User Matt Thrower

53 votes

3 answers

9k views

Why is there so much technical detail of whaling included in Moby-Dick?

asked Feb 7, 2017 at 17:26

24 votes

6 answers

30k views

If Tolkien disliked allegory, why are there so many allegorical readings of The Lord of the Rings?

asked Jan 26, 2017 at 10:25

22 votes

3 answers

6k views

Why does Marley in A Christmas Carol claim that Scrooge will be visited across three nights?

asked Dec 12, 2022 at 9:44

18 votes

4 answers

14k views

What is the meaning of the epilogue in Blood Meridian?

asked Jan 19, 2017 at 9:22

16 votes

4 answers

5k views

Why are Freud and Lacan still seen as important to literary criticism when their theories are discredited?

asked May 6, 2022 at 11:30

16 votes

1 answer

5k views

Is there really a bawdy pun at the conclusion of Romeo and Juliet?

asked Mar 14, 2023 at 9:18

15 votes

1 answer

674 views

Meaning of the "quips" from Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita

asked Sep 8, 2023 at 8:20

14 votes

2 answers

1k views

Have there been any scholarly attempts and/or consensus as regards the missing lines of "The Ruin"?

asked Jun 27 at 14:00

14 votes

4 answers

3k views

In Kerouac's On The Road, what is snakejuice?

asked Feb 16, 2023 at 13:14

14 votes

1 answer

762 views

In Wind in the Willows, why is Mole's garden full of Italian heroes?

asked Feb 20, 2017 at 10:05

14 votes

1 answer

503 views

Are the inconsistencies in Harry Potter symbolic or allegorical?

asked Jul 7, 2017 at 11:11

14 votes

4 answers

1k views

What is the purpose of all the lists in chapter 12 of Joyce's Ulysses?

asked Apr 4, 2018 at 18:49

12 votes

1 answer

574 views

In Ulysses, why does Stephen finally decide not to stay with Bloom?

asked Aug 28, 2018 at 10:43

12 votes

1 answer

908 views

In The Mezzotint by M. R. James, what is a "Door Bible"?

asked Nov 1, 2018 at 10:05

12 votes

1 answer

334 views

Did Shakespeare's audience believe Measure for Measure to be realistic?

asked Jan 19, 2017 at 11:16

12 votes

2 answers

293 views

For works translated by the original author, how common is it for additional translations to exist? What might these translation add?

asked Jan 23, 2017 at 14:39

11 votes

1 answer

1k views

In Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, what is the purpose of this character's resurrection?

asked Feb 8, 2017 at 10:07

11 votes

1 answer

2k views

Has there ever been a stage production of Chapter 15 of Ulysses?

asked Oct 17, 2022 at 8:33

11 votes

3 answers

1k views

In Macbeth, why is Fleance 'scaped?

asked Dec 7, 2020 at 10:38

11 votes

2 answers

2k views

What "Irish Oath" sounds like "Thoth"?

asked Jul 6, 2023 at 9:13

10 votes

2 answers

446 views

In Dickens' "The Chimes", why do bells have godparents and mugs?

asked Dec 14, 2022 at 9:52

10 votes

1 answer

288 views

Is there any significance to the names of the painters listed in Lolita?

asked Jan 30, 2023 at 20:40

10 votes

4 answers

3k views

What's the earliest fictional work of literature that contains an allusion to an earlier fictional work of literature?

asked Mar 15, 2023 at 11:49

10 votes

1 answer

654 views

In Homer's Odyssey, how can the one-eyed Cyclops have multiple brows?

asked May 4, 2023 at 8:05

10 votes

2 answers

675 views

Why was Welsh nationalist poet RS Thomas so critical of the Welsh people?

asked Feb 14, 2017 at 14:04

10 votes

1 answer

908 views

Were the Just William stories written for adults or children?

asked Jul 3, 2017 at 15:37

10 votes

1 answer

13k views

What is the relationship between Heart of Darkness and The Hollow Men?

asked Oct 9, 2017 at 15:57

10 votes

1 answer

1k views

Why is there so little character to the character of Shadow in American Gods?

asked Dec 1, 2017 at 9:19

9 votes

1 answer

887 views

Is the impenetrability of Chapter 14 of Ulysses deliberate, or a consequence of its stylistic pastiches?

asked Apr 7, 2018 at 11:40

9 votes

1 answer

1k views

Why is there so much stream of consciousness in Ulysses?

asked May 2, 2017 at 9:44

Stack Exchange Network

97 Questions

Why is there so much technical detail of whaling included in Moby-Dick?

If Tolkien disliked allegory, why are there so many allegorical readings of The Lord of the Rings?

Why does Marley in A Christmas Carol claim that Scrooge will be visited across three nights?

What is the meaning of the epilogue in Blood Meridian?

Why are Freud and Lacan still seen as important to literary criticism when their theories are discredited?

Is there really a bawdy pun at the conclusion of Romeo and Juliet?

Meaning of the "quips" from Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita

Have there been any scholarly attempts and/or consensus as regards the missing lines of "The Ruin"?

In Kerouac's On The Road, what is snakejuice?

In Wind in the Willows, why is Mole's garden full of Italian heroes?

Are the inconsistencies in Harry Potter symbolic or allegorical?

What is the purpose of all the lists in chapter 12 of Joyce's Ulysses?

In Ulysses, why does Stephen finally decide not to stay with Bloom?

In The Mezzotint by M. R. James, what is a "Door Bible"?

Did Shakespeare's audience believe Measure for Measure to be realistic?

For works translated by the original author, how common is it for additional translations to exist? What might these translation add?

In Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, what is the purpose of this character's resurrection?

Has there ever been a stage production of Chapter 15 of Ulysses?

In Macbeth, why is Fleance 'scaped?

What "Irish Oath" sounds like "Thoth"?

In Dickens' "The Chimes", why do bells have godparents and mugs?

Is there any significance to the names of the painters listed in Lolita?

What's the earliest fictional work of literature that contains an allusion to an earlier fictional work of literature?

In Homer's Odyssey, how can the one-eyed Cyclops have multiple brows?

Why was Welsh nationalist poet RS Thomas so critical of the Welsh people?

Were the Just William stories written for adults or children?

What is the relationship between Heart of Darkness and The Hollow Men?

Why is there so little character to the character of Shadow in American Gods?

Is the impenetrability of Chapter 14 of Ulysses deliberate, or a consequence of its stylistic pastiches?

Why is there so much stream of consciousness in Ulysses?