Short summary of great novels

[Asalbanoo]

Hamlet


Hamlet starts with soldiers changing the guard outside of Elsinore Castle in Denmark. The new guards have brought along a scholar named Horatio because they claim to have seen a ghost. Horatio is skeptical of their story until the ghost actually appears. He then tries to speak to it, but the ghost remains silent until it stalks away.

Horatio tells the guards that the ghost was dressed the same way Old Hamlet (the former King of Denmark and Hamlet's father) was dressed when he defeated King Fortinbras of Norway. He further tells them that young Fortinbras, the son, has gathered together an army to attack Denmark. At this point the ghost reappears and Horatio again begs it to speak to him. The ghost seems about to say something but at that moment a cock crows and the ghost vanishes. The guards and Horatio decide to tell Hamlet what they have seen.

King Claudius, who is Hamlet's uncle and who assumed the throne after Hamlet's father died, is in the castle. He has recently married Queen Gertrude, who is Hamlet's mother and the widow to Old Hamlet. Claudius is worried about the fact that young Fortinbras has raised an army against Denmark, and so he sends out messengers to the uncle of young Fortinbras asking him to stop his nephew. Claudius then turns to Laertes, the son of Polonius, and asks him why he requested an audience. Laertes asks the king for permission to return to France, which he is granted.

Claudius finally turns his attention to Hamlet, who is standing in black robes of mourning for his father. He tells Hamlet that it is unnatural for a man to mourn for such a long period of time. Queen Gertrude agrees, and asks Hamlet to wear normal clothes again. Both the king and queen then beg Hamlet to stay with them at the castle rather than return to his studies in Wittenberg. Hamlet agrees to stay, and both his mother and uncle rush out of the palace to celebrate their new wedding.

Horatio arrives with the guards and tells Hamlet that they have seen his father's ghost. Hamlet is extremely interested in this, and informs them that he will join them for the watch that night.

Laertes is finishing his packing and is also giving his sister Ophelia some brotherly advice before he leaves. He warns her to watch out for Hamlet whom he has seen wooing her. Laertes tells Ophelia to ignore Hamlet's overtures towards her until he is made king, at which point if he still wants to marry her then she should consent. Polonius arrives and orders his son to hurry up and get to the ship. Polonius then gives Laertes some fatherly advice, telling him to behave himself in France. Laertes departs, leaving Ophelia with Polonius. Polonius then turns to her and asks what has been going on between her and Hamlet. She tells him that Hamlet has professed his love to her, but Polonius only laughs and calls her ignorant. He then orders her to avoid Hamlet and to not believe his protestations of love. Ophelia promises to obey her father.

Hamlet, Horatio and a guard meet outside to see whether the ghost will appear. It soon arrives and silently beckons Hamlet to follow it. Hamlet pushes away Horatio, who is trying to hold him back, and runs after the ghost. The guard tells Horatio that they had better follow Hamlet and make sure he is alright.

The ghost finally stops and turns to Hamlet. He tells Hamlet that he is the ghost of Old Hamlet, who has come to tell his son the truth about how he died. He tells Hamlet that he was sitting in the garden one day, asleep in his chair, when Claudius came up to him and poured poison into his ear. He was killed immediately, and because he was not allowed to confess his sins, he is now suffering in Purgatory. The ghost of Old Hamlet then orders his son to seek revenge for this foul crime before departing.

Hamlet is confused about whether to believe the ghost or not, but he makes Horatio and the guard swear to never reveal what they have seen. He decides that he will pretend to be mad in order to fool Claudius and Gertrude until he is able to know whether Claudius really killed his father or not.

Polonius sends his servant Reynaldo to France in order to spy on Laertes. He order Reynaldo to ask the other Danes what sort of reputation Laertes has in order to make sure his son is behaving. Reynaldo promises to do this and leaves for France. Ophelia enters looking extremely frightened and informs her father that Hamlet has gone mad. She tells him that Hamlet entered the room where she was sewing and took her wrist. After staring into her eyes for a long while he walked out of the room without ever taking his eyes off of her. Polonius concludes that Hamlet must have gone mad because he ordered Ophelia to reject Hamlet's affections.

Claudius and Gertrude have invited two friends of Hamlet to come and spy on Hamlet. They are aware that Hamlet is acting strangely and want the friends to figure out what the problem is. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, eager to please King Claudius, agree to try and find out what is wrong with Hamlet. They leave, and Polonius enters with news that the messengers are back from Norway. Claudius tells him to bring the messengers in.

The messengers inform Claudius that after they arrived, the uncle of Fortinbras sent his nephew a summons. Young Fortinbras obeyed, and the uncle chastised him for attempting to attack Denmark. Fortinbras apologized for his behavior and received an annual allowance from his uncle as a token of goodwill. Further, the uncle gave Fortinbras permission to attack Poland. Since Fortinbras would have to march through Denmark in order to reach Poland, the uncle sent Claudius a letter asking for safe passage. Claudius, overjoyed by this news, assents to give permission.

Polonius then tells him that he knows the reason for Hamlet's madness. He reads Claudius and Gertrude one of the letters Hamlet sent to Ophelia in which Hamlet professes his love for her. Claudius is not entirely convinced, and so he and Polonius agree to set up a meeting between Hamlet and Ophelia that they will be able to spy on.

Hamlet enters the room and cuts their plotting short. Polonius asks the king and queen to leave him alone with their son, to which they assent. Polonius then tries to talk to Hamlet, who, feigning madness, calls him a fishmonger and asks him if he has a daughter. Hamlet continues to insult Polonius until Polonius finally gives up in frustration.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern arrive and Hamlet recognizes them. He greets them warmly and asks what brings them to Denmark. They only give an ambiguous answer, from which Hamlet infers that Claudius asked them to come. Hamlet then reveals to them that he has been very melancholic lately, and gives that as the reason he has been acting mad. They try to cheer him up by telling him some actors arrived with them on their ship. Hamlet is overjoyed to hear this news, and he immediately goes to find the actors.

He succeeds in finding the players and asks them to perform a speech from Dido and Aeneas for him. One of them agrees and performs the part where Priam, the father of Aeneas, is killed. He then continues with the part where Hecuba, Priam's wife, sees her husband being murdered and lets out a cry that rouses even the gods. Hamlet tells him it is enough when Polonius begs the actor to stop. He then asks the actors if they can perform the murder of Gonzago as well some extra lines that he will write for them. They agree and leave to rehearse their parts. Hamlet meanwhile has compared the murder of Priam to his own father's murder and has become outraged with Claudius, whom he hopes to reveal as the murderer through the play that he asked the actors to perform that night.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern tell Claudius and Gertrude that they really do not know what the matter with Hamlet is. They can only say that he seems distracted, but that the arrival of the actors made him happier. Polonius then tells Claudius that Hamlet is putting on a play that night and requested that they attend. Claudius agrees to go.

Polonius hears Hamlet coming and he and Claudius quickly made Ophelia stand in clear view while they hide themselves. Hamlet enters and gives his "To be or not to be; that is the question" (3.1.58) speech. He stops when he sees Ophelia and goes over to speak with her. Hamlet rudely tells her that he never loved her and orders her to go to a nunnery. After he leaves, Claudius tells Polonius that Hamlet does not seem to be mad because of Ophelia, but Polonius still believes that she is the real reason for his melancholic madness.

Hamlet puts on a play called The Mousetrap for Claudius and Gertrude, as well as other attendants in the castle. The play involves a king who is murdered by his nephew while sleeping in the garden. As the nephew pours poison into the king's ears, King Claudius becomes so outraged that he stands up, thereby forcing the play to end. He orders light to be shone on him and stalks angrily out of the room.

Hamlet is delighted by this and is convinced that the ghost was telling the truth. Horatio agrees with him. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern then arrive and tell Hamlet that his mother wants to see him in her private chambers immediately. Polonius soon arrives with the same news. Hamlet sends them all away and plans to reveal what he knows to his mother in order to see if she was part of the plot to kill his father.

Claudius, overcome with emotion, prays to heaven to forgive him his sin. He admits to committing the murder of his brother. Hamlet enters silently with his sword and is about to kill Claudius when he realizes that Claudius is praying. Since that would mean that Claudius would be absolved of his sins if he died right then, Hamlet stops and decides to wait until he can kill Claudius when his "soul may be as damned and black as hell" (3.3.94-95).

Hamlet then goes to see his mother. He immediately insults her for having married Claudius so soon after his father's death. She gets scared and calls for help, causing Polonius (who is hidden behind a curtain spying on them) to make a sound. Hamlet pulls out his dagger and kills Polonius through the curtain, but he is disappointed when her realizes it is not the king. Hamlet then shows his mother two pictures of both Claudius and Old Hamlet, comparing them for her. She is almost at the point where she believes him when the ghost appears and Hamlet starts to speak to it. Gertrude, unable to see the ghost, concludes that Hamlet must be truly mad and starts to agree with everything he says in order to get him out of her room.

Claudius, once Gertrude tells him what has happened, orders Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to prepare to take Hamlet with them to England. He then orders the body of Polonius to be found since Hamlet has hidden it. Hamlet eventually reveals the location of the body and then leaves the castle that night.

