Chronology of World, British and American Literature
Oscar Wilde. British. 1891. Novel. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Painting mirrors a man’s moral degeneration.
Rudyard Kipling. British. 1891. Story. “The Man Who Was.” Survivor of Russian imprisonment during the Crimean War. Testament to their cruelty. Dies shortly after release.
Anton Chekhov. Russian. 1892. Story. “Ward No. 6.” Gradual disintegration of the head of a mental hospital. Neglects the miserable condition of his patients. Withdraws into private study, thought, alcohol. Finally unable to communicate with any one. Unscrupulous assistant has him committed and he experiences the miserable treatment for which he has been responsible. Realization of his part in the horror comes just before his death.
Gerhart Hauptmann. German. 1892. Play. The Weavers. Silesian weavers’ rebellion in 1844. Their ghastly conditions and economic plight. One version is in dialect; the other version in High German. The weavers are the collective hero.
I like the idea for this blog. Judging from one of the few entries for which I've actually read the original work (Chekhov's "Ward Nº6"), I think you're doing a great work in summarising objectively. I remember feeling quite strongly when I read the story, and I like it that you leave it open for readers to know what they might read about and at the same time construct their own meanings for it. BTW I got here through your former "Books you never read". Pity it's closed down.
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