First serialized in 1908, "Martin Eden" is Jack London's classic and tragic tale of its title character and his struggle to become a writer. Martin Eden is an idealistic and self-educated young man who struggles to overcome poverty and a lack of opportunities in a quest to become an educated and successful artist. He hopes to find acceptance in the world of the wealthy and refined, though he finds it hard to shake off his coarse working-class background....

The heroine, Mary Masters, is the daughter of an attorney, and has been raised as a gentlewoman. Her stepmother is from a lower social order; believing it best for Mary, she pressures her strongly to accept a proposal from Lawrence Twentyman, a prosperous young yeoman farmer with aspirations to gentility. While Mary respects Twentyman for his excellent qualities, she feels that she cannot love him, as a wife should a husband. She admires Reginald...

Oscar Wilde's spooky tale of a genteel English ghost clashing with a brash American family is endearing, hilarious, and perfect reading for all ages  Canterville Chase possesses all of the trappings of a standard haunted country house-including large suits of armor and Gothic paneled library walls. However, it soon becomes difficult to ignore the spooky signs that "Sir Simon" is haunting the house-the usual Halloween fare of rattling chains and...

Gibbon offers an explanation for why the Roman Empire fell, a task made difficult by a lack of comprehensive written sources, though he was not the only historian to tackle the subject. Most of his ideas are directly taken from what few relevant records were available: those of the Roman moralists of the 4th and 5th centuries.

A Study Guide for Graham Greene's "The Third Man," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Novels for Students.This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Novels for Students for all of your research needs.

Sir Harry Hotspur of Humblethwaite, by Anthony Trollope, is a novel originally published in Macmillan's Magazine between May and December, 1870, and in novel form in 1871.

The novel offers psychological dissection of the issues of inheritance, filial duty, noblesse oblige, gentlemanly behaviour, repentance and love, all hung upon the story of the wooing and losing of Sir Harry Hotspur's daughter

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Frederick Jackson Turner (1861-1932) presented an essay at the World's Fair in Chicago in 1893 that would change the study of American History forever. This essay would ultimately be published with twelve supporting articles to form "The Frontier in American History". Turner was an innovator in that he was one of the first to call attention to the Frontier as an integral part of the study of The United States of America. Turner himself grew up on...

First published in 1907, 'Through the Magic Door' is an essay by the 'Sherlock Holmes' author on the joy of literature and reading. In it, he enthuses about his favourite books and authors which include Sir Walter Scott, Samuel Pepys, and Edgar Allen Poe. Doyle describes how he often used to have to choose between lunch and a new book during his student days and gives his thoughts and advice to readers. A fascinating piece of writing from the British...

This daring tale of revenge and exotic intrigue is demonstrative of Stevenson's broad range and unique genius. "The Master of Ballantrae", first published in 1889, follows the conflict between two Scottish brothers of noble origins during the tumultuous Jacobite Risings of 1745. Greed and envy threaten to tear the brothers apart as a race for the family inheritance intensifies. James Durie, the protagonist and Master of Ballantrae, is as charming...

A Study Guide (New Edition) for Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale", excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Novels for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Novels for Students for all of your research needs."