While traveling away from Elsinore, Hamlet encounters Fortinbras' army. Fortinbras has just send Claudius a message telling him that the Norwegian army is there and requesting safe passage. Hamlet asks one of the captains what part of Poland they are attacking. The captain refuses to reveal the exact location, and there remains the possibility that Denmark is the true target, although this is not revealed in the play.

Ophelia has meanwhile gone mad at the death of her father. Horatio tries to take care of her, but finally asks Gertrude to help him. Claudius and Gertrude order Horatio to keep an eye on her. Soon thereafter Laertes arrives with a mob. He has returned from France once he learned of Polonius' death and is intent on killing the murderer of his father. Claudius calms him down and tells him that Hamlet is the murderer, and since Hamlet has been sent to England there is no one there to kill. Laertes then sees Ophelia, who fails to recognize him and instead gives him a flower.

Hamlet sends letters back to Denmark. He tells Horatio that the ship was attacked by pirates and that he managed to escape in the process by joining the pirates for a short while as their prisoner. He also tells Horatio that he sent Rosencrantz and Guildenstern on to England, but that he will be returning shortly. Claudius also receives a letter from Hamlet informing him that Hamlet will soon return home. Claudius immediately plots a way to kill Hamlet by having Laertes fight him in a fencing match. Laertes decides to put poison on the tip of his rapier so that any small scratch will kill Hamlet, and Claudius tells him he will also poison a cup of wine and give it to Hamlet as a backup measure. At that moment Gertrude enters and tells the men that Ophelia has drowned herself in a brook. She and Claudius follow Laertes, who is once more grief-stricken.

Hamlet and Horatio come across two gravediggers who are digging a fresh grave. They are engaged in wordplay until one of the men sends the other away to fetch him some liquor. Hamlet watches as the remaining man tosses up skulls and sings while he works. He finally approaches the man and asks who the one skull belonged to. The gravedigger tells him it was Yorick's, a court fool whom Hamlet knew from his youth. Hamlet is shaken by the skull and ponders the fact that all of them return to the earth. He and Horatio are forced to run and hide when Laertes, Claudius and Gertrude arrive with the coffin.

They place the coffin into the ground, but the priest refuses to say any prayers for the dead because Ophelia committed suicide rather then die a natural death. Laertes argues with him, but finally gives up and jumps into the grave in grief. Hamlet, when he realizes who is dead, comes out of hiding and also jumps into the grave. Laertes grabs him by the throat and Claudius is forced to order the other men to intervene and separate them.

Back in the castle Hamlet tells Horatio that before he got off the ship he stole the letters Claudius had given to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The letters asked the English king to kill Hamlet. Hamlet, furious at this betrayal, wrote new letters in which he asked the king to kill the messengers, namely Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

A lord named Osric enters the room and informs Hamlet that Laertes has challenged him to a fencing match. Claudius has bet Laertes that he cannot defeat Hamlet by more than three hits during twelve engagements. Hamlet agrees to the dual even though Horatio tells him he cannot win. They enter the match room, and Claudius announces that if Hamlet scores a hit during the first, second, or third bout, then he will drop a valuable pearl into a cup of wine and give it to Hamlet.

Laertes and Hamlet choose their foils and proceed to fight. Hamlet scores a hit which Osric upholds, and Claudius drops his pearl into some wine which he offers to Hamlet. Hamlet, excited by the match, refuses to drink it and asks for the next round. They fight again, and Hamlet wins the next hit as well. Gertrude, thrilled at how well her son is fighting, takes the cup of wine from Claudius and drinks it to celebrate Hamlet's hit. Claudius turns pale when he realizes that she has drunk the poisoned wine, but he says nothing.

They fight again, and Laertes slashes Hamlet out of turn with his poisoned foil, causing Hamlet to bleed. Hamlet is infuriated and attacks him viciously, causing him to drop the foil. Hamlet gets both rapiers and accidentally tosses his rapier over to Laertes. He then slashes Laertes with the poisoned foil, drawing blood as well. They stop fighting when they realize that Queen Gertrude is lying on the ground.

Gertrude realizes that she has been poisoned and tells Hamlet that it was the drink. She dies, and Laertes tells Hamlet that he too is going to die from the poisoned tip. Hamlet, even more furious than before, slashes Claudius with the poisoned tip. He then takes the wine chalice and forces the poison into Claudius' mouth until Claudius falls dead onto the ground. Laertes is also on the ground at this point and he forgives Hamlet for killing Polonius before he too dies.

Hamlet sees Horatio about to drink the remaining poisoned wine and orders him to stop. He tells Horatio that only he can tell the people what really happened and thus reveal the truth. Osric comes in at that moment and informs them that Fortinbras and some ambassadors from England have arrived. Hamlet's final words are to give Fortinbras his vote to become the next King of Denmark.

Fortinbras arrives and looks over the scene of dead bodies. The ambassadors also enter the room and inform Horatio that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have been put to death. Horatio asks Fortinbras to order the bodies placed in the public view so that he can tell the people what happened. Fortinbras' final act is to order his soldiers to give Hamlet a military salute by firing their guns

[Asalbanoo]

Wuthering Heights is a novel that is told in a series of narratives, which are themselves told to the narrator, a gentleman named Lockwood. Lockwood rents a fine house and park called Thrushcross Grange in Yorkshire, and gradually learns more and more about the histories of two local families. This is what he learns from a housekeeper, Ellen Dean, who had been with one of the two families for all of her life:

In around 1760, a gentleman-farmer named Earnshaw went from his farm, Wuthering Heights, to Liverpool on a business trip. He found there a little boy who looked like a gypsy who had apparently been abandoned on the streets, and brought the child home with him, to join his own family of his wife, his son Hindley, his daughter Catherine, a manservant named Joseph and the little maid, Ellen. He named the boy Heathcliff after a son of his who had died. All the other members of the household were opposed to the introduction of a strange boy, except for Catherine, who was a little younger than Heathcliff and became fast friends with him. Hindley in particular felt as though Heathcliff had supplanted his place, although he was several years older, and the true son and heir. Hindley bullied Heathcliff when he could, and Heathcliff used his influence over Earnshaw to get his way. Heathcliff was a strange, silent boy, who appeared not to mind the blows he received from Hindley, although he was in fact very vindictive. Earnshaw's wife died. Hindley was sent away to college in a last attempt to turn him into a worthy son, and to ease pressures at home.

After some years, Earnshaw's health declined and he grew increasingly alienated from his family: in his peevish old age he believed that everyone disliked Heathcliff, because he liked him. He did not like his daughter Catherine's charming and mischievous ways. Finally he died, and Catherine and Heathcliff were very grieved, but consoled each other with thoughts of heaven.

Hindley returned, now around twenty years old ­ Heathcliff was about twelve and Catherine was eleven. He was married to a young woman named Frances, to the surprise of everyone at Wuthering Heights. Hindley used his new power to reduce Heathcliff to the level of a servant, although Heathcliff and Catherine continued their intimacy. Catherine taught Heathcliff her lessons, and would join him in the fields, or they would run away to the moors all day to play, never minding their punishments afterward.

One day they ran down to the Grange, a more civilized house where the Lintons lived with their children Edgar (13) and Isabella (11). They despised the spoiled, delicate Linton children, and made faces and yelled at them through the window. The Lintons called for help and the wilder children fled, but Catherine was caught by a bulldog, and they were brought inside. When the Lintons found out that the girl was Miss Earnshaw, they took good care of her and threw Heathcliff out.

Catherine stayed at the Grange for 5 weeks, and came home dressed and acting like a proper young lady, to the delight of Hindley and his wife, and to Heathcliff's sorrow (he felt as though she had moved beyond him). In the next few years, Catherine struggled to maintain her relationship with Heathcliff, and to socialize with the elegant Linton children.

Frances gave birth to a son, Hareton, and died soon after of tuberculosis. Hindley gave into wild despair and alcoholism, and the household fell into chaos. Heathcliff was harshly treated, and came to hate Hindley more and more. Edgar Linton fell in love with Catherine, who was attracted by what he represented, although she loved Heathcliff much more seriously. They became engaged, and Heathcliff ran away. Catherine fell ill after looking for Heathcliff all night in a storm, and went to the Grange to get better. The older Lintons caught her fever and died of it. Edgar and Catherine were married when she was 18 or 19.

They lived fairly harmoniously together for almost a year ­ then Heathcliff returned. He had mysteriously acquired gentlemanly manners, education, and some money. Catherine was overjoyed to see him; Edgar considerably less so. Heathcliff stayed at Wuthering Heights, where he gradually gained financial control by paying Hindley's gambling debts. Heathcliff's relationship with the Linton household became more and more strained as Edgar became extremely unhappy with the situation. Finally there was a violent quarrel: Heathcliff left the Grange to avoid being thrown out by Edgar's servants, Catherine was angry at both of the men, and Edgar was furious at Heathcliff and displeased by his wife's behavior. Catherine shut herself in her room for several days. In the mean time, Heathcliff eloped with Isabella (who was struck by his romantic appearance) by way of revenge on Edgar. Edgar could not forgive his sister's betrayal of him, and didn't try to stop the marriage. Catherine became extremely ill, feverish and delirious, and nearly died ­ though she was carefully tended by Edgar once he found out her condition.

A few months later, Catherine was still very delicate, and looked as though she would probably die. She was pregnant. Heathcliff and Isabella returned to Wuthering Heights, and Isabella wrote to Ellen to describe how brutally she was mistreated by her savage husband, and how much she regretted her marriage. Ellen went to visit them, to see if she could improve Isabella's situation. She told them about Catherine's condition, and Heathcliff asked to see her.

A few days later, Heathcliff came to the Grange while Edgar was at church. He had a passionate reunion with Catherine, in which they forgave each other as much as possible for their mutual betrayals. Catherine fainted, Edgar came back, and Heathcliff left. Catherine died that night after giving birth to a daughter. Edgar was terribly grieved and Heathcliff wildly so ­ he begged Catherine's ghost to haunt him. A few days later Hindley tried to murder Heathcliff, but Heathcliff almost murdered him instead. Isabella escaped from Wuthering Heights and went to live close to London, where she gave birth to a son, Linton. Hindley died a few months after his sister Catherine.

Catherine and Edgar's daughter, Catherine, grew to be a beloved and charming child. She was brought up entirely within the confines of the Grange, and was entirely unaware of the existence of Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff, or her cousin Hareton there. Once she found the farmhouse while exploring the moors, and was upset to think that such an ignorant rustic as Hareton could be related to her. Ellen told her she could not return there.

Isabella died when Linton was about 12 years old, and Edgar went to fetch him to the Grange. Linton was a peevish and effeminate boy, but Catherine was pleased to have a playmate. That very day, however, Heathcliff sent Joseph to fetch his son to Wuthering Heights, and when Catherine woke up the next morning her cousin was gone. Though sad at first, she soon got over it, and continued her happy childhood.

On her sixteenth birthday, Catherine and Ellen strayed onto Heathcliff's lands, and he invited them into Wuthering Heights to see Linton. Catherine was pleased to renew her acquaintance, and Heathcliff was eager to promote a romance between the two cousins, so as to ensure himself of Edgar's land when he died. When they returned home, Edgar forbade her to continue visiting there, and said that Heathcliff was an evil man. Catherine then began a secret correspondence with Linton, which became an exchange of love letters. Ellen found out, and put an end to it.

Edgar became ill. Heathcliff asked Catherine to return to Wuthering Heights because Linton was breaking his heart for her. She did so, and found Linton to be a bullying invalid, but not without charm. Ellen fell ill as well and was unable to prevent Catherine from visiting Wuthering Heights every day. She felt obliged to help Linton, and despised Hareton for being clumsy and illiterate. Ellen told Edgar about the visits when she found out, and he forbade Catherine to go any more.

Edgar was in poor health and didn't know about Linton's equally bad health and bad character, so he thought it would be good for Catherine to marry him ­ since Linton and not Catherine would inherit the Grange, most likely. A system was fixed up in which Linton and Catherine met outside. Linton was increasingly ill, and seemed to be terrified of something ­ his father was forcing him to court Catherine. Heathcliff feared Linton would die before Edgar did, so eventually he all but kidnapped Catherine and Ellen, and told them Catherine couldn't go home to see her dying father until she married Linton. Catherine did marry Linton, and escaped in time to see Edgar before he died.

After Edgar's funeral (he was buried next to his wife) Heathcliff fetched Catherine to Wuthering Heights to take care of Linton, who was dying, and to free up the Grange so he could rent it out (to Lockwood, in fact). He told Ellen that he was still obsessed by his beloved Catherine, and had gone to gaze at her long-dead body when her coffin was uncovered by the digging of Edgar's grave.

Catherine had to care of Linton alone, and when he died, she maintained an unfriendly attitude to the household: Heathcliff, Hareton (who was in love with her), and Zillah, the housekeeper. As time passed, however, she became lonely enough to seek Hareton's company, and began teaching him to read.

This is around the time of Lockwood's time at the Grange. He left the area for several months, and when he returned, he found out that while he was gone:

Heathcliff began to act more and more strangely, and became incapable of concentrating on the world around him, as though Catherine's ghost wouldn't let him. He all but stopped eating and sleeping, and Ellen found him dead one morning, with a savage smile on his face. He was buried next to Catherine, as he had wished. Hareton grieved for him, but was too happy with the younger Catherine to be inconsolable. When the novel ends, they plan to marry and move to the Grange.

[Asalbanoo]

Pride and Prejudice is set primarily in the county of Hertfordshire, about 50 miles outside of London. The novel opens at with a conversation at Longbourn, the Bennet's estate, about the arrival of Mr. Bingley, "a single man of large fortune," to Netherfield Park, a nearby estate. Mrs. Bennet, whose obsession is to find husbands for her daughters, sees Mr. Bingley as a potential suitor. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have five children: Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia.

The Bennets' first acquaintance with Mr. Bingley and his companions is at the Meryton Ball. Mr. Bingley takes a liking to Jane and is judged by the townspeople to be perfectly amiable and agreeable. Mr. Bingley's friend Mr. Darcy, however, snubs Elizabeth and is considered to be proud and disagreeable because of his reserve and his refusal to dance. Bingley's sisters are judged to be amiable by Jane but Elizabeth finds them to be arrogant.

After further interactions, it becomes evident that Jane and Bingley have a preference for one another, although Bingley's partiality is more obvious than Jane's because she is universally cheerful and amiable. Charlotte Lucas, a close friend of Elizabeth with more pragmatic views on marriage, recommends that Jane make her regard for Bingley more obvious. At the same time, Mr. Darcy begins to admire Elizabeth, captivated by her fine eyes and lively wit.

When Jane is invited for dinner at Netherfield, Mrs. Bennet refuses to provide her with a carriage, hoping that because it is supposed to rain Jane will be forced to spend the night. However, because Jane gets caught in the rain, she falls ill and is forced to stay at Netherfield until she recovers. Upon hearing that Jane is ill, Elizabeth walks to Netherfield in order to go nurse her sister. Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst (Bingley's sisters) are scandalized that Elizabeth walked so far alone in the mud. Seeing that Jane would like Elizabeth to stay with her, Bingley's sisters invite Elizabeth to remain at Netherfield until Jane recovers.

During her stay at Netherfield, Elizabeth increasingly gains the admiration of Mr. Darcy. She is blind to his partiality, however, and continues to think him a most proud and haughty man because of the judgment she made of him when he snubbed her at the ball. Miss Bingley, who is obviously trying to gain the admiration of Mr. Darcy, is extremely jealous of Elizabeth and tries to prevent Mr. Darcy from admiring her by making rude references to the poor manners of Elizabeth's mother and younger sisters and to her lower class relatives. When Mrs. Bennet and her younger daughters come to visit Jane, Elizabeth is mortified by their foolishness and complete lack of manners. Bingley's admiration for Jane continues unabated and is evident in his genuine solicitude for her recovery. After Jane recovers, she returns home with Elizabeth.

A militia regiment is stationed at the nearby town of Meryton, where Mrs. Bennet's sister Mrs. Phillips lives. Mrs. Phillips is just as foolish as Mrs. Bennet. Lydia and Kitty love to go to Meryton to visit with their aunt and socialize with the militia's officers.

Mr. Collins, a cousin of Mr. Bennet who is in line to inherit Longbourn because the estate has been entailed away from the female line, writes a letter stating his intention to visit. When he arrives, he makes it clear that he hopes to find a suitable wife among the Miss Bennets. Mr. Collins is a clergyman, and his patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh (who is also Darcy's aunt), has suggested that he find a wife, and he hopes to lessen the hardship of the entailment by marrying one of Mr. Bennet's daughters. Mr. Collins is a silly man who speaks in long, pompous speeches and always has an air of solemn formality.

When the Miss Bennets and Mr. Collins go for a walk to Meryton, they are introduced to an officer in the regiment named Mr. Wickham. They also run into Mr. Darcy, and when Darcy and Wickham meet both seem to be extremely uncomfortable. Mr. Wickham immediately shows a partiality for Elizabeth and they speak at length. Wickham tells Elizabeth that the reason for the mutual embarrassment when he and Darcy met is that Darcy's father had promised that Wickham, his godson, should be given a good living after his death, but that Darcy had failed to fulfill his father's dying wishes and had left Wickham to support himself. Elizabeth, already predisposed to think badly of Darcy, does not question Wickham's account. When Elizabeth tells Jane Wickham's story Jane refuses think badly of either Wickham or Darcy and assumes there must be some misunderstanding.

As promised, Bingley hosts a ball at Netherfield. He and Jane stay together the whole evening, and their mutual attachment becomes increasingly obvious. Mrs. Bennet speaks of their marriage as imminent over dinner, within earshot of Mr. Bingley's friend Mr. Darcy. Darcy asks Elizabeth to dance with her and she inadvertently accepts. She does not enjoy it and cannot understand why he asked her. Mr. Collins pays particularly close attention to Elizabeth at the ball, and even reserves the first two dances with her.

