A COLLECTION OF SUMMARIES OF SOME NOTABLE WORKS

By MUSTANSAR NISAR SIPRA

_____ULYSSES by JAMES JOYCE

_____ #SUMMARY

Ulysses begins at about 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 16, 1904, in Dublin, Ireland, when one of its major
participants, young Stephen Dedalus, awakens and interacts with his two housemates, the egotistical
medical student, Buck Mulligan, and the overly reserved English student, Haines. The narrative ends
some twenty-four hours later, when Stephen, having politely refused lodgings at the home of two other
principal characters, Leopold and Molly Bloom, discovers he is no longer welcome to stay with Mulligan
and Haines. During the sixteen hours of narrative time, the characters move through their day in Dublin,
interacting with a stunning variety of individuals, most of whom are fictional but some of whom
represent actual people.

Ulysses stands as an inventive, multiple-point-of-view (there are eighteen) vision of daily events,
personal attitudes, cultural and political sentiments, and observations of the human condition. It is
written in a number of differing literary styles, ranging from internal monologue to first-person
speculation to question-and-answer from a catechism to newspaper headlines. The work has eighteen
chapters. When taken in context with James Joyce's grander design for it (a playful comparison to
Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey), Ulysses gains complexity, irony, and dramatic intensity. Not only does
Stephen Dedalus become all the more vivid because of his comparison to Telemachus, the son of
Ulysses, King of Ithaca, in the Homeric epic. The other main character, Leopold Bloom, may be seen as
the wandering Ulysses. In The Odyssey, Ulysses is seen returning to his wife, that symbol of womanly
and cultural virtue, Penelope; in the novel, Joyce uses irony to represent Penelope as Molly Bloom, who
that very afternoon had an adulterous encounter with her lover, Blazes Boylan.

Incidents in the novel have counterparts in the Homeric epic, sometimes to a broadly farcical effect,
other times to a more punning or humorous effect, and still others to fit Joyce's own sense of social or
political irony. For instance, Chapter One in Ulysses, referred to as "Telemachus" by Joyce, establishes
the link to come between Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom. It shows Stephen getting up and leaving
for work. Those familiar with The Odyssey will be amused by the parallels between Mulligan and Haines
and the suitors of Penelope. In The Odyssey, Telemachus, son of Ulysses, King of Ithaca, is persuaded to
venture out in search of his long-absent father. Chapters Two and Three of The Odyssey show
Telemachus meeting Nestor, an old windbag of a counselor to his father. In the novel, Stephen is shown
in conversation with Mr. Deasey, headmaster of the school where he teaches. In addition to being anti-
Semitic, anti-feminist, and wildly pro-British, Mr. Deasey is a repository of misinformation.
The first three episodes of Ulysses focus on Stephen Dedalus, a problematically autobiographical
character first introduced in Joyce's published work through A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. In
Chapter One, Stephen, Mulligan, and Haines prepare for the day. In Chapter Two, Stephen is teaching in
a boys' school. While the class recites Milton's Lycidas, he broods about his life so far, his ambitions to
be a great writer, and his doubts. In Chapter Three, Stephen walks along the seafront and reflects upon
the things he sees midwives, cockle-pickers, boulders, a dog, the body of a dog, "seaspawn and
seawrack."

The next twelve chapters take the reader on Leopold Bloom's Odyssey (the wanderings of Ulysses). His
and Stephen's paths cross but they have no meaningful meeting until later on.

In Chapter Four, Leopold Bloom is at his and Molly's home at 7 Eccles Street in the northwest quadrant
of Dublin. He is preparing breakfast for himself and his wife (and his cat) before departing for Paddy
Dignam's funeral. The jingling springs of the bed upstairs show that his wife Molly is awake. He goes out
into the world like Odysseus in The Odyssey. Bloom's wanderings become the major part of the novel.

In Chapter Five, Bloom walks through the streets of Dublin and performs several errands. In Chapter Six,
Bloom and his fellow mourners travel to the cemetery for the burial of Paddy Dignam, which evokes
from Bloom a wealth of meditations on birth, death, and human frailty, including his reminiscences on
Rudy, his own dead son, and his father, a suicide. This theme and anti-Semitism, tactlessly arise in
various conversations, with Bloom the target.

In Chapter Seven, Stephen and Bloom (father and son, or Odysseus and Telemachus) meet in the
newspaper office for the first time in the novel, although each knows who the other is. Bloom attempts
(unsuccessfully) to complete an advertising contract, and Stephen (successfully) hands over the letter
schoolmaster Deasy entrusted him with. Note the shift in narrative as newspaper headlines appear to
interrupt straightforward narrative.

In Chapter Eight, Bloom gets hungry and decides to lunch at Davey Byrnes's pub. The dominant motifs
are related to food and eating. Bloom continues to wander, thinking about birth and family life, Molly,
her previous lovers, and his own past. He is handed a religious pamphlet, sees Stephen's sister Dilly in
the street, feeds some seagulls with cakes he has purchased, then starts noticing and thinking about
advertising. Bloom meets Mrs. Breen, sort of an old flame, and sympathizes with her because of her
"cracked" husband. (He had earlier sympathized with women's lot in general when thinking about
families "Life with hard labor.") He learns that a mutual acquaintance, Mrs. Purefoy, is in the
maternity hospital.
In Chapter Nine, at the National Library, in the office of the director, Stephen, A.E. (the pseudonym of
noted Irish man of letters, George Russell), John Eglinton, and Lyster the librarian discuss Shakespeare.
The others mock Stephen for his youthful enthusiasm for complex theories of literary creation. A.E. is a
Platonist (an idealist), and mocks all readings of Shakespeare that suppose that Hamlet is a real person.
After some banter about the Dublin literati, A.E. leaves and Stephen begins to expound his theory (it is a
theory that must chart a course between the idealism of A.E. and the simple-minded, literal approach of
Mulligan in order to define the ways in which art [the ideal] and life [the material] interact).

Chapter Ten takes place at about 3:00 p.m. on the streets of Dublin. It's made up of eighteen small
episodes, which makes it a sort of doubling of the book itself (which has eighteen chapters). In these
mini-episodes, we meet Father Conmee, the Dedalus sisters, and Stephen (who, at the sight of one of his
sisters, is wracked with guilt because she is so obviously in poor financial straits and he is doing nothing
to help her), a one-legged sailor, and an arm that throws a coin and belongs to Molly Bloom. We also
meet Blazes Boylan, and a host of other characters.

In Chapter Eleven, it is about 4:00 in the afternoon, nearly time for Boylan's assignation with Molly. We
are at The Concert Room Saloon in the posh Ormond Hotel. The barmaids at the Ormond Hotel see
Bloom pass by. Simon Dedalus, Stephen's father, is there, and he turns his attention to the piano, which
has just been tuned by the blind stripling. Bloom is elsewhere, buying paper. Boylan enters. Bloom spots
his car outside and also enters with a friend, Ritchie Goulding. Boylan leaves, on his way to meet Molly.
Simon sings, and Bloom thinks of Molly.

In Chapter Twelve, it is nearly 5:00 and the locale shifts to Barney Kiernan's pub, where Bloom is going
to meet Martin Cunningham and discuss the affairs of the Dignam family. The unnamed narrator (a debt
collector) chats with Joe Hynes, and they meet the Citizen, a fierce nationalist with a dog called
Garryowen, who does not take kindly to Bloom. Several characters enter the pub, including Bloom,
behind whose back the Citizen starts throwing insults.

Chapter Thirteen takes place at 8:00 p.m. Cissy Caffrey, her twin brothers, and her friends Edy
Boardman and Gerty MacDowell (who sits a little apart), are on the Sandymount Strand. Gerty is
impatient with the boys and their noise and mess, as well as her friends, who are a little common, and
she daydreams at length about herself, her romantic aspirations, and her spiritual strivings. The twins
kick their ball to Bloom, who is also on the beach, and Gerty weaves him into her thoughts (she notices
that he is in mourning and constructs a tragic but romantic tale around him). Cissy cockily goes to ask
Bloom the time, but his watch has stopped. A fireworks display begins. Her friends run along the beach,
but Gerty stays near Bloom and leans back to watch the fireworks (she knows that men can be excited
by immodest women, and she is allowing Bloom to see up her skirt). When she leaves, Bloom notices
that she has a limp, and we learn that he has masturbated.
In Chapter Fourteen, at 10:00, Bloom enters The National Maternity Hospital to check on the condition
of Mina Purefoy, who went into labor in Chapter Eight. To reinforce the theme of childbearing, Joyce
delivers a running analogy between the development of the English language and the gestation of an
infant. While at the hospital, Bloom sees Stephen carousing with other young men and worries that
doing so will spill and waste the seed of his talent.

In Chapter Fifteen, it is midnight at Bella Cohen's brothel on Tyrone Street. This chapter is a series of
fantastic events, partially the result of drunkenness on Steven's part, partially due to hallucinations
induced by guilt and remorse on Bloom's part. Stephen and Lynch stagger in drunk and are mocked by
the hangers-on and patrons of the place. Bloom follows, events and characters (Gerty, Molly, his father,
and his mother) stimulating his mind and sense of guilt in a hallucinatory fashion. Bloom is arrested for
committing an unnamed nuisance and undergoes a protracted trial in which he never knows for certain
what the charges are. His identity constantly changes as characters from his past and personifications of
perverse desires enter the court. Bloom speaks with one of the whores, Zoe Higgins, who knows where
Stephen is. When Bloom finds him, Stephen, in his drunkenness, is attempting to settle his bill. Bloom
ensures that he isn't cheated. The ghost of Stephen's mother appears, Stephen breaks the chandelier,
and they end up on the street. A fight with some English privates (he has allegedly insulted the King)
leaves Stephen prostrate on the pavement. The police appear, but Corny Kelleher and Bloom smooth
things over. Bloom gazes at the unconscious Stephen and experiences a vision of his dead son, Rudy.

The remaining three chapters, may be seen as Ulysses' homecoming to Ithaca. These segments cover
the following events from The Odyssey: the hero's return, his slaying of the treacherous suitors of his
faithful wife Penelope, and his joyful reunion with her.

In Chapter Sixteen, it is 1:00 at a cabman's shelter. Bloom and Stephen drink coffee. A number of minor
characters appear, and Stephen and Bloom interact with them. Bloom shows Stephen a photograph of
Molly, the implication being that Stephen's talents might be used to further Molly's career (and thus
oust Boylan from her affections). They leave and discuss music as they walk.

In Chapter Seventeen, it is 2:00 in the morning at the Bloom's home at 7 Eccles Street. The narrative
style is in the dry, question-and-answer style of the catechism. Stephen and Bloom are brought together
for the last time here. Stephen seeks a father, Bloom seeks a son. At the same time, each of them is
individual, yet harmoniously joined. In the text, they are united by a word play, becoming "Stoom and
Blephen," but their union or reconciliation is ephemeral. They urinate in the garden, Bloom invites
Stephen to stay, Stephen declines and leaves.

In Chapter Eighteen, called "Molly's Soliloquy," Molly is in bed, just on the cusp of sleep. The entire
chapter is from Molly's point of view, revealing Molly's thoughts. She is thinking about her husband, her
meeting with Boylan earlier that day (in that very bed), her past, her hopes. Among other things, she
suspects Bloom of having an affair, she thinks of woman's lot in the games of courting and mating, she
thinks of her lovers, and she longs for a glamorous life. She thinks of beauty and ugliness, and her
thoughts are interrupted by a train whistle. She thinks of her past life in Gibraltar and laments the
drabness of her present. She thinks about her health and her daughter, she thinks about her visits to the
doctor, and muses about Stephen. Her thoughts turn to Rudy and Bloom. She thinks of humiliating her
husband, she recalls the time when she and Bloom first made love, letting the reader see she clearly
prefers Bloom to Boylan. Punctuation, selection, comment, things usually associated with authorial
control, are missing.

Those familiar with The Odyssey will see the ironic comparison between Molly Bloom and with
Penelope, who uses her knowledge of the construction of hers and Ulysses' bed to confirm the identity
of her long-absent husband. This chapter begins and ends with the affirmative Yes. The yeses represent
Molly's ongoing optimism to life in general, punctuating the choices she has made and the memories
she has revisited during the entire soliloquy. The yesses also represent Joyce's belief that women are a
positive life force, a notion he was at pains to demonstrate in this remarkable soliloquy. The key here is
to be found in Molly's ultimate decision to serve Bloom breakfast in bed tomorrow.

====// TESS OF THE DURBERVILLES\\=====

Character List

Tess Durbeyfield -

The novels protagonist. Tess is a beautiful, loyal young woman living with her impoverished family in
the village of Marlott. Tess has a keen sense of responsibility and is committed to doing the best she can
for her family, although her inexperience and lack of wise parenting leave her extremely vulnerable. Her
life is complicated when her father discovers a link to the noble line of the dUrbervilles, and, as a result,
Tess is sent to work at the dUrberville mansion. Unfortunately, her ideals cannot prevent her from
sliding further and further into misfortune after she becomes pregnant by Alec dUrberville. The terrible
irony is that Tess and her family are not really related to this branch of the dUrbervilles at all: Alecs
father, a merchant named Simon Stokes, simply assumed the name after he retired.

Angel Clare -

An intelligent young man who has decided to become a farmer to preserve his intellectual freedom from
the pressures of city life. Angels father and his two brothers are respected clergymen, but Angels
religious doubts have kept him from joining the ministry. He meets Tess when she is a milkmaid at the
Talbothays Dairy and quickly falls in love with her.

Read an in-depth analysis of Angel Clare.

Alec dUrberville -

The handsome, amoral son of a wealthy merchant named Simon Stokes. Alec is not really a
dUrbervillehis father simply took on the name of the ancient noble family after he built his mansion
and retired. Alec is a manipulative, sinister young man who does everything he can to seduce the
inexperienced Tess when she comes to work for his family. When he finally has his way with her, out in
the woods, he subsequently tries to help her but is unable to make her love him.

Read an in-depth analysis of Alec dUrberville.

Mr. John Durbeyfield -

Tesss father, a lazy peddler in Marlott. John is naturally quick, but he hates work. When he learns that
he descends from the noble line of the dUrbervilles, he is quick to make an attempt to profit from the
connection.

Mrs. Joan Durbeyfield -

Tesss mother. Joan has a strong sense of propriety and very particular hopes for Tesss life. She is
continually disappointed and hurt by the way in which her daughters life actually proceeds. But she is
also somewhat simpleminded and naturally forgiving, and she is unable to remain angry with Tess
particularly once Tess becomes her primary means of support.

Mrs. dUrberville -

Alecs mother, and the widow of Simon Stokes. Mrs. dUrberville is blind and often ill. She cares deeply
for her animals, but not for her maid Elizabeth, her son Alec, nor Tess when she comes to work for her.
In fact, she never sees Tess as anything more than an impoverished girl.

Marian, Izz Huett, and Retty Priddle -

Milkmaids whom Tess befriends at the Talbothays Dairy. Marian, Izz, and Retty remain close to Tess
throughout the rest of her life. They are all in love with Angel and are devastated when he chooses Tess
over them: Marian turns to drink, Retty attempts suicide, and Izz nearly runs off to Brazil with Angel
when he leaves Tess. Nevertheless, they remain helpful to Tess. Marian helps her find a job at a farm
called Flintcomb-Ash, and Marian and Izz write Angel a plaintive letter encouraging him to give Tess
another chance.

Reverend Clare -
Angels father, a somewhat intractable but principled clergyman in the town of Emminster. Mr. Clare
considers it his duty to convert the populace. One of his most difficult cases proves to be none other
than Alec dUrberville.

Mrs. Clare -

Angels mother, a loving but snobbish woman who places great stock in social class. Mrs. Clare wants
Angel to marry a suitable woman, meaning a woman with the proper social, financial, and religious
background. Mrs. Clare initially looks down on Tess as a simple and impoverished girl, but later grows
to appreciate her.

Reverend Felix Clare -

Angels brother, a village curate.

Reverend Cuthbert -

Clare Angels brother, a classical scholar and dean at Cambridge. Cuthbert, who can concentrate only on
university matters, marries Mercy Chant.

Eliza Louisa Durbeyfield - Tesss younger sister. Tess believes Liza-Lu has all of Tesss own good qualities
and none of her bad ones, and she encourages Angel to look after and even marry Liza-Lu after Tess
dies.

Sorrow -

Tesss son with Alec dUrberville. Sorrow dies in his early infancy, after Tess christens him herself. She
later buries him herself as well, and decorates his grave.

Mercy Chant -

The daughter of a friend of the Reverend Clare. Mr. Clare hopes Angel will marry Mercy, but after Angel
marries Tess, Mercy becomes engaged to his brother Cuthbert instead.

SUMMARY

The poor peddler John Durbeyfield is stunned to learn that he is the descendent of an ancient noble
family, the dUrbervilles. Meanwhile, Tess, his eldest daughter, joins the other village girls in the May
Day dance, where Tess briefly exchanges glances with a young man. Mr. Durbeyfield and his wife decide
to send Tess to the dUrberville mansion, where they hope Mrs. dUrberville will make Tesss fortune. In
reality, Mrs. dUrberville is no relation to Tess at all: her husband, the merchant Simon Stokes, simply
changed his name to dUrberville after he retired. But Tess does not know this fact, and when the
lascivious Alec dUrberville, Mrs. dUrbervilles son, procures Tess a job tending fowls on the dUrberville
estate, Tess has no choice but to accept, since she blames herself for an accident involving the familys
horse, its only means of income.

Tess spends several months at this job, resisting Alecs attempts to seduce her. Finally, Alec takes
advantage of her in the woods one night after a fair. Tess knows she does not love Alec. She returns
home to her family to give birth to Alecs child, whom she christens Sorrow. Sorrow dies soon after he is
born, and Tess spends a miserable year at home before deciding to seek work elsewhere. She finally
accepts a job as a milkmaid at the Talbothays Dairy.

At Talbothays, Tess enjoys a period of contentment and happiness. She befriends three of her fellow
milkmaidsIzz, Retty, and Marianand meets a man named Angel Clare, who turns out to be the man
from the May Day dance at the beginning of the novel. Tess and Angel slowly fall in love. They grow
closer throughout Tesss time at Talbothays, and she eventually accepts his proposal of marriage. Still,
she is troubled by pangs of conscience and feels she should tell Angel about her past. She writes him a
confessional note and slips it under his door, but it slides under the carpet and Angel never sees it.

After their wedding, Angel and Tess both confess indiscretions: Angel tells Tess about an affair he had
with an older woman in London, and Tess tells Angel about her history with Alec. Tess forgives Angel,
but Angel cannot forgive Tess. He gives her some money and boards a ship bound for Brazil, where he
thinks he might establish a farm. He tells Tess he will try to accept her past but warns her not to try to
join him until he comes for her.

Tess struggles. She has a difficult time finding work and is forced to take a job at an unpleasant and
unprosperous farm. She tries to visit Angels family but overhears his brothers discussing Angels poor
marriage, so she leaves. She hears a wandering preacher speak and is stunned to discover that he is Alec
dUrberville, who has been converted to Christianity by Angels father, the Reverend Clare. Alec and Tess
are each shaken by their encounter, and Alec appallingly begs Tess never to tempt him again. Soon after,
however, he again begs Tess to marry him, having turned his back on his -religious ways.

Tess learns from her sister Liza-Lu that her mother is near death, and Tess is forced to return home to
take care of her. Her mother recovers, but her father unexpectedly dies soon after. When the family is
evicted from their home, Alec offers help. But Tess refuses to accept, knowing he only wants to obligate
her to him again.

At last, Angel decides to forgive his wife. He leaves Brazil, desperate to find her. Instead, he finds her
mother, who tells him Tess has gone to a village called Sandbourne. There, he finds Tess in an expensive
boardinghouse called The Herons, where he tells her he has forgiven her and begs her to take him back.
Tess tells him he has come too late. She was unable to resist and went back to Alec dUrberville. Angel
leaves in a daze, and, heartbroken to the point of madness, Tess goes upstairs and stabs her lover to
death. When the landlady finds Alecs body, she raises an alarm, but Tess has already fled to find Angel.

Angel agrees to help Tess, though he cannot quite believe that she has actually murdered Alec. They
hide out in an empty mansion for a few days, then travel farther. When they come to Stonehenge, Tess
goes to sleep, but when morning breaks shortly thereafter, a search party discovers them. Tess is
arrested and sent to jail. Angel and Liza-Lu watch as a black flag is raised over the prison, signaling Tesss
execution.

______HAMLET

#SUMMARY

Prince Hamlet is depressed. Having been summoned home to Denmark from school in Germany to
attend his father's funeral, he is shocked to find his mother Gertrude already remarried. The Queen has
wed Hamlet's Uncle Claudius, the dead king's brother. To Hamlet, the marriage is "foul incest." Worse
still, Claudius has had himself crowned King despite the fact that Hamlet was his father's heir to the
throne. Hamlet suspects foul play.

When his father's ghost visits the castle, Hamlet's suspicions are confirmed. The Ghost complains that
he is unable to rest in peace because he was murdered. Claudius, says the Ghost, poured poison in King
Hamlet's ear while the old king napped. Unable to confess and find salvation, King Hamlet is now
consigned, for a time, to spend his days in Purgatory and walk the earth by night. He entreats Hamlet to
avenge his death, but to spare Gertrude, to let Heaven decide her fate.

Hamlet vows to affect madness puts "an antic disposition on" to wear a mask that will enable him
to observe the interactions in the castle, but finds himself more confused than ever. In his persistent
confusion, he questions the Ghost's trustworthiness. What if the Ghost is not a true spirit, but rather an
agent of the devil sent to tempt him? What if killing Claudius results in Hamlet's having to relive his
memories for all eternity? Hamlet agonizes over what he perceives as his cowardice because he cannot
stop himself from thinking. Words immobilize Hamlet, but the world he lives in prizes action.

In order to test the Ghost's sincerity, Hamlet enlists the help of a troupe of players who perform a play
called The Murder of Gonzago to which Hamlet has added scenes that recreate the murder the Ghost
described. Hamlet calls the revised play The Mousetrap, and the ploy proves a success. As Hamlet had
hoped, Claudius' reaction to the staged murder reveals the King to be conscience-stricken. Claudius
leaves the room because he cannot breathe, and his vision is dimmed for want of light. Convinced now
that Claudius is a villain, Hamlet resolves to kill him. But, as Hamlet observes, "conscience doth make
cowards of us all."

In his continued reluctance to dispatch Claudius, Hamlet actually causes six ancillary deaths. The first
death belongs to Polonius, whom Hamlet stabs through a wallhanging as the old man spies on Hamlet
and Gertrude in the Queen's private chamber. Claudius punishes Hamlet for Polonius' death by exiling
him to England. He has brought Hamlet's school chums Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to Denmark from
Germany to spy on his nephew, and now he instructs them to deliver Hamlet into the English king's
hands for execution. Hamlet discovers the plot and arranges for the hanging of Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern instead. Ophelia, distraught over her father's death and Hamlet's behavior, drowns while
singing sad love songs bemoaning the fate of a spurned lover. Her brother, Laertes, falls next.

Laertes, returned to Denmark from France to avenge his father's death, witnesses Ophelia's descent into
madness. After her funeral, where he and Hamlet come to blows over which of them loved Ophelia best,
Laertes vows to punish Hamlet for her death as well.

Unencumbered by words, Laertes plots with Claudius to kill Hamlet. In the midst of the sword fight,
however, Laertes drops his poisoned sword. Hamlet retrieves the sword and cuts Laertes. The lethal
poison kills Laertes. Before he dies, Laertes tells Hamlet that because Hamlet has already been cut with
the same sword, he too will shortly die. Horatio diverts Hamlet's attention from Laertes for a moment by
pointing out that "The Queen falls."

Gertrude, believing that Hamlet's hitting Laertes means her son is winning the fencing match, has drunk
a toast to her son from the poisoned cup Claudius had intended for Hamlet. The Queen dies.

As Laertes lies dying, he confesses to Hamlet his part in the plot and explains that Gertrude's death lies
on Claudius' head. Finally enraged, Hamlet stabs Claudius with the poisoned sword and then pours the
last of the poisoned wine down the King's throat. Before he dies, Hamlet declares that the throne should
now pass to Prince Fortinbras of Norway, and he implores his true friend Horatio to accurately explain
the events that have led to the bloodbath at Elsinore. With his last breath, he releases himself from the
prison of his words: "The rest is silence."

The play ends as Prince Fortinbras, in his first act as King of Denmark, orders a funeral with full military
honors for slain Prince Hamlet.

_____WUTHERING HEIGHTS
 #SUMMARY

Wuthering Heights opens with Lockwood, a tenant of Heathcliff's, visiting the home of his landlord. A
subsequent visit to Wuthering Heights yields an accident and a curious supernatural encounter, which
pique Lockwood's curiosity. Back at Thrushcross Grange and recuperating from his illness, Lockwood
begs Nelly Dean, a servant who grew up in Wuthering Heights and now cares for Thrushcross Grange, to
tell him of the history of Heathcliff. Nelly narrates the main plot line of Wuthering Heights.

Mr. Earnshaw, a Yorkshire Farmer and owner of Wuthering Heights, brings home an orphan from
Liverpool. The boy is named Heathcliff and is raised with the Earnshaw children, Hindley and Catherine.
Catherine loves Heathcliff but Hindley hates him because Heathcliff has replaced Hindley in Mr.
Earnshaw's affection. After Mr. Earnshaw's death, Hindley does what he can to destroy Heathcliff, but
Catherine and Heathcliff grow up playing wildly on the moors, oblivious of anything or anyone else
until they encounter the Lintons.

