Publisher's Synopsis
This book collects literary essays that were written during the last ten years. The essays go from Shakespeare to Fitzgerald and comment on a wide scope of themes. For instance, the essay on Fitzgerald discusses the American Dream in The Great Gatsby, which is also discussed in the essay on Death of a Salesman. The essay on Salinger and Faulkner compares the use of language in The Catcher in the Rye and As I Lay Dying. Symbolism is the keyword to describe the essays on Hawthorne and Whitman. The essay on Couperus discusses imperialism, orientalism and stereotyping. Guilt and betrayal are the focus in the essay on Shakespeare's Macbeth. The other essays concern Katherine Mansfield, King Arthur and movies such as Nineteen Eighty-Four and The Hours.