The next day Mr. Collins proposes to Elizabeth. She refuses him, and after a while Mr. Collins comes to understand that her refusal is sincere, not just a trick of female coquetry. Mrs. Bennet is extremely angry at Elizabeth for not accepting, but Mr. Bennet is glad. Mr. Collins shifts his attentions to Elizabeth's friend Charlotte Lucas. He proposes to Charlotte and she accepts. Elizabeth is disappointed in her friend for agreeing to marry such a silly man simply to obtain financial security.

Bingley goes to London for business and shortly after he leaves his sisters and Darcy go to London as well. He had planned to return quickly to Netherfield, but Caroline Bingley writes to Jane and tells her that Bingley will almost definitely not return for about six months. Caroline also tells Jane that the family hopes Bingley will marry Darcy's younger sister Georgiana and unite the fortunes of the two families. Jane is heartbroken, thinking that Bingley must not really be attached to her. Elizabeth thinks that Darcy and Bingley's sisters somehow managed to convince Bingley to stay in London rather than returning to Netherfield to propose to Jane.

Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, Elizabeth's aunt and uncle, come to Longbourn to visit. They invite Jane to come and spend some time with them in London, hoping that the time away will help to cheer her up. Elizabeth also hopes that Jane will run into Bingley while in London. Mrs. Gardiner, after observing Elizabeth and Wickham together, warns Elizabeth against the imprudence of a marriage to Wickham because of his poor financial situation, and advises Elizabeth not to encourage his attentions so much.

While in London Jane is treated very rudely by Caroline Bingley and comes to realize that she is not a sincere friend. She assumes that Mr. Bingley knows she is in London, and decides that he must no longer be partial to her since she does not hear from him at all.

Wickham suddenly transfers his attentions from Elizabeth to Miss King, who has recently acquired 10,000 pounds from an inheritance.

Along with Sir William Lucas and Maria Lucas (Charlotte's father and younger sister) Elizabeth goes to visit Charlotte (now Mrs. Collins) at her new home in Kent. On their way they stop to see the Gardiners. Upon hearing of Wickham's change of affections, Mrs. Gardiner is critical, but Elizabeth defends him.

While staying with the Collinses, Elizabeth and the others are often invited to dine at Rosings, the large estate of Mr. Collins' patroness Lady Catherine. Lady Catherine is completely arrogant and domineering. After Elizabeth has been at the Parsonage for a fortnight, Mr. Darcy and his cousin Colonel Fitzwilliam visit Rosings. Elizabeth and Colonel Fitzwilliam get along very well. Darcy also seems to be paying a lot of attention to Elizabeth, and often visits her and Charlotte at the Parsonage along with Colonel Fitzwilliam. He also purposely meets her very frequently on her usual walking route through the park.

While walking one day with Elizabeth, Colonel Fitzwilliam tells Elizabeth how Darcy recently saved a close friend from an imprudent marriage. Elizabeth concludes from this comment that it must have been Darcy's advice which convinced Bingley not to propose to Jane. She becomes so angry and upset that she gets a terrible headache and decides not to go to Rosings for dinner. While she is alone at the Parsonage, Darcy pays a visit. He tells her that in spite of all his efforts to avoid it because of her low family connections, he has fallen in love with her and wants to marry her. Elizabeth is shocked. She rudely refuses and rebukes him for the ungentlemanlike manner in which he proposed, as well as for preventing the marriage of Bingley and Jane and for ill-treating Wickham. Darcy is shocked because he had assumed she would accept.

The next day Darcy finds Elizabeth and hands her a letter then quickly leaves. The letter contains an explanation of his reasons for advising Bingley not to marry Jane and for his actions toward Wickham. He had prevented Bingley from proposing to Jane because it did not seem to him that Jane was truly attached to Bingley. Wickham was Darcy's father's god-son. Before his death, Darcy's father had asked Darcy to provide Wickham with a living if Wickham were to decide to enter the clergy. Wickham, however, did not want to enter the clergy. He asked Darcy for 3,000 pounds, purportedly for law school, and agreed not to ask for any more. Darcy gave Wickham the money and he squandered it all on dissolute living, then came back and told Darcy he would like to enter the clergy if he could have the living promised to him. Darcy refused. Later, with the help of her governess Miss Younge, Wickham got Darcy's younger sister Georgiana to fall in love with him and agree to an elopement, in order to revenge himself on Mr. Darcy and get Miss Darcy's fortune. Fortunately, Darcy found out and intervened at the last minute.

After reading these explanations in the letter Elizabeth's first reaction is disbelief, but after reflecting upon and slowly rereading the letter, she begins to see that Darcy is telling the truth and that she was only inclined to believe Wickham's story because he had flattered her with his attentions, while she was inclined to think ill of Darcy because he had wounded her pride on their first meeting.

Soon afterwards, Elizabeth returns home from her stay with the Collinses and Jane returns home from her stay with the Gardiners. When they return their mother and sisters are upset because the regiment stationed in Meryton will soon be leaving, depriving them of most of their amusement. Lydia receives an offer from Mrs. Forster, Colonel Forster's wife, to accompany her to Brighton, where the regiment will be going. Elizabeth advises her father not to allow Lydia to go, thinking that such a trip could lead to serious misconduct on Lydia's part because of the flirtatiousness and frivolity of her character and her complete lack of a sense of propriety. However, Mr. Bennet does not heed Elizabeth's advice.

Elizabeth goes on vacation with the Gardiners. Their first stop is in the area of Pemberley, Mr. Darcy's estate. The Gardiners want to take a tour, and having found out that Mr. Darcy is away, Elizabeth agrees. During their tour of the estate the housekeeper tells them about how kind and good-natured Darcy is. Elizabeth is impressed by this praise, and also thinks of how amazing it would be to be the mistress of such an estate. During their tour of the gardens Elizabeth and the Gardiners run into Mr. Darcy, who has returned early from his trip. Darcy is extremely cordial to both Elizabeth and the Gardiners and tells Elizabeth that he wants her to meet his sister Georgiana as soon as she arrives.

Darcy and Georgiana pay a visit to Elizabeth and the Gardiners at their inn on the very morning of Georgiana's arrival. Bingley comes to visit as well. It is clear that he still has a regard for Jane. Mrs. Gardiner and Elizabeth return their civilities by calling at Pemberley to visit Georgiana. Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst are there as well, and they thinly conceal their displeasure at seeing Elizabeth.

One morning Elizabeth receives a letter from Jane announcing that Lydia has eloped with Wickham, and that they fear Wickham does not actually intend to marry her. Jane asks Elizabeth to return home immediately. Darcy comes to the door just after Elizabeth has received the news. She explains to him what has happened. He feels partially to blame for not having exposed Wickham's character publicly.

Elizabeth and the Gardiners depart for Longbourn immediately. Mrs. Bennet is in hysterics and the entire burden of keeping the household together in this moment of crisis has fallen on Jane's shoulders. They find out from Colonel Forster that Wickham has over 1,000 pounds of gambling debts and nearly that much owed to merchants. The next day Mr. Gardiner goes to join Mr. Bennet in London to help him search for Lydia. After many days of fruitless searches Mr. Bennet returns home and leaves the search in Mr. Gardiner's hands.

Soon a letter arrives from Mr. Gardiner explaining that Lydia and Wickham have been found and that Wickham will marry Lydia if Mr. Bennet provides her with her equal share of his wealth. Knowing that, with his debts, Wickham would never have agreed to marry Lydia for so little money, Mr. Bennet thinks that Mr. Gardiner must have paid off Wickham's debts for him.

After their marriage Lydia and Wickham come to visit Longbourn. Lydia is completely shameless and not the least bit remorseful for her conduct. Mrs. Bennet is very happy to have one of her daughters married.

Elizabeth hears from Lydia that Darcy was present at the wedding. She writes to her aunt to ask her why he was there. She responds explaining that it was Darcy who had found Lydia and Wickham and who had negotiated with Wickham to get him to marry her. Mrs. Gardiner thinks that Darcy did this out of love for Elizabeth.

Bingley and Mr. Darcy return to Netherfield Park. They call at Longbourn frequently. After several days Bingley proposes to Jane. She accepts and all are very happy.

In the meantime Darcy has gone on a short business trip to London. While he is gone Lady Catherine comes to Longbourn and asks to speak with Elizabeth. Lady Catherine tells Elizabeth that she has heard Darcy is going to propose to her and attempts to forbid Elizabeth to accept the proposal. Elizabeth refuses to make any promises. Lady Catherine leaves in a huff.

Darcy returns from his business trip. While he and Elizabeth are walking he tells her that his affection for her is the same as when he last proposed, and asks her if her disposition toward him has changed. She says that it has, and that she would be happy to accept his proposal. They speak about how they have been changed since the last proposal. Darcy realized he had been wrong to act so proudly and place so much emphasis on class differences. Elizabeth realized that she had been wrong to judge Darcy prematurely and to allow her judgment to be affected by her vanity.