Edgar and Isabella Linton live at Thrushcross Grange and are the complete opposites of Heathcliff and
Catherine. The Lintons welcome Catherine into their home but shun Heathcliff. Treated as an outsider
once again, Heathcliff begins to think about revenge. Catherine, at first, splits her time between
Heathcliff and Edgar, but soon she spends more time with Edgar, which makes Heathcliff jealous. When
Heathcliff overhears Catherine tell Nelly that she can never marry him (Heathcliff), he leaves Wuthering
Heights and is gone for three years.

While he is gone, Catherine continues to court and ends up marrying Edgar. Their happiness is short-
lived because they are from two different worlds, and their relationship is strained further when
Heathcliff returns. Relationships are complicated even more as Heathcliff winds up living with his
enemy, Hindley (and Hindley's son, Hareton), at Wuthering Heights and marries Isabella, Edgar's sister.
Soon after Heathcliff's marriage, Catherine gives birth to Edgar's daughter, Cathy, and dies.

Heathcliff vows revenge and does not care who he hurts while executing it. He desires to gain control of
Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange and to destroy everything Edgar Linton holds dear. In order
to exact his revenge, Heathcliff must wait 17 years. Finally, he forces Cathy to marry his son, Linton. By
this time he has control of the Heights and with Edgar's death, he has control of the Grange.

Through all of this, though, the ghost of Catherine haunts Heathcliff. What he truly desires more than
anything else is to be reunited with his soul mate. At the end of the novel, Heathcliff and Catherine are
united in death, and Hareton and Cathy are going to be united in marriage.
______JANE EYRE

#SUMMARY

Orphaned as an infant, Jane Eyre lives with at Gateshead with her aunt, Sarah Reed, as the novel opens.
Jane is ten years old, an outsider in the Reed family. Her female cousins, Georgiana and Eliza, tolerate,
but don't love her. Their brother, John, is more blatantly hostile to Jane, reminding her that she is a poor
dependent of his mother who shouldn't even be associating with the children of a gentleman. One day
he is angered to find Jane reading one of his books, so he takes the book away and throws it at her.
Finding this treatment intolerable, Jane fights back. She is blamed for the conflagration and sent to the
red-room, the place where her kind Uncle Reed died. In this frightening room, Jane thinks she sees her
uncle's ghost and begs to be set free. Her Aunt Reed refuses, insisting Jane remain in her prison until she
learns complete submissiveness. When the door to the red-room is locked once again, Jane passes out.
She wakes back in her own room, with the kind physician, Mr. Lloyd, standing over her bed. He advises
Aunt Reed to send Jane away to school, because she is obviously unhappy at Gateshead.

Jane is sent to Lowood School, a charity institution for orphan girls, run by Mr. Brocklehurst. A stingy
and mean-hearted minister, Brocklehurst provides the girls with starvation levels of food, freezing
rooms, and poorly made clothing and shoes. He justifies his poor treatment of them by saying that they
need to learn humility and by comparing them to the Christian martyrs, who also endured great
hardships. Despite the difficult conditions at Lowood, Jane prefers school to life with the Reeds. Here
she makes two new friends: Miss Temple and Helen Burns. From Miss Temple, Jane learns proper
ladylike behavior and compassion; from Helen she gains a more spiritual focus. The school's damp
conditions, combined with the girls' near-starvation diet, produces a typhus epidemic, in which nearly
half the students die, including Helen Burns, who dies in Jane's arms. Following this tragedy,
Brocklehurst is deposed from his position as manager of Lowood, and conditions become more
acceptable. Jane quickly becomes a star student, and after six years of hard work, an effective teacher.
Following two years of teaching at Lowood, Jane is ready for new challenges. Miss Temple marries, and
Lowood seems different without her. Jane places at advertisement for a governess position in the local
newspaper. She receives only one reply, from a Mrs. Fairfax of Thornfield, near Millcote, who seeks a
governess for a ten-year old girl. Jane accepts the job.

At Thornfield, a comfortable three-story country estate, Jane is warmly welcomed. She likes both her
new pupil, Adle Varens, and Mrs. Fairfax, the housekeeper at Thornfield, but is soon restless. One
January afternoon, while walking to Millcote to mail a letter, Jane helps a horseman whose horse has
slipped on a patch of ice and fallen. Returning to Thornfield, Jane discovers that this man is Edward
Fairfax Rochester, the owner of Thornfield and her employer. He is a dark-haired, moody man in his late
thirties. Although he is often taciturn, Jane grows fond of his mysterious, passionate nature. He tells
Jane about Adle's mother, Cline, a Parisian opera-singer who was once his mistress. Adle, he claims,
is not his daughter, but he rescued the poor girl after her mother abandoned her.
Jane also discovers that Thornfield harbors a secret. From time to time, she hears strange, maniacal
laughter coming from the third story. Mrs. Fairfax claims this is just Grace Poole, an eccentric servant
with a drinking problem. But Jane wonders if this is true. One night, Jane smells smoke in the hallway,
and realizes it is coming from Rochester's room. Jane races down to his room, discovering his curtains
and bed are on fire. Unable to wake Rochester, she douses both him and his bedding with cold water.
He asks her not to tell anyone about this incident and blames the arson on Grace Poole. Why doesn't he
press charges on Grace, or at least evict her from the house, Jane wonders.

Following this incident, Rochester leaves suddenly for a house party at a local estate. Jane is miserable
during his absence and realizes she is falling in love with him. After a weeklong absence, he returns with
a party of guests, including the beautiful Blanche Ingram. Jane jealously believes Rochester is pursing
this accomplished, majestic, dark-haired beauty. An old friend of Rochester's, Richard Mason, joins the
party one day. From him, Jane learns that Rochester once lived in Spanish Town, Jamaica. One night,
Mason is mysteriously attacked, supposedly by the crazy Grace Poole.

Jane leaves Thornfield for a month to attend her aunt, who is on her deathbed following her son John's
excessive debauchery and apparent suicide. Jane tries to create a reconciliation with her aunt, but the
woman refuses all Jane's attempts at appeasement. Before dying, she gives Jane a letter from her uncle,
John Eyre, who had hoped to adopt Jane and make her his heir. The letter was sent three years ago, but
Aunt Reed had vindictively kept it from Jane. Sarah Reed dies, unloved by her daughters.

When Jane returns to Thornfield, the houseguests have left. Rochester tells Jane he will soon marry
Blanche, so she and Adle will need to leave Thornfield. In the middle of this charade, Jane reveals her
love for him, and the two end up engaged. Jane is happy to be marrying the man she loves, but during
the month before the wedding she is plagued by strange dreams of a destroyed Thornfield and a wailing
infant. Two nights before the wedding, a frightening, dark-haired woman enters her room and rips her
wedding veil in two. Although Jane is certain this woman didn't look like Grace Poole, Rochester assures
her it must have been the bizarre servant. The morning of the wedding finally arrives. Jane and
Rochester stand at the altar, taking their vows, when suddenly a strange man announces there's an
impediment to the marriage: Rochester is already married to a woman named Bertha Antoinetta
Mason. Rochester rushes the wedding party back to Thornfield, where they find his insane and repulsive
wife locked in a room on the third story. Grace Poole is the woman's keeper, but Bertha was responsible
for the strange laughter and violence at Thornfield. Rochester tries to convince Jane to become his
mistress and move with him to a pleasure villa in the south of France.

Instead, Jane sneaks away in the middle of the night, with little money and no extra clothing. With
twenty shillings, the only money she has, she catches a coach that takes her to faraway Whitcross.
There, she spends three days roaming the woods, looking for work and, finally, begging for food. On the
third night, she follows a light that leads her across the moors to Marsh End (also called Moor House),
owned by the Rivers family. Hannah, the housekeeper, wants to send her away, but St. John Rivers, the
clergyman who owns the house, offers her shelter. Jane soon becomes close friends with St. John's
sisters, Diana and Mary, and he offers Jane a humble job as the schoolmistress for the poor girls in his
parish at Morton. Because their father lost most of his money before he died, Diana and Mary have
been forced to earn a living by working as governesses.

One day, St. John learns that, unbeknownst to her, Jane has inherited 20,000 pounds from her uncle,
John Eyre. Furthermore, she discovers that St. John's real name is St. John Eyre Rivers, so he, his sisters,
and Jane are cousins. The Rivers were cut out of John Eyre's will because of an argument between John
and their father. Thrilled to discover that she has a family, Jane insists on splitting the inheritance four
ways, and then remodels Moor House for her cousins, who will no longer need to work as governesses.
Not content with his life as a smalltime clergyman, St. John plans to become a missionary in India. He
tries to convince Jane to accompany him, as his wife. Realizing that St. John doesn't love her but just
wants to use her to accomplish his goals, Jane refuses his request, but suggests a compromise by
agreeing to follow him to India as a comrade, but not as a wife. St. John tries to coerce her into the
marriage, and has almost succeeded, when, one night Jane suddenly hears Rochester's disembodied
voice calling out to her.

Jane immediately leaves Moor House to search for her true love, Rochester. Arriving at Millcote, she
discovers Thornfield a burned wreck, just as predicted in her dreams. From a local innkeeper, she learns
that Bertha Mason burned the house down one night and that Rochester lost an eye and a hand while
trying to save her and the servants. He now lives in seclusion at Ferndean.

Jane immediately drives to Ferndean. There she discovers a powerless, unhappy Rochester. Jane carries
a tray to him and reveals her identity. The two lovers are joyfully reunited and soon marry. Ten years
later, Jane writes this narrative. Her married life is still blissful; Adle has grown to be a helpful
companion for Jane; Diana and Mary Rivers are happily married; St. John still works as a missionary, but
is nearing death; and Rochester has regained partial vision, enough to see their first-born son.

____ANIMAL FARM

#SUMMARY

One night, all the animals at Mr. Jones' Manor Farm assemble in a barn to hear old Major, a pig,
describe a dream he had about a world where all animals live free from the tyranny of their human
masters. old Major dies soon after the meeting, but the animals inspired by his philosophy of
Animalism plot a rebellion against Jones. Two pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, prove themselves
important figures and planners of this dangerous enterprise. When Jones forgets to feed the animals,
the revolution occurs, and Jones and his men are chased off the farm. Manor Farm is renamed Animal
Farm, and the Seven Commandments of Animalism are painted on the barn wall.
Initially, the rebellion is a success: The animals complete the harvest and meet every Sunday to debate
farm policy. The pigs, because of their intelligence, become the supervisors of the farm. Napoleon,
however, proves to be a power-hungry leader who steals the cows' milk and a number of apples to feed
himself and the other pigs. He also enlists the services of Squealer, a pig with the ability to persuade the
other animals that the pigs are always moral and correct in their decisions.

Later that fall, Jones and his men return to Animal Farm and attempt to retake it. Thanks to the tactics
of Snowball, the animals defeat Jones in what thereafter becomes known as The Battle of the Cowshed.
Winter arrives, and Mollie, a vain horse concerned only with ribbons and sugar, is lured off the farm by
another human. Snowball begins drawing plans for a windmill, which will provide electricity and thereby
give the animals more leisure time, but Napoleon vehemently opposes such a plan on the grounds that
building the windmill will allow them less time for producing food. On the Sunday that the pigs offer the
windmill to the animals for a vote, Napoleon summons a pack of ferocious dogs, who chase Snowball off
the farm forever. Napoleon announces that there will be no further debates; he also tells them that the
windmill will be built after all and lies that it was his own idea, stolen by Snowball. For the rest of the
novel, Napoleon uses Snowball as a scapegoat on whom he blames all of the animals' hardships.

Much of the next year is spent building the windmill. Boxer, an incredibly strong horse, proves himself to
be the most valuable animal in this endeavor. Jones, meanwhile, forsakes the farm and moves to
another part of the county. Contrary to the principles of Animalism, Napoleon hires a solicitor and
begins trading with neighboring farms. When a storm topples the half-finished windmill, Napoleon
predictably blames Snowball and orders the animals to begin rebuilding it.

Napoleon's lust for power increases to the point where he becomes a totalitarian dictator, forcing
"confessions" from innocent animals and having the dogs kill them in front of the entire farm. He and
the pigs move into Jones' house and begin sleeping in beds (which Squealer excuses with his brand of
twisted logic). The animals receive less and less food, while the pigs grow fatter. After the windmill is
completed in August, Napoleon sells a pile of timber to Jones; Frederick, a neighboring farmer who pays
for it with forged banknotes. Frederick and his men attack the farm and explode the windmill but are
eventually defeated. As more of the Seven Commandments of Animalism are broken by the pigs, the
language of the Commandments is revised: For example, after the pigs become drunk one night, the
Commandment, "No animals shall drink alcohol" is changed to, "No animal shall drink alcohol to excess."

Boxer again offers his strength to help build a new windmill, but when he collapses, exhausted,
Napoleon sells the devoted horse to a knacker (a glue-boiler). Squealer tells the indignant animals that
Boxer was actually taken to a veterinarian and died a peaceful death in a hospital a tale the animals
believe.
Years pass and Animal Farm expands its boundaries after Napoleon purchases two fields from another
neighboring farmer, Pilkington. Life for all the animals (except the pigs) is harsh. Eventually, the pigs
begin walking on their hind legs and take on many other qualities of their former human oppressors. The
Seven Commandments are reduced to a single law: "All Animals Are Equal / But Some Are More Equal
Than Others." The novel ends with Pilkington sharing drinks with the pigs in Jones' house. Napoleon
changes the name of the farm back to Manor Farm and quarrels with Pilkington during a card game in
which both of them try to play the ace of spades. As other animals watch the scene from outside the
window, they cannot tell the pigs from the humans.

_________THE GREAT GATSBY

#SUMMARY

The Great Gatsby is a story told by Nick Carraway, who was once Gatsby's neighbor, and he tells the
story sometime after 1922, when the incidents that fill the book take place. As the story opens, Nick has
just moved from the Midwest to West Egg, Long Island, seeking his fortune as a bond salesman. Shortly
after his arrival, Nick travels across the Sound to the more fashionable East Egg to visit his cousin Daisy
Buchanan and her husband, Tom, a hulking, imposing man whom Nick had known in college. There he
meets professional golfer Jordan Baker. The Buchanans and Jordan Baker live privileged lives,
contrasting sharply in sensibility and luxury with Nick's more modest and grounded lifestyle. When Nick
returns home that evening, he notices his neighbor, Gatsby, mysteriously standing in the dark and
stretching his arms toward the water, and a solitary green light across the Sound.

One day, Nick is invited to accompany Tom, a blatant adulterer, to meet his mistress, Myrtle Wilson, a
middle-class woman whose husband runs a modest garage and gas station in the valley of ashes, a
desolate and run-down section of town that marks the convergence of the city and the suburbs. After
the group meets and journeys into the city, Myrtle phones friends to come over and they all spend the
afternoon drinking at Myrtle and Tom's apartment. The afternoon is filled with drunken behavior and
ends ominously with Myrtle and Tom fighting over Daisy, his wife. Drunkenness turns to rage and Tom,
in one deft movement, breaks Myrtle's nose.

Following the description of this incident, Nick turns his attention to his mysterious neighbor, who hosts
weekly parties for the rich and fashionable. Upon Gatsby's invitation (which is noteworthy because
rarely is anyone ever invited to Gatsby's parties they just show up, knowing they will not be turned
away), Nick attends one of the extravagant gatherings. There, he bumps into Jordan Baker, as well as
Gatsby himself. Gatsby, it turns out, is a gracious host, but yet remains apart from his guest an
observer more than a participant as if he is seeking something. As the party winds down, Gatsby
takes Jordan aside to speak privately. Although the reader isn't specifically told what they discuss,
Jordan is greatly amazed by what she's learned.
As the summer unfolds, Gatsby and Nick become friends and Jordan and Nick begin to see each other on
a regular basis, despite Nick's conviction that she is notoriously dishonest (which offends his sensibilities
because he is "one of the few honest people" he has ever met). Nick and Gatsby journey into the city
one day and there Nick meets Meyer Wolfshiem, one of Gatsby's associates and Gatsby's link to
organized crime. On that same day, while having tea with Jordan Baker, Nick learns the amazing story
that Gatsby told her the night of his party. Gatsby, it appears, is in love with Daisy Buchanan. They met
years earlier when he was in the army but could not be together because he did not yet have the means
to support her. In the intervening years, Gatsby made his fortune, all with the goal of winning Daisy
back. He bought his house so that he would be across the Sound from her and hosted the elaborate
parties in the hopes that she would notice. It has come time for Gatsby to meet Daisy again, face-to-
face, and so, through the intermediary of Jordan Baker, Gatsby asks Nick to invite Daisy to his little
house where Gatsby will show up unannounced.

The day of the meeting arrives. Nick's house is perfectly prepared, due largely to the generosity of the
hopeless romantic Gatsby, who wants every detail to be perfect for his reunion with his lost love. When
the former lovers meet, their reunion is slightly nervous, but shortly, the two are once again
comfortable with each other, leaving Nick to feel an outsider in the warmth the two people radiate. As
the afternoon progresses, the three move the party from Nick's house to Gatsby's, where he takes
special delight in showing Daisy his meticulously decorated house and his impressive array of
belongings, as if demonstrating in a very tangible way just how far out of poverty he has traveled.

At this point, Nick again lapses into memory, relating the story of Jay Gatsby. Born James Gatz to
"shiftless and unsuccessful farm people," Gatsby changed his name at seventeen, about the same time
he met Dan Cody. Cody would become Gatsby's mentor, taking him on in "a vague personal capacity"
for five years as he went three times around the Continent. By the time of Cody's death, Gatsby had
grown into manhood and had defined the man he would become. Never again would he acknowledge
his meager past; from that point on, armed with a fabricated family history, he was Jay Gatsby,
entrepreneur.

Moving back to the present, we discover that Daisy and Tom will attend one of Gatsby's parties. Tom, of
course, spends his time chasing women, while Daisy and Gatsby sneak over to Nick's yard for a
moment's privacy while Nick, accomplice in the affair, keeps guard. After the Buchanans leave, Gatsby
tells Nick of his secret desire: to recapture the past. Gatsby, the idealistic dreamer, firmly believes the
past can be recaptured in its entirety. Gatsby then goes on to tell what it is about his past with Daisy
that has made such an impact on him.

As the summer unfolds, Gatsby and Daisy's affair begins to grow and they see each other regularly. On
one fateful day, the hottest and most unbearable of the summer, Gatsby and Nick journey to East Egg to
have lunch with the Buchanans and Jordan Baker. Oppressed by the heat, Daisy suggests they take
solace in a trip to the city. No longer hiding her love for Gatsby, Daisy pays him special attention and
Tom deftly picks up on what's going on. As the party prepares to leave for the city, Tom fetches a bottle
of whiskey. Tom, Nick, and Jordan drive in Gatsby's car, while Gatsby and Daisy drive Tom's coupe. Low
on gas, Tom stops Gatsby's car at Wilson's gas station, where he sees that Wilson is not well. Like Tom,
who has just learned of Daisy's affair, Wilson has just learned of Myrtle's secret life although he does
not know who the man is and it has made him physically sick. Wilson announces his plans to take
Myrtle out West, much to Tom's dismay. Tom has lost a wife and a mistress all in a matter of an hour.
Absorbed in his own fears, Tom hastily drives into the city.

The group ends up at the Plaza hotel, where they continue drinking, moving the day closer and closer to
its tragic end. Tom, always a hot-head, begins to badger Gatsby, questioning him as to his intentions
with Daisy. Decidedly tactless and confrontational, Tom keeps harping on Gatsby until the truth comes
out: Gatsby wants Daisy to admit she's never loved Tom but that, instead, she has always loved him.
When Daisy is unable to do this, Gatsby declares that Daisy is going to leave Tom. Tom, though,
understands Daisy far better than Gatsby does and knows she won't leave him: His wealth and power,
matured through generations of privilege, will triumph over Gatsby's newly found wealth. In a gesture of
authority, Tom orders Daisy and Gatsby to head home in Gatsby's car. Tom, Nick, and Jordan follow.

As Tom's car nears Wilson's garage, they can all see that some sort of accident has occurred. Pulling over
to investigate, they learn that Myrtle Wilson, Tom's mistress, has been hit and killed by a passing car
that never bothered to stop, and it appears to have been Gatsby's car. Tom, Jordan, and Nick continue
home to East Egg. Nick, now disgusted by the morality and behavior of the people with whom he has
been on friendly terms, meets Gatsby outside of the Buchanans' house where he is keeping watch for
Daisy. With a few well-chosen questions, Nick learns that Daisy, not Gatsby, was driving the car,
although Gatsby confesses he will take all the blame. Nick, greatly agitated by all that he has
experienced during the day, continues home, but an overarching feeling of dread haunts him.

Nearing dawn the next morning, Nick goes to Gatsby's house. While the two men turn the house upside
down looking for cigarettes, Gatsby tells Nick more about how he became the man he is and how Daisy
figured into his life. Later that morning, while at work, Nick is unable to concentrate. He receives a
phone call from Jordan Baker, but is quick to end the discussion and thereby the friendship. He plans
to take an early train home and check on Gatsby.

The action then switches back to Wilson who, distraught over his wife's death, sneaks out and goes
looking for the driver who killed Myrtle. Nick retraces Wilson's journey, which placed him, by early
afternoon, at Gatsby's house. Wilson murders Gatsby and then turns the gun on himself.

After Gatsby's death, Nick is left to help make arrangements for his burial. What is most perplexing,
though, is that no one seems overly concerned with Gatsby's death. Daisy and Tom mysteriously leave
on a trip and all the people who so eagerly attended his parties, drinking his liquor and eating his food,
refuse to become involved. Even Meyer Wolfshiem, Gatsby's business partner, refuses to publicly mourn
his friend's death. A telegram from Henry C. Gatz, Gatsby's father, indicates he will be coming from
Minnesota to bury his son. Gatsby's funeral boasts only Nick, Henry Gatz, a few servants, the postman,
and the minister at the graveside. Despite all his popularity during his lifetime, in his death, Gatsby is
completely forgotten.

Nick, completely disillusioned with what he has experienced in the East, prepares to head back to the
Midwest. Before leaving, he sees Tom Buchanan one last time. When Tom notices him and questions
him as to why he didn't want to shake hands, Nick curtly offers "You know what I think of you." Their
discussion reveals that Tom was the impetus behind Gatsby's death. When Wilson came to his house, he
told Wilson that Gatsby owned the car that killed Myrtle. In Tom's mind, he had helped justice along.
Nick, disgusted by the carelessness and cruel nature of Tom, Daisy, and those like them, leaves Tom,
proud of his own integrity.

On the last night before leaving, Nick goes to Gatsby's mansion, then to the shore where Gatsby once
stood, arms outstretched toward the green light. The novel ends prophetically, with Nick noting how we
are all a little like Gatsby, boats moving up a river, going forward but continually feeling the pull of the
past.

______JEW OF MALTA

The play opens with a Prologue narrated by Machevill, a caricature of the author Machiavelli. This
character explains that he is presenting the "tragedy of a Jew" who has become rich by following
Machiavelli's teachings.

Act I opens with a Jewish merchant, called Barabas, waiting for news about the return of his ships from
the east. He discovers that they have safely docked in Malta, before three Jews arrive to inform him that
they must go to the senate-house to meet the governor. Once there, Barabas discovers that along with
every other Jew on the island he must forfeit half of his estate to help the government pay tribute to the
Turks. When the Barabas protests at this unfair treatment, the governor Ferneze confiscates all of
Barabas's wealth and decides to turn Barabas's house into a convent. Barabas vows revenge but first
attempts to recover some of the treasures he has hidden in his mansion. His daughter, Abigail, pretends
to convert to Christianity in order to enter the convent. She smuggles out her father's gold at night.

Ferneze meets with Del Bosco, the Spanish Vice-Admiral, who wishes to sell Turkish slaves in the market
place. Del Bosco convinces Ferneze to break his alliance with the Turks in return for Spanish protection.
While viewing the slaves, Barabas meets up with Ferneze's, Lodowick. This man has heard of Abigail's
great beauty from his friend (and Abigail's lover) Mathias. Barabas realizes that he can use Lodowick to
exact revenge on Ferneze, and so he dupes the young man into thinking Abigail will marry him. While
doing this, the merchant buys a slave called Ithamore who hates Christians as much as his new master
does. Mathias sees Barabas talking to Lodowick and demands to know whether they are discussing
Abigail. Barabas lies to Mathias, and so Barabas deludes both young men into thinking that Abigail has
been promised to them. At home, Barabas orders his reluctant daughter to get betrothed to Lodowick.
At the end of the second Act, the two young men vow revenge on each other for attempting to woo
Abigail behind one another's backs. Barabas seizes on this opportunity and gets Ithamore to deliver a
forged letter to Mathias, supposedly from Lodowick, challenging him to a duel.

Act III introduces the prostitute Bellamira and her pimp Pilia-Borza, who decide that they will steal some
of Barabas's gold since business has been slack. Ithamore enters and instantly falls in love with
Bellamira. Mathias and Lodowick kill each other in the duel orchestrated by Barabas and are found by
Ferneze and Katherine, Mathias's mother. The bereaved parents vow revenge on the perpetrator of
their sons' murders. Abigail finds Ithamore laughing, and Ithamore tells her of Barabas's role in the
young men's deaths. Grief-stricken, Abigail persuades a Dominican friar Jacomo to let her enter the
convent, even though she lied once before about converting. When Barabas finds out what Abigail has
done, he is enraged, and he decides to poison some rice and send it to the nuns. He instructs Ithamore
to deliver the food. In the next scene, Ferneze meets a Turkish emissary, and Ferneze explains that he
will not pay the required tribute. The Turk leaves, stating that his leader Calymath will attack the island.

Jacomo and another friar Bernardine despair at the deaths of all the nuns, who have been poisoned by
Barabas. Abigail enters, close to death, and confesses her father's role in Mathias's and Lodowick's
deaths to Jacomo. She knows that the priest cannot make this knowledge public because it was revealed
to him in confession.

