Difficult struggle is often a humbling experience. In Stephen Crane's The Red Badge of Courage, Henry Fleming joins the Union army and tests his character during the Civil War. At first, the green Henry is confident that the war will bring no real challenges and he is concerned only with the anticipated admiration ... army in favor of the safer life he led as a boy. As Henry spends more time in the field, he becomes more deeply exposed to the truth about war and death. Though he is hardened by such experiences, he reacts at first with his childlike instincts of fear and selfishness. When he...

• Word Count: 416
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... civility, which in turn provides the opportunity for the emergence of darkness. At the beginning of the novel Marlow begins his descent into the Congo, which presents a dark image of death and suffering. "It was a thing which looked as dead as the carcass of some strange animal. I came upon more pieces of decaying machinery, and a stack of rusty rails. To the ... may arise in many ways. With the potential for evil so great in today's materialistic, difficult society, we find ourselves with the difficult task of taking life's many journeys and tests. ...

• Word Count: 1170
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... the coming-of-age journey of a sleepwalking Donnie Darko through 28 days in October, 1988. Donnie (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) is a ordinary teenager in most ways though, according to standardize tests, his IQ is off the charts and he suffers from "emotional problems" including sleepwalking. Donnie is awoken one night by a voice bidding him outside where he sees a Frank, a six foot ... with the new girl Gretchen, his encounters with the local self-help guru Jim Cunningham (Patrick Swayze), the interaction with his teachers, and his drawing to the local recluse "Grandma Death". Auteur Ric...

• Word Count: 839
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate