This unit focuses on satire and humor; it defines satire as a literary device used to expose follies, vices, and hypocrites to bring about change. It includes links to Gullivers Travels and Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift, "The Rape of...

This resource provides a wealth of information about the period of American literature from 1860-1914. There are eight good articles discussing the movements of realism, regionalism, and naturalism, the rise of black American literature,...

Literary analysis of themes typically found in the work of Charles Dickens considers questions of poverty and wealth, crime and punishment, industrialization, childhood, caricature, and similar concepts of interest to readers of...

This lesson focuses on the short story "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut which portrays the year 2081 in a society where all people are equal and the same. Links are provided to the text and a study guide for the story. Students are...

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (c1884), a humorous novel about slavery.

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book Deborah Dent and Her Donkey by Leadenhall Press (1887), an illustrated, humorous children's tale.

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book Rollo's Journey to Cambridge by John T. White (1887), a humorous illustrated children's novel.

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book Bill Nye's Chestnuts Old and New by Bill Nye (1894), a collection of nonfiction, humorous stories, sketches, photographs, and memoranda from the Harvard Series.

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book The Bull Calf and Other Tales by A.B. Frost (1892), a collection of humorous cartoons tales.

This site from Washington State University provides a good look at the regionalism and local color of American literature from 1865-1895. A definition is included, practitioners, characteristics, and techniques. There are many links to...

Here is the text of this 1599 play, taken from a 1853 edition of the work. No commentary or interpretation is offered.

The full texts to Twain's lesser-known works can be accessed from this site such as "Celebrated Jumping Frog" and "The Innocents Abroad." Read facsimiles of the original books or plain text versions.

Here you will find a wide variety of enrichment activities, information and games to enhance the book "Honus and Me."

This is an excellent site offering a directory of web pages devoted to Hamlet. Links are divided into categories: directories, discussions, full text, humor, movies, papers, spinoffs, and summaries.

This is the full text of the humorous children's novel The Wouldbegoods by Edith Nesbit. After being sent to the country "to learn to be good", the Bastable children and their two friends form the Society of the Wouldbegoods but continue...

Whether she's describing bickering families, quiet declarations of love, or juicy gossip, Jane Austen's writing often feels as though it was written just for you. Iseult Gillespie explores the sly societal satire and unique...

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book Chip's Un-Natural History by Frederick A. Stokes & Brother (1888). It features funny, pun-filled definitions of a variety of humans and animals; each definition...

The children's author Dan Gutman hosts this website devoted to his baseball stories. It even includes rejection letters, an original poem, and some book excerpts, and some puzzles and games.

This is an online photocopy of the original text of the children's book Baldwin Library: A Cracker Bon-Bon for Christmas Parties by Robert B. Brough (1861). This is a collection of short witty plays, poetry, and character sketches.

This interesting and informative site looks at Voltaire's humorous criticism of power and wealth. Find out about the characters and their motivations in this comprehensive site.

Read two fables from Ellen C. Babbitt's Jakata Tales, a classic of children's literature that retells stories, from sacred Buddhist literature, of the Buddha's past lives. Jakata stories, full of the quaint humor, teach many different...

Lucian, the humorous satirist, was a native of Samosata, in Syria, and flourished towards the end of the second century. In early life he was a sculptor, but later applied himself to the study of literature and philosophy. He was an...