The Power of Music Alexie has much to say in Reservation Blues about the power of music to inspire, heal, and unite listeners. Thomas professes to have been inspired by music from an early age, as his mother sang not only traditional Spokane songs but also Broadway numbers and Catholic hymns.When the enchanted guitar suggests,…
Tag: Novels
Reservation Blues: Characters
Mr. Armstrong The head of Cavalry Records, Armstrong quickly concludes that Coyote Springs does not have what it takes, and he agrees to promote two white women, Betty and Veronica, dressed up like Indians instead. Father Arnold A onetime rock singer who heard his calling to the Catholic priesthood in a McDonald’s, Father Arnold is…
Reservation Blues: Chapter Summaries
Chapter 1: Reservation Blues As Reservation Blues begins, jazz musician Robert Johnson shows up at the reservation crossroads in Wellpinit, Washington, looking for a woman on a hill. Thomas Builds-the-Fire kindly drives Johnson toward the mountain home of Big Mom—who generations ago witnessed a tragic slaughter of horses by U.S. troops—but the van dies en…
The Prince and the Pauper – Analysis – Essay
Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper contains several instances of mistaken identity, the most obvious cases being those of Prince Edward and Tom Canty. Through the experience of mistaken or lost identity, Twain depicts one’s personal identity as something with a dualistic nature. For Twain, as these characters’ experiences demonstrate, identity exists as a composite…
The Prince and the Pauper – Historical Background – Setting
The Monarchy of Henry VIII As a historical novel, The Prince and the Pauper is inspired by the general history of the time period in which the novel is set. (Like any historical novel, it does not claim to be wholly accurate factually. For example, historically Prince Edward was only nine when he became King…
The Prince and the Pauper – Literary Devices – Narration – Satire
Nineteenth-Century Historical Romance The Prince and the Pauper was labeled upon publication a ‘‘historical romance.’’ As a genre, nineteenth-century historical romances did not necessarily feature a romantic relationship between two individuals. Rather, the term historical romance was used to characterize books that looked back to an earlier time in European history and focused on the…
The Prince and the Pauper – Themes
Social and Economic Inequality Twain’s novel demonstrates the stark contrast between two social classes in sixteenth-century England. The society of the day is organized around the idea of a class system. The noble class is a group of people who inherit titles and the corresponding wealth, and usually lands, as well. One is born into…
The Prince and the Pauper – Characters
Father Andrew Father Andrew is the kindly priest who instructs the pauper Tom. He teaches him reading, writing, and some Latin. He shares with Tom stories of castles and kings and princes, encouraging in Tom the boy’s yearning toward nobility. When Edward is captured by John Canty and taken to be his own son, Father…
The Prince and the Pauper – Story Summary
Chapter 1 The first chapter of The Prince and the Pauper announces the birth of Edward Tudor, Prince of Wales, and that of Tom Canty, a pauper. Chapter 2 In this chapter, the narrator tells of Tom’s poverty, recounting the deprivations of Tom’s formative years in Offal Court, the part of London where Tom and…
The Princess Bride – Analysis – Essay
In The Princess Bride Goldman managed to produce a fantasy novel that parodies the genre in a consistently amusing manner, yet also reveals an underlying seriousness of purpose. It is a fine balancing act, successfully accomplished, which is why The Princess Bride is usually regarded as Goldman’s best novel. Rob Reiner’s excellent film adaptation of…