Immediately popular when published over a century and a half ago, the novel "Jane Eyre" has continued to find appreciative audiences ever since. This student casebook offers an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Charlotte Bronte's landmark novel. While the casebook gives literary analysis, it also contextualizes the novel in…

More than 100 years after being written, "Great Expectations" is still one of the most widely studied works of fiction. This casebook of historical documents, collateral readings and essays brings to life both Charles Dickens' masterpiece and the social issues surrounding his work. The interdisciplinary approach in the casebook offers…

A seemingly simple tale of schoolboys marooned on an island, the novel "Lord of the Flies" is an enigmatic and provocative piece of literature. This casebook probes the many layers of meaning in the novel, examining its literary, philosophical, historical, scientific, and religious significance. The casebook integrates analysis and…

"Animal Farm" is a political allegory of the USSR written in the form of a fable. Its stinging moral warning against the abuse of power is demonstrated in this casebook through a wide variety of historical, political, and literary documents that are directly applicable to George Orwell's novel. Included in the casebook are passages from…

Charles Dickens' novel, "A Tale of Two Cities," does not waste a word in telling a touching, suspenseful tale set against the background of one of the bloodiest events in history, the French Revolution. This casebook's collection of historical documents, collateral readings, and commentary will promote interdisciplinary study of the…

Although "Othello" has been one of William Shakespeare's most popular plays, its performance history has been marked with risk and tension because of the play's focus on racial prejudice, gender conflict, and sexuality. The controversies surrounding conflicting attitudes toward race and religion, love and marriage, and war and the…

"The Merchant of Venice," even in its own time, was considered William Shakespeare's most controversial play. Now, one of the most popular read and performed works, the play raises even more important issues for today, particularly anti-Semitism and the treatment of Jews. The analysis of the play in this casebook helps students interpret…

"The Old Man and the Sea" remains one of Ernest Hemingway's most beloved works. This casebook helps readers interpret and appreciate the thematic concerns of the novel, as well as the contextual issues it explores. Topic chapters provide information on Cuba, including its natural geography, sociopolitical history, and the ethnic…

Today, more than 70 years after its publication, the novel "The Great Gatsby" seems as fresh and pertinent to American life as it did in the 1920s. The social, cultural, and historical milieu of the 1920s reflected in its pages is not so very different from that of today. This interdisciplinary collection of commentary and collateral…

When the novel "The Grapes of Wrath" was published in 1939, it had an explosive effect on the public, calling attention to the problems of migrant farm workers during the Great Depression. This casebook provides primary materials on the period and the plight of the migrant worker that bring to life the problems John Steinbeck…

In "Black Boy," Richard Wright triumphs over an ugly, racist world by fashioning an inspiring, powerful, beautiful, and fictionalized autobiography. To help students understand and appreciate his story in the cultural, political, racial, social, and literary contexts of its time, this casebook provides primary historical documents,…

The social, cultural, and historical documents and commentary in this casebook illuminate the reading of "The Catcher in the Rye," a novel that has become an important rite of passage for many young adults. In addition to a literary analysis, the casebook acquaints students with the larger world in which Holden Caulfield, the…

This casebook of materials about William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" will enrich students' understanding of the historical context of the play and encourage interpretations of its cultural meaning. Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" reflects perennial cultural concerns about order and freedom, particularly as they clash in the…

Anne Frank's "The Diary of a Young Girl" is the most widely read text about the Holocaust, yet it represents only one example of the tragic consequences of the Nazi policy to eliminate the Jews of Europe during World War II. This casebook enriches Anne Frank's remarkable personal account with a variety of historical documents that…

The appeal of the novel "The Red Badge of Courage" is both historical and universal. It is historical in its Civil War setting and universal in its relating of the experiences of a young man who is thrust into a situation he does not understand and cannot cope with. This collection of historical documents, collateral readings, and…