Both couples marry. Elizabeth and Darcy go to live in Pemberley. Jane and Bingley, after living in Netherfield for a year, decide to move to an estate near Pemberley. Kitty begins to spend most of her time with her two sisters, and her education and character begin to improve. Mary remains at home keeping her mother company. Mr. Bennet is very happy that his two oldest daughters have married so happily. Mrs. Bennet is glad that her daughters have married so prosperously.

[Asalbanoo]

Animal Farm is set on an English farm named Manor Farm, owned by Mr. Jones. The fable-like story concerns the rebellion of the farm animals, and is told entirely from their point of view. The story opens with Mr. Jones stumbling into bed, unable to lock up the farm properly after a night of excessive whisky drinking. Old Major, the venerable and well-respected pig, has called all the animals together for a meeting to take place after Mr. Jones has gone to bed, and they gather outside the big barn on the farm. Old Major tells them all that he had a miraculous dream last night, in which he saw his approaching death, and also understood more clearly the life of animals. He wants to impart his realizations to the rest of the animals while he still can, as well as rouse them to take the action that he has come to feel is necessary.

Old Major points out to the animals that the cause of their miserable existences is the tyranny of Man, who is a lazy, incompetent creature who steals the fruits of animals' labor for his own benefit. Old Major describes his vision of an England where animals could live in peaceful and plentiful coexistence with each other, free from the cruel tyranny of Man. He exhorts the animals to band together to defeat their common enemy, and teaches them all "Beasts of England," the song which becomes their revolutionary anthem and battle cry. The animals are greatly moved by Old Major's speech, and rally around the rebellion idea, singing "Beasts of England" until Mr. Jones is roused from his sleep and fires a shot into the air, quieting the animals to sleep.

Three days later, Old Major dies and is buried. His revolutionary fervor lives on, and the animals begin to flesh in the revolutionary ideology with which they will overthrow Mr. Jones. Two of the pigs, Snowball and Napoleon, emerge as the leaders of the animals. Another pig named Squealer is also prominent for his persuasive speaking ability. These three pigs create a system of tenets and name it "Animalism," and begin imparting it to the rest of the animals, often simplifying and slowly reasoning with the less-intelligent animals such as the Sheep, or the frivolous animals, like Mollie the white mare.

Revolution comes earlier than anyone expected, when Mr. Jones gets so drunk that he is unable to go feed the animals. After a day and a half without food, the hungry animals finally riot and break into the feeding area themselves, prompting Mr. Jones and his field hands to come outside. The animals attack them with a vengeance, and the men flee, leaving Manor Farm to the animals. Mrs. Jones wakes up during the commotion, and when she discovers what has happened, she runs off with a suitcase of clothes herself. The animals rejoice, walking over the farm to examine their property, and celebrate with extra rations of food. The next morning, Snowball repaints the sign reading "Manor Farm" to say "Animal Farm," and he and Napoleon introduce the animals to The Seven Commandments, which form the tenets of their "Animalism":

Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.

Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.

No animal shall wear clothes.

No animal shall sleep in a bed.

No animal shall drink alcohol.

No animal shall kill another animal.

All animals are created equal.

The cows by this time need milking, so the pigs manage to milk them. Several of the animals want some of the milk for themselves, but Napoleon distracts them, saying that they have more important things to attend to and that he will take care of it. Later that day, the animals notice that the milk had disappeared.

The Animalism regime begins very promisingly, with all the animals working industriously to improve the farm, and enjoying the feeling of self-governance and "animal pride" which their regime produces. The animals observe a flag-raising ritual on Sundays, which is a day of rest for them. Snowball forms an array of committees aimed at social improvements, education, training, and the like. The education program achieves the greatest success. Boxer the horse becomes the most admired of all the animals for his zealous devotion to the cause and his personal motto "I will work harder". After the discovery that the stupider animals could not learn the Seven Commandments, Snowball reduces the tenets down to the maxim "Four legs good, two legs bad," which even the sheep can memorize, and bleat for hours on end. After the apple harvest, the pigs announce that they will reserve all the apples and milk for themselves, to fuel their strenuous efforts to manage the farm. The other animals reluctantly acquiesce.

News of the rebellion at Animal Farm spreads quickly to the rest of the animals in England, all of whom learn the words to "Beasts of England". Mr. Jones gathers some townsmen and attempts to reclaim his farm, but the animals successfully defend it. Snowball and Boxer are given medals for their courageous fighting. Soon thereafter, Mollie runs off to work pulling a dogcart for a man who feeds her sugar lumps, and she is never spoken of again. When winter comes, Snowball begins talking of a plan to build a windmill to increase the productivity of the farm. Napoleon, who by this times disagrees with Snowball about almost everything, is bitterly opposed, and the animals become divided into two camps of supporters. During a debate, Napoleon whistles for nine large dogs that he has trained, and they attack Snowball and drive him off the farm. Napoleon becomes the single leader of the animals, and announces that they will go through with the windmill scheme after all.

The animals begin working like slaves to complete the harvest and build the windmill. When Napoleon announces that Animal Farm will begin trading with the men who run nearby farms, the animals think they remember Old Major speaking against evil human habits such as trade. Squealer convinces the animals that they are only imagining it. The pigs then move into the farmhouse, and Squealer again convinces that animals that they are only imagining the earlier rules against sleeping in beds. Some of the animals go to check the Fourth Commandment, and discover that it now reads "No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets". The windmill is destroyed in a storm, and Napoleon blames it on Snowball, and places a reward on his head.

A hard winter comes, and the animals face near-starvation. Napoleon announces that the hens will have to give up their eggs to be sold for money to buy grain. The hens refuse at first, but Napoleon cuts off their food rations until they relent, after nine of them have died from starvation. Soon after, Napoleon announces that an attempted rebellion has been discovered, and has several of the farm animals executed. The remaining animals react with fear and horror, and huddle around Clover the mare for comfort. She reminds them of Old Major's glorious speech and leads them all in "Beast of England," which prompts Napoleon to forbid the singing of the song.

The animals discover that after the executions, another commandment is different from how they remembered it; the Sixth Commandment now reads "No animal shall kill another animal without cause". Napoleon has a long poem praising his leadership painted on the side of the barn. The farm is again attacked by neighboring farmers, who the animals repel, but only with great difficulty. Napoleon celebrates the victory by drinking lots of whisky, and the Fifth Commandment soon reads "No animal shall drink alcohol in excess". Boxer's injury sustained in the attack is slow-healing.

Rations continue to be reduced for the animals, except for the pigs, who are allowed to wear green ribbons on Sundays, drink beer daily, and actually seem to be gaining weight. Boxer falls ill and Napoleon promises to send him to a hospital, but the animals read the sign of the truck as he is hauled away and discover that he is being taken to the butcher's. Squealer eventually convinces the animals that they are mistaken.

Years pass, and many of the older animals die off. Squealer assumes a position of power, and learns to walk upright. He teaches the sheep to change their chant to "Four legs good, two legs better," and the Seven Commandments are replaced with a single commandment: "All animals are created equal, but some animals are more equal than others". The pigs invite the neighboring farmer to dinner to inspect the efficiency of Animal Farm, and the men congratulate the pigs on their achievements, noting that the animals at Animal Farm did more work and required less food than any farm in the county. As the animal watch the dinner proceedings through the window, they realize with horror that they can no longer tell the pigs' faces from the human ones.

[Asalbanoo]

