CHARACTERS
This character awakens one morning to find himself transformed into a giant insect.
Who is Gregor Samsa?
“I’ve got out at last… in spite of you and Jane!” signals this dramatic moment.
What is her mental break / symbolic escape ("The Yellow Wallpaper")?
The contrast between public punishment and private guilt drives this novel’s moral message.
What is hypocrisy / public vs. private guilt (The Scarlet Letter)?
The story explores the decadent world of late 19th-century London society, where youth, beauty, and pleasure dominate.
What is London (The Picture of Dorian Gray)?
Before his transformation, Gregor made a living doing this job.
What is a traveling salesman?
She borrows a diamond necklace for a party, only to lose it and spend years repaying the cost.
“I believe that before all else, I am a human being” marks this turning point in the play.
What is Nora’s decision to leave (A Doll’s House)?
This theme is revealed when a necklace meant to elevate social status ultimately destroys a couple’s livelihood.
The setting for Kafka’s story is primarily this kind of domestic space, emphasizing confinement and alienation.
What is Gregor’s family apartment (Metamorphosis)?
Nora illegally signs this in order to obtain money.
What is her father’s signature?
This man is both a minister and a secret sinner, hiding the truth that tortures him.
Who is Arthur Dimmesdale?
“How little is needed for one to be ruined or saved” reflects this story’s central irony.
What is the cost of vanity / social ambition ("The Necklace")?
Gregor’s isolation and rejection by his family highlight this major thematic concern.
What is alienation (Metamorphosis)
The narrator’s bedroom in this type of building becomes a prison-like setting in her mental decline.
What is a colonial mansion / rented summer house ("The Yellow Wallpaper")?
Hester supports herself using this skill.
What is sewing / needlework?
This ambitious scientist becomes horrified when his creation comes to life.
Who is Victor Frankenstein?
“The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it” exemplifies this character’s philosophy.
Who is Lord Henry (The Picture of Dorian Gray)?
The story critiques the confinement of women by patriarchal control and medical ignorance.
What is oppression of women / mental imprisonment ("The Yellow Wallpaper")?
This Puritan settlement provides the moral and social framework for Hester Prynne’s punishment.
What is 17th-century Boston (The Scarlet Letter)?
The narrator’s confinement takes place in a mansion rented for this season.
What is summer ("The Yellow Wallpaper")?
This domineering husband calls his wife “little squirrel,” unaware she has forged a signature behind his back.
Who is Torvald Helmer?
“I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel” is spoken by this character.
Who is the Creature (Frankenstein)?
The novel warns of the destructive consequences of pursuing pleasure and beauty without moral restraint.
What is hedonism / moral corruption (The Picture of Dorian Gray)?
Ibsen’s play is set in this type of home, emphasizing the constraints of domestic life and social expectation.
What is a middle-class Norwegian household (A Doll’s House)?
This is the only physical object in the novel that records a man’s sins instead of his face.
What is the picture/portrait (The Picture of Dorian Gray)?
The controlling physician-husband who insists on the “rest cure.”
Who is John (or John the husband) from "The Yellow Wallpaper"?
"He was a tool of the boss, without any feelings of his own, and his family too had reduced him to a mere provider."
Who is Gregor Samsa and sense of duty? (Metamorphosis)
The danger of unchecked ambition and forbidden knowledge is explored through one scientist’s tragic downfall.
What is the danger of playing God (Frankenstein)?
The story of this woman’s social downfall unfolds in late 19th-century Paris, reflecting societal obsession with class and appearance.
What is "The Necklace"?
This novel is framed by a series of letters written by an Arctic explorer.
What is Frankenstein?
This artist adores his subject so much that he unintentionally creates a portrait that captures corruption rather than beauty.
Who is Basil Hallward?
"He has violated, in cold blood, the sanctity of my mind; he has crushed the very spirit of my being."
Who is Chillingsworth? (The Scarlett Letter)
Ibsen critiques this institution by showing how it traps individuals into roles that prevent self-discovery.
What is the constraints of marriage / gender roles (A Doll’s House)?
This European city serves as the backdrop for Victor Frankenstein’s scientific experiments and the Creature’s wanderings.
What is Geneva, Switzerland (Frankenstein)?
The story of this woman’s social downfall unfolds in late 19th-century Paris, reflecting societal obsession with class and appearance.
What is "The Necklace"?