Reading literature through the looking glass of theory.
The Bible
No one has given Western civilization a work whose meaning is as hotly debated as the creators of the Bible (and who those beings are is Debate #1). Seriously, David Lynch only dreams of creating s...
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
If your only exposure to Tolkien’s mythic world of Orcs and Elves is Peter Jackson’s movies or Lego sets, you probably don’t know that Tolkien didn’t just sit down to write some run-of-the-...
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Hermeneutics goes just bonkers over Hamlet. And seriously, who doesn’t? But it’s extra special in this branch of theory because—yup, you guessed it—it’s the ultimate play of ambiguity. Is...
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Think some degree of civilization and trust within society are things you can expect out of the world? Think again. The world of The Road is a place devoid of civilization and any social order...
Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
The American classic Moby-Dick features an angsty sailor named Ishmael who’s having a bad day and so decides to sets sail with a satanically blasphemous captain hell-bent on revenge against...