Ten years have passed since the fall of Troy, and the Greek hero Odysseus still has not returned to his kingdom in Ithaca. A large and rowdy mob of suitors who have overrun Odysseus’s palace and pillaged his land continue to court his wife, Penelope. She has remained faithful to Odysseus. Prince Telemachus, Odysseus’s son, wants desperately to throw them out but does not have the confidence or experience to fight them. One of the suitors, Antinous, plans to assassinate the young prince, eliminating the only opposition to their dominion over the palace.
Unknown to the suitors, Odysseus is still alive. The beautiful nymph Calypso, possessed by love for him, has imprisoned him on her island, Ogygia. He longs to return to his wife and son, but he has no ship or crew to help him escape. While the gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus debate Odysseus’s future, Athena, Odysseus’s strongest supporter among the gods, resolves to help Telemachus. Disguised as a friend of the prince’s grandfather, Laertes, she convinces the prince to call a meeting of the assembly at which he reproaches the suitors. Athena also prepares him for a great journey to Pylos and Sparta, where the kings Nestor and Menelaus, Odysseus’s companions during the war, inform him that Odysseus is alive and trapped on Calypso’s island. Telemachus makes plans to return home, while, back in Ithaca, Antinous and the other suitors prepare an ambush to kill him when he reaches port.
On Mount Olympus, Zeus sends Hermes to rescue Odysseus from Calypso. Hermes persuades Calypso to let Odysseus build a ship and leave. The homesick hero sets sail, but when Poseidon, god of the sea, finds him sailing home, he sends a storm to wreck Odysseus’s ship. Poseidon has harbored a bitter grudge against Odysseus since the hero blinded his son, the Cyclops Polyphemus, earlier in his travels. Athena intervenes to save Odysseus from Poseidon’s wrath, and the beleaguered king lands at Scheria, home of the Phaeacians. Nausicaa, the Phaeacian princess, shows him to the royal palace, and Odysseus receives a warm welcome from the king and queen. When he identifies himself as Odysseus, his hosts, who have heard of his exploits at Troy, are stunned. They promise to give him safe passage to Ithaca, but first they beg to hear the story of his adventures.
Odysseus spends the night describing the fantastic chain of events leading up to his arrival on Calypso’s island. He recounts his trip to the Land of the Lotus Eaters, his battle with Polyphemus the Cyclops, his love affair with the witch-goddess Circe, his temptation by the deadly Sirens, his journey into Hades to consult the prophet Tiresias, and his fight with the sea monster Scylla. When he finishes his story, the Phaeacians return Odysseus to Ithaca, where he seeks out the hut of his faithful swineherd, Eumaeus. Though Athena has disguised Odysseus as a beggar, Eumaeus warmly receives and nourishes him in the hut. He soon encounters Telemachus, who has returned from Pylos and Sparta despite the suitors’ ambush, and reveals to him his true identity. Odysseus and Telemachus devise a plan to massacre the suitors and regain control of Ithaca.
When Odysseus arrives at the palace the next day, still disguised as a beggar, he endures abuse and insults from the suitors. The only person who recognizes him is his old nurse, Eurycleia, but she swears not to disclose his secret. Penelope takes an interest in this strange beggar, suspecting that he might be her long-lost husband. Quite crafty herself, Penelope organizes an archery contest the following day and promises to marry any man who can string Odysseus’s great bow and fire an arrow through a row of twelve axes—a feat that only Odysseus has ever been able to accomplish. At the contest, each suitor tries to string the bow and fails. Odysseus steps up to the bow and, with little effort, fires an arrow through all twelve axes. He then turns the bow on the suitors. He and Telemachus, assisted by a few faithful servants, kill every last suitor.
Odysseus reveals himself to the entire palace and reunites with his loving Penelope. He travels to the outskirts of Ithaca to see his aging father, Laertes. They come under attack from the vengeful family members of the dead suitors, but Laertes, reinvigorated by his son’s return, successfully kills Antinous’s father and puts a stop to the attack. Zeus dispatches Athena to restore peace. With his power secure and his family reunited, Odysseus’s long ordeal comes to an end

[Asalbanoo]

The Cherry Orchard describes the lives of a group of Russians, in the wake of the Liberation of the serfs. The action takes place over the course of five or six months, but the histories of the characters are so complex that in many ways, the play begins years earlier.

The play opens in May, inside the cherry orchard estate; friends, neighbors, and servants are preparing for the long-awaited return of Madame Ranevsky, the mistress of the house, and her daughter Anya. Madame Ranevsky has two daughters. She had fled the cherry orchard five years before, after the deaths of her husband and young son. She is now returning from France, where her abusive lover had robbed and abandoned her. She has accrued great debts during her absence.

Lopakhin begins by telling the story of his own success: born a serf, he has managed to make himself a fortune. Another former serf, Firs, readies the house during Lopakhin's speeches. Firs has maintained the same post he always has, despite the Liberation. Dunyasha confesses a potential romance between she and Ephikhodof, but no one is interested.

Finally, Madame Ranevsky returns. Her friends and family are overjoyed to see her. Act I introduces many subplots: a romance between the tutor Trophimof and Anya, another hopeful romance between her sister Barbara and wealthy Lopakhin, a love triangle between the servants Dunyasha, Yasha, and Ephikhodof, the debt of the neighbor Pishtchik, the class struggles of Lopakhin and Firs, the isolation of Charlotte, etc. The main intrigue of the play, however, hinges on Madame Ranevsky's debt. Neither she nor her brother Gayef have money to pay the mortgage on the cherry orchard estate, and unless they find a solution, the state will be auctioned off in August.

Lopakhin suggests that Madame Ranevsky build villas on the estate. She can lease them and use the money to pay the mortgage. Madame Ranevsky and Gayef object to the idea, and prefer to work something out on their own. However, as spring passes into summer, Madame Ranevsky only finds herself more in debt, with no solution in sight. Strange romances between Anya and Trophimof and Dunyasha and Yasha continue, while nothing develops between Lopakhin and Barbara and Dunyasha and Ephikhodof. Firs' health is declining. Madame Ranevsky is receiving letters from her lover, and Gayef begins to consider a job at a bank. Pishtchik takes out loans from Madame Ranevsky, whose own funds are dwindling away to nothing.

On the night of the auction, no solution has arrived. Madame Ranevsky holds a ball. Charlotte performs, and guests and servants alike dance. Madame Ranevsky and Trophimof have a serious conversation about Madame Ranevsky's extravagance; not only does she continue to run up debts, but she is now considering returning to her abusive lover in France. Madame Ranevsky is nervous about the outcome of the auction; she is still hoping for a miracle.

Finally Gayef and Lopakhin return: Lopakhin has bought the cherry orchard. Barbara is furious, and Madame Ranevsky is devastated. Lopakhin, however, cannot hide his happiness: he has bought the estate where his family lived as serfs. Ironically, he encourages the party to continue, even though the hosts are no longer in the mood to celebrate.

Act IV shows Madame Ranevsky leaving the cherry orchard for the last time. Lopakhin has bought champagne, but no one except the uppity servant Yasha will drink it. Lopakhin and Trophimof share a tender farewell: Trophimof will return to the university. Charlotte complains that she no longer has a position; Ephikhodof has a new position with Lopakhin. Pishtchik is able to pay off some of his debts. Gayef has a job at a bank, Barbara a position as a housekeeper, and Yasha will stay on with Madame Ranevsky, who is returning to France. Many characters try to confirm that Firs has been sent to the hospital. Lopakhin misses his last chance with Barbara, and Dunyasha cries that Yasha is leaving.

Madame Ranevsky and Gayef share a nostalgic moment alone before leaving on a relatively optimistic note. In the last moment, we hear axes cutting down the orchard, and Firs stumbles on to stage, forgotten, locked in the house. He lies down to rest and presumably dies.

[Asalbanoo]

Lieutenant Frederic Henry, a young American ambulance driver with the Italian army during World War I, takes a winter leave from the front. When he returns, he meets and quickly falls in love with Catherine Barkley, an English nurse's aide in the town's British hospital. She mourns the death of her fiancé from the war last year, and she eagerly enters the pleasurable diversion the game of love offers with Henry. Henry, too, is revived by love after the horror he has seen of war.

Henry's knee is badly wounded during an artillery bombardment, and he is sent to a hospital in Milan for an operation. Catherine transfers to his hospital and helps him recuperate from the surgery. They spend all their free time together, and their love deepens as they gradually acknowledge that they stand alone against the cruel world. Before Henry returns to the front, Catherine reveals she is pregnant. They are both pleased with this, however, and cannot wait to see each other again.

Back at the front, the Germans and Austrians break through the Italian line, and the Italians are forced to make a lengthy retreat. Henry travels with some other drivers, two Italian engineering sergeants, and two Italian girls. When the sergeants abandon the drivers when their car gets stuck, Henry shoots one of them, and another driver finishes him off. Later, the trigger-happy Italian rear guard mistakenly shoots one of the Italian drivers. One of the drivers deserts the group, choosing to be taken prisoner rather than face potential death. At a bridge over a flooded river, the corrupt Italian military singles out Henry as a lieutenant and accuses him of treachery leading to the Italian defeat. Knowing he will be executed, Henry jumps into the river and escapes with the current.

Henry manages to get out of the fast-moving river and jump a train to Milan. He thinks he has made a "separate peace" and is no longer attached to the military. He finds Catherine in the town of Stresa and, prior to Henry's arrest for desertion, the two make a daring nighttime escape by a borrowed boat to Switzerland. They enjoy an idyllic, isolated life that winter in the Swiss town of Montreux, spending time outdoors and preparing for the arrival of their baby; Henry is not completely without guilt, however, for abandoning his friends at the front.

They move to the town of Lausanne in the spring to be close to its hospital, and Catherine soon goes into labor. The pregnancy is lengthy and painful, and the baby, delivered through a Caesarean, is stillborn. Catherine dies soon after of multiple hemorrhages with Henry by her side. He tries to say goodbye to her, but it is like saying goodbye to a statue, and he walks back to his hotel room in the rain

[Asalbanoo]

Ten-year-old orphan Jane Eyre lives unhappily with her wealthy, cruel cousins and aunt at Gateshead. Her only salvation from her daily humiliations, such as being locked up in a "red-room" (where she thinks she sees her beloved uncle's ghost), is the kindly servant, Bessie. Jane is spared further mistreatment from the Reed family when she is sent off to school at Lowood, but there, under the hypocritical Evangelicalism of the headmaster, Mr. Brocklehurst, she suffers further privations in the austere environment. She befriends Helen Burns, who upholds a doctrine of Christian forgiveness and tolerance, and is taken under the wing of the superintendent, Miss Temple. An outbreak of typhus alerts benefactors to the school's terrible conditions, Mr. Brocklehurst is replaced, and Jane excels as a student for six years and as a teacher for two.