Act IV shows Barabas and Ithamore delighting in the nuns' deaths. Bernardine and Jacomo enter with
the intention of confronting Barabas. Barabas realizes that Abigail has confessed his crimes to Jacomo.
In order to distract the two priests from their task, Barabas pretends that he wants to convert to
Christianity and give all his money to whichever monastery he joins. Jacomo and Bernardine start
fighting in order to get the Jew to join their own religious houses. Barabas hatches a plan and tricks
Bernardine into coming home with him. Ithamore then strangles Bernardine, and Barabas frames
Jacomo for the crime. The action switches to Bellamira and her pimp, who find Ithamore and persuade
him to bribe Barabas. The slave confesses his master's crimes to Bellamira, who decides to report them
to the governor after Barabas has given her his money. Barabas is maddened by the slave's treachery
and turns up at Bellamira's home disguised as a French lute player. Barabas then poisons all three
conspirators with the use of a poisoned flower.

The action moves quickly in the final act. Bellamira and Pilia-Borza confess Barabas's crimes to Ferneze,
and the murderer is sent for along with Ithamore. Shortly after, Bellamira, Pilia-Borza and Ithamore die.
Barabas fakes his own death and escapes to find Calymath. Barabas tells the Turkish leader how best to
storm the town. Following this event and the capture of Malta by the Turkish forces, Barabas is made
governor, and Calymath prepares to leave. However, fearing for his own life and the security of his
office, Barabas sends for Ferneze. Barabas tells him that he will free Malta from Turkish rule and kill
Calymath in exchange for a large amount of money. Ferneze agrees and Barabas invites Calymath to a
feast at his home. However, when Calymath arrives, Ferneze prevents Barabas from killing him. Ferneze
and Calymath watch as Barabas dies in a cauldron that Barabas had prepared for Calymath. Ferneze tells
the Turkish leader that he will be a prisoner in Malta until the Ottoman Emperor agrees to free the
island.

_____Waiting for Godot

#SUMMARY

ACT_______I

The setting is in the evening on a country road with a single tree present. Estragon is trying to pull off his
boot, but without success. Vladimir enters and greets Estragon, who informs him that he has spent the
night in a ditch where he was beaten. With supreme effort Estragon succeeds in pulling off his boot. He
then looks inside it to see if there is anything there while Vladimir does the same with his hat.

Vladimir mentions the two thieves who were crucified next to Christ. He asks Estragon if he knows the
Gospels. Estragon gives a short description of the maps of the Holy Land at which point Vladimir tells
him he should have been a poet. Estragon points to his tattered clothes and says he was. Vladimir
continues with his narrative about the two thieves in order to pass the time.

Estragon wants to leave but Vladimir forces him to stay because they are both waiting for Godot to
arrive. Neither of the two bums knows when Godot will appear, or even if they are at the right place.
Later it is revealed that they do not even know what they originally asked Godot for.

Estragon gets bored of waiting and suggests that they pass the time by hanging themselves from the
tree. They both like the idea but cannot decide who should go first. They are afraid that if one of them
dies the other might be left alone. In the end they decide it is safer to wait until Godot arrives.

Estragon asks Vladimir whether they still have rights. Vladimir indicates that they got rid of them. He
then fears that he hears something, but it turns out to be imaginary noises. Vladimir soon gives Estragon
a carrot to eat.

Pozzo and Lucky arrive. Lucky has a rope tied around his neck and is carrying a stool, a basket, a bag and
a greatcoat. Pozzo carries a whip which he uses to control Lucky. Estragon immediately confuses Pozzo
with Godot which gets Pozzo upset.

Pozzo spends several minutes ordering Lucky around. Lucky is completely silent and obeys like a
machine. Pozzo has Lucky put down the stool and open the basket of food which contains chicken.
Pozzo then eats the chicken and throws away the bones. Lucky stands in a stooped posture holding the
bags after each command has been completed and appears to be falling asleep.

Estragon and Vladimir go to inspect Lucky who intrigues them. They ask why he never puts his bags
down. Pozzo will not tell them, so Estragon proceeds to ask if he can have the chicken bones that Pozzo
has been throwing away. Pozzo tells him that they technically belong to Lucky. When they ask Lucky if
he wants them, he does not reply, so Estragon is given the bones.

Pozzo eventually tells them why Lucky hold the bags the entire time. He thinks it is because Lucky is
afraid of being given away. While Pozzo tells them why Lucky continues to carry his bags, Lucky starts to
weep. Estragon goes to wipe away the tears but receives a terrible kick in the shin.

Pozzo then tells them that he and Lucky have been together nearly sixty years. Vladimir is appalled at
the treatment of Lucky who appears to be such a faithful servant. Pozzo explains that he cannot bear it
any longer because Lucky is such a burden. Later Vladimir yells at Lucky that it is appalling the way he
treats such a good master.

Pozzo then gives an oratory about the night sky. He asks them how it was and they tell him it was quite a
good speech. Pozzo is ecstatic at the encouragement and offers to do something for them. Estragon
immediately asks for ten francs but Vladimir tells him to be silent. Pozzo offers to have Lucky dance and
then think for them.

Lucky dances for them and when asked for an encore repeats the entire dance step for step. Estragon is
unimpressed but almost falls trying to imitate it. They then make Lucky think. What follows is an
outpouring of religious and political doctrine which always starts ideas but never brings them to
completion. The three men finally wrestle Lucky to the ground and yank off his hat at which point he
stops speaking. His last word is, "unfinished."

The men then spend some effort trying to get Lucky to wake up again. He finally reawakens when the
bags are placed in his hand. Pozzo gets up to leave and he and Lucky depart the scene. Vladimir and
Estragon return to their seats and continue waiting for Godot.

A young boy arrives having been sent by Mr. Godot. Estragon is outraged that it took him so long to
arrive and scares him. Vladimir cut him off and asks the boy if he remembers him. The boy says this is his
first time coming to meet them and that Mr. Godot will not be able to come today but perhaps
tomorrow. The boy is sent away with the instructions to tell Mr. Godot that he has seen them. Both
Estragon and Vladimir discuss past events and then decide to depart for the night. Neither of them
moves from his seat.

ACT_________II

The setting is the next day at the same time. Estragon's boots and Lucky's hat are still on the stage.
Vladimir enters and starts to sing until Estragon shows up barefoot. Estragon is upset that Vladimir was
singing and happy even though he was not there. Both admit that they feel better when alone but
convince themselves they are happy when together. They are still waiting for Godot.

Estragon and Vladimir poetically talk about "all the dead voices" they hear. They are haunted by voices
in the sounds of nature, especially of the leaves rustling. Vladimir shouts at Estragon to help him not
hear the voices anymore. Estragon tries and finally decides that they should ask each other questions.
They manage to talk for a short while.

Estragon has forgotten everything that took place the day before. He has forgotten all about Pozzo and
Lucky as well as the fact that he wanted to hang himself from the tree. He cannot remember his boots
and thinks they must be someone else's. For some reason they fit him now when he tries them on. The
tree has sprouted leaves since the night before and Estragon comments that it must be spring. But when
Vladimir looks at Estragon's shin, it is still pussy and bleeding from where Lucky kicked him.

Soon they are done talking and try to find another topic for discussion. Vladimir finds Lucky's hat and
tries it on. He and Estragon spend a while trading hats until Vladimir throws his own hat on the ground
and asks how he looks. They then decide to play at being Pozzo and Lucky, but to no avail. Estragon
leaves only to immediately return panting. He says that they are coming. Vladimir thinks that it must be
Godot who is coming to save them. He then becomes afraid and tries to hide Estragon behind the tree,
which is too small to hide him.

The conversation then degenerates into abusive phrases. Estragon says, "That's the idea, let's abuse
each other." They continue to hurl insults at one another until Estragon calls Vladimir a critic. They
embrace and continue waiting.

Pozzo and Lucky enter but this time Pozzo is blind and Lucky is mute. Lucky stops when he sees the two
men. Pozzo crashes into him and they both fall helplessly in a heap on the ground. Vladimir is overjoyed
that reinforcements have arrived to help with the waiting. Estragon again thinks that Godot has arrived.
Vladimir and Estragon discuss the merits of helping Pozzo get off the ground where he has fallen. When
Vladimir asks how many other men spend their time in waiting, Estragon replies that it is billions. Pozzo
in desperation offers to pay for help by offering a hundred francs. Estragon says that it is not enough.
Vladimir does not want to pick up Pozzo because then he and Estragon would be alone again. Finally he
goes over and tries to pick him up but is unable to. Estragon decides to leave but decides to stay when
Vladimir convinces him to help first and then leave.

While trying to help Pozzo, both Vladimir and Estragon fall and cannot get up. When Pozzo talks again
Vladimir kicks him violently to make him shut up. Vladimir and Estragon finally get up, and Pozzo
resumes calling for help. They go and help him up. Pozzo asks who they are and what time it is. They
cannot answer his questions.

Estragon goes to wake up Lucky. He kicks him and starts hurling abuses until he again hurts his foot.
Estragon sits back down and tries to take off his boot. Vladimir tells Pozzo his friend is hurt.

Vladimir then asks Pozzo to make Lucky dance or think for them again. Pozzo tells him that Lucky is
mute. When Vladimir asks since when, Pozzo gets into a rage. He tells them to stop harassing him with
their time questions since he has no notion of it. He then helps Lucky up and they leave.

Vladimir reflects upon the fact that there is no truth and that by tomorrow he will know nothing of what
has just passed. There is no way of confirming his memories since Estragon always forgets everything
that happens to him.

The boy arrives again but does not remember meeting Estragon or Vladimir. He tells them it is his first
time coming to meet them. The conversation is identical in that Mr. Godot will once again not be able to
come but will be sure to arrive tomorrow. Vladimir demands that the boy be sure to remember that he
saw him. Vladimir yells, "You're sure you saw me, you won't come and tell me to-morrow that you never
saw me!"

The two bums decide to leave but cannot go far since they need to wait for Godot. They look at the tree
and contemplate hanging themselves. Estragon takes off his belt but it breaks when they pull on it. His
trousers fall down. Vladimir says that they will hang themselves tomorrow unless Godot comes to save
them. He tells Estragon to put on his trousers. They decide to leave but again do not move.

______Nineteen Eighty Four (1984)

BY #GeorgeOrwell
Winston Smith is a member of the Outer Party. He works in the Records Department in the Ministry of
Truth, rewriting and distorting history. To escape Big Brother's tyranny, at least inside his own mind,
Winston begins a diary an act punishable by death. Winston is determined to remain human under
inhuman circumstances. Yet telescreens are placed everywhere in his home, in his cubicle at work, in
the cafeteria where he eats, even in the bathroom stalls. His every move is watched. No place is safe.

One day, while at the mandatory Two Minutes Hate, Winston catches the eye of an Inner Party Member,
O'Brien, whom he believes to be an ally. He also catches the eye of a dark-haired girl from the Fiction
Department, whom he believes is his enemy and wants him destroyed. A few days later, Julia, the dark-
haired girl whom Winston believes to be against him, secretly hands him a note that reads, "I love you."
Winston takes pains to meet her, and when they finally do, Julia draws up a complicated plan whereby
they can be alone.

Alone in the countryside, Winston and Julia make love and begin their allegiance against the Party and
Big Brother. Winston is able to secure a room above a shop where he and Julia can go for their romantic
trysts. Winston and Julia fall in love, and, while they know that they will someday be caught, they
believe that the love and loyalty they feel for each other can never be taken from them, even under the
worst circumstances.

Eventually, Winston and Julia confess to O'Brien, whom they believe to be a member of the
Brotherhood (an underground organization aimed at bringing down the Party), their hatred of the Party.
O'Brien welcomes them into the Brotherhood with an array of questions and arranges for Winston to be
given a copy of "the book," the underground's treasonous volume written by their leader, Emmanuel
Goldstein, former ally of Big Brother turned enemy.

Winston gets the book at a war rally and takes it to the secure room where he reads it with Julia napping
by his side. The two are disturbed by a noise behind a painting in the room and discover a telescreen.
They are dragged away and separated. Winston finds himself deep inside the Ministry of Love, a kind of
prison with no windows, where he sits for days alone. Finally, O'Brien comes. Initially Winston believes
that O'Brien has also been caught, but he soon realizes that O'Brien is there to torture him and break his
spirit. The Party had been aware of Winston's "crimes" all along; in fact, O'Brien has been watching
Winston for the past seven years.

O'Brien spends the next few months torturing Winston in order to change his way of thinking to
employ the concept of doublethink, or the ability to simultaneously hold two opposing ideas in one's
mind and believe in them both. Winston believes that the human mind must be free, and to remain free,
one must be allowed to believe in an objective truth, such as 2 + 2 = 4. O'Brien wants Winston to believe
that 2 + 2 = 5, but Winston is resistant.
Finally, O'Brien takes Winston to Room 101, the most dreaded room of all in the Ministry of Love, the
place where prisoners meet their greatest fear. Winston's greatest fear is rats. O'Brien places over
Winston's head a mask made of wire mesh and threatens to open the door to release rats on Winston's
face. When Winston screams, "Do it to Julia!" he relinquishes his last vestige of humanity.

Winston is a changed man. He sits in the Chestnut Tree Caf, watching the telescreens and agonizing
over the results of daily battles on the front lines. He has seen Julia again. She, too, is changed, seeming
older and less attractive. She admits that she also betrayed him. In the end, there is no doubt, Winston
loves Big Brother.

___________THINGS FALL APART

___________BY CHINUA ACHEBE

#SUMMARY

Things Fall Apart is about the tragic fall of the protagonist, Okonkwo, and the Igbo culture. Okonkwo is a
respected and influential leader within the Igbo community of Umuofia in eastern Nigeria. He first earns
personal fame and distinction, and brings honor to his village, when he defeats Amalinze the Cat in a
wrestling contest. Okonkwo determines to gain titles for himself and become a powerful and wealthy
man in spite of his father's weaknesses.

Okonkwo's father, Unoka, was a lazy and wasteful man. He often borrowed money and then
squandered it on palm-wine and merrymaking with friends. Consequently, his wife and children often
went hungry. Within the community, Unoka was considered a failure and a laughingstock. He was
referred to as agbala, one who resembles the weakness of a woman and has no property. Unoka died a
shameful death and left numerous debts.

Okonkwo despises and resents his father's gentle and idle ways. He resolves to overcome the shame
that he feels as a result of his father's weaknesses by being what he considers to be "manly"; therefore,
he dominates his wives and children by being insensitive and controlling.

Because Okonkwo is a leader of his community, he is asked to care for a young boy named Ikemefuna,
who is given to the village as a peace offering by neighboring Mbaino to avoid war with Umuofia.
Ikemefuna befriends Okonkwo's son, Nwoye, and Okonkwo becomes inwardly fond of the boy.
Over the years, Okonkwo becomes an extremely volatile man; he is apt to explode at the slightest
provocation. He violates the Week of Peace when he beats his youngest wife, Ojiugo, because she went
to braid her hair at a friend's house and forgot to prepare the afternoon meal and feed her children.
Later, he severely beats and shoots a gun at his second wife, Ekwefi, because she took leaves from his
banana plant to wrap food for the Feast of the New Yam.

After the coming of the locusts, Ogbuefi Ezeuder, the oldest man in the village, relays to Okonkwo a
message from the Oracle. The Oracle says that Ikemefuna must be killed as part of the retribution for
the Umuofian woman killed three years earlier in Mbaino. He tells Okonkwo not to partake in the
murder, but Okonkwo doesn't listen. He feels that not participating would be a sign of weakness.
Consequently, Okonkwo kills Ikemefuna with his machete. Nwoye realizes that his father has murdered
Ikemefuna and begins to distance himself from his father and the clansmen.

Okonkwo becomes depressed after killing Ikemefuna, so he visits his best friend, Obierika, who
disapproves of his role in Ikemefuna's killing. Obierika says that Okonkwo's act will upset the Earth and
the earth goddess will seek revenge. After discussing Ikemefuna's death with Obierika, Okonkwo is
finally able to sleep restfully, but he is awakened by his wife Ekwefi. Their daughter Ezinma, whom
Okonkwo is fond of, is dying. Okonkwo gathers grasses, barks, and leaves to prepare medicine for
Ezinma.

A public trial is held on the village commons. Nine clan leaders, including Okonkwo, represent the spirits
of their ancestors. The nine clan leaders, or egwugwu, also represent the nine villages of Umuofia.
Okonkwo does not sit among the other eight leaders, or elders, while they listen to a dispute between
an estranged husband and wife. The wife, Mgbafo, had been severely beaten by her husband. Her
brother took her back to their family's village, but her husband wanted her back home. The egwugwu
tell the husband to take wine to his in-laws and beg his wife to come home. One elder wonders why
such a trivial dispute would come before the egwugwu.

In her role as priestess, Chielo tells Ekwefi (Okonkwo's second wife) that Agbala (the Oracle of the Hills
and Caves) needs to see Ezinma. Although Okonkwo and Ekwefi protest, Chielo takes a terrified Ezinma
on her back and forbids anyone to follow. Chielo carries Ezinma to all nine villages and then enters the
Oracle's cave. Ekwefi follows secretly, in spite of Chielo's admonitions, and waits at the entrance of the
Oracle. Okonkwo surprises Ekwefi by arriving at the cave, and he also waits with her. The next morning,
Chielo takes Ezinma to Ekwefi's hut and puts her to bed.

When Ogbuefi Ezeudu dies, Okonkwo worries because the last time that Ezeudu visited him was when
he warned Okonkwo against participating in the killing of Ikemefuna. Ezeudu was an important leader in
the village and achieved three titles of the clan's four, a rare accomplishment. During the large funeral,
Okonkwo's gun goes off, and Ezeudu's sixteen-year-old son is killed accidentally.
Because the accidental killing of a clansman is a crime against the earth goddess, Okonkwo and his
family must be exiled from Umuofia for seven years. The family moves to Okonkwo's mother's native
village, Mbanta. After they depart Umuofia, a group of village men destroy Okonkwo's compound and
kill his animals to cleanse the village of Okonkwo's sin. Obierika stores Okonkwo's yams in his barn and
wonders about the old traditions of the Igbo culture.

Okonkwo is welcomed to Mbanta by his maternal uncle, Uchendu, a village elder. He gives Okonkwo a
plot of land on which to farm and build a compound for his family. But Okonkwo is depressed, and he
blames his chi (or personal spirit) for his failure to achieve lasting greatness.

During Okonkwo's second year in exile, he receives a visit from his best friend, Obierika, who recounts
sad news about the village of Abame: After a white man rode into the village on a bicycle, the elders of
Abame consulted their Oracle, which told them that the white man would destroy their clan and other
clans. Consequently, the villagers killed the white man. But weeks later, a large group of men
slaughtered the villagers in retribution. The village of Abame is now deserted.

Okonkwo and Uchendu agree that the villagers were foolish to kill a man whom they knew nothing
about. Later, Obierika gives Okonkwo money that he received from selling Okonkwo's yams and seed-
yams, and he promises to do so until Okonkwo returns to Umuofia.

Six missionaries, including one white man, arrive in Mbanta. The white man speaks to the people about
Christianity. Okonkwo believes that the man speaks nonsense, but his son, Nwoye, is captivated and
becomes a convert of Christianity.

The Christian missionaries build a church on land given to them by the village leaders. However, the land
is a part of the Evil Forest, and according to tradition, the villagers believe that the missionaries will die
because they built their church on cursed land. But when nothing happens to the missionaries, the
people of Mbanta conclude that the missionaries possess extraordinary power and magic. The first
recruits of the missionaries are efulefu, the weak and worthless men of the village. Other villagers,
including a woman, soon convert to Christianity. The missionaries then go to Umuofia and start a school.
Nwoye leaves his father's hut and moves to Umuofia so he can attend the school.

Okonkwo's exile is over, so his family arranges to return to Umuofia. Before leaving Mbanta, they
prepare a huge feast for Okonkwo's mother's kinsmen in appreciation of their gratitude during
Okonkwo's seven years of exile.
When Okonkwo returns to Umuofia, he discovers that the village has changed during his absence. Many
men have renounced their titles and have converted to Christianity. The white men have built a prison;
they have established a government court of law, where people are tried for breaking the white man's
laws; and they also employ natives of Umuofia. Okonkwo wonders why the Umuofians have not incited
violence to rid the village of the white man's church and oppressive government.

Some members of the Igbo clan like the changes in Umuofia. Mr. Brown, the white missionary, respects
the Igbo traditions. He makes an effort to learn about the Igbo culture and becomes friendly with some
of the clan leaders. He also encourages Igbo people of all ages to get an education. Mr. Brown tells
Okonkwo that Nwoye, who has taken the name Isaac, is attending a teaching college. Nevertheless,
Okonkwo is unhappy about the changes in Umuofia.

After Mr. Brown becomes ill and is forced to return to his homeland, Reverend James Smith becomes
the new head of the Christian church. But Reverend Smith is nothing like Mr. Brown; he is intolerant of
clan customs and is very strict.

Violence arises after Enoch, an overzealous convert to Christianity, unmasks an egwugwu. In retaliation,
the egwugwu burn Enoch's compound and then destroy the Christian church because the missionaries
have caused the Igbo people many problems.

When the District Commissioner returns to Umuofia, he learns about the destruction of the church and
asks six leaders of the village, including Okonkwo, to meet with him. The men are jailed until they pay a
fine of two hundred and fifty bags of cowries. The people of Umuofia collect the money and pay the
fine, and the men are set free.

The next day at a meeting for clansmen, five court messengers who intend to stop the gathering
approach the group. Suddenly, Okonkwo jumps forward and beheads the man in charge of the
messengers with his machete. When none of the other clansmen attempt to stop the messengers who
escape, Okonkwo realizes that they will never go to war and that Umuofia will surrender. Everything has
fallen apart for Okonkwo; he commits suicide by hanging himself.

__________ SENSE AND SENSIBILITY

__________ BY JANE AUSTEN

#SUMMARY
This is the story of Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, sisters who respectively represent the "sense" and
"sensibility" of the title. With their mother, their sister Margaret, and their stepbrother John, they make
up the Dashwood family.

Henry Dashwood, their father, has just died. Norland Park, his estate, is inherited by John; to his chagrin,
Henry has nothing but ten thousand pounds to leave to his wife and daughters. On his deathbed, he
urges John to provide for them and John promises that he will do so. He is already wealthy because he
has a fortune from his mother and is also married to the wealthy Fanny Ferrars.

Immediately after Henry's burial, the insensitive Mrs. Dashwood moves into Norland Park and cleverly
persuades John not to make any provision for his stepmother and stepsisters. Mrs. Henry Dashwood,
disliking Fanny, wants to leave Norland Park at once, but Elinor prudently restrains her until they can
find a house within their means.

Edward Ferrars, Fanny's brother, comes to stay and is attracted to Elinor. Mrs. Dashwood and Marianne
expect an engagement, but Elinor is not so sure; she knows that Mrs. Ferrars and Fanny will object to
Edward's interest in her. Fanny takes exception to Edward's fondness for Elinor and is so rude that Mrs.
Dashwood at once rents a cottage fortuitously offered to her by her cousin, Sir John Middleton.

The Dashwoods move to Barton Cottage and are met by Sir John, who does all in his power to make
them comfortable. They soon meet his elegant but insipid wife and their four children.

One day, when Marianne and Margaret are walking on the downs, Marianne sprains her ankle. She is
carried home by a stranger, John Willoughby, who is staying at Allenham Court, a country estate which
he will inherit after the death of its elderly owner, Mrs. Smith. Marianne and Willoughby fall in love and
are inseparable. But after a short time, Willoughby leaves unexpectedly for London without explaining
or declaring himself.

Edward Ferrars soon pays a visit to Barton Cottage. But he is distraught and gloomy, and Elinor is
puzzled by his reserve.

Lady Middleton's mother, Mrs. Jennings, has been staying at Barton Park. She teases Marianne about
Colonel Brandon, a friend of Sir Henry, who obviously admires Marianne. Though she likes the colonel,
Mrs. Jennings repeats some scandal about him; he is said to have an illegitimate daughter, Miss
Williams.
Lady Middleton's younger sister, Charlotte Palmer, and her husband visit Barton Park. When they leave,
Sir John invites the Misses Steele, two young ladies whom he has met in Exeter and has found to be
connections of Mrs. Jennings.

Lucy confides to Elinor that she has been secretly engaged to Edward Ferrars for four years. He was
tutored by her uncle and became well acquainted with Lucy and Anne at that time. Elinor is shocked but
concludes that Edward had a youthful infatuation for Lucy. Lucy persists in asking for advice and begs
Elinor to persuade her brother John to give Edward the Barton living if he decides to take orders.

Mrs. Jennings invites Elinor and Marianne to stay with her in London. Marianne is eager to go because
she hopes to see Willoughby there. He has not been back to visit them, nor has he written to Marianne.

In London, Marianne waits for a visit from Willoughby. She writes him several times but receives no
reply. One day he leaves his card but never calls personally.

Finally, Elinor and Marianne see Willoughby at a dance with a fashionable heiress, Miss Grey. He speaks
curtly to Marianne, who is distracted by his coldness. She writes him for an explanation, and he returns
her letters with a cruel note, denying that he had ever been especially interested in her and announcing
his engagement to Miss Grey.

Colonel Brandon, who is also in London, is distressed by Willoughby's conduct to Marianne and tells
Elinor his own story. As a young man, he had loved his cousin Eliza, his father's ward. But to gain Eliza's
fortune, his father had married her to his eldest son, who had treated her badly. Years later, the colonel
discovered that Eliza had left her husband for another man. She had sunk lower and lower, and was now
penniless and on her deathbed. The colonel did all he could for her and promised to bring up her
daughter, also named Eliza. Eliza, now grown, had been seduced by Willoughby, who had deserted her.
The colonel had fought a duel with Willoughby, but neither had been injured.

