BELOVED

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Toni Morrison (February 18, 1931) is an American novelist, editor, and professor. Her novels are known for their epic themes, vivid dialogue, and richly detailed characters. Among her best known novels are The Bluest Eye (1970), Sula (1973), Song of Solomon (1977), and Beloved (1987). She was also commissioned to write the libretto for a new opera, Margaret Garner, first performed in 2005. She won the Pulitzer Prize and the American Book Award in 1988 for Beloved and the Nobel Prize in 1993. On May 29, 2012, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Morrison serves as Professor Emeritus at Princeton University.
Toni Morrison was born in Lorain, Ohio, to Ramah and George Wofford. She is the second of four children in a working-class family. Her parents moved to Ohio to escape southern racism and instilled a sense of heritage through telling traditional African American folktales.She read frequently as a child; among her favorite authors were Jane Austen and Leo Tolstoy.According to a 2012 interview in The Guardian, she became a Catholic at the age of 12 and received the baptismal name "Anthony", which later became the basis for her nickname "Toni".
In 1949 Morrison went to Howard University graduating in 1953 with a B.A. in English; she went on to earn a Master of Arts from Cornell University in 1955. She taught English, first at Texas Southern University in Houston for two years, then at Howard for seven years. She met Harold Morrison, a Jamaican architect, at Howard, whom she married in 1958. The couple had two children and divorced in 1964. After the breakup of her marriage, she began working as an editor in 1965 for a textbook publisher in Syracuse, going on two years later to Random House in New York City, where she became a senior trade-book editor.In that capacity, Morrison played a vital role in bringing black literature into the mainstream, editing books by authors such as Henry Dumas,Toni Cade Bambara, Angela Davis, and Gayl Jones.

SUMMARY:

Beloved is not narrated chronologically; it is composed of flashbacks, memories, and nightmares. As a result, it is not an easy read if you haven't encountered William Faulkner, James Joyce, or Virginia Woolf. Following, we have constructed a basic outline of the action in the story. In no way, however, does it reflect the wonder of Morrison's novel.

Sethe, a 13-year-old child of unnamed slave parents, arrives at Sweet Home, an idyllic plantation in Kentucky operated by Garner, an unusually humane master, and his wife, Lillian. Within a year, Sethe selects Halle Suggs to be her mate and, by the time she is 18, bears him three children. After Garner dies, his wife turns control of the plantation over to her brother-in-law, the schoolteacher, who proves to be a brutal overseer.

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Schoolteacher's cruelty drives the Sweet Home slave men — Paul D, Halle, Paul A, and Sixo — to plot their escape. In August, fearful that her sons will be sold, a very pregnant Sethe packs her children Howard, Buglar, and Beloved in a wagon and sends them to safety with their grandmother in Cincinnati. Schoolteacher discovers what she has done, and as Halle watches from the loft of a barn, schoolteacher takes notes as his nephews — the "two boys with mossy teeth" — suck the milk from Sethe's breasts. She reports the assault to the ailing Mrs. Garner