Jane finds employment as a governess at the estate of Thornfield for a little girl, Adèle. After much waiting, Jane finally meets her employer, Edward Rochester, a brooding, detached man who seems to have a dark past. Other oddities around Thornfield include the occasional demonic laugh Jane hears emanating from the third-story attic. Rochester always attributes it to Grace Poole, the seamstress who works up there, but Jane is never fully convinced, and the fire she has to put out one night in Rochester's bedroom plants further doubts.

Meanwhile, Jane develops an attraction for Rochester, not based on looks (both are considered plain) but on their intellectual communion. However, the higher social standing of the beautiful Miss Ingram seemingly vaults her above Jane. Though Rochester flirts with the idea of marrying Miss Ingram, he is aware of her financial ambitions for marriage. An old acquaintance of Rochester's, Richard Mason, visits Thornfield and is severely injured from an attack‹apparently from Grace‹in the middle of the night in the attic. Jane, baffled by the circumstances, tends to him, and Rochester confesses to her that he made an error in the past that he hopes to overturn by marrying Miss Ingram. He says that he has another governess position for Jane lined up elsewhere.

Jane returns to Gateshead for a while to see the dying Mrs. Reed. When she returns to Thornfield, Rochester says he knows Miss Ingram is after him only for his money, and he asks Jane to marry him. Jane accepts, but a month later, Mason and a solicitor, Mr. Briggs, interrupt the ceremony by revealing that Rochester already has a wife: Bertha Mason, Mason's sister, a lunatic who is kept in the attic in Thornfield. Rochester confesses his past misdeeds to Jane. In his youth he needed to marry the wealthy Bertha for money, but was unaware of her family's history of madness, and over time she became an incorrigible, dangerous part of his life which only imprisonment could solve. Despite his protests that he loves Jane, she cannot agree to marry him because of his previous marriage, and leaves Thornfield.

Jane arrives at the desolate crossroads of Whitcross and is reduced to begging for food. Fortunately, the Rivers siblings‹St. John, Diana, and Mary‹take her into their home at Moor House. She develops great affection for the ladies, while the stoically religious St. John is harder to get close to, and happily teaches at St. John's school. Jane learns that she has inherited a vast fortune from her uncle, and that the Rivers siblings are her cousins. She divides it among her new family and phases out her teaching duties.

St. John is going to go on missionary work in India and repeatedly asks Jane to accompany him as his wife; she refuses, since it would mean compromising her capacity for passion in a loveless marriage. Instead, she is drawn to thoughts of Rochester and, one day, after experiencing a mystical connection with him, seeks him out at Thornfield. She discovers that the estate has been burned down by Bertha, who died in the fire, and that Rochester, who was blinded in the incident, lives nearby. He is overjoyed when she locates him, and relates his side of the mystical connection Jane had. He and Jane marry and enjoy life together, and he regains his sight in one eye. Diana and Mary both marry, while St. John continues his unmarried proselytizing in India.

[Asalbanoo]

The Republic itself is nothing at the start of Plato's most famous and influential book. It does not exist. Not only does it not exist in actuality, but it does not exist in theory either. It must be built. It architect will be Socrates, the fictional persona Plato creates for himself. In the first episode Socrates encounters some acquaintances during the festival of Bendis. His reputation for good conversation already well-established, Socrates is approached by some dilettante philosopher acquaintances and drawn into a dialogue. The discussion quickly moves to justice thanks to Socrates. The other philosophers, including Thrasymachus, Polermarchus, Glaucon, and Adeimantus enthusiastically consent to such a worthy topic. However, it is unlikely at this point that any of these philosophers‹save Socrates, of course‹anticipates the ambition and enormity of their undertaking.

In Book I, Socrates entertains two distinct definitions of justice. The first is provided by Polermarchus, who suggests that justice is "doing good to your friends and harm to your enemies." The definition, which is a version of conventionally morality, is considered. Very soon though, its faults are clearly apparent. It is far to relative to serve as a formulation of the justice. Moreover, its individual terms are vulnerable; that is to say, how does one know who is a friend and who an enemy? And are not friends as much as enemies capable of evil? And when a friend acts wickedly, should he not be punished? And next, what does it mean that an action is good or bad? The perils of giving credence to false appearances is introduced early on as a major theme. It will be dealt with at length in the succeeding books. Thus surely an idea as noble as justice will not stand on such precarious ground. Socrates is dissatisfied. A second definition, offered by Thrasymachus, endorses tyranny. "Obedience to the interest of the stronger," is likewise mined for its value, shown to be deficient, and discarded. Tyranny, Socrates demonstrates employing several analogies, inevitably results in the fragmentation of the soul. Benevolent rule, on the other hand, ensures a harmonious life for both man and State. Justice is its means and good is its end. That "justice is the excellence of the soul" is Socrates' main conclusion. But there are too many presumptions. Although his auditors have troubled refuting his claims, Socrates knows he has been too vague and that should they truly wish to investigate the question of justice, he will have to be more specific. Book I ends with yet another question. Is the just life more pleasurable, more rewarding than the unjust? Rather all at once the philosophers have inundated themselves. But the first book has succeeded in one major way. It has established the territory of the over-arching argument of the entire work;

The philosophers continue the debate in Book II by introducing a new definition that belongs more to political philosophy than pure philosophy: that justice is a legally enforced compromise devised for the mutual protection of citizens of a state. In other words, justice is a fabrication of the State that prevents citizens from harming one another. Socrates is certainly up to the challenge. He dislikes the idea that justice does not exists naturally, but that it must be externally and superficially imposed to discourage unjust behavior. Adeimantus' mentioning of the State seems fortuitous, but it is as if Socrates has been waiting for it all along. Uncertain whether they can arrive at an acceptable definition of justice any other way, Socrates proposes they construct a State of which they approve, and see if they might not find justice lurking in it somewhere. This State is arises, Socrates says, "out of the needs of mankind." And the immense project of building a State from its very foundation has officially commenced. Basic necessities are addressed first, then the primitive division of labor, followed by the rudiments of education. Within the ideal State, Socrates maintains, there will be no need for "bad fictions," or manipulative poetics in general, since education must be perfectly moral.

The arts in education are primarily dealt with in Book III. Socrates concludes his attack on the "libelous poetry" that portrays his beloved virtues in so many negative lights. It is not of use to the State. Or if it is to be of use, it must be stringently didactic and partake of none of the indulgence and rhapsody common to their tradition and to contemporary poets as well. Even Homer is indicted. Instead the citizens of the state, at this early stage they are generically named guardians, are to be nourished only on literature‹broadly termed Œmusic' by Socrates‹clearly illustrating courage, wisdom, temperance, and virtue (just behavior). The second part of education, gymnasium, consists mostly of the physical training of the citizens. At this point Socrates' State needs rulers. Who better to rule than the best and most patriotic citizens produced by the rigorous education apparatus. These very select few are now more strictly called the guardians, while non-guardians remain citizens. The guardians will be the rulers. The book closes with the Phoenician myth, which Socrates feels would serve as effective mythical explanation for their State. Through the myth citizens are told they are made of a certain mix of metals, gold and silver, iron and brass, etc. They are born like this and are to take the requisite social station because of it. However, should a citizen of gold or silver be born to parents of an inferior metal, he will rise socially as is just; and the rule will also function in the reverse situation. The myth provides the State with an accessible, allegorical illustration of its stable, hierarchical social organization.

In Book IV the happiness of the guardians, so strenuously trained, is questioned. Socrates takes the objections of his auditors in due stride, reminding them of their original premise: that the State is to be for the good of the many and not the few. Their State has grown larger in the meantime, and is beginning to divide its labors. Defense and security against neighbors and foreign invasion enter the debate. But surely, Socrates says, the education, military and otherwise, that the citizens have garnered, coupled with their love for the State and their solidarity, will repel or outwit all challenges. Believing that what they have created thus far is a perfect State, the philosopher once again seek out justice. Socrates suggests they proceed by a process of elimination among the four virtues. He defines courage, temperance, and wisdom, but must digress before attaining justice. The digression yields the three principles of the soul: reason, passion, and appetite. When these exist in harmony, Socrates concludes, there is justice. It is a provisional definition.

The philosophers agreement at the end of Book IV to discuss the various corrupt forms of government is, however, interrupted by an accusation of laziness. Thrasymachus voices his dissatisfaction with Socrates who, he says, has purposely avoided speaking of the more practical concerns of the State. The objection blossoms into the section on matrimony. Encompassing matrimony, family, and community, Socrates elucidates his very scientific, very futuristic plan for population control and the right breeding of the human animal. The strong reproduce more often than the weak. Likewise weak offspring are disposed of or hidden away someplace unnamed. Socrates has bucked two of what he calls three "waves." The third and greatest is the question of whether their possibility is realizable in any way. Socrates' response is mostly negative. However, there is one method by which the States they see around them might become ideal States. That is, if philosophers become kings or, more likely, if kings take up the study of philosophy. Hence the famous term philosopher-kings. But this in turn begs the query: what is the philosopher? This leads Socrates into another complicated idea, an inchoate version of the Theory of Forms. Manifestations, appearances, likenesses, opinions‹none of them are Reality; they are merely shadows. Only the Forms, the ideals that lie behind are truth. And the philosopher seeks above all else knowledge of these Forms.