John Dashwood and his wife come to London for the season. He meets his sisters and is introduced to
the Middletons, whom he finds very congenial. Anne and Lucy Steele are invited to stay with the
Middletons and eventually pay a visit to the Dashwoods, John and Fanny. They are treated so kindly that
Anne feels it is safe to break the secret of Lucy's engagement to Edward.

Fanny Dashwood has hysterics and orders Lucy and Anne out of her house. Edward's mother disinherits
him because he will not break his word to Lucy. He decides to take orders and offers to free Lucy from
her engagement, but Lucy will not give him up.
Charlotte Palmer's son is born, and she invites Elinor and Marianne to accompany her mother on a visit
to her country house, Cleveland. Marianne falls ill there and seems near death. Colonel Brandon is also
staying at Cleveland and offers to fetch Mrs. Dashwood.

The Palmers leave their house, fearing infection for the baby, and while Elinor awaits her mother's
arrival, she is amazed by a visit from Willoughby. He has heard of Marianne's illness and has come to get
news of her. He tells Elinor how bitterly he repents of his conduct and how wretched his wife has made
him; it was she who dictated the cruel note which he sent to Marianne. Elinor is sorry for him.

Marianne recovers and the family returns to Barton Cottage. Eventually, Elinor tells Marianne about
Willoughby's repentant visit. Marianne is now sorry that the family has suffered on her behalf.

One day, a servant tells them that Edward Ferrars is married. Elinor tries to put him out of her mind;
however, he arrives at Barton Cottage and explains that Lucy did not marry him; instead, she eloped
with his brother, Robert.

Everything ends happily. Edward is reconciled to his mother and marries Elinor. He takes orders and is
given the living at Delaford, Colonel Brandon's estate. Eventually Marianne agrees to marry the colonel,
and the two couples live happily, close in distance and in friendship.

____________EMMA by Jane Austen

#SUMMARY

Youthful Emma Woodhouse, whose long-time governess and friend Miss Taylor has just married Mr.
Weston, takes some solace in being left alone with her aging father by claiming that she made the
match herself. An old friend of the family, Mr. George Knightley, does not believe her, but in her
certainty she decides that she must also marry off the young rector, Mr. Elton. Among her friends and
acquaintances in the large and populous village of Highbury, she begins to notice young Harriet Smith,
the pretty illegitimate seventeen-year-old who lives at Mrs. Goddard's boarding school.

Determining first to improve Harriet, Emma discourages her interest in worthy Robert Martin of Abbey-
Mill Farm, declares that Harriet must be from more genteel parents than his, and fixes upon Harriet as
Mr. Elton's future wife.
In bringing the two together socially, Emma does a drawing of Harriet which Mr. Elton admires and takes
off to London to be framed. This appears so promising to Emma that, when Harriet receives a letter of
proposal from Robert Martin, Emma discredits him and actually helps Harriet write a letter of refusal in
spite of the fact that Mr. Knightley has nothing but respect for Robert. Ensuing events convince Emma
that Harriet and Mr. Elton are developing a mutual regard, and she takes pride in the apparent success
of her endeavor, at the same time affirming that she herself will never marry.

For the Christmas holidays Mr. and Mrs. John Knightley, respectively the brother of George Knightley
and the sister of Emma, come from London with their five children to visit the Woodhouses. On
December 24, which proves to be a bad day of snow, all of them, including George Knightley and Mr.
Elton, go for a dinner with the Westons. There discussion turns to Frank Churchill, Weston's handsome,
polished son by a former marriage (Frank had taken his uncle's name upon going to live with him) but a
son who has never been seen in Highbury. John Knightley in particular thinks it oddly improper that
Frank has not yet called on his newly remarried father, even though Frank lives some distance away in
Yorkshire with the Churchills. There have been letters from him, of course, and a pleasant surprise of the
dinner party is an announcement that a recent letter says that Frank will be coming for a visit within a
fortnight, an announcement that reminds Emma that, if she were ever to marry, Frank would suit her in
age, character, and condition.

The snow increases to the point that the visitors feel that they must go if they are to reach home safely.
To her consternation Emma finds herself alone with Mr. Elton in the second carriage. But she is
disconcerted even more when he begins insistently to declare his love for her and when he is amazed to
learn that she thought him in love with Harriet. Emma's refusal of Mr. Elton's offer is firm, but she is
indeed worried that he has never thought seriously of Harriet. Her worry and self-criticism continue
through the night, mixed with resentment at the impertinence of Mr. Elton's aspirations toward herself.
Fortunately for her, during the next few days everyone is confined to home by the weather. On the first
good day, the John Knightleys return to London while Mr. Elton informs Mr. Woodhouse in a note that
he is leaving for a visit to Bath: It is Emma's unhappy duty to inform Harriet about Mr. Elton and to
console her, inwardly blaming herself for being in error. In addition to this disappointment in her plans,
she learns that Frank Churchill has once again had to defer his visit because Mrs. Churchill is ill, a
condition that many of Highbury doubt. George Knightley in particular questions Frank's real sense of
duty toward Mr. Weston and, in a conversation with Emma, indicates that he does not share Highbury's
(and Emma's) general tendency to think highly of the young man whom the town has never yet seen.

Volume Two

Though Miss Bates, as a harmless but compulsive talker, is disagreeable in Emma's eyes, Emma pays a
duty call to her and Mrs. Bates and learns that Miss Bates' orphan niece Jane Fairfax will arrive next
week for a two-months visit. Jane upon arrival is elegant, accomplished, and reserved, and Emma does
not like her likes her even less, in fact, when she learns that Jane and Frank Churchill had met at
Weymouth.

George Knightley is about to tell Emma some news when Miss Bates and Jane arrive to announce that
Mr. Elton, still in Bath, has become engaged to Augusta Hawkins there. Later Harriet comes to say that
she has encountered Robert Martin and his sister at Ford's shop downtown, but Emma takes her mind
off it by relating the news about Mr. Elton.

Frank Churchill finally arrives and is very agreeable and lively. From the time of his first visit to the
Woodhouses, it is evident that Mr. and Mrs. Weston would like to make a match between him and

Emma; but the call is ended by his going off to see the Bateses and Jane Fairfax. On subsequent
meetings Emma is won over by Frank, and in their discussion of Jane and her reserve Frank perfectly
agrees with Emma. Faith in him is shaken when he runs off to London just to get a haircut, but he
returns unabashed and continues to sparkle. At a party given by the Coles, Frank sits attentively beside
Emma. Jane, it is learned, has received a new pianoforte. When Emma hints that Mr. Dixon, the husband
of Jane's friend in Ireland, sent it, Frank politely agrees. Because of some impromptu dancing at the
Coles, Emma and Frank later plan a dance at the Crown Inn, but everything is overthrown when Frank
has to leave owing to Mrs. Churchill's illness. Before going, Frank visits the Bateses and then the
Woodhouses, leaving Emma pretty well convinced that he is in love with her, though she can picture
herself only as refusing him.

Emma now thinks she is in love with Frank, but his letters to Mrs. Weston make Emma think also that
she can do without him. Meanwhile her attention is taken up with Harriet and the arrival of Mrs.
Augusta Elton, who has ease without elegance, is vain and overly talkative, and proves to be an
insufferable organizer and "manager." Mr. Knightley shows such respect for Jane Fairfax that Emma
thinks he may be falling in love, but he declares that he would never ask her to marry him.

At a dinner which Emma dutifully gives for the Eltons, Jane discloses that she always fetches the mail
from the post office, and Mrs. Elton insists upon coming to her general relief by finding a situation as
governess for her. But Jane, who is now to stay longer with the Bateses than originally intended, says
that she does not wish anything attempted at the present. In the midst of things, Mr. Weston arrives
with the news that Frank will be with them again soon because on doctor's orders Mrs. Churchill must
come to London for a stay in May.

Volume Three
By the time Frank Churchill returns, Emma realizes that there is no attachment on her part. The ball at
the Crown Inn now takes place. When Harriet proves to have no dancing partner and Mr. Elton
obviously slights her, George Knightley, who has not danced before, gallantly leads her to the set and
afterward even dances with Emma.

The next day Frank rescues Harriet from some gypsies, and Emma thinks she sees something developing
between them but decides not to interfere: It will be a mere passive scheme. Harriet indicates that she
is interested in someone above her, and Emma is sure that it is Frank. During a gathering at which they
play a word game, Frank shoves words at Jane which make George Knightley suspect that the two are
involved, but Emma will not believe him.

In June a strawberry party is held at Donwell Abbey, George Knightley's estate. Emma observes George
and Harriet walking together. Frank does not arrive; Jane Fairfax leaves early to walk home; and finally
Frank arrives in agitation, not at all his usual smooth self. The next day on an exploring party to Box Hill,
Emma and Frank flirt; Jane appears bothered; and Emma is rude to Miss Bates. When Emma goes to
make amends the next morning, she learns that Jane has accepted a position as governess and will be
leaving soon. Frank too has to leave, but immediately, for Mrs. Churchill is ill and, in fact, soon dies.
Emma feels sorry for Jane's having to take a position, but her attentions are repulsed.

Ten days later the Westons receive a brief letter from Frank in which he explains that he and Jane have
been engaged since their being together at Weymouth; Mr. Churchill now gives his consent. It turns out
that Harriet has not been thinking of Frank at all but rather of George Knightley. When Emma learns
this, she is awakened to the fact that Mr. Knightley must marry no one but herself and she wishes that
she had never seen Harriet and had let her marry Robert Martin. Knightley returns from a business trip,
learns the news, and commiserates with Emma, who assures him that she has never been captivated by
Frank. The revelation leads Knightley to declare his own feelings for Emma, and they become engaged,
though Emma knows that they cannot marry as long as she has to take care of her father, for she cannot
leave him and he will not leave his home.

A very reasonable letter from Frank to Mrs. Weston explains satisfactorily his conduct at Highbury and
his and Jane's need for secrecy. Emma is relieved, but she cannot set her mind at rest about Harriet,
who now goes to visit the John Knightleys in London. Emma and Jane become reconciled as friends;
George Knightley decides that, since Emma cannot leave her father, he will live with them; then it takes
the combined persuasive forces of Emma, Knightley, and the Westons to get Mr. Woodhouse to agree
to the marriage. When Harriet decides to marry Robert Martin after all, Emma feels free enough that,
after some small delaying tactics by Mr. Woodhouse, she and George Knightley are wed in "perfect
happiness."

_____Death of a Salesman
BY Arthur Miller

#PlotOverview

As a flute melody plays, Willy Loman returns to his home in Brooklyn one night, exhausted from a failed
sales trip. His wife, Linda, tries to persuade him to ask his boss, Howard Wagner, to let him work in New
York so that he wont have to travel. Willy says that he will talk to Howard the next day. Willy complains
that Biff, his older son who has come back home to visit, has yet to make something of himself. Linda
scolds Willy for being so critical, and Willy goes to the kitchen for a snack.

As Willy talks to himself in the kitchen, Biff and his younger brother, Happy, who is also visiting,
reminisce about their adolescence and discuss their fathers babbling, which often includes criticism of
Biffs failure to live up to Willys expectations. As Biff and Happy, dissatisfied with their lives, fantasize
about buying a ranch out West, Willy becomes immersed in a daydream. He praises his sons, now
younger, who are washing his car. The young Biff, a high school football star, and the young Happy
appear. They interact affectionately with their father, who has just returned from a business trip. Willy
confides in Biff and Happy that he is going to open his own business one day, bigger than that owned by
his neighbor, Charley. Charleys son, Bernard, enters looking for Biff, who must study for math class in
order to avoid failing. Willy points out to his sons that although Bernard is smart, he is not well liked,
which will hurt him in the long run.

A younger Linda enters, and the boys leave to do some chores. Willy boasts of a phenomenally
successful sales trip, but Linda coaxes him into revealing that his trip was actually only meagerly
successful. Willy complains that he soon wont be able to make all of the payments on their appliances
and car. He complains that people dont like him and that hes not good at his job. As Linda consoles
him, he hears the laughter of his mistress. He approaches The Woman, who is still laughing, and engages
in another reminiscent daydream. Willy and The Woman flirt, and she thanks him for giving her
stockings.

The Woman disappears, and Willy fades back into his prior daydream, in the kitchen. Linda, now
mending stockings, reassures him. He scolds her mending and orders her to throw the stockings out.
Bernard bursts in, again looking for Biff. Linda reminds Willy that Biff has to return a football that he
stole, and she adds that Biff is too rough with the neighborhood girls. Willy hears The Woman laugh and
explodes at Bernard and Linda. Both leave, and though the daydream ends, Willy continues to mutter to
himself. The older Happy comes downstairs and tries to quiet Willy. Agitated, Willy shouts his regret
about not going to Alaska with his brother, Ben, who eventually found a diamond mine in Africa and
became rich. Charley, having heard the commotion, enters. Happy goes off to bed, and Willy and
Charley begin to play cards. Charley offers Willy a job, but Willy, insulted, refuses it. As they argue, Willy
imagines that Ben enters. Willy accidentally calls Charley Ben. Ben inspects Willys house and tells him
that he has to catch a train soon to look at properties in Alaska. As Willy talks to Ben about the prospect
of going to Alaska, Charley, seeing no one there, gets confused and questions Willy. Willy yells at
Charley, who leaves. The younger Linda enters and Ben meets her. Willy asks Ben impatiently about his
life. Ben recounts his travels and talks about their father. As Ben is about to leave, Willy daydreams
further, and Charley and Bernard rush in to tell him that Biff and Happy are stealing lumber. Although
Ben eventually leaves, Willy continues to talk to him.

Back in the present, the older Linda enters to find Willy outside. Biff and Happy come downstairs and
discuss Willys condition with their mother. Linda scolds Biff for judging Willy harshly. Biff tells her that
he knows Willy is a fake, but he refuses to elaborate. Linda mentions that Willy has tried to commit
suicide. Happy grows angry and rebukes Biff for his failure in the business world. Willy enters and yells at
Biff. Happy intervenes and eventually proposes that he and Biff go into the sporting goods business
together. Willy immediately brightens and gives Biff a host of tips about asking for a loan from one of
Biffs old employers, Bill Oliver. After more arguing and reconciliation, everyone finally goes to bed.

Act II opens with Willy enjoying the breakfast that Linda has made for him. Willy ponders the bright-
seeming future before getting angry again about his expensive appliances. Linda informs Willy that Biff
and Happy are taking him out to dinner that night. Excited, Willy announces that he is going to make
Howard Wagner give him a New York job. The phone rings, and Linda chats with Biff, reminding him to
be nice to his father at the restaurant that night.

As the lights fade on Linda, they come up on Howard playing with a wire recorder in his office. Willy tries
to broach the subject of working in New York, but Howard interrupts him and makes him listen to his
kids and wife on the wire recorder. When Willy finally gets a word in, Howard rejects his plea. Willy
launches into a lengthy recalling of how a legendary salesman named Dave Singleman inspired him to go
into sales. Howard leaves and Willy gets angry. Howard soon re-enters and tells Willy to take some time
off. Howard leaves and Ben enters, inviting Willy to join him in Alaska. The younger Linda enters and
reminds Willy of his sons and job. The young Biff enters, and Willy praises Biffs prospects and the fact
that he is well liked.

Ben leaves and Bernard rushes in, eagerly awaiting Biffs big football game. Willy speaks optimistically to
Biff about the game. Charley enters and teases Willy about the game. As Willy chases Charley off, the
lights rise on a different part of the stage. Willy continues yelling from offstage, and Jenny, Charleys
secretary, asks a grown-up Bernard to quiet him down. Willy enters and prattles on about a very big
deal that Biff is working on. Daunted by Bernards success (he mentions to Willy that he is going to
Washington to fight a case), Willy asks Bernard why Biff turned out to be such a failure. Bernard asks
Willy what happened in Boston that made Biff decide not to go to summer school. Willy defensively tells
Bernard not to blame him.

Charley enters and sees Bernard off. When Willy asks for more money than Charley usually loans him,
Charley again offers Willy a job. Willy again refuses and eventually tells Charley that he was fired.
Charley scolds Willy for always needing to be liked and angrily gives him the money. Calling Charley his
only friend, Willy exits on the verge of tears.

At Franks Chop House, Happy helps Stanley, a waiter, prepare a table. They ogle and chat up a girl, Miss
Forsythe, who enters the restaurant. Biff enters, and Happy introduces him to Miss Forsythe, continuing
to flirt with her. Miss Forsythe, a call girl, leaves to telephone another call girl (at Happys request), and
Biff spills out that he waited six hours for Bill Oliver and Oliver didnt even recognize him. Upset at his
fathers unrelenting misconception that he, Biff, was a salesman for Oliver, Biff plans to relieve Willy of
his illusions. Willy enters, and Biff tries gently, at first, to tell him what happened at Olivers office. Willy
blurts out that he was fired. Stunned, Biff again tries to let Willy down easily. Happy cuts in with remarks
suggesting Biffs success, and Willy eagerly awaits the good news.

Biff finally explodes at Willy for being unwilling to listen. The young Bernard runs in shouting for Linda,
and Biff, Happy, and Willy start to argue. As Biff explains what happened, their conversation recedes
into the background. The young Bernard tells Linda that Biff failed math. The restaurant conversation
comes back into focus and Willy criticizes Biff for failing math. Willy then hears the voice of the hotel
operator in Boston and shouts that he is not in his room. Biff scrambles to quiet Willy and claims that
Oliver is talking to his partner about giving Biff the money. Willys renewed interest and probing
questions irk Biff more, and he screams at Willy. Willy hears The Woman laugh and he shouts back at
Biff, hitting him and staggering. Miss Forsythe enters with another call girl, Letta. Biff helps Willy to the
washroom and, finding Happy flirting with the girls, argues with him about Willy. Biff storms out, and
Happy follows with the girls.

Willy and The Woman enter, dressing themselves and flirting. The door knocks and Willy hurries The
Woman into the bathroom. Willy answers the door; the young Biff enters and tells Willy that he failed
math. Willy tries to usher him out of the room, but Biff imitates his math teachers lisp, which elicits
laughter from Willy and The Woman. Willy tries to cover up his indiscretion, but Biff refuses to believe
his stories and storms out, dejected, calling Willy a phony little fake. Back in the restaurant, Stanley
helps Willy up. Willy asks him where he can find a seed store. Stanley gives him directions to one, and
Willy hurries off.

The light comes up on the Loman kitchen, where Happy enters looking for Willy. He moves into the
living room and sees Linda. Biff comes inside and Linda scolds the boys and slaps away the flowers in
Happys hand. She yells at them for abandoning Willy. Happy attempts to appease her, but Biff goes in
search of Willy. He finds Willy planting seeds in the garden with a flashlight. Willy is consulting Ben
about a $20,000 proposition. Biff approaches him to say goodbye and tries to bring him inside. Willy
moves into the house, followed by Biff, and becomes angry again about Biffs failure. Happy tries to calm
Biff, but Biff and Willy erupt in fury at each other. Biff starts to sob, which touches Willy. Everyone goes
to bed except Willy, who renews his conversation with Ben, elated at how great Biff will be with $20,000
of insurance money. Linda soon calls out for Willy but gets no response. Biff and Happy listen as well.
They hear Willys car speed away.

In the requiem, Linda and Happy stand in shock after Willys poorly attended funeral. Biff states that
Willy had the wrong dreams. Charley defends Willy as a victim of his profession. Ready to leave, Biff
invites Happy to go back out West with him. Happy declares that he will stick it out in New York to
validate Willys death. Linda asks Willy for forgiveness for being unable to cry. She begins to sob,
repeating Were free. . . . All exit, and the flute melody is heard as the curtain falls.

___PILGRIM'S PROGRESS
Part 1

In this section events are reviewed according to principal scenes of action. Place names appear in the
order in which major incidents occur.

City of Destruction

The city stands as a symbol of the entire world as it is, with all of its sins, corruptions, and sorrows. No
one living there can have any hope of salvation. Convinced that the city is about to be blasted by the
wrath of God, Christian flees and sets out alone on a pilgrimage which he hopes will lead him to Mount
Zion, to the Celestial City, where he can enjoy eternal life in the happy company of God and the
Heavenly Host.

Slough of Despond

A swamp, a bog, a quagmire, the first obstacle in Christian's course. Pilgrims are apt to get mired down
here by their doubts and fears. After much difficulty and with some providential help, Christian finally
manages to flounder across the treacherous bog and is on his way again.

Village of Morality

Near the village Christian meets Mr. Worldly Wiseman, who, though not religiously inclined, is a friendly
and well-disposed person. He tells Christian that it would be foolish of him to continue his pilgrimage,
the end of which could only be hunger, pain, and death. Christian should be a sensible fellow and settle
down in the Village of Morality. It would be a good place to raise a family, for living was cheap there and
they would have honest, well-behaved people as neighbors people who lived by the Ten
Commandments.

More than a little tempted by this, Christian decides that he should at least have a look at Morality. But
along the way he is stopped by his friend Evangelist, who berates him sharply for having listened to
anything Mr. Worldly Wiseman might have to say. If Christian is seriously interested in saving his soul,
he would be well advised to get back as quickly as possible on the path to the Wicket Gate which
Evangelist had pointed out to him before.
Wicket Gate

Arriving almost out of breath, Christian reads the sign on the gate: "Knock and it shall be opened unto
you." He knocks a number of times before arousing the gatekeeper, a "grave person" named Good-will,
who comes out to ask what Christian wants. After the latter has explained his mission, he is let through
the gate, which opens on the Holy Way, a straight and narrow path leading toward the Celestial City.
Christian asks if he can now be relieved of the heavy burden a sack filled with his sins and woes
that he has been carrying on his back for so long. Good-will replies that he cannot help him, but that if
all goes well, Christian will be freed of his burden in due course.

Interpreter's House

On Good-will's advice, Christian makes his first stop at the large house of Interpreter, a character
symbolizing the Holy Spirit. Interpreter shows his guest a number of "excellent things." These include a
portrait of the ideal pastor with the Bible in his hand and a crown of gold on his head; a dusty parlor
which is like the human heart before it is cleansed with the Gospel; a sinner in an iron cage, an apostate
doomed to suffer the torments of Hell through all eternity; a wall with a fire burning against it. A figure
(the Devil himself) is busily throwing water on the fire to put it out. But he would never succeed,
Interpreter explains, because the fire represents the divine spirit in the human heart and a figure on the
far side of the wall keeps the fire burning brightly by secretly pouring oil on it "the oil of Christ's
Grace."

The Cross

Beyond Interpreter's House, Christian comes to the Cross, which stands on higher ground beside the
Holy Way. Below it, at the foot of the gentle slope, is an open sepulcher. When Christian stops by the
Cross, the burden on his back suddenly slips from his shoulders, rolls down the slope, and falls into the
open sepulcher, to be seen no more. As Christian stands weeping with joy, three Shining Ones (angels)
appear. They tell him all his sins are now forgiven, give him bright new raiment to replace his old ragged
clothes, and hand him a parchment, "a Roll with a seal upon it." For his edification and instruction,
Christian is to read the Roll as he goes along, and when he reaches the Pearly Gates, he is to present it
as his credentials a sort of passport to Heaven, as it were.

Difficulty Hill

The Holy Way beyond the Cross is fenced in with a high wall on either side. The walls have been erected
to force all aspiring Pilgrims to enter the Holy Way in the proper manner, through the Wicket Gate. As
Christian is passing along, two men Formalist and Hypocrisy climb over the wall and drop down
beside him. Christian finds fault with this and gives the wall-jumpers a lecture on the dangers of trying
shortcuts. They have been successfully taking shortcuts all their lives, the intruders reply, and all will go
well this time.

Not too pleased with his company, Christian proceeds with Hypocrisy and Formalist to the foot of
Difficulty Hill, where three paths join and they must make a choice. One path goes straight ahead up the
steep slope of the hill; another goes around the base of the hill to the right; the third, around the hill to
the left. Christian argues that the right path is the one leading straight ahead up Difficulty Hill. Not liking
the prospect of much exertion, Formalist and Hypocrisy decide to take the easier way on the level paths
going around the hill. Both get lost and perish.

Halfway up Difficulty Hill, so steep in places that he has to inch forward on hands and knees, Christian
comes to a pleasant arbor provided for the comfort of weary Pilgrims. Sitting down to rest, Christian
reaches into his blouse and takes out his precious Roll. While reading it, he drops off to sleep, being
awakened when he hears a voice saying sternly: "Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and
be wise."

Jumping up, Christian makes with all speed to the top of the hill, where he meets two Pilgrims coming
toward him Timorous and Mistrust. They have been up ahead, they say, and there are lions there.
They are giving up their pilgrimage and returning home, and unsuccessfully try to persuade Christian to
come with them. Their report about the lions disturbs Christian, who reaches into his blouse to get his
Roll so that he may read it and be comforted. To his consternation, the Roll is not there.

Carefully searching along the way, Christian retraces his steps to the arbor, where, as he recalls, he had
been reading the Roll when he allowed himself to doze off in "sinful sleep." Not finding his treasure
immediately, he sits down and weeps, considering himself utterly undone by his carelessness in losing
"his pass into the Celestial City." When in deepest despair, he chances to see something lying half-
covered in the grass. It is his precious Roll, which he tucks away securely in his blouse. Having offered a
prayer of thanks "to God for directing his eye to the place where it lay," Christian wearily climbs back to
the top of Difficulty Hill. From there he sees a stately building and as it is getting on toward dark, hastens
there.

