in his journey of discoveryand why?Drama: Queen Jocasta, Linda Loman, and Amanda WingfieldCarefully examine, compare, and contrast the characterizations of any two of the following women: Jocasta in Oedipus Rex, Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman, and Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams. Consider each womans relationship with the leading male character(s), and explain why you think each character is primarily active or passive (or bot h), supportive or destructive (or both), perceptive or self-deceived (or both). Such qualities are not mutually exclusive, of course, and may overlap. Be careful not to reduce these characters to simple-minded stereotypes; explore their complex natures. Drama: Foils in Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass MenagerieA foil is a character whose main function is to illuminate the qualities of another character (often the protagonist) through comparison and contrast. First, identify at least one foil character in each of the following works: Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass Menagerie. Next, explain why and how each of these characters may be viewed as a foil, and (most importantly) discuss how the foil character serves to illuminate certain qualities of another character.Drama: Conflicting Responsibilities in Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass MenagerieThe three plays Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass Menagerie all deal with the theme of conflicting responsibilitiestoward self, family, society, and the gods. Like most of us, King Oedipus, Willy Loman, and Tom Wingfield at times try to avoid fulfilling certain responsibilities; at other times, they may appear confused as to what their m ost important responsibilities should be. By the end of each play, this confusion may or may not be resolved. Discuss how the theme of conflicting responsibilities is dramatized and resolved (if it is resolved) in any two of the three plays, pointing out similarities and differences along the way. Drama and Short Fiction: Trifles and The ChrysanthemumsIn Susan Glaspells play Trifles and John Steinbecks short story The Chrysanthemums, discuss how setting (i.e., the stage set of the play, the fictional setting of the story) and symbolism contribute to our understanding of the conflicts experienced by the character of the wife in each work (Minnie and Elisa, respectively). Unify your essay by identifying points of similarity and difference in these two characters.