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Well, if this book doesn't make you want to tape over your laptop camera, we don't know what will.
By the end of this video, you will be brainwashed. There's nothing you can do about it; we just wanted to let you know. We like to think we're bigg...
You might be hearing a chorus of farewells if you recommend A Farewell to Arms as the next read for your Fabulously Feisty Feminist Book Club.
Ayn (rhymes with "mine," ironically enough) Rand penned this cult classic over 50 years ago, but it still resonates with today's audiences. Our que...
Why did the editor give Chapter 21 of A Clockwork Orange the axe? Was it because he wanted to leave the reader hanging? Or did he realize Americans...
No HBO? Well then, how does a horror short story writing contest sound? And the winner is...drum roll, please...Mary Shelley. You go, girl. And tha...
Everyone has that happy-go-lucky friend. The one who skips through life with a smile and believes everybody has a beautiful soul. We're guessing th...
In Julie of the Wolves, a girl is thrown into the wild, far away from civilization. Find out how she fares by watching this video.
We bet you didn't realize Shakespeare was such a rebel. Seriously. If he were around today, he'd be riding a motorcycle, TIVOing Sons of Anarchy, a...
In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour," Louise Mallard has a rather peculiar response to the news of her husband's death: instead of mourning for...
Can you imagine what it would be like to be without the gift of sight? In "Cathedral," the narrator helps a blind man envision a cathedral by guidi...
This story goes as you might expect—a sprinkling of science, endless amounts of death and despair, and a whole lot of ugly monster. Oh joyous day!
Elizabeth thinks Darcy's a callous jerk; he thinks she’s a gold-digger. You know these two are just MFEO.
Thought that English society was all about hosting balls and finding husbands back in the day? Well, you thought… right. But that doesn't make th...
In Markus Zusak's The Book Thief, Death narrates the story of one girl who lived during the Holocaust. Not surprisingly, it's kind of a downer—bu...
In The Giver, society is completely conformist. Neutrality rules the day, and no emotion is good emotion. Lois Lowry's novel challenges the value of conformity and points out the highs and lows of life—as well as how highs and lows are life. Mind. Blown.
Can you imagine some little guy who's constantly up in your business, criticizing your every move, and always trying to make you feel bad about yourself? Congratulations. Now you know what it's like to be a parent. #parentjoke
Ever wish you could remember everything that you ever studied? How about everything that everyone has ever studied? Yeah, pretty sure our brains just exploded.
A great marriage begins with a blooming pear tree and ends with a hurricane, rabies, and a murder trial…or something like that.
One video to rule them all. One video to find them. One video to bring them all and in the darkness bind them. Or something like that. The Lord of the Rings trilogy revolves around that one ring. Will the ring bring darkness or light, precious?
What happens when Charles Marlow journeys up the Congo River? Who is Mr. Kurtz—is he really amazing or just a crazy weirdo? And what’s up with all the chained up natives and fog and heads on poles? The horror, the horror!
The house may be bleak, and so will your social life when you take on this epically long novel. Dickens is pretty hip, though, so you'll earn some sweet bragging rights.
Imagine Frankenstein characters as zombie/werewolf hybrids: one side wants brains, the other hearts. How to choose? Also, what to name them? Zomwolves? Werebies? Discuss amongst yourselves, Shmoopers.
We’ll preface this video about Frankenstein’s preface by saying that Mary Shelley is an awesome woman, and she wants everybody to be aware. Check out the video to find out more about what Mary Shelley wrote in Frankenstein's preface.
Is Victor Frankenstein a: Romantic Hero? b: Byronic Hero? c: Satanic Hero? d: Guitar Hero? All of the above (but maybe not D…) We don’t know what any of these terms mean, so let’s just watch the video
What is Gothic Romanticism? It's when two goths fall in love. Duh. Wait, that’s not what it is? Oh. We should probably watch the video and figure it out...care to join us?
Frankenstein reads kind of like a Freudian thesis. “My Sister Complex and Narcissism.” Siggy would have a field day.
Was Frankenstein’s creature “born” a monster? Were his fun-filled murderous tendencies all inate? Or did he begin as a “blank slate,” but was never taught good manners by good ol’ Vic, like...y’know, not killing people. Shmoop it up and watch the video to learn more!
So Frankenstein creates a creature. Creature asks for a wife to be created, ‘cause, y’know, loneliness. Creature wants to run away to a South American paradise with his wife. Hm. This story sounds weirdly familiar...but we couldn’t even begin to imagine why...
When we picture the future, we imagine giant man-smartphone hybrids as our overlords. We wonder if Mary Shelley would agree with us.
What do Satan and Frankenstein's monster have in common? They’re both heroes. ...Wait. What?
Imagine a world in which all literature was dystopian. Okay, so we may be getting to that point, 1984 and V for Vendetta helped start it all.
All Okonkwo was asking for was a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Granted, swinging your machete around may not be the nicest way to ask, but still. The guy deserved better.