Palace Beautiful

A narrow path leads off the Holy Way to the lodge in front of Palace Beautiful. Starting up the path,
Christian sees two lions, stops, and turns around as if to retreat. The porter at the lodge, Watchful, who
has been observing him, calls out that there is nothing to be afraid of if one has faith. The lions are
chained, one on either side of the path, and anyone with faith can pass safely between them if he keeps
carefully to the middle of the path, which Christian does. Arriving at the lodge, he asks if he can get
lodging for the night. The porter, Watchful, replies that he will find out from those in charge of Palace
Beautiful. Soon, four virgins come out to the lodge, all of them "grave and beautiful damsels":
Discretion, Prudence, Piety, and Charity. Satisfied with Christian's answers to their questions, they invite
him in, introduce him to the rest of the family, serve him supper, and assign him to a beautiful bedroom
Peace for the night.

Next morning, the virgins show him the "rarities" of the place: First, the library, filled with ancient
documents dating back to the beginning of time; next, the armory, packed with swords, shields,
helmets, breastplates, and other things sufficient to equip all servants of the Lord, even if they were as
numerous as the stars in the sky. Leading their guest to the roof of the palace, the virgins point to
mountains in the distance the Delectable Mountains, which lie on the way to the Celestial City. Before
allowing Christian to depart, the virgins give him arms and armor to protect himself during the next
stretch of his journey, which they warn will be dangerous.

Valley of Humiliation

Here Christian is attacked and almost overcome by a "foul fiend" named Apollyon a hideous monster
with scales like a fish, wings like a dragon, mouth like a lion, and feet like a bear; flames and smoke belch
out of a hole in his belly. Christian, after a painful struggle, wounds the fiend with his sword and drives
him off.

Valley of the Shadow of Death

This is a wilderness, a land of deserts and pits, inhabited only by yowling hobgoblins and other dreadful
creatures. The path here is very narrow, edged on one side by a deep, water-filled ditch in which many
have drowned; on the other side, by a treacherous bog. Walking carefully, Christian goes on and soon
finds himself close to the open mouth of Hell, the Burning Pit, out of which comes a cloud of noxious
fumes, long fingers of fire, showers of sparks, and hideous noises. With flames flickering all around and
smoke almost choking him, Christian manages to get through by use of "All-prayer."

Nearing the end of the valley, he hears a shout raised by someone up ahead: "Though I walk through the
Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will fear none ill, for Thou art with me." As only a Pilgrim could have
raised that cry, Christian hastens forward to see who it might be. To his surprise and delight he finds
that it is an old friend, Faithful, one of his neighbors in the City of Destruction.
Vanity Fair

Happily journeying together, exchanging stories about their adventures and misadventures, the two
Pilgrims come to the town of Vanity Fair, through which they must pass. Interested only in commerce
and money-making, the town holds a year-round fair at which all kinds of things are bought and sold
"houses, lands, trades, titles, . . . lusts, pleasures, . . . bodies, souls, silver, gold, pearls, precious stones,
and what not." Christian and Faithful infuriate the merchandisers by turning up their noses at the wares
offered them, saying that they would buy nothing but the Truth. Their presence and their attitude cause
a hubbub in the town, which leads the authorities to jail them for disturbing the peace. The prisoners
conduct themselves so well that they win the sympathy of many townspeople, producing more strife
and commotion in the streets, and the prisoners are held responsible for this, too, though they have
done nothing.

It is decided to indict them on the charge of disrupting trade, creating dissension, and treating with
contempt the customs and laws laid down for the town by its prince, old Beelzebub himself. Brought to
trial first, Faithful is convicted and sentenced to be executed in the manner prescribed by the presiding
judge, Lord Hate-good. The hapless Faithful is scourged, brutally beaten, lanced with knives, stoned, and
then burned to ashes at the stake. Thus, he becomes another of the Christian martyrs assured of
enjoying eternal bliss up on high.

Doubting Castle and Giant Despair

In a manner only vaguely explained, Christian gets free and goes on his way but not alone, for he has
been joined by Hopeful, a native of Vanity Fair who is fleeing in search of better things. After a few
minor adventures, the two reach a sparkling stream, the River of the Water of Life, which meanders
through beautiful meadows bright with flowers. For a time the Holy Way follows the river bank but then
veers off into rougher ground which is hard on the sore tired feet of the travelers. Wishing there were
an easier way, they plod along until they come to another meadow behind a high fence. Having climbed
the fence to have a look, Christian persuades Hopeful that they should move over into By-path Meadow,
where there is a soft grassy path paralleling theirs.

Moving along, they catch up with Vain-confidence, who says that he is bound for the Celestial City and
knows the way perfectly. Night comes on, but he continues to push ahead briskly, with Christian and
Hopeful following. Suddenly, the latter hear a frightened cry and a loud thud. Vain-confidence has been
dashed to pieces by falling into a deep pit dug by the owner of the meadow. Christian and Hopeful
retreat, but as they can see nothing in the dark, they decide to lie down in the meadow to pass the
night.
Next morning, they are surprised and seized by the prince of By-path Meadow, a giant named Despair.
Charging them with malicious trespassing, he hauls them to his stronghold, Doubting Castle, and throws
them into a deep dark dungeon, where they lie for days without food or drink. At length, Giant Despair
appears, beats them almost senseless, and advises them to take their own lives so that he will not have
to come back to finish them off himself. When all seems hopeless, Christian suddenly brightens up, "as
one half amazed," and exclaims: "What a fool am I, thus to lie in a stinking dungeon when I may as well
walk at liberty. I have a key in my bosom called Promise which will (I am persuaded) open any lock in
Doubting Castle."

Finding that the magic key works, the prisoners are soon out in the open and running as fast as they can
to get back onto the Holy Way, where they erect a sign warning other Pilgrims against being tempted by
the apparent ease of traveling by way of By-path Meadow.

Delectable Mountains

Christian and Hopeful next come to the Delectable Mountains, where they find gardens, orchards,
vineyards, and fountains of water. Four shepherds Experience, Knowledge, Watchful, and Sincere
come to greet them, telling them that the mountains are the Lord's, as are the flocks of sheep grazing
there. Having been escorted around the mountains and shown the sights there, the two Pilgrims on the
eve of their departure receive from the shepherds a paper instructing them on what to do and what to
avoid on the journey ahead. For one thing, they should not lie down and sleep in the Enchanted Ground,
for that would be fatal.

Country of Beulah

This is a happy land where the sun shines day and night, flowers bloom continuously, and the sweet and
pleasant air is filled with bird-song. There is no lack of grain and wine. Christian and Hopeful stop to rest
and enjoy themselves here, pleased that the Celestial City is now within sight, which leads them to
assume that the way there is now clear.

Dark River

Proceeding, they are amazed when they come to the Dark River, a wide, swift-flowing stream. They look
around for a bridge or boat on which to cross. A Shining One appears and tells them that they must
make their way across as best they can, that fording the river is a test of faith, that those with faith have
nothing to fear. Wading into the river, Hopeful finds firm footing, but Christian does not He is soon
floundering in water over his head, fearing that he will be drowned, that he will never see "the land that
flows with milk and honey." Hopeful helps Christian by holding his head above water, and the two finally
achieve the crossing.

Celestial City

On the far side of the river, two Shining Ones are waiting for the Pilgrims and take them by the arm to
assist them in climbing the steep slope to the Celestial City, which stands on a "mighty hill . . . higher
than the clouds." Coming to the gate of the city, built all of precious stones, Christian and Hopeful
present their credentials, which are taken to the King (God). He orders the gate to be opened, and the
two weary but elated Pilgrims go in, to find that the streets are paved with gold and that along them
walk many men with crowns on their heads and golden harps in their hands.

Part 2

Christian's wife, Christiana, misses her husband, and, hearing how well he is doing in Heaven, regrets
that she did not go with him when he set out on his pilgrimage, as she had been urged and invited to do.
She makes up her mind to follow him after receiving from a visitor a note from the Lord, written "in
letters of gold," inviting her to come to the Celestial City. Though her neighbors try to dissuade her,
citing the great dangers of such a journey, Christiana sets out from the City of Destructions with her
children four sons and is joined by Mercy, a comely young woman of the town.

Passing through the Slough of Despond with much less difficulty than Christian encountered, the Pilgrim
party comes to the Wicket Gate, the entrance to the Holy Way, the straight and narrow path leading to
Mount Zion. Christiana and the children are immediately admitted by the gatekeeper, but Mercy is left
outside. Thinking herself abandoned, Mercy swoons. On Christiana's plea, the gatekeeper comes out,
helps Mercy to her feet, and leads the party to a pleasant summer parlor, where the Lord soon appears
to assure Mercy that she is welcome as a Pilgrim.

Leaving the Wicket Gate, the party is still within sight of it when the women are accosted by two
villainous men who try first to seduce them and then to rape them, which results in a "very great
scuffle," with the women crying "Murder! murder!" Hearing this, one of those at the Wicket Gate come
running to the rescue and chases away the villains, who escape by leaping over a wall into Satan's
garden.

Coming to Interpreter's House, the party is well entertained there and shown the sights, including some
that had not been shown to Christian. On the eve of the departure, Interpreter assigns Great-heart, a
stout and well-armed Christian soldier, to be their conductor for the rest of the way. Surmounting
difficulty Hill with its many steep ascents, the party approaches the land leading to Palace Beautiful.
Here are two chained lions, as Christian had found. But now there is also a giant, one Grim, or Bloody-
man, who emerges from a cave and blocks the way. Great-hear advances, whacks off his head, and leads
the party into Palace Beautiful, which is filled with songs of joy. Christiana and her group like it so well
here that , upon being invited, they stay a month, enjoying much feasting and godly discourse with the
palace virgins.

During their stay, Mercy is courted by a Mr. Brisk, but he soon jilts her upon discovering that the clothes
she is always so busily making are not for sale, not to make money, but to be given away to the poor.
Obviously, she would not make a thrifty, prudent housewife. But Mercy will not long remain a maiden,
for she is soon "given" in marriage to Christiana's oldest son, Mathew.

Descending from Palace Beautiful into the Valley of Humiliation, where Christian had been attacked and
almost killed by the monster Apollyon, Christiana and her party meet with no trouble there, nor much in
the Valley of the Shadow of Death, though Great-heart has to drive away some devils and a lion there,
and has to slay another giant, one Maul, and take off his head. Going on, the party comes upon an old
man asleep under a tree. Recognizing him as a Pilgrim by his clothes, staff, and girdle, they awaken him.
He proves to be Old Honest from the Town of Stupidity, on his way to the Celestral City. Joining the
party, he directs them to a tavern kept by Gaius, a "very honorable disciple."

The stay of Gaius' Inn, lasting a month or more, is very pleasant. Gaius informs Christiana of her
husband's illustrious ancestry. His forebears, it appears, were St. Paul, St. Peter, St. Stephen, and many
another ancient prophet, saint, and martyr, including St. Marcus of Arethusa, who "was hanged up in a
basket in the sun for the wasps to eat." It is at Gaius' Inn that Mercy is "given" in marriage to Christiana's
oldest son, Mathew, and Gaius gives his daughter Phoebe to another son, James.

Here, too, Great-heart gets himself another giant, one Slay-good. He finds the giant rifling the pockets of
a captured Pilgrim named Feeble-mind, intending later to eat him. Great-heart takes off the giant's head
as another trophy and rescues Feeble-mind, who joins Christiana's party. Another Pilgrim joins her party
Mr. Right-to-halt, who is so crippled that he has to hobble along on crutches.

Coming to the town of Vanity Fair, where Christiana and Faithful had been so harshly treated, Faithful
having been burned at the stake there. Great-heart leads the party to the house of a friend, Mnason, a
native of the island of Cyprus. There are more marriages here, with Mnason giving daughters to
Christiana's two unwedded sons, and Great-heart goes after another monster, a beast having a dragon's
body topped with "seven heads and ten horns." Great-heart does not succeed in taking off the
monster's seven heads, but so injures him that everybody expects him to die of his wounds.
When Christiana's party comes to By-path Meadow and Doubting Castle, where Christian and Hopeful
had been so pummeled by Giant Despair, Great-heart suggests that it might be a good idea if they took
time off to kill the giant and demolish his castle. They do this, taking a week to tear down the castle,
bringing back two captured Pilgrims they found in the dungeon Mr. Despondency and his daughter
Much-afraid. These two join the party, which now numbers sixteen, having become so large that it has
to walk in column along the straight and narrow path.

The Celestial Mountains are much the same as they were when Christian and Hopeful visited, except
that the shepherds have built a palace there, which seems rather incongruous. In any case, there is a
palace, so Bunyan tells us, and in its dining room a looking glass that Mercy covets, saying that if it is
denied her, she may have a miscarriage. The shepherds happily present her with the marvelous mirror,
which held one way, shows "the Prince of Pilgrims himself . . . the very Crown of Thorns upon his head, .
. . the holes in his hands, in his feet, and his side."

Leaving the Delectable Mountains, the Pilgrims come upon a man standing in the road with drawn
sword and his face all bloody Valiant-for-truth, who has just routed three villains who attacked him.
Valiant-for-truth joins the party as it proceeds into the Enchanted Ground, where no Pilgrim should rest
and sleep if he hopes ever to wake again. Here they find a man kneeling in the roadway, his hands
upstretched toward Heaven, praying mightily to God to rescue him from the clutches of a Madam
Bubble, who has been persistently trying to seduce him.

The prayerful man, Stand-fast, joins the party as it goes on into the Land of Beulah, where "the sun
shineth day and night" and flowers bloom in profusion the year round. Beulah Land, as presented in this
part of the book, is sort of a receiving station for those Heaven-bound. Here Pilgrims wait until they are
personally summoned to come up to the Celestial City. In her party, Christiana is the first to be
summoned, then the others in order, and all wade through the Dark River, the River of Death, and are
whisked up to the Celestial Gate in chariots driven by angels all but Christian's four sons and their
pregnant brides who are left behind to propagate "for the increase of the Church in that place they were
for a time."

====== THE MILL ON THE FLOSS

====== George ELIOT

#SUMMARY

Mr. Tulliver has decided to remove Tom from the academy where he presently studies and send him to
a school where he can learn things that will raise him in the world. Mr. Tulliver has indefinite ideas on
education, and he seeks advice from an acquaintance, Mr. Riley, whom he judges to be knowledgeable.
Mr. Riley, although he has no definite opinions on the subject, recommends Rev. Stelling, the son-in-law
of a business acquaintance, as a tutor.

Maggie eagerly awaits Tom's arrival. He comes with gifts for her, but when he finds that his rabbits have
died because she neglected them, he repulses her. She retires heartbroken to the attic until Mr. Tulliver
forces Tom to coax her down to tea.

Tom and Maggie's aunts and uncles the Gleggs, Deanes, and Pullets gather to discuss the boy's
education, but Mr. Tulliver has already made up his mind. One result of his hasty decision is a violent
quarrel with Mrs. Glegg, to whom he owes five hundred pounds. Tulliver fears that she will call her
money in, and he determines to head off that possibility by paying it back at once. His sister's husband,
Mr. Moss, has borrowed three hundred pounds from him, and Tulliver rides to see them to ask payment
of the debt. But pity for that family's poverty overcomes him, and he lets the debt stand.

Meanwhile, Tom and Maggie with their cousin Lucy and their mother have gone to visit the Pullets. Tom
becomes angry when Maggie upsets his cowslip wine and punishes her by paying no attention to her
when he takes Lucy off to the pond. Maggie takes revenge by pushing Lucy into the mud. When Tom
goes in to tell on her, Maggie runs off to live with the gypsies and be their queen. She finds some
gypsies, but they are not what she expects, and she is very frightened before they return her to her
father.

Mr. and Mrs. Glegg have been discussing the proposition of calling in her money from Mr. Tulliver. She is
at last convinced that it will earn more where it is, and so she is receptive to Mrs. Pullet's suggestion
(prompted by Mrs. Tulliver) that it would be best left alone. However, Mrs. Tulliver makes the mistake of
telling her husband that Mrs. Pullet has interceded with Mrs. Glegg. He is so angry that he writes to Mrs.
Glegg that he will pay in the money at once. To do this he finds it necessary to borrow five hundred
pounds from a client of Lawyer Wakem.

Tom turns out to be the only pupil of Rev. Stelling, and he receives the full benefit of an education he
does not want and cannot understand, an education consisting chiefly of Latin grammar and geometry.
When he goes home at Christmas he learns that his father is about to go to law over water rights against
a new neighbor, Mr. Pivart, a client of Wakem. He also learns that Philip Wakem will be his school-fellow
after the holiday. On his return to school Tom quickly decides that Wakem is an inconsiderable person, a
hunchback who is touchy about his deformity. However, he admires Philip's ability to draw and to tell
stories of legendary heroes. During this term Maggie comes to visit Tom and grows friendly with Philip,
whose cleverness she admires. Her presence, aided by an injury to Tom's foot, brings about a brief
friendship between the two boys, but when Maggie leaves they quickly grow apart again.
It is two-and-a-half years later that Maggie comes to fetch Tom home with the news that their father
has lost all his property in the lawsuit with Pivart. Mr. Tulliver has found that the mortgage on his
property (taken out to repay Mrs. Glegg) has passed to Wakem. That news has caused him to fall
insensible. His property is all to be sold, including Mrs. Tulliver's cherished possessions. The relatives
agree to buy in a few things which the Tulliver's need. There is some thought that Mr. Deane's company
might buy the mill and retain Mr. Tulliver as manager. Unfortunately, Mrs. Tulliver tries to insure this by
smoothing things with Wakem. Her plan goes wrong as Wakem keeps the mill for himself and takes Mr.
Tulliver on as a hireling. Tom successfully applies to Mr. Deane for a position with Guest and Company,
but his father requires him to swear on the family Bible that he will take vengeance on Wakem.

Maggie's life falls into a round of housework and sewing. This is broken by a visit from Bob Jakin, who
has become a packman. Bob brings her a gift of books. One of these turns out to be by Thomas a
Kempis, and this book leads her to a life of renunciation of the world until on a walk near her home she
meets Philip Wakem. Philip convinces Maggie that she must not give up her desires and offers himself as
a friend and tutor.

While Maggie struggles within herself, Tom is at work in the business world. He saves his money to pay
off his father's debts, and under Bob Jakin's guidance he goes into speculations of his own. He has just
saved up enough money to pay the debts when he discovers that Maggie has been meeting Philip and
that they have declared their love for one another. By threatening to tell their father he forces her to
give up Philip.

Soon after this the debts are paid. On his first new day as an "honest man," Tulliver meets Wakem at the
mill and falls on him with a stick. Maggie tries to hold her father back, but the excitement causes him to
take to his bed, and he dies there.

Several years later Maggie visits her cousin Lucy and is introduced to Lucy's love, Stephen Guest. Lucy
has invited Philip Wakem to join them, for he is a friend of Stephen's. Maggie finds it necessary to ask
Tom's permission to meet Philip. Lucy guesses that there was something between Philip and Maggie and
forces Maggie to tell her. She begins to lay plans to bring the two together again.

Tom meanwhile has been doing very well with Guest and Company, and he is offered a share in the
business. He proposes that the company try again to buy the mill and make him manager. The outcome
is left indefinite as he goes off on business.

A mutual attraction begins to develop between Stephen and Maggie, but both of them resist it. Philip
quickly notices it but tries not to believe in it. Lucy never notices it at all; instead, she seizes on the mill
as a way of bringing Philip and Maggie together. She gets Philip to maneuver his father into consenting
to sell the mill and allowing Philip to marry Maggie. She imagines that Tom will be so pleased at
regaining the mill that he will consent to the marriage. Tom will not.

Stephen, in a moment of weakness at a dance, kisses Maggie's arm, and she repulses him. She feels that
this frees her, but when she goes to visit her aunt Moss, Stephen comes there seeking forgiveness. They
declare their mutual love but determine to part out of respect for Lucy and Philip. But when Maggie
returns, Philip becomes convinced that she and Stephen are in love. One morning Lucy goes out of town
in order to leave Maggie alone with Philip. Philip was supposed to take the two girls rowing, but he
sends Stephen in his place, so that Stephen and Maggie are alone together. Carried away by the current
of their emotion, they row down the river past their stopping-point and go on so far that they could not
get home before dark. Stephen convinces Maggie that she should go away and be married to him. But
by morning Maggie realizes what she has done, and she leaves Stephen and returns home.

Word that she had been seen with Stephen at a town downriver has been brought by Bob Jakin, and
when Maggie returns home Tom refuses to allow her in his house. Maggie and her mother take lodging
with Bob Jakin, and Maggie finds work as a governess with Dr. Kenn, the clergyman of St. Ogg's. She is
looked on as a fallen woman and cast out from local society. Eventually Dr. Kenn is forced to let her go
because of persistent rumors that he intends to marry her.

A letter arrives from Stephen asking her to come to him. She is tempted, but resolves not to go. She
plans instead to go away and find work. She is praying for guidance when the long-threatened flood
breaks into Bob's riverside house. Maggie wakes the family, but in trying to get them into boats she is
swept away in a boat by herself. She steers the boat to the mill and rescues Tom. They are going
together to find Lucy when they are swept under by floating debris. Their bodies are found and buried
together when the flood recedes.

__________GULLIVER'S TRAVELS

BY JONATHAN SWIFT

#SUMMARY

Gulliver's Travels is an adventure story (in reality, a misadventure story) involving several voyages of
Lemuel Gulliver, a ship's surgeon, who, because of a series of mishaps en route to recognized ports,
ends up, instead, on several unknown islands living with people and animals of unusual sizes, behaviors,
and philosophies, but who, after each adventure, is somehow able to return to his home in England
where he recovers from these unusual experiences and then sets out again on a new voyage.
Book I: When the ship Gulliver is traveling on is destroyed in a storm, Gulliver ends up on the island of
Lilliput, where he awakes to find that he has been captured by Lilliputians, very small people
approximately six inches in height. Gulliver is treated with compassion and concern. In turn, he helps
them solve some of their problems, especially their conflict with their enemy, Blefuscu, an island across
the bay from them. Gulliver falls from favor, however, because he refuses to support the Emperor's
desire to enslave the Blefuscudians and because he "makes water" to put out a palace fire. Gulliver flees
to Blefuscu, where he converts a large war ship to his own use and sets sail from Blefuscu eventually to
be rescued at sea by an English merchant ship and returned to his home in England.

Book II: As he travels as a ship's surgeon, Gulliver and a small crew are sent to find water on an island.
Instead they encounter a land of giants. As the crew flees, Gulliver is left behind and captured. Gulliver's
captor, a farmer, takes him to the farmer's home where Gulliver is treated kindly, but, of course,
curiously. The farmer assigns his daughter, Glumdalclitch, to be Gulliver's keeper, and she cares for
Gulliver with great compassion. The farmer takes Gulliver on tour across the countryside, displaying him
to onlookers. Eventually, the farmer sells Gulliver to the Queen. At court, Gulliver meets the King, and
the two spend many sessions discussing the customs and behaviors of Gulliver's country. In many cases,
the King is shocked and chagrined by the selfishness and pettiness that he hears Gulliver describe.
Gulliver, on the other hand, defends England.

One day, on the beach, as Gulliver looks longingly at the sea from his box (portable room), he is
snatched up by an eagle and eventually dropped into the sea. A passing ship spots the floating chest and
rescues Gulliver, eventually returning him to England and his family.

Book III: Gulliver is on a ship bound for the Levant. After arriving, Gulliver is assigned captain of a sloop
to visit nearby islands and establish trade. On this trip, pirates attack the sloop and place Gulliver in a
small boat to fend for himself. While drifting at sea, Gulliver discovers a Flying Island. While on the Flying
Island, called Laputa, Gulliver meets several inhabitants, including the King. All are preoccupied with
things associated with mathematics and music. In addition, astronomers use the laws of magnetism to
move the island up, down, forward, backward, and sideways, thus controlling the island's movements in
relation to the island below (Balnibarbi). While in this land, Gulliver visits Balnibarbi, the island of
Glubbdubdrib, and Luggnagg. Gulliver finally arrives in Japan where he meets the Japanese emperor.
From there, he goes to Amsterdam and eventually home to England.

Book IV: While Gulliver is captain of a merchant ship bound for Barbados and the Leeward Islands,
several of his crew become ill and die on the voyage. Gulliver hires several replacement sailors in
Barbados. These replacements turn out to be pirates who convince the other crew members to mutiny.
As a result, Gulliver is deposited on a "strand" (an island) to fend for himself. Almost immediately, he is
discovered by a herd of ugly, despicable human-like creatures who are called, he later learns, Yahoos.
They attack him by climbing trees and defecating on him. He is saved from this disgrace by the
appearance of a horse, identified, he later learns, by the name Houyhnhnm. The grey horse (a
Houyhnhnm) takes Gulliver to his home, where he is introduced to the grey's mare (wife), a colt and a
foal (children), and a sorrel nag (the servant). Gulliver also sees that the Yahoos are kept in pens away
from the house. It becomes immediately clear that, except for Gulliver's clothing, he and the Yahoos are
the same animal. From this point on, Gulliver and his master (the grey) begin a series of discussions
about the evolution of Yahoos, about topics, concepts, and behaviors related to the Yahoo society,
which Gulliver represents, and about the society of the Houyhnhnms.

Despite his favored treatment in the grey steed's home, the kingdom's Assembly determines that
Gulliver is a Yahoo and must either live with the uncivilized Yahoos or return to his own world. With
great sadness, Gulliver takes his leave of the Houyhnhnms. He builds a canoe and sails to a nearby island
where he is eventually found hiding by a crew from a Portuguese ship. The ship's captain returns
Gulliver to Lisbon, where he lives in the captain's home. Gulliver is so repelled by the sight and smell of
these "civilized Yahoos" that he can't stand to be around them. Eventually, however, Gulliver agrees to
return to his family in England. Upon his arrival, he is repelled by his Yahoo family, so he buys two horses
and spends most of his days caring for and conversing with the horses in the stable in order to be as far
away from his Yahoo family as possible.

