Analysis – Page 4 – Interesting Literature

A Short Analysis of Brutus’ ‘There Is a Tide in the Affairs of Men’ Speech

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘There is a tide in the affairs of men’ is a line from one of Brutus’ most famous speeches in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. This speech is worthy of closer analysis for a number of reasons; it actually relates to the locality around the Globe Theatre, where Julius Caesar was first performed in 1599, so although the play takes us back to ancient Rome, there is a curious geographical origin to Brutus’ talk of a ‘tide in the affairs of men’ which is ‘taken at the flood’. But we’ll come to that later …

A Summary and Analysis of the Parable of the Good Samaritan

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

The Parable of the Good Samaritan has become one of the most famous stories among all of Jesus’ teachings. Indeed, many people now only know the name of the Samaritans because of Jesus’ story from the Gospel of Luke; the parable even inspired the name of a charity in the United Kingdom, aimed at providing emotional support to anyone in emotional distress. This is known simply as the Samaritans.

A Summary and Analysis of George Orwell’s ‘Inside the Whale’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Inside the Whale’ is a long essay by George Orwell (1903-50), published in 1940. The title of Orwell’s essay refers to the biblical Book of Jonah, in which the prophet Jonah is swallowed by a great fish (although, as Orwell notes, received wisdom tends to substitute ‘whale’ for ‘fish’).

A Summary and Analysis of Lot’s Wife and the Pillar of Salt

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

What is the story of Lot’s wife, and why was she turned into a pillar of salt? The short version of the story is this: while escaping from the city of Sodom shortly before God destroyed it with fire and brimstone, Lot and his family were told not to look back on the destruction of the city. Lot’s wife disobeyed this order, and became a pillar of salt.

But why a pillar of salt? This curious story appears to have its origins in the distinctive topography of the Dead Sea. Let’s take a closer look.

A Short Analysis of Mark Antony’s ‘O Pardon Me, Thou Bleeding Piece of Earth’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘O, pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth’ is one of a number of famous speeches made by Mark Antony in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. The speech, which occurs in Act 3 Scene 1, is essentially a soliloquy since Mark Antony is alone on stage – the only other ‘person’ with him is the body of the assassinated Julius Caesar.