Yet another accusation from the gallery directs Socrates' inquiry in the beginning of Book VI. Adeimantus believes the guardians they have created are monsters. On the contrary, Socrates defends, their nobility and worth are beyond question, drawing on the parable of the pilot and his crew as an illustration. The parable opposes the wants of the majority with the authority of the truly fit leader. The multitudes, Socrates explains, do not know what is best for them. They are to be ruled by one especially suited and trained to this end, and for the good of all. Socrates is obliged then to develop the relationship between the guardians and philosophy. Guardians, he says, cease to be guardians when they abandon the truth, be minority or otherwise. The final section of Book VI includes a series of wonderfully vivid and intelligible figures or metaphors that help clarify somewhat the Theory of Forms and the good. Visibility, vision, and light are analogous to knowledge, the knower, and that which makes knowing possible, the good. The good is symbolized by sunlight, the vital means by which the sun not only sheds light on the world but nourishes that world. Philosophy is a love of the light, an attempt to perceive and understand it in all its metaphorical manifestations. Everything else belongs to the world of the manifold, of shadows. Finally the dialectic is the only way to ascend, as upon a staircase of ideas, to the luminous good.

Book VII is dominated by the Allegory of the Cave. One of the most enduring images perhaps in the history of western philosophy, the dim cave plays host to a group of prisoners, chained in such a way that they cannot move their heads, stare at a wall all day. Thanks to a small fire, the prisoners see the shadows of their captors projected on the wall. Having always been in the cave, they believe the shadows are true; likewise, the echoed voices they hear, they also believe to be true. Then one day a certain prisoner is released. The secrets of the cave are disclosed to him, and he is lead up into the sunlight, which blinds his unaccustomed eyes. The third part of the allegory has the Œenlightened' prisoner, who has looked upon, contemplated, and adjusted to the true light of the sun, must return to the cave. There he finds his new eyes ill-suited for cave life and is cruelly mocked by the other prisoners. A summary of the life course of the guardians, the allegory moralizes dutiful rule for the common good. The guardians must give up the beauty and peace of the light to help their fellow men, the majority of whom dwell in abject darkness. But who would make such a sacrifice? Given their education‹which is now expanded even further‹Socrates is confidant the guardians would. After all they spend the first fifty years of their life training for the opportunity and, as they would considered it, their honor.

Socrates asks permission to backtrack a little at the opening of Book VIII in order to analyze the forms of corrupt governments. This way they can also look at the individuals inhabiting them, thus cutting away the grist so that only the meat, the just man, may remain. There are four principle defective forms: timocracy, oligarchy, democracy, and tyranny. Aristocracy's (the republic) degeneration into timocracy occurs as a kind of hypothetical fluke, an error in population control. The timocracy is a government based primarily on honor not justice, and the timocratic man is torn between his philosophical ancestors and new, ingratiating contemporaries who flatter his vanity. Oligarchy arises when wealth becomes the standard. The State separates into two distinct and distant classes‹rich and poor. And the timocrat embodies the old, honorable ways in competition with avarice. After a revolution in which the rulers are overthrown by the discontented poor, democracy, the most liberal and various State appears. The democratic representative is ruled by appetites that hold sway well above reason or honor. The final dissolution into the worst and most wicked form of government, tyranny, is the result of democracy's supposed virtue: freedom. But is in excess and, after another revolution, a new ruler, the tyrant ascends. He has no unlimited freedom and thus no morals. He feels off the State, taxes his people, protects himself with mercenaries, and destroys any threat to this power. The book's most miserable character, the tyrant is antithetical to the guardian; he is injustice incarnate.

Book IX sees Socrates deal with the figure of the tyrant in more depth. This is a necessary digression, since by evaluating the life of the tyrant, his pleasures and pains, they may have a better idea of what constitutes the unjust life. Eventually they will use what they learn from the tyrant to compare his life with the philosopher's. The tyrant begins as the champion of the people, promising to release them from debt. By the end of his reign, however, he has taxed them into poverty and enslaved them. Then, in an unexpected turn, the tyrant, for a while master of all men himself becomes a slave to all men. He is governed by insatiable appetites, is threatened on all sides and at every moment by betrayal and assassination, and can never leave his land for fear of being deposed. The portrait is rather dismal; what would seem to be absolute freedom is in reality absolute slavery. Book IX concludes with the re-introduction of the question: does the unjust man who is perceived as just in public live better or worse than the just man perceived as unjust? A discussion of the nature of pleasure ensues and the base pleasures are distinguished from the noble and, in fact, more enjoyable. Ultimately, Socrates answers, in the long run, injustice enjoys much less, if at all, and must inevitably reveal itself and be shunned or cast out. The finale, and really the end of the State as such, is Socrates assertion that whether or not the ideal State becomes a reality, the philosopher must always live as though it were real inside him.

The final book of The Republic, "The Recompense of Life," telescopes into two main points. First is the issue of imitative poetry. Here Socrates offers his conclusive assessment of the poetic arts. Homer, he apologizes, must, except for those parts portraying nobility and right behavior in famous men and gods, be left out of the State. He may even have to be translated from verse to prose, in order that the musicality of the language not seduce any citizens. Second comes the true recompense of life, which actually occurs in the afterlife. Although the just man reaps great rewards in mortal life, it is in his immortality, or the immortality of his soul, where he is truly paid his due. The gods receive the just man, who has aspired all along to emulate them, as a quasi-equal. And enfin, The Republic closes with Socrates' colorful narration of the tale of Er the hero. It is a long description of an afterlife, in which all those virtues that Socrates has worked so diligently to expose and defend are given their proper place. Souls are shown in eternal recurrence, moving up and down from the heavens to earth and back again (with the wicked spending thousand year stints in hell).

[Asalbanoo]

Polyneices and Eteocles, two brothers leading opposite sides in Thebes' civil war, have both been killed in battle. Creon, new ruler of Thebes, has declared that Eteocles will be honored and Polyneices disgraced. The rebel brother's body will not be sanctified by holy rites, and it will lay unburied to be the food of carrion animals. Antigone and Ismene are the sisters of the dead brothers, and they are now the last children of the ill-fated Oedipus. In the opening of the play, Antigone brings Ismene outside the city gates late at night for a secret meeting: Antigone wants to bury Polyneices' body, in defiance of Creon's edict. Ismene refuses to help her, fearing the death penalty, and she is unable to dissuade Antigone from going to do the deed by herself.

Creon enters, along with the Chorus of Theban elders. He seeks their support in the days to come, and in particular their support for his edict regarding Polyneices' body. The Chorus pledges their support. A Sentry enters, reporting fearfully that the body has been buried. A furious Creon orders the Sentry to find the culprit or face death himself. The Sentry leaves, but after a short absence he returns, bringing Antigone with him. Creon questions her, and she does not deny what she has done. She argues unflinchingly with Creon about the morality of the edict and the morality of what she has done. Creon grows angrier, and, thinking Ismene must have helped her, summons the girl. Ismene tries to confess falsely to the crime, seeking to die with her sister, but Antigone will have none of it. Creon orders that the two women be temporarily locked up inside.

Haemon, Creon's son and Antigone's fiancé, enters to pledge allegiance of his father. He initially seems willing to obey Creon. But when Haemon tries gently to persuade his father to spare Antigone, the discussion deteriorates and the two men are soon bitterly insulting each other. Haemon leaves, vowing to never see Creon again.

Creon decides to spare Ismene but to imprison Antigone in a cave. She is brought out of the house, and she bewails her fate and defends her actions one last time. She is taken away, with the Chorus expressing great sorrow because of what is going to happen to her.

Teiresias, the blind prophet, enters. He warns Creon that the gods side with Antigone. Creon accuses Teiresias of being corrupt, and Teiresias responds that because of Creon's mistakes, he will lose one child for the crimes of leaving Polyneices unburied and putting Antigone into the earth. All of Greece will despise him, and the sacrificial offerings of Thebes will not be accepted by the gods.

The Chorus, terrified, asks Creon to take their advice. He assents, and they tell him that he should bury Polyneices and free Antigone. Creon, shaken, agrees to do it. He leaves with a retinue of men to help him right his previous mistakes. The Chorus delivers a choral ode on/to the god Dionysis, and then a Messenger enters. He tells them that Haemon has killed himself. Eurydice, Creon's wife and Haemon's mother, enters and asks the Messenger to tell her everything. The Messenger reports that Haemon and Antigone have both taken their own lives. Eurydice disappears into the palace.

Creon enters, carrying Haemon's body. He understands that his own actions have caused these events. A Second Messenger arrives to tell Creon and the Chorus that Eurydice has killed herself. With her last breath, she cursed her husband. Creon blames himself for everything that has happened, and, a broken man, he asks his servants to help him inside. The order he valued so much has been protected, and he is still the king, but he has acted against the gods and lost his child and his wife. The Chorus closes by saying that the gods punish the proud, but punishment brings wisdom.