=====////A TALE OF TWO CITIES\\\\=====

BY CHARLES DICKENS

#SUMMARY

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," Charles Dickens writes in the opening lines of A Tale
of Two Cities as he paints a picture of life in England and France. The year is late 1775, and Jarvis Lorry
travels from London to Paris on a secret mission for his employer, Tellson's Bank. Joining him on his
journey is Lucie Manette, a 17-year-old woman who is stunned to learn that her father, Doctor
Alexandre Manette, is alive and has recently been released after having been secretly imprisoned in
Paris for 18 years.

When Mr. Lorry and Lucie arrive in Paris, they find the Doctor's former servant, Ernest Defarge, caring
for him. Defarge now runs a wine-shop with his wife in the poverty-stricken quarter of Saint Antoine.
Defarge takes Mr. Lorry and Lucie to the garret room where he is keeping Doctor Manette, warning
them that the Doctor's years in prison have greatly changed him. Thin and pale, Doctor Manette sits at a
shoemaker's bench intently making shoes. He barely responds to questions from Defarge and Mr. Lorry,
but when Lucie approaches him, he remembers his wife and begins to weep. Lucie comforts him, and
that night Mr. Lorry and Lucie take him to England.

Five years later, the porter for Tellson's Bank, Jerry Cruncher, takes a message to Mr. Lorry who is at a
courthouse. Mr. Lorry has been called as a witness for the trial of Charles Darnay, a Frenchman accused
of being a spy for France and the United States. Also at the trial are Doctor Manette and Lucie, who are
witnesses for the prosecution. Doctor Manette has fully recovered and has formed a close bond with his
daughter.

If found guilty of treason, Darnay will suffer a gruesome death, and the testimony of an acquaintance,
John Barsad, and a former servant, Roger Cly, seems sure to result in a guilty verdict. Questions from
Darnay's attorney, Mr. Stryver, indicate that Cly and Barsad are the real spies, but the turning point in
the trial occurs when Sydney Carton, Stryver's assistant, points out that Carton and Darnay look alike
enough to be doubles. This revelation throws into doubt a positive identification of Darnay as the person
seen passing secrets, and the court acquits Darnay.

After the trial, Darnay, Carton, and Stryver begin spending time at the Manette home, obviously
attracted to Lucie's beauty and kind nature. Stryver decides to propose to her, but is dissuaded by Mr.
Lorry. Carton confesses his love to Lucie, but does not propose, knowing that his drunken and apathetic
way of life is not worthy of her. However, he vows that he would gladly give his life to save a life she
loved, and Lucie is moved by his sincerity and devotion. Eventually, it is Darnay whose love Lucie
returns, and the two marry with Doctor Manette's uneasy blessing. While the couple is on their
honeymoon, the Doctor suffers a nine-day relapse of his mental incapacity and believes he is making
shoes in prison again.

Meanwhile, the situation in France grows worse. Signs of unrest become evident when Darnay's cruel
and unfeeling uncle, the Marquis St. Evrmonde, is murdered in his bed after running down a child with
his carriage in the Paris streets. Although Darnay inherits the title and the estate, he has renounced all
ties to his brutal family and works instead in England as a tutor of French language and literature.

The revolution erupts with full force in July 1789 with the storming of the Bastille. The Defarges are at
the center of the revolutionary movement and lead the people in a wave of violence and destruction.By
1792, the revolutionaries have taken control of France and are imprisoning and killing anyone they view
as an enemy of the state. Darnay receives a letter from the Evrmonde steward, who has been captured
and who begs Darnay to come to France to save him. Feeling a sense of duty to his servant and not fully
realizing the danger awaiting him, Darnay departs for France. Once he reaches Paris, though,
revolutionaries take him to La Force prison "in secret,"with no way of contacting anyone and with little
hope of a trial.

Doctor Manette, Lucie, and Lucie's daughter soon arrive in Paris and join Mr. Lorry who is at Tellson's
Paris office. Doctor Manette's status as a former prisoner of the Bastille gives him a heroic status with
the revolutionaries and enables him to find out what has happened to his son-in-law. He uses his
influence to get a trial for Darnay, and Doctor Manette's powerful testimony at the trial frees his son-in-
law. Hours after being reunited with his wife and daughter, however, the revolutionaries again arrest
Darnay, based on the accusations of the Defarges.

The next day, Darnay is tried again. This time, the Defarges produce a letter written years earlier by
Doctor Manette in prison condemning all Evrmondes for the murder of Madame Defarge's family and
for imprisoning the Doctor. Based on this evidence, the court sentences Darnay to death and Doctor
Manette, devastated by what has happened, reverts to his prior state of dementia.

Unknown to the Manette and Darnay family, Sydney Carton has arrived in Paris and learns of Darnay's
fate. He also hears of a plot contrived to send Lucie and her daughter to the guillotine. Determined to
save their lives, he enlists the help of a prison spy to enter the prison where the revolutionaries are
holding Darnay. He enters Darnay's cell, changes clothes with him, drugs him, and has Darnay taken out
of the prison in his place. No one questions either man's identity because of the similarities in their
features. As Mr. Lorry shepherds Doctor Manette, Darnay, Lucie, and young Lucie out of France, Carton
goes to the guillotine, strengthened and comforted by the knowledge that his sacrifice has saved the
woman he loves and her family.

________Whitmans Poetry

Walt Whitman was born in 1819 on Long Island (the Paumanok of many of his poems). During his early
years he trained as a printer, then became a teacher, and finally a journalist and editor. He was less than
successful; his stridently radical views made him unpopular with readers. After an 1848 sojourn in the
South, which introduced him to some of the variety of his country, he returned to New York and began
to write poetry.

In 1855 he self-published the first edition of Leaves of Grass, which at the time consisted of only twelve
poems. The volume was widely ignored, with one significant exception. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote
him a congratulatory letter, in which he offered his greet[ings]... at the beginning of a great career.
Whitman promptly published another edition of Leaves of Grass, expanding it by some twenty poems
and appending the letter from Emerson, much to the latters discomfort. 1860 saw another edition of a
now much larger Leavescontaining some 156 poemswhich was issued by a trade publisher.

At the outset of the Civil War Whitman volunteered as a nurse in army hospitals; he also wrote
dispatches as a correspondent for the New York Times. The war inspired a great deal of poetry, which
was published in 1865 as Drum Taps. Drum Taps was then incorporated into an 1867 edition of Leaves
of Grass, as was another volume of wartime poetry, Sequel, which included the poems written on
Lincolns assassination.

Whitmans wartime work led to a job with the Department of the Interior, but he was soon fired when
his supervisor learned that he had written the racy poems of Leaves of Grass. The failure of
Reconstruction led him to write the best known of his prose works, Democratic Vistas, which, as its title
implies, argues for the maintenance of democratic ideals. This volume came out in 1871, as did yet
another edition of Leaves of Grass, expanded to include more poems. The 1871 edition was reprinted in
1876 for the centennial. Several other prose works followed, then a further expanded version of Leaves
of Grass, in 1881.

Whitmans health had been shaky since the mid-1870s, and by 1891 it was clear he was dying. He
therefore prepared his so-called Deathbed edition of Leaves of Grass, which contained two
appendices of old-age poems as well as a review essay in which he tries to justify his life and work. The
Deathbed Edition came out in 1892; Whitman died that year.

Whitmans lifetime saw both the Civil War and the rise of the United States as a commercial and political
power. He witnessed both the apex and the abolition of slavery. His poetry is thus centered on ideas of
democracy, equality, and brotherhood. In response to Americas new position in the world, Whitman
also tried to develop a poetry that was uniquely American, that both surpassed and broke the mold of
its predecessors. Leaves of Grass, with its multiple editions and public controversies, set the pattern for
the modern, public artist, and Whitman, with his journalistic endeavors on the side, made the most of
his role as celebrity and artist.

=====//// ARMS AND THE MAN \\\\=====

#SUMMARY

The play begins in the fall of 1885 during the Serbo-Bulgarian War. Raina, a Bulgarian woman from a
wealthy family, learns from her mother, Catherine, that the Bulgarian cavalry have won a battle against
the Serbs. Catherine adds that Sergius, Rainas fianc, was at the head of the charge, and was as heroic
in life as he appears in the picture Raina keeps in her bedroom. Louka, their servant, enters and warns
Catherine and Raina that escaped Serbs fleeing the battlefield might be in the area, seeking refuge in the
houses of Bulgarian families. Raina is not worried, and chooses to keep her window unlocked. In the
night, a man enters the room through the unlocked window and says he will kill Raina if she makes a
noise. The man is Swiss and an escaped soldier, fighting as a mercenary for the Serbians.

Raina is shocked to see that the man is tired and hungry, that he does not glorify battle, and that he is
merely happy to have escaped the carnage alive. Raina helps him hide behind a curtain just as
Catherine, Louka, and a Bulgarian officer enter to search the room for any Serbs who might be hiding in
the area. Raina convinces them that no one is in her room, and they leave. Raina gives the man
chocolate creams, which she keeps in a box in her room, and is shocked to hear that the man has no
ammunition for his pistol, as he normally only keeps candies in his pockets. The man argues that
Sergiuss cavalry charge against the Serbs was foolish, and succeeded only by sheer luck. The Serbs had
machine guns but were given the wrong ammunition by accident, and therefore could not mow down
Sergius and his men. Raina agrees to help the man escape later that night, though she rebukes him for
making fun of her fianc Sergius. The man sleeps as Raina enlists Catherines help, and when Raina and
Catherine return, they allow the man to rest since he has not slept for days.

The second act begins in the garden of the same house, though it is now spring of 1886. Louka is
engaged to the houses head male servant, Nicola. Louka tells Nicola that he will never be more than a
servant, and that she has higher aspirations. Louka tells him she knows many secrets about the Petkoff
family, and Nicola says that he does, too, but would never blackmail his masters. Major Petkoff, the
head of the family, returns from the war. He reports to Catherine that Sergius will never receive the
military promotion Sergius craves, because Sergius has no command of military strategy. Sergius enters
and is greeted warmly by the family, and especially by Raina, who still considers him a hero. Sergius says
he has abandoned his commission in the army out of anger that he will never move up in the ranks.
Sergius and Petkoff tell a story they heard about this Swiss soldier being hidden by two Bulgarian
women during the soldiers retreat. Catherine and Raina realize the story is about them, but do not say
anything.

Sergius speaks with Louka in private, and begins flirting with her. Louka reveals to Sergius that Raina
might not remain faithful to Sergius, and Sergius is taken aback. They exit. A man named Bluntschli
enters the family garden and Louka brings him to Catherine. Catherine realizes that he is the man that
hid in Rainas room, the same man that she and Raina helped escape. Catherine worries that Sergius and
Petkoff, who are conferring over military plans in the library, might encounter the soldier. Sergius and
Petkoff have no idea that the story they heard about a soldier being helped by two Bulgarian women
involves the Petkoffs. Bluntschli has come to return Major Petkoffs coat that Catherine and Raina lent
him to escape. Raina is so happy to see him that she blurts out, the chocolate cream soldier! when she
walks in the room, only to recover herself and blame her outburst, implausibly, on Nicola. Petkoff and
Sergius, who have in fact already met Bluntschli during the war, ask Bluntschli to stay and pass the time.

In the final act, the various tensions of the play thus far are exposed. Louka tells Sergius that the man
with whom Raina is in love is Bluntschli. Sergius challenges Bluntschli to a duel because of this, but
Bluntschli explains his way out of it. A picture of herself that Raina placed in her fathers cloak for
Bluntschli to find is exposed, proving that Raina has not been entirely truthful to Sergius. Raina admits
that she has had feelings for Bluntschli since they first met. Major Petkoff is aghast. When Bluntschli
acknowledges that he has loved Raina, Sergius and Louka reveal that they have been having a secret
affair at Sergius instigation, and Nicola releases Louka from their engagement. Bluntschli, whose father
has just died, has come into a great deal of money, so Rainas parents are glad to marry her off to him
and his handsome fortune. Raina is revealed to be twenty-three rather than seventeen, enabling
Bluntschli in good conscience to ask for her hand in marriage. Bluntschli promises to hire Nicola, whom
he admires, to run the hotels he has just received as part of his inheritance. Sergius accepts Louka has
his lover in public, thus satisfying Loukas desire to move up in the social ranks. The play ends with
Sergius exclaiming, of Bluntschli, What a man!

THE CHERRY ORCHARD

The play begins in the pre-dawn hours of a May morning in Russia. We learn that the cherry trees are in
bloom even though it is frosty outside. Yermolay Lopakhin, a friend of the family, and Dunyasha a maid
on the Ranevsky estate, wait for the estate's owner Ranevsky at the estate's main house, in a room
called "the nursery". Lopakhin reveals that Ranevsky has been in Paris for the last five years. Lopakhin is
a local businessman in his mid- thirties, dressed in a fine white suit (with gaudy yellow shoes), whose
feelings towards Ranevsky are mixed between affectionate gratitude for past kindnesses, and
resentment at her condescension toward him because of his humble, peasant origins. Also on the estate
is Simon Yephikodov, a hapless youth nicknamed "Simple Simon" because of his frequent and ridiculous
accidents.

Soon, Ranevsky arrives from Paris, along with her daughter Anya, who has been with her there since
Easter of that year; Yasha, a young manservant who has accompanied her on her travels; and Charlotte,
Anya's governess, who brings along her dog. Also accompanying her are Firs, her 87-year old
manservant; her elder, yet still infantile, brother Leonid Gayev; and her adopted daughter Varya; these
last three have stayed in Russia but went to the station to greet Ranevsky on her return

Ranevksy expresses her joy and amazement to be home again, while Anya reveals to Varya the relative
poverty in which she found her mother when she arrived in Paris and the way in which she continues to
spend money. Varya reveals that the family's estate is to be sold at auction on the 22nd of August, in
order to pay their debts. Anya reveals that Ranevsky's departure for Paris was caused by her grief over
two deaths: that of her husband six years before and that of her son, Grisha, who drowned a month
thereafter.

Soon, Anya departs for bed, and Lopakhin brings up the issue of the imminent sale. He proposes a
solution; Ranevksy should parcel out the land on her estate, build cottages on the parcels, and lease
them out to summer cottage-holders, who are becoming increasingly numerous. Gayev and Ranevsky
dismiss thr idea, because it would necessitate cutting down the family's beloved (and gigantic) cherry
orchard. Before he leaves, Lopakhin offers them a loan of 50,000 rubles to buy their property at auction
if they change their minds, and predicts there will be no other way of saving the orchard. Ranevsky then
lends some money to a fellow impoverished landowner, Boris Simeonov-Pischik. Peter Trofimov arrives;
he was Grisha's tutor before the drowning, and thus he brings back painful memories for Ranevsky.
Before the end of the act, after complaining about Ranevksy's inability to curb her spending, Gayev
outlines three alternatives to Lopakhin's plan: a financing scheme involving some banker friends of his,
Ranevsky borrowing some money from Lopakhin (without the condition that they then cut down the
orchard), and a wealthy aunt in Yaroslavl who might provide a loan.

In the Second Act, we are introduced more closely to the young servants on the estate, Dunyasha,
Yasha, and Yephikodov, who are involved in a love triangle: Yephikodov loves Dunyasha, Dunyasha loves
Yasha, and Yasha is very much in love with himself. Soon, Lopakhin, Ranevsky, Gayev, Anya and Varya
appear, and they are again debating over Lopakhin's plan to turn the orchard into cottage country.
Lopakhin becomes frustrated with Ranevsky's reluctance; she, in turn, thinks his plan is vulgar, and says
that if they plan to sell the cherry orchard, she wants to be sold along with it. Ranevsky reveals that she
has a lover in Paris who has been sending her telegrams, asking her to return, and who robbed her, left
her, and as a result drove her to a suicide attempt.
Soon, Trofimov appears, and gives several speeches about the importance of work and the laziness and
stupidity of Russian intellectuals. In a quiet moment, the sound of a snapping string is heard, and no one
can identify its source. A drunkard appears, asking for directions, and then money; Ranevsky ends up
giving him several gold pieces. Disturbed, most of the group leave, except for Anya and Trofimov. They
discuss Varya's growing suspicion that Anya and Trofimov are having an affair, which they are not;
Trofimov declares that they are "above love". The act ends with Yephikodov sadly playing his guitar and
Varya calling out, in vain, for Anya.

In the Third Act, Ranevsky throws a party on the day of the auction. The guests consist of several local
bureaucratic officials such as the stationmaster and a post-office clerk. Charlotte entertains the guests
with a series of magic tricks. Ranevsky worries anxiously about why Gayev and Lopakhin have not yet
returned. Ranevsky fears that the orchard has been lost, that the aunt in Yaroslavl has apparently not
given them enough money to buy it, and that Gayev's other sources have failed to come through. She
and Trofimov get into an argument; Trofimov accuses her of not being able to face the truth, and she
accuses him of being unusual for never having fallen in love. Lopakhin and Gayev soon return from the
auction. Lopakhin reveals to everyone that he has bought the estate and intends to carry out his plans
for the orchard's destruction. Anya tries, in vain, to comfort her mother.

In the last act, it is October, and the trees in the cherry orchard are already being cut down. All the
characters are in the process of leaving; Lopakhin will depart to Kharkov for the winter, Varya to the
Ragulins', another family that lives fifty miles away. Gayev plans to live in the town, working at a bank,
Anya will go off to school, and Ranevksy will leave for Paris with Yasha, to rejoin her lover. Charlotte has
no idea what she will do, but Lopakhin assures her he will help her find something. Trofimov and
Lopakhin exchange an affectionate if contentious farewell; Yasha leaves Dunyasha, weeping, without a
second thought; and Anya tearfully says goodbye to her mother. Anya worries that Firs, who has taken
ill, has not been sent to the hospital as he was supposed to be, but Yasha indignantly assures Anya that
he has. Ranevsky encourages Lopakhin to propose to Varya; but the proposal is never madeLopakhin
leaves Varya alone, and in tears. Finally, Gayev and Ranevsky bid a tearful farewell to their house.
Everyone leaves, locking the doors behind them.

But Firs is, in fact, accidentally left behind, having fallen ill and being forgotten in the rush of the
departure. He walks onstage after everyone else has left, quietly muttering about how life has left him
by. He lies on the couch, and silently expires as two sounds are heard; again, the sound of a string
snapping, and the sound of an axe cutting down a cherry tree in the orchard.

======//// THE CRUCIBLE \\\\========

BY ARTHUR MILLER

#CHARACTER_LIST

#SUMMARY
Reverend Parris ; Minister in Salem. He believes a faction plans to force him to leave Salem, so he
attempts to strengthen his authority through the witch trial proceedings.

Betty Parris; Parris' daughter. Her father discovers her dancing in the woods, and she later accuses
individuals of practicing witchcraft.

Abigail Williams; Parris' niece. She instigates the witch trials by falsely accusing others of witchcraft. She
pretends to see spirits and instructs the other girls to pretend as well.

Tituba; Parris' black slave. Parris discovers her casting spells and making potions with the girls in the
woods.

Mrs. Ann Putnam; Wife of Thomas Putnam. She believes that a witch is responsible for the deaths of her
seven infant children. Her jealousy of Rebecca Nurse leads her to accuse Goody Nurse of being a witch.

Thomas Putnam; A greedy landowner in Salem. He systematically accuses his neighbors of witchcraft so
that he might purchase their lands after they hang.

Ruth Putnam; The Putnams' daughter. She accuses individuals of practicing witchcraft. A witness claims
to have heard Putnam say Ruth's accusations helped him obtain land.

Mary Warren; Servant to the Proctors. She goes along with Abigail and the girls by falsely accusing
others of witchcraft; however, she later admits that she was lying.

Mercy Lewis; Servant to the Putnams and friend to Abigail. She participates in the witch trials by
pretending to see spirits and falsely accusing individuals of witchcraft.

John Proctor; Salem farmer and former lover of Abigail's. He openly denounces Parris and does not
attend church.

Elizabeth Proctor; Wife of John Proctor. She is a decent and honest woman, who dismissed Abigail
because of her affair with John Proctor.
Reverend Hale; Minister in Beverly. The people of Salem summon him to investigate Betty's condition
and determine if witchcraft is responsible. He supports the witch trials, but later denounces them when
he learns that Abigail is lying.

Rebecca Nurse; Wife of Francis Nurse. She is one of the most respected individuals in Salem because of
her kindness and charity. She argues against the witch trial investigations. Mrs. Putnam accuses her of
witchcraft.

Francis Nurse; Farmer and landowner in Salem. He is a respected member of the community often
called upon to settle disagreements between individuals.

Susanna Walcott; Friend to Abigail. She also takes part in the trials by falsely accusing others of
witchcraft.

Giles Corey; Elderly inhabitant of Salem. He challenges the court in an attempt to defend his wife who
has been convicted of witchcraft. He is pressed to death as a result.

Sarah Good; Beggar in Salem. She is the first individual accused of witchcraft.

Judge Hathorne; A judge in the Salem court.

Deputy Governor Danforth; A special judge serving in the Salem court during the witch trials. He signs
the death sentences for those individuals who refuse to confess their crimes. He refuses to delay any
execution for fear that he will appear weak and irresolute.

Ezekial Cheever; Appointed by the court to assist in arresting accused individuals.

Marshal Herrick; Appointed by the court to arrest the accused individuals.

Hopkins; Jailer.
 #SUMMARY

The Crucible takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. The action begins in the home of Reverend
Parris, whose daughter Betty lies unconscious and appears very ill. Around midnight the night before,
Parris had discovered Betty, his niece Abigail, and Tituba, his black slave, dancing in the woods, causing
Betty to swoon. The local physician is unable to determine the cause of Betty's illness. Mr. and Mrs.
Putnam arrive and reveal that their daughter Ruth is also ill. There is talk in the village of an unnatural
cause.

Abigail warns her friend Mercy Lewis and the Proctors' servant Mary Warren, not to reveal that they
were all casting spells in the woods. Betty wakes, and Abigail threatens the other girls with violence if
they tell anyone that she drank blood and cast a spell in order to kill Goody Proctor. Betty loses
consciousness again.

John Proctor and Abigail talk privately about their former relationship. Prior to the opening of the play,
Abigail worked as a servant in the Proctor home. Elizabeth Proctor was ill at the time and Abigail took on
more responsibility within the Proctor household. When Elizabeth discovered the affair, she dismissed
Abigail. During their discussion, Abigail becomes angry with Proctor because he refuses to acknowledge
any feelings for her.

Betty wakes again and is hysterical. The well-respected Rebecca Nurse is visiting the Parris household
and calms her. Prophetically, Rebecca warns Parris that identifying witchcraft as the cause of Betty's
illness will set a dangerous precedent and lead to further problems in Salem. Mr. Putnam asks Rebecca
to visit Ruth and attempt to wake her. Ruth is the only Putnam child to survive infancy, and Mrs. Putnam
is jealous of Rebecca because all of Rebecca's children are healthy, whereas Mrs. Putnam had lost seven
infant children.

Putnam, Proctor, and Giles Corey argue with Parris about his salary and other expectations. Parris claims
that a faction is working to drive him out of town, and he disputes their salary figures. Putnam, Proctor,
and Corey then begin arguing over property lines and ownership. Putnam accuses Proctor of stealing
wood from land that he does not own, but Proctor defends himself, stating that he purchased the land
from Francis Nurse five months ago. Putnam claims Francis had no right to the land and, therefore,
could not sell it.

Reverend Hale arrives from another town to investigate the strange events in Salem. The people of
Salem have summoned him as an expert in witchcraft to determine if witchcraft is behind the children's
illnesses. Hale learns that the girls were dancing in the woods with Tituba, and that Tituba can conjure
spirits. Abigail blames Tituba for enticing her to sin. Hale then questions Tituba, and she admits that she
has seen the Devil, as has Goody Good and Goody Osburn. Abigail also confesses to witchcraft, stating
that she had given herself to the Devil, but that she now repents. Betty wakes up, and she and Abigail
name individuals that they say they have seen with the Devil.

Eight days later, Elizabeth discovers that Proctor spoke to Abigail privately while in Salem. Elizabeth and
Proctor argue over this. Mary Warren comes home from Salem where she is serving as an official of the
court, and gives Elizabeth a poppet (doll) that she made for her while sitting in the courtroom. Mary
Warren tells Proctor that some of the girls accused Elizabeth of witchcraft, but the court dismissed the
charge because Mary Warren defended her.

Hale arrives at the Proctor house and questions Proctor about his poor church attendance. He asks
Proctor to name the Ten Commandments. Proctor names nine successfully, but he forgets the
commandment forbidding adultery. Hale questions Elizabeth as well. Proctor reveals that Abigail
admitted to him that the witchcraft charges were false.

Marshal Herrick then arrives and arrests Elizabeth. Earlier that evening, Abigail feels a needle-stab while
eating dinner, and she accuses Elizabeth of attempted murder. The authorities of Salem search the
Proctor house and discover the poppet, along with a needle. Hale questions Mary Warren and learns
that she sewed the poppet and stored the needle inside. Mary Warren also tells him that Abigail saw her
sew the poppet and store the needle. Nevertheless, Elizabeth is arrested.

The court convicts Martha Corey and Rebecca Nurse of witchcraft. Giles Corey tells the court he has
proof that Putnam is accusing his neighbors of witchcraft in order to gain their land. Judge Danforth asks
the name of the witness who gave Corey the information, but Corey refuses to cooperate. The court
arrests him. Judge Danforth informs Proctor that Elizabeth is pregnant.

Mary Warren tells the court that she pretended to see spirits and falsely accused others of witchcraft.
She reveals that Abigail and the other girls are also lying. Abigail denies Mary Warren's charge, however,
and she and the others claim that Mary Warren is sending out her spirit against them in the court.

Proctor denounces Abigail's charge against Mary Warren, stating that Abigail is a lying whore. Proctor
informs the court of his affair with Abigail and states that she is lying in order to have Elizabeth
executed, thereby providing herself with the opportunity to become his wife. After Proctor agrees that
Elizabeth would never lie, the court summons Elizabeth and questions her about the affair. Not knowing
that her husband has confessed it, Elizabeth lies about the affair and is returned to jail. Abigail resumes
her claim that Mary Warren is attacking her until Mary Warren recants her confession that she lied
about the witchcraft and charges John Proctor as the Devil's man.
Several months pass. Proctor is in prison, scheduled to hang, along with Rebecca Nurse. Elizabeth is also
in prison, although the court has delayed her execution until after she gives birth. Hale attempts to
convince the prisoners to confess rather than hang, but all refuse. Proctor confesses and signs a written
affidavit, but he destroys the document rather than have it posted on the church door. Proctor is taken
to the gallows.

######## THE WINTER'S TALE #########

BY SHAKESPEARE

#SUMMARY

Archidamus, a lord of Bohemia, and Camillo, a lord of Sicilia, talk about their respective countries.
Archidamus says that if Camillo were to visit Bohemia he would discover great differences between their
countries. Camillo replies that he thinks that his king, Leontes, is planning a trip to Bohemia in the
summer. Abashed by how little Bohemia has to offer in comparison to Sicilia, Archidamus imagines
himself serving drinks that would make the visitors so sleepy that they would not notice the barrenness
of Bohemia. The lords also discuss the lifelong friendship of their two kings, as well as the virtues of the
two young princes.

Camillo then joins a group that is composed of the two kings, Leontes and Polixenes, Leontes' family,
and some attendants. Polixenes, King of Bohemia, is thanking Leontes for his extended hospitality in
Sicilia and insisting that he, Polixenes, must return to his country's responsibilities. When it is clear that
Polixenes will not yield to Leontes' entreaties to stay for a longer visit, Leontes urges his wife, Hermione,
to join the effort. Hermione succeeds in persuading Polixenes to stay.

Leontes seems delighted that Hermione has convinced Polixenes to stay, but suddenly he reveals that he
is jealous of Polixenes. Seeing that Leontes is upset, Hermione and Polixenes ask him what is wrong.
Leontes, however, avoids a truthful answer by claiming that he is merely remembering when he was the
age of his son. The two kings then compare their love for their sons.

Leontes takes a walk with his son, Mamillius, thinking that this will set up Polixenes and Hermione for a
compromising situation. Hermione, however, innocently discloses where she and Polixenes will be, and
Leontes indulges in satiric swipes at her imagined infidelity. Then he sends Mamillius off to play, before
asking for Camillo's assessment of the relationship between Hermione and Polixenes. Camillo's
straightforward responses, however, are twisted by the jealous king, and Camillo protests: The imagined
bawdiness which Leontes interprets from his wife's and Polixenes' actions is wrong. The king lashes out
at Camillo, and Camillo humbly begs for a reappraisal of his reliability as an observer for the king. When
Leontes insists upon a confirmation of Hermione's infidelity, a shocked Camillo criticizes his king.

Leontes then tries to extract an agreement that his list of observed actions (between Hermione and
Polixenes) proves that his wife's and Polixenes' affair is a reality. Camillo urges the king to heal "this
diseased opinion," but Leontes cannot be convinced. He suggests that Camillo poison Polixenes. Camillo
admits that he could do it, but he states that he will never believe that Hermione was unfaithful. Camillo
agrees to poison Polixenes if Leontes promises not to reveal what he believes about Hermione. Leontes
promises, then joins the innocent couple.

Alone, Camillo speaks of his hopeless position. Approached by Polixenes to explain Leontes' changed
attitude, Camillo convinces Polixenes that they must flee together or they will both be killed by Leontes.

Act II opens some time later with an obviously pregnant Hermione resting in the company of her son,
Mamillius, and two ladies-in-waiting. When Hermione requests a story, Mamillius suggests a tale about
"sprites and goblins," a tale suitable for winter.

As Mamillius begins the story, Leontes and Antigonus enter with a group of attendants. Leontes clearly
believes that the hasty departure of Camillo and Polixenes is confirmation of his suspicions about
Hermione's affair with Polixenes. He orders Mamillius to be kept away from his mother, and he accuses
Hermione of being pregnant by Polixenes. Ignoring Hermione's protests, Leontes orders her to be
imprisoned. She bravely accepts her fate and exits with the guards.

Beset by protests from his astonished advisers, Leontes insists that they refuse to see the evidence
before them. The king quiets the protesters by revealing that he has sent for an interpretation from the
oracle at Delphos.

After the birth of Hermione's baby (a girl), Paulina, the wife of one of the lords of Sicilia, Antigonus,
attempts to persuade Leontes to retract his accusations as she presents his beautiful, innocent baby to
him. But she selects a poor time to approach Leontes. He has just stated that killing Hermione would
allow him to sleep again, and he has resolved not to worry about his sick son lest he be distracted from
his commitment to revenge. Paulina refuses to listen to the warnings of her husband and her
attendants. Instead, she stubbornly tries to convince Leontes that the baby is his.

Leontes, however, responds as Paulina was warned he would. Her arguments in favor of the queen and
baby escalate his tyranny. He then tries to pit Antigonus against Paulina, ordering him to take the
bastard child and Paulina away. Antigonus protests that no man can control his wife. When Leontes
orders that the baby be thrown into a fire, Antigonus negotiates a chance for the baby to live if
Leontes will spare the baby's life, Antigonus promises to do anything that Leontes requests. Vowing to
kill both Paulina and Antigonus if Antigonus fails to obey, Leontes orders Antigonus to take the baby to a
remote place and abandon her to Fate. Antigonus doubts that this "fate" is better than a quick death,
but he agrees to leave the baby to the mercy of wild animals, and he exits to carry out Leontes'
command.

No sooner has Antigonus left than a servant announces the return of the messengers from Delphos.

Act III opens with Cleomentes and Dion talking about the awesome experience that they shared at
Delphos. Both men hope that Apollo has declared Hermione innocent, and they hurry off to deliver the
sealed message from the oracle.

Leontes orders that his wife be brought in to hear the reading of the oracle's decision, fully expecting
that she will be found guilty as charged and, thus, he will be cleared from the stigma of tyranny.
Cleomentes and Dion swear that they have brought the message from Delphos without breaking the
sea.

The message declares that Hermione, Polixenes, Camillo and the baby are all innocent. It further states
that Leontes is "a jealous tyrant" and asserts that "the King shall live without an heir, if that which is lost
be not found." Leontes declares that the message contains no truth, and he orders the trial to proceed.
Just then, a servant announces that Mamillius has died. Hermione seems to faint, and Paulina
announces that the news has killed the queen.

Leontes repents and orders Hermione to be tended to with the belief that she will recover. He then
announces his intention to make peace with his old friend Polixenes, to woo Hermione, and to recall
Camillo. He declares Camillo a good and faithful servant who was right to disobey his order to poison
Polixenes.

Paulina enters, wailing over the death of Hermione and attacking Leontes for his dreadful, tyrannical
edicts. She says that the king should embark on a life of repentance as a result of what he has done to
his family. Leontes replies that he deserves all that she has said and more. Paulina then expresses regret
for her attack because she detects the remorse that the king is feeling. She says she will remind him no
more of the death of Hermione and his two children.

Leontes asks that he be taken to view the bodies of his dead wife and son. He declares that they shall
share the same tomb, and he vows that he will visit the tomb each day to weep.
In the next scene, we discover that Antigonus and the infant are still alive, for Antigonus is seeking
assurance that his ship has indeed arrived at "the deserts of Bohemia." He and a seaman look at the sky
and agree that a brewing storm may portend heavenly anger if they abandon the helpless infant; they
also agree that they do not like their task. Antigonus promises to hurry.

Antigonus then describes his nightmare to the infant. Her mother, he says, appeared to him in a dream,
a figure of sorrow. The dream figure requested that he leave the baby in Bohemia and that he name her
Perdita. Then she informed him that because of this task, he would never again see his wife. Antigonus
concludes that Hermione is dead and that Polixenes is the father of the baby. After uttering best wishes
for the baby and regret for his actions, Antigonus runs off stage, chased by a bear.

A shepherd enters, despairing the wenching and fighting of all male youths between the ages of ten and
twenty-three. When he sees Perdita, he assumes that she is an abandoned child born out of wedlock. He
pities the baby so much, though, that he decides to keep her. The shepherd then calls for his son, who is
identified in the script only as "clown." The boy tells his father about two sights that have shaken him
the drowning of an entire crew of a ship (the one that brought Antigonus and Perdita to Bohemia) and a
man (Antigonus) consumed by a bear. The shepherd turns his son's attention to the baby, whom he
surmises is, somehow, linked to a fortune. The boy opens the baby's wrappings and discovers gold.
Urging his father to take the baby home, the boy is inspired by their sudden good fortune to return and
bury the remains of Antigonus.

The Chorus narrates that a bridge in time occurs at the opening of Act IV, and it also summarizes the
highlights of an interim of sixteen years. Then, Polixenes and Camillo enter in the middle of an argument
about Camillo's decision to return to Leontes after his long sixteen-year separation. Polixcnes warns him
that returning could be fatal to Camillo. Besides, he needs Camillo. Camillo, however, wants to return to
his native country for he is growing old, and he thinks that he can comfort the now-repentant Leontes.

Polixenes agrees that his penitent "brother" has a sad history, but asks consideration for his own sad lot
that is, having a son who is 11 ungracious." Camillo acknowledges that he has not seen the prince
(Florizel) for three days and does not know where the young man spends his time. The king says that he
has been informed that Florizel spends a good deal of time at the home of a shepherd who has
somehow acquired great wealth. They both guess that Florizel must be attracted to the shepherd's
beautiful young daughter. Polixenes persuades Camillo to help him discover what Florizel is up to.

Autolycus then enters, singing a song of hope and high spirits. He identifies himself as a peddler of
oddities, and also as one who makes his living by cheating fools. On cue, the "clown" (the shepherd's
son) enters, trying to calculate his budget and remember his shopping list for the upcoming sheep-
shearing feast.

Autolycus dupes the clown by pretending that he has been beaten, robbed, and then clothed in his
despicable rags. The clown is sorry for Autolycus and offers him money. Then he hastens off to buy his
supplies. Autolycus chortles about lifting the clown's purse and exits.

The scene that follows focuses on the sheep-shearing feast. Florizel and Perdita flounder in an awkward
courtship. Florizel praises Perdita's qualifications as the chosen "queen" of this spring ritual. But aware
of Florizel's being a true prince, and the unreality of her title as "queen," Perdita is unhappy. She
cautions Florizel about the potential wrath that a liaison between them might arouse in his father.
Florizel urges her to remember some of the mythical transformations that love has caused.

As Perdita again urges the prince to be realistic, he swears to honor his love for her above all other
things. He then commands her to exhibit cheer for her approaching "guests."

Perdita's "father," the shepherd, chides her for neglecting her duties as a "queen." Therefore, Perdita
begins entertaining; first, she greets the disguised Polixenes and Camillo and hands out flowers to them.
After the king and his adviser observe Perdita's prudent parries to Florizel's bold courtship, Polixenes
observes a bearing and beauty in Perdita that transcend her supposedly low station. Camillo affirms
these unusual qualities. The clown moves the festival into action by calling for music and dance, and
again, Polixenes remarks upon Perdita's grace. The shepherd says that the young couple love each other
and hints that "Doricles" (Florizel's pseudonym) will discover an unsuspected dowry if he proposes to
Perdita.

The entertainment continues with a dance of twelve satyrs performed by a group of uninvited amateurs,
but throughout these dances, Polixenes observes Florizel and Perdita. Deciding that it is time to part the
couple, the king calls Florizel over to ask why he did not bring presents to enliven his romance. The love-
struck prince declares that Perdita does not care for such trifles; she wants only gifts that are locked in
his heart.

When Florizel declares that no power or wealth could seem worthwhile without Perdita's love, Polixenes
and Camillo support the sentiment. The shepherd then asks his daughter if she feels the same way. She
says that she does but cannot express it as well.

The shepherd declares the betrothal of the young couple, with the two strangers as witnesses. The
disguised Polixenes urges Florizel to consult his father before making such an important decision, but
Florizel impetuously and repeatedly refuses. Enraged, Polixenes casts off his disguise and threatens to
punish all who participated in the betrothal without consulting him.

Perdita sighs that she was afraid something like this would happen. She urges Florizel to make up with
his father and never return to her. The shepherd, in great confusion and despair, berates the young
people for the ruin and the wretched death that they have probably condemned him to. But Florizel
stubbornly clings to Perdita and tells his father to go ahead and disinherit him.

When Florizel decides to take Perdita and flee in a ship anchored nearby, Camillo stops him, advising
him to make peace with his father. Then Camillo begins laying a plot to try and eventually return to
Sicilia himself.

Camillo convinces Florizel to marry Perdita so he can present himself with his new bride to Leontes in
Sicilia. He predicts that Leontes will welcome the opportunity to be the host for the son of the long-
separated "brother," since Polixenes will not respond to Leontes' invitation to end their old quarrel.
Florizel agrees that this plan seems preferable to wandering forever as unwelcome strangers in strange
lands. Camillo then offers funds from his wealth in Sicilia to properly outfit the royal party.

Act V is set again in Sicilia. Leontes is seemingly much the same man as he was when we last saw him
sixteen years before. He is conversing with Paulina and the two lords who brought the message from
Delphos, Cleomenes and Dion. Cleomenes is urging Leontes to forget and forgive his evil "as the heavens
have done." But Leontes says that as long as he can remember those whom he lost, especially
Hermione, he cannot forget his errors.

Paulina, we see, is still feeding Leontes' guilt. Cleomenes and Dion ask Paulina to "stop salting the
wounds." She retorts that their wish for the king to heal so that he can marry again counters Apollo's
oracle "that King Leontes shall not have an heir/ Till his lost child be found," an event as unlikely as the
return of her own husband, Antigonus. She tells Leontes not to wish for an heir.

Leontes encourages Paulina to continue to remind him of Hermione's superior virtues; he believes that
taking any other wife would end in disaster. Paulina extracts an oath from Leontes, in the presence of
the two witnesses, that he will not marry until Paulina approves. Paulina states that such a time will
come only when Hermione is recreated.

A servant enters then to announce the arrival of Prince Florizel and his wife, whom he describes as a
woman unsurpassed in beauty and virtue. Leontes cleverly perceives that Florizel's small group of
attendants means that this visit is "forced." It is not an official visit, at all. Paulina notes the servant's
excessive praise of Florizel's wife. She chides him for such praise when he has written verses that have
stated that Hermione could never be equaled. The servant, however, maintains that all will agree with
him after they have seen Perdita.

Leontes is thrown into a miserable reminiscence when he sees the young couple. They remind him of his
loss of friendship with Polixenes. Florizel claims that his father sent him to reinstate that old friendship;
Polixenes, he says, is too infirm to make the trip himself, and he then relates an imaginary tale about his
strange arrival. He says that he has arrived from Libya, where he acquired Perdita. He explains the small
group that accompanies him by saying that he sent the larger group to Bohemia to report his success to
his father. He then requests that Leontes remember his own youthful love as good reason to petition
Polixenes' acceptance of Perdita. Leontes, reminded of his love for Hermione, promises to speak for the
young couple.

In the next scene, Autolycus questions some gentlemen who possess important news from the court of
Leontes. The stories are pieced together to reveal that Leontes now knows that Perdita is his daughter
and that he can finally celebrate the return of his lost heir.

Because of Perdita's request to see the lifelike statue of her mother, a celebration dinner has been
organized near the statue.

The final scene at Hermione's statue is the setting for the play's "renewal." When they first enter,
Leontes is suffering, but Perdita steadfastly stares at the lifelike statue. Paulina then amazes them all by
commanding the statue to move. At last, Hermione speaks, and everyone learns that she has remained
alive (but hidden) all these sixteen years. As they all exit to enjoy their new happiness, Leontes ends
Paulina's loneliness by choosing the good Camillo to be her husband.

=======///// HEDDA GABLER \\\\\=======

#CHARACTER_LIST

#SUMMARY

CHARACTERS:

Hedda Gabler Tesman;

The main character, newly married and bored with both marriage and life. She is the daughter of
General Gabler.
George Tesman;

Hedda's husband, an academic who is more interested in research than in his wife.

Juliana Tesman;

George's aunt; also called Aunt Julia.

Thea Elvsted;

A younger schoolmate of Hedda and a former acquaintance of George. Nervous and shy, Thea is in an
unhappy marriage.

Judge Brack;

A family friend who is secretly in love with Hedda and in rather unscrupulous.

Eilert Lvborg;

George's former colleague and now someone with whom George competes for publications and a
teaching position. Eilert was once in love with Hedda.

Berta;

A servant at the Tesmans.

SUMMARY:

Hedda, the famous daughter of General Gabler, married George Tesman out of desperation, but she
found life with him to be dull and tedious. During their wedding trip, her husband spent most of his time
in libraries doing research in history for a book that is soon to be published. He is hoping to receive a
position in the university.

An old friend of Hedda's comes to visit her and tells her of Eilert Lvborg, an old friend of both women.
Eilert Lvborg has also written a book on history that is highly respected. In the past, however, he has
lived a life of degeneration. Now he has quit drinking and has devoted himself to serious work. His new
book has all the imagination and spirit that is missing in George Tesman's book. Hedda's friend, Thea
Elvsted, tells how she has helped Eilert stop drinking and begin constructive work.

Later at a visit, Lvborg is offered a drink. He refuses and Hedda, jealous over the influence that Thea
has on Lvborg, tempts him into taking a drink. He then goes to a party where he loses his manuscript.
When George Tesman returns home with Lvborg's manuscript, Hedda burns it because she is jealous of
it. Later, Lvborg comes to her and confesses how he has failed in his life. Hedda talks him into
committing suicide by shooting himself in the temple. Lvborg does commit suicide later but it is
through a wound in the stomach. George then begins to reconstruct Lvborg's manuscript with the help
of notes provided by Thea Elvsted. Suddenly, Hedda leaves the room, takes her pistols, and commits
suicide.

======///// DAVID COPPERFIELD \\\\\=======

BY DICKENS

#CHARACTER_LIST AND #SUMMARY

CHARACTER LIST

David Copperfield

He is the central character in the novel and tells the story of his life from birth to adulthood. David is a
sensitive youth who first suffers under the cruel Murdstones and then is sent away to work in a wine
warehouse. David first marries Dora Spenlow, an empty-headed young girl; afterward, he realizes how
incompatible they really are. When Dora dies, he marries Agnes Wickfield and by the novel's end, he has
matured into a successful writer and adult.

Clara Copperfield

David's mother. She is an attractive, tender person, but impractical and emotional and easily taken in by
Mr. Murdstone, who marries her because he is interested in her annuity.

Clara Peggotty

The Copperfields' housekeeper, who also acts as David's nurse. She is a woman of intense loyalty and is
David's only companion after his mother's death. Peggotty marries Barkis, the cart-driver, and continues
throughout the novel to be David's friend.
Edward Murdstone

David's stepfather. A dark, handsome man who cruelly beats David and slowly drives David's mother to
an early death.

Jane Murdstone

Mr. Murdstone's sister. She runs the Copperfield household and incessantly harasses David.

Mr. Barkis

The driver of the horse-cart that travels between Yarmouth and David's home, He is a shy, quiet man
who uses David as a messenger in his courtship of Peggotty.

Mr. Chillip

The doctor who delivers David. He is an exceedingly mildmannered, frightened little man who is
especially afraid of David's aunt, Betsey Trotwood.

Daniel Peggotty

Clara Peggotty's brother and a Yarmouth fisherman. He is a warm-hearted man whose house is a refuge
for anyone who needs help.

Ham Peggotty

Mr. Peggotty's orphaned nephew. Ham, like his uncle, is a considerate, kindly person. He is in love with
Em'ly and waits patiently for her after she runs away. He finally dies in an attempt to save Steerforth,
Em'ly's seducer.

Little Em'ly

Mr. Peggotty's orphaned niece. She is David's childhood sweetheart, but becomes engaged to Ham and
later runs away with Steerforth. She is a quiet, compassionate young girl who wants to become a "lady,"
a desire that leads to unhappiness.

Mrs. Gummidge
The widow of Mr. Peggotty's partner. She constantly complains about her hardships, but when Em'ly
runs away, she changes into a helpful, inspiring confidante of Mr. Peggotty.

Charles Mell

A schoolmaster at the Salem House boarding school. A gentle friend and teacher of David.

Mr. Creakle

The sadistic headmaster of the Salem House School. He is a fiery-faced man who enjoys flogging the
boys with a cane. He later becomes a prison magistrate.

Mr. Tungay

The assistant and cruel companion of Mr. Creakle. He has a wooden leg and repeats everything that
Creakle says.

James Steerforth

A spoiled young man whom David admires. He has a surface polish and the good manners that deceive
people who do not know him. His true selfishness is shown when he deserts Em'ly, leaving her with his
servant, Littimer. He is killed in a storm off Yarmouth along with Ham, who tries to save him.

Tommy Traddles

David's friend. Of all the boys at the Salem House School, Traddies receives the most punishment. He is
a good-natured, loyal friend to both David and Mr. Micawber. Traddles is persistent, and this quality
helps him rise from his humble background to become a judge.

Wilkins Micawber

A constantly impoverished, but always optimistic, gentleman who boards David during his stay in
London. He is a broad comic character with a passion for writing flowery letters and uttering
grandiloquent speeches. He finally accompanies Mr. Peggotty to Australia, where he becomes a
successful magistrate.

Emma Micawber

Mr. Micawber's long-suffering wife. She stands by her husband through all his hardships, even joining
him in debtors' prison.
Betsey Trotwood

David's great-aunt. She is unhappy that David was born a boy instead of a girl, but later she acts as his
guardian and provider during his early years of schooling. Her formal, often brisk, nature is deceiving;
she is basically a sympathetic person.

Richard Babley (Mr. Dick)

A lovable simpleton cared for by Betsey Trotwood. He is engaged in writing a long manuscript that he
uses to paper a huge kite. Mr. Dick is devoted to David's aunt and becomes a great friend of David's.

Uriah Heep

A repulsive, scheming young man who attempts to marry Agnes Wickfield and gain control of her
father's law practice. He pretends to be humble and uses this as a means to gain vindictive revenge on
people he believes have snubbed him. He is exposed by Mr. Micawber and ends up in prison.

Mr. Wickfield

A solicitor and the widowed father of Agnes Wickfield. He is a proud man, but his excessive drinking
allows Uriah Heep to take advantage of him.

Agnes Wickfield

The daughter of Mr. Wickfield; David's second wife. She is a dutiful companion and housekeeper to her
father and a sisterly friend to David while he stays at the Wickfield house. She proves to be a perfect
wife and an inspiration to David in his writing.

Dr. Strong

The headmaster of the school which David attends in Canterbury. He is a scholarly, trusting gentleman
who is married to a girl much younger than himself. Although his wife is accused of infidelity, he
maintains his faith in her.

Annie Strong

Dr. Strong's youthful wife. She is a beautiful, affectionate girl whose family exploits her husband.
Jack Maldon

Annie Strong's cousin. He is a lazy, vain young man who tries to compromise Mrs. Strong, but is
repulsed.

Mrs. Markleham

Annie Strong's mother. A forceful, selfish woman, she always takes Jack Maldon's part and unwittingly
helps cause the misunderstanding between her daughter and Dr. Strong.

Mrs. Steerforth

James Steerforth's mother. A possessive woman who has spoiled her son by over-indulgence and a
smothering affection; she lapses into a semi-invalid state when she hears of her son's death.

Rosa Dartle

Mrs. Steerforth's companion. She is a neurotic, quick-tempered young woman with a consuming love for
Steerforth.

Littimer

Steerforth's personal manservant. He is a formal, haughty person who has an air of respectability, yet he
aids Steerforth in his seduction of Em'ly. He is trapped by Miss Mowcher and is sent to Creakle's prison.

Miss Mowcher

A middle-aged dwarf who is a hairdresser for wealthy families. She is upset when she realizes that she
was duped into helping Steerforth run off with Em'ly, and is instrumental in the capture of Littimer, who
aided Steerforth.

Martha Endell

Em'ly's friend. She is a suffering woman who is forced to go to London to hide her shame. Martha
redeems herself by saving Em'ly from a similar life and finds happiness in her own life after she arrives in
Australia.

Mr. Spenlow
A proctor and partner in a law firm in Doctor's Commons. He is a pompous, aristocratic lawyer who
objects to David's plans to marry his daughter.

Dora Spenlow

David's first wife. She is an impractical, empty-headed girl who cannot cook or manage a household.
Although she is a poor selection as a wife, David is so taken by her childlike beauty that he overlooks her
faults and marries her. Their marriage is a comedy of mismanagement until Dora dies, leaving David free
to marry the domestically perfect Agnes.

Mr. Omer

The Yarmouth undertaker and dealer in funeral clothes.

Minnie Omer

Mr. Omer's daughter and Em'ly's working companion.

Joram Minnie

Omer's sweetheart and eventually her husband, and finally, Mr. Omer's business partner.

Mr. Quinion

A business associate of Mr. Murdstone.

Janet Betsey

Trotwood's housekeeper. She assists Miss Trotwood in chasing donkey riders off the lawn.

Mr. Jorkins

Mr. Spenlow's seldom-seen partner. He is reputed to be a strict businessman, but he is really a mild-
mannered individual whose name is used to frighten new employees.

Julia Mills

Dora's girl friend. She is a romantic person who advises David in his courtship with Dora.
Mrs. Crupp

David's landlady. She is a lazy woman who drinks David's brandy and feuds with Aunt Betsey.

