American Literature – Interesting Literature

A Summary and Analysis of O. Henry’s ‘Witches’ Loaves’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Witches’ Loaves’ is a short story by the US short-story writer O. Henry, whose real name was William Sydney Porter (1862-1910). His stories are characterised by their irony and by their surprise twist endings. Both of these elements became something of a signature feature, and ‘Witches’ Loaves’ certainly carries a twist ending.

The story is about an unmarried woman running a bakery, who takes a shine to one of her regular customers, a man who she deduces is an artist.

A Summary and Analysis of John Steinbeck’s ‘Breakfast’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Breakfast’ is a short story by John Steinbeck (1902-68), the shortest piece to be included in his collection The Long Valley. The story first appeared in The Pacific Weekly in 1936 before being reprinted in The Long Valley two years later. Although it’s often classified as a short story, ‘Breakfast’ had its origins in notes Steinbeck made while working on his novel, The Grapes of Wrath.

A Summary and Analysis of O. Henry’s ‘Hearts and Hands’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Hearts and Hands’ is a short story by the US short-story writer O. Henry, whose real name was William Sydney Porter (1862-1910). His stories are characterised by their irony and by their surprise twist endings. Both of these elements became something of a signature feature, and ‘Hearts and Hands’ exploits both within its very brief narrative, which focuses on a train journey in which a pretty young woman makes the acquaintance of a former suitor who is handcuffed to another man.

A Summary and Analysis of O. Henry’s ‘Memoirs of a Yellow Dog’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Memoirs of a Yellow Dog’ is a story by the US short-story writer O. Henry, whose real name was William Sydney Porter (1862-1910). In this 1903 story, the yellow dog of the story’s title recounts his life, his owners, and his love for his master (and his dislike for his master’s wife). Man and dog really do have a stronger bond in this story than man and wife, and ‘Memoirs of a Yellow Dog’ is a classic short story about our four-legged friends.

A Summary and Analysis of Ernest Hemingway’s ‘The Sea Change’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘The Sea Change’ is a 1931 short story by the American writer Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961). Like a number of Hemingway’s other short stories, ‘The Sea Change’ deals elliptically with a taboo topic – here, bisexuality – through presenting (without fully explaining the back story) a conversation between a young couple in a café.