Sophy Crewler Traddies' sweetheart. A patient girl from a large family, she marries Traddies and assists
him in his work as a lawyer.

SUMMARY

The novel traces the life of David Copperfield from the time of his birth to his mature manhood, when
he is married and familiar with the vicissitudes of life. His early years are enjoyable with his mother
who was widowed shortly before his birth and with her servant, Peggotty. Life is happy for David until
his mother decides to marry Mr. Murdstone; afterward, life becomes unbearable for David. He is soon
sent to a miserable school where he becomes friendly with James Steerforth, a fellow student.

When David's mother dies, he is taken from school and put to work by Mr. Murdstone in a London
warehouse. Although David enjoys the company of the impoverished Micawber family, with whom he
boards, his other associates and the work are intolerable, so, without money or property, he runs away
to his Aunt Betsey Trotwood in Dover. Despite a stern exterior, Aunt Betsey treats him well, adopting
him and sending him to a good school. While at school, he boards with a Mr. Wickfield and his daughter
Agnes. (Throughout the novel, David retains a fond, sisterly affection for Agnes.) After graduation, David
works in the law office of Spenlow & Jorkins and soon falls in love with Mr. Spenlow's daughter, Dora.

About this time, Em'ly, the Peggottys' beloved niece, runs off to marry Steerforth, whom David had
innocently introduced to her while she was engaged to Ham, a nephew of the Peggottys. The family is
saddened by this development, but Mr. Peggotty sets out to find her and bring her back. David uses his
spare time doing clerical and literary work to help Aunt Betsey, who now finds herself without financial
resources. He marries Dora, only to find that he has a "child-wife" who knows nothing of housekeeping
and cannot accept any responsibility.

Meanwhile, Uriah Heep, an "umble" clerk in Mr. Wickfield's employ, whom David dislikes, has deceitfully
worked his way into a partnership, aided by Mr. Wickfield's weakness for wine. In addition, David also
discovers that his old friend Mr. Micawber has gone to work for Heep. David has remained fond of the
Micawbers, and it troubles him that his old friend is working for a scoundrel. Eventually, however,
Micawber has a grand moment of glory when he exposes Heep as a fraud, helping to save Mr. Wickfield
and restoring some of Aunt Betsey's finances.
David's wife, Dora, becomes ill and dies, and David is troubled until Em'ly, the Peggottys' niece, returns
to her uncle. David has felt guilty for some time for having introduced Em'ly to Steerforth. After a
reconciliation is accomplished, Em'ly, along with some of the Peggottys, and the Micawbers leave for
Australia to begin new lives. Before they leave, David witnesses a dramatic shipwreck in which
Steerforth is killed, as is Ham in attempting to rescue him. Still saddened by the loss of his wife and
other events, David goes abroad for three years. It is only after he returns that he realizes that Agnes
Wickfield has been his true love all along, and their happy marriage takes place at last.

@@@@@@(((( MACBETH ))))@@@@@@

CHARACTER LIST & SUMMARY

Macbeth

A captain in Duncan's army, later the Thane (Lord) of Glamis and Cawdor. When Three Witches predict
that he will one day be king of Scotland, he takes his fate into his own hands, allowing his ambition and
that of his wife to overcome his better judgement. His bloody reign culminates in a battle against
Malcolm and the English forces.

Lady Macbeth

The devilish wife of Macbeth, whose ambition helps to drive her husband toward the desperate act of
murder. Subsequently, her husband's cruelty and her own guilt recoil on her, sending her into a
madness from which she never recovers.

Banquo

A fellow-captain and companion of Macbeth, who also receives a prophecy from the Witches: that his
children will one day succeed to the throne of Scotland. This information is sufficient to spell his death at
the hands of the resentful Macbeth, who is later haunted by Banquo's ghost.

Duncan King of Scotland.

His victories against rebellious kinsmen and the Norwegians have made him a popular and honored king.
His decision to pass the kingdom to his son Malcolm provokes his untimely death at the hands of
Macbeth.
Fleance

Banquo's son, who, by escaping Macbeth's plot on his life, will go on to be father to a line of kings.

Donalbain and Malcolm

Duncan's two sons. Fearful of implication in their father's murder, they flee Scotland, Donalbain to
Ireland and Malcolm to England, where he raises a large army with the intention of toppling the tyrant
Macbeth.

Macduff

A thane (nobleman) of Scotland who discovers the murdered King Duncan. Suspecting Macbeth and
eventually turning against him, Macduff later flees to England to join Malcolm. When Macbeth arranges
the murder of his wife and children, Macduff swears personal revenge.

Lennox, Ross, Menteth, Angus, Caithness Thanes of Scotland, all of whom eventually turn against the
tyrannical Macbeth.

The Porter, the Old Man, the Doctors

Three commentators on events, all of whom have a certain degree of wisdom and foresight. The Porter
hints at the Hell-like nature of Macbeth's castle; the Old Man associates the murder of King Duncan with
the instability of the natural world; the Doctors recognize disease and disorder even though they cannot
cure it.

The Witches Three agents of Fate

who reveal the truth (or part of it) to Macbeth and Banquo and who later appear to confirm the
downfall and tragic destiny of the tyrannical Macbeth.

SUMMARY

Set in medieval Scotland and partly based on a true historical account, Macbeth charts the bloody rise to
power and tragic downfall of the warrior Macbeth. Already a successful soldier in the army of King
Duncan, Macbeth is informed by Three Witches that he is to become king. As part of the same prophecy,
the Witches predict that future Scottish kings will be descended not from Macbeth but from his fellow
army captain, Banquo. Although initially prepared to wait for Fate to take its course, Macbeth is stung
by ambition and confusion when King Duncan nominates his son Malcolm as his heir.
Returning to his castle, Macbeth allows himself to be persuaded and directed by his ambitious wife, who
realizes that regicide the murder of the king is the quickest way to achieve the destiny that her
husband has been promised. A perfect opportunity presents itself when King Duncan pays a royal visit to
Macbeth's castle. At first Macbeth is loth to commit a crime that he knows will invite judgment, if not on
earth then in heaven. Once more, however, his wife prevails upon him. Following an evening of revelry,
Lady Macbeth drugs the guards of the king's bedchamber; then, at a given signal, Macbeth, although
filled with misgivings, ascends to the king's room and murders him while he sleeps. Haunted by what he
has done, Macbeth is once more reprimanded by his wife, whose inner strength seems only to have
been increased by the treacherous killing. Suddenly, both are alarmed by a loud knocking at the castle
door.

When the drunken porter of Macbeth's castle finally responds to the noise, he opens the door to
Macduff, a loyal follower of the king, who has been asked to awake Duncan in preparation for the return
journey. Macbeth indicates the location of the king's room, and Macduff discovers the body. When the
murder is revealed, Macbeth swiftly kills the prime witnesses, the sleepy guards of the king's
bedchamber, and Lady Macbeth faints. The assembled lords of Scotland, including Macbeth, swear to
avenge the murder. With suspicion heavy in the air, the king's two sons flee the country: Donalbain to
Ireland and Malcolm to raise an army in England.

Macbeth is duly proclaimed the new king of Scotland, but recalling the Witches' second prophecy, he
arranges the murder of his fellow soldier Banquo and his son Fleance, both of whom represent a threat
to his kingship according to the Witches' prophecy. The hired murderers kill Banquo but mistakenly
allow Fleance to escape. At a celebratory banquet that night, Macbeth is thrown into a state of horror
when the ghost of the murdered Banquo appears at the dining table. Again, his wife tries to strengthen
Macbeth, but the strain is clearly beginning to show.

The following day, Macbeth returns to the same Witches who initially foretold his destiny. This time, the
Witches not only confirm that the sons of Banquo will rule in Scotland, but they also add a new
prophecy: Macbeth will be invincible in battle until the time when the forest of Birnam moves towards
his stronghold at Dunsinane and until he meets an enemy "not born of woman." Dismissing both of
these predictions as nonsense, Macbeth prepares for invasion.

When he is told that Macduff has deserted him, Macbeth begins the final stage of his tragic descent. His
first move is the destruction of Macduff's wife and children. In England, Macduff receives the news at
the very moment that he swears his allegiance to the young Malcolm. Malcolm persuades him that the
murder of his family should act as the spur to revenge.
Meanwhile, in Scotland, Lady Macbeth has been taken ill: She walks in her sleep and seems to recall, in
fragmentary memories, the details of the murder. Now, in a series of alternating scenes, the action of
the play moves rapidly between the advancing army of Malcolm and the defensive preparations of
Macbeth. When Malcolm's army disguise themselves with sawn-off branches, Macbeth sees what
appears to be a wood moving towards his stronghold at Dunsinane. And when he finally meets Macduff
in single combat, his sworn enemy reveals that he came into the world by cesarean section; he was not,
precisely speaking, "born of woman." On hearing this news, Macbeth rejects one final time the Witches'
prophecy. With a loud cry, he launches himself at Macduff and is slain. In the final scene, Malcolm is
crowned as the new king of Scotland, to the acclaim of all.

&&&&&////JOSEPH ANDREWS\\\\&&&&&&

CHARACTER LIST

Joseph Andrews

A handsome young fellow who battles for his virginity throughout the novel.

Gaffar and Gammar

Andrews Parents of Pamela and, it is believed, of Joseph.

Mr. Booby

The nephew of Sir Thomas Booby.

Sir Thomas Booby

The deceased husband of Lady Booby.

Lady Booby

A hot-blooded young widow who tries every way possible to seduce Joseph.

Mrs. Slipslop

A repulsive servant woman who also pursues Joseph.

Peter Pounce

The steward to Lady Booby.

Mr. Abraham Adams

A charitable curate.

Frances (Fanny) Goodwill

A beautiful young country girl; Joseph's beloved.

The Wilsons

The real parents of Joseph Andrews.

Lady Tittle and Lady Tattle

Two gossips.

Plain Tim

A good-hearted host.

Postillion

A generous fellow who offers Joseph an overcoat to cover his nakedness.

Mr. Tow-wouse

A bumbling, good-natured innkeeper.

Mrs. Tow-wouse

The greedy wife of the innkeeper.

Betty

A warm-hearted chambermaid.
Barnabas

A punch-drinking clergyman.

Tom Suckbribe

The constable.

Leonora

A silly young girl who loses two lovers because of her vacillations.

Horatio

A suitor who has no money but much love for Leonora.

Bellarmine

A suitor who has little love for Leonora but who hopes to inherit her father's fortune.

Lindamira

A gossip.

Mrs. Grave-airs

A prude.

Parson Trulliber

A hypocritical country parson.

The Pedlar (peddler)

The man who reveals the secret of Joseph's parentage.

Lawyer Scout
An unscrupulous lawyer.

Mrs. Adams Parson

Adams' disagreeable wife

#SUMMARY

Fielding sets out to define his terms and to differentiate Joseph Andrews from the "productions of
romance writers on the one hand, and burlesque writers on the other." He admits that he has included
some elements of burlesque in his "comic epic-poem in prose," but excludes them from the sentiments
and the characters because burlesque in writing, like "Caricatura" in painting, exhibits "monsters, not
men." True comedy, however, finds its source in nature: "life everywhere furnishes an accurate observer
with the ridiculous." The source of the true ridiculous is affectation, which can usually be traced to
either vanity or hypocrisy. The latter, he points out, is the more striking as it involves a measure of
deceit over and above the mere ostentation of vanity. Fielding defends the various vices inserted in his
novel because "they are never the principal figure." He closes by emphasizing the character of Parson
Adams, "whose goodness of heart" stems from his "perfect simplicity."

$$$$$$$$[[[ GREAT EXPECTATIONS ]]]$$$$$$$

#CHARACTERS_LIST

Marsh Area Group

Pip (Philip Pirrip, Handel)

The narrator of the story who tells of his rise to wealth, his desertion of his true friends for that wealth
and a chance with Estella, and his humbling by his own arrogance. At the end of the story he has learned
wealth does not bring happiness.

Joe Gargery

The kind blacksmith married to Pip's sister who is the moral reference point for most characters in the
story. In spite of Pip's snobbery, Joe remains faithful and loving to him and is always there in Pip's hour
of need.

Mrs. Joe Gargery (Georgiana M'Ria)

Pip's abusive older sister who constantly reminds Pip of all she has done for him, especially "raising him
up by hand." She is attacked by Orlick and later dies.

Biddy

The young girl from Pip's night classes who helps with Pip's sister after the attack and later marries Joe.
She is Pip's early confidant and understands him well enough to see through him.

Uncle Pumblechook

Joe's pompous, self-important uncle who arranges for Pip to visit Miss Havisham's house and who
arrogantly assumes himself to be the reason for Pip's good fortune.

Dolge Orlick

Joe's assistant in the forge, who is responsible for the attack on Mrs. Joe and who later tries to kill Pip.

Mr. Wopsle (Mr. Waldengarver)

A clerk in Pip's church who wants to be a clergyman but gives up and goes to London to be an actor.

Mr. Trabb

The local tailor and undertaker.

Mr. Trabb's Boy

Mr. Trabb's assistant, who ridicules Pip about his new station in life, but later helps rescue him from
Orlick.

Mr. and Mrs. Hubble

Friends of Mr. and Mrs. Gargery. He is the town wheelwright, a person who builds and repairs wagon
wheels.

Mr. Wopsle's Great-Aunt

The old woman who holds night classes for the village children and sleeps through the classes. Biddy is
her granddaughter.
Squires

The proprietor of the Blue Boar, an inn in Pip's village.

Philip Pirrip,

late of this parish The inscription on the tombstone of Pip's father. It is how Pip refers to his father.

Georgiana, wife of the above

The inscription on the tombstone of Pip's mother. It is how he refers to his mother.

Alexander, Bartholomew, Abraham, Tobias, Roger

The names on the five little "lozenges" or tombstones next to those of Pip's parents. They are Pip's
deceased brothers.

Satis House Group

Miss Havisham

The strange, reclusive woman who was abandoned and swindled by her fianc on her wedding day. She
has raised Estella to exact revenge on all men. Pip assumes that Miss Havisham is his benefactress.

Estella

The beautiful and haughty adopted daughter of Miss Havisham who taunts and attracts Pip. She does
not know she is the daughter of criminals Molly and Magwitch. She is trained to mistreat all men but
after an abusive marriage grows to be a kinder person.

Mrs. Camilla, Mr. Raymond (Cousin Raymond, Mr. Camilla), Sarah Pocket, Georgiana Pocket Miss
Havisham's toady relatives who pretend to care but are waiting to inherit her money. They resent Pip
and see him as a threat.

London Group
Mr. Jaggers

An immensely successful London trial lawyer; feared by all but loved by none. He first tells Pip of his
expectations and serves as his guardian. He was Magwitch's trial lawyer and is Miss Havisham's personal
attorney.

John Wemmick

The chief clerk for Jaggers. In the office, he is unemotional but at home is a caring, gentle man who
becomes friends with Pip.

Molly

The seemingly docile and obedient servant of Mr. Jaggers, who has powerful hands, a supposedly wild
nature, and an infamous past. She is Estella's mother and only Jaggers and Wemmick know this until Pip
figures it out.

Aged Parent (Aged P.)

Wemmick's delightful and deaf father.

Miss Skiffins

John Wemmick's lady friend and later, his wife.

Mr. Skiffins

Miss Skiffins brother, who helps Pip set Herbert up in business.

Herbert Pocket (Pale Young Gentleman)

Pip first meets him at Miss Havisham's when the two have a fistfight. They later live together in London
and become best friends. Herbert is kind, unassuming, and loyal to Pip.

Clara Barley

The gentle girl engaged to Herbert. She does not care about noble lineages and marries Herbert after
her father dies.
Bill Barley (Gruffandgrim)

Clara's alcoholic, abusive, bedridden father who was a former ship's purser.

Mrs. Whimple

The elderly and kind landlady of the home where the Barleys live. Magwitch hides there under an
assumed name.

Startop

One of the young gentlemen being tutored by Mr. Pocket. He later helps rescue Pip and helps in
Magwitch's unsuccessful escape attempt.

Bentley Drummle

A belligerent gentleman at Mr. Pocket's who later marries Estella, beats her, and dies when thrown from
a horse.

Matthew Pocket

Herbert's father and Pip's tutor. He is intellectual, but ineffectual in controlling his wife or household. He
is Miss Havisham's relative but is not interested in her money.

Mrs. Pocket (Belinda)

Herbert's mother. She ignores her many children and spends her time tracing her noble lineage and
dreaming of society life.

Sophia, Flopson, and Millers

Servants and nurses at the Pockets' home.

Mrs. Brandley

She hosts Estella in London and introduces her to society there.

Mrs. Coiler
A busybody neighbor of the Pockets.

The Avenger (Pepper)

Pip's unambitious servant boy.

Clarriker

A merchant with whom Herbert goes into business.

The Jack

The grimy man who does odd jobs at the inn where Pip, Herbert, and Magwitch stay during their escape
trip.

Mary Anne

Young maid who works for Wemmick at his home.

Convicts or Related Associates

Magwitch (Abel Magwitch, Provis, First Convict, Mr. Campbell)

The convict on the marshes who later becomes wealthy in Australia and is the source of Pip's
expectations. He is caught trying to escape England and dies in prison with Pip by his side. He is the
father of Estella and a former partner in crime with Compeyson, who betrayed him.

Compeyson (Second Convict)

A smooth-talking upper-class criminal arrested for forgery with Magwitch. Before that, he jilted Miss
Havisham and swindled money from her. He is the second convict on the marshes that Pip sees
Magwitch's sworn enemy. He later betrays Magwitch to the authorities and drowns in a struggle with
him.

Arthur

Miss Havisham's half-brother from her father's second marriage to his cook. He is disinherited by his
father and hates Miss Havisham. After his father's death, Arthur runs up gambling debts and conspires
with Compeyson to swindle money from Miss Havisham and split the profits. He dies haunted by her
image in his dreams.

Colonel

One of Jaggers' clients in jail that Pip and Wemmick visit. He is sentenced to death and Jaggers cannot
help him because the evidence against Colonel is too strong.

Sally

Compeyson's wife.

Stranger at the Three Jolly Bargemen

A released convict who knows Magwitch from prison and delivers the two one-pound notes to Pip in the
Jolly Bargemen on behalf of Magwitch. He has the file that Pip stole for Magwitch years before, and he
uses it to identify himself as Magwitch's messenger.

$$$$$$!!!!! GREAT EXPECTATIONS !!!!!$$$$$

#SUMMARY

Part I

Pip is an orphan living on the Kent marshes with his abusive sister and her husband, Joe Gargery, the
village blacksmith. While exploring in the churchyard near the tombstones of his parents, Pip is accosted
by an escaped convict. The convict scares Pip into stealing food for him, as well as a metal file to saw off
the convict's leg iron. Returning with these the next morning, Pip discovers a second escaped convict, an
enemy of the first one. Shortly afterward, both convicts are recaptured while fighting each other.

Pip's pompous Uncle Pumblechook arranges for Pip to go to the house of a wealthy reclusive woman,
Miss Havisham, to play with her adopted daughter, Estella. The house is a strange nightmare-world.
Miss Havisham's fianc jilted her on her wedding day and she still wears her old wedding gown,
although she's now elderly and wheel-chair-bound. The house has been left as it was on her wedding
day and even the old wedding cake is still on the table. Estella is beautiful but haughty and tells Pip that
he is coarse and common. Pip is immediately attracted to Estella in spite of how she and Miss Havisham
treat him. Although the visits are emotionally painful and demeaning, Pip continues to go there for
several months to play with Estella and to wheel Miss Havisham around. He also meets her toady
relatives who want her money and hate Pip. Pip does earn a kiss from Estella when he beats one of the
relatives, the Pale Young Gentleman, in a fistfight. Pip tries to better himself to win Estella's admiration
by working harder with his friend, Biddy, at night school. Biddy's grandmother runs the night school.

After a number of months, Miss Havisham pays for Pip's blacksmithing apprenticeship with Joe. Pip had
looked forward to that for years, but now that he has seen "genteel" life, he views the forge as a death
sentence. However, he hides his feelings from Joe and performs his duties. During this time, he
encounters a strange man at the Jolly Bargemen, a local pub. The man has the file that Pip stole for the
convict years before. The man gives Pip two one-pound notes. Pip continues to visit Miss Havisham on
his birthday and on one of these occasions, his leaving work early instigates a fistfight between Joe and
Joe's assistant, Dolge Orlick. Orlick resents Pip and hates Pip's abusive sister. On his way home from that
visit, Pip finds out his sister was almost murdered and is now mentally crippled. Biddy comes to live with
them to help out. Pip is attracted to her even though she is not educated and polished like Estella.

One evening, a powerful London lawyer, Mr. Jaggers, visits Pip and Joe and informs them that Pip has
"great expectations." Pip is overjoyed and assumes the windfall is from Miss Havisham, who wants to
prepare him for Estella. He gets a new suit of clothes and is amazed at how differently he is treated by
Mr. Trabb, the tailor, and by Uncle Pumblechook. When Pip gets Trabb's shop boy in trouble for not
treating Pip with respect, he realizes how money changes things. He has a conversation with Biddy and
asks her to work on "improving" Joe. Pip accuses her of being jealous of him when she suggests Joe does
not need improving. By the end of the week, Pip is on his way to London to become a gentleman.

Part II

In London, Pip meets with Jaggers and his clerk, Mr. Wemmick. Wemmick brings Pip to the apartment of
Herbert Pocket, who, Pip discovers, is the Pale Young Gentleman he fought at Miss Havisham's. Pip is to
study with Herbert's father, Mr. Matthew Pocket, to learn how to be a gentleman. Pip and Herbert
become good friends and Herbert nicknames Pip, Handel. Pip spends part of his time with Herbert and
part of his time with the Pocket family. Also living at the Pocket's family home are two other "gentlemen
students," Startop and Bentley Drummle. Drummle and Pip do not get along, especially later, when
Drummle becomes involved with Estella.
Pip is embarrassed when Joe visits him in London with a message from Miss Havisham and cannot wait
for Joe to leave. When Pip returns home to see Miss Havisham, he avoids Joe's forge. Miss Havisham
informs Pip he is to accompany Estella to London where she will live with a wealthy society woman. Pip
is convinced Miss Havisham intends Estella for him. In London, he spends his time visiting with Estella,
spending too much money with Herbert, and joining a group of useless rich men called the Finches. He
also makes friends with Jaggers' clerk, Wemmick, and realizes that the stiff legal clerk has a different,
kinder personality at home. Pip also realizes that he is harming Herbert financially with their debts, and
with Wemmick's help, secretly arranges to set Herbert up in business with a merchant named Clarriker.

During this time, Pip's sister dies. He returns for her funeral and is remorseful over his abandonment of
Joe and Biddy. He promises he will visit more often and is angry when Biddy implies that she does not
believe him.

On a stormy evening back in London, Pip's world changes dramatically with the arrival of a ragged
stranger whom Pip realizes is the convict from the marshes years ago. The convict, whose name is
Magwitch, had been sent to Australia and was to never return to England under penalty of death. The
convict made a fortune in Australia and has risked death to return and tell Pip that he is the source of
Pip's expectations. Pip is disgusted and devastated, something Magwitch, in his happiness to see his
"gentleman," does not notice. Pip now knows that Miss Havisham has not been preparing him for
Estella, and that with his money coming from a convict he can never have Estella. He also realizes he
deserted Joe for a convict's money.

Part III

Magwitch explains to Pip that he has come to give him his full inheritance as thanks for his help on the
marshes years before. He tells Pip about the other convict, a man named Compeyson. Pip later learns
from Herbert that Compeyson was the same man who broke Miss Havisham's heart. Pip decides he will
take no more of Magwitch's money. However, he feels responsible for the danger the man is in and will
find a way to get him safely out of the country.

Pip is crushed to hear that Bentley Drummle is to marry Estella. Pip visits with her and Miss Havisham
and pleads with her not to do this. He professes his deep love, which she cannot fathom, and tells her
that he would be happy if she married another as long as it was not Drummle. During this conversation,
Estella and Miss Havisham have an argument that shows she cannot love Miss Havisham, either. Miss
Havisham realizes the depth of the damage she has done and is heartbroken.

Returning to London, Pip learns from Wemmick that Compeyson is watching Magwitch. Herbert and Pip
hide Magwitch and devise an escape plan. Pip also gets an anonymous note to come to the marshes
where someone has information about Magwitch. He returns home and visits Miss Havisham before
going to the marshes. She begs his forgiveness and agrees to Pip's request to help fund Herbert Pocket's
new business. Pip starts to leave then returns to see Miss Havisham's dress on fire. He saves her but she
is very ill afterward. He goes to the marshes, where he is captured by Orlick, who intends to kill him.
Rescue comes from Herbert and Startop who had followed him from London. Trabb's shop boy led them
to the marshes.

They return to London and carry out their escape plan with Magwitch, but Compeyson has informed the
authorities and they are caught. Compeyson and Magwitch struggle and fall into the river. Compeyson
drowns and Magwitch is hurt, then imprisoned and sentenced to die. Pip by now has figured out
Magwitch is Estella's father. He visits and cares for Magwitch until the man dies in prison. Afterward, Pip
attends Wemmick's wedding. Pip also gets very sick and is himself arrested for not paying his debts. Joe
comes and nurses Pip back to health and tells him Miss Havisham has died, leaving a large amount of
money to Mr. Matthew Pocket. Before returning to his forge, Joe also pays off Pip's debt. Pip goes
home, intending to make amends with Joe and marry Biddy. He arrives just in time to celebrate Joe and
Biddy's wedding. Pip leaves shortly afterward for eleven years in Cairo, working with Herbert in his
business. When he returns, he visits with Joe and Biddy and meets their son, little Pip. He also meets
with Estella. She is a widow now after years in an abusive marriage to Drummle. She and Pip part, but
the implication is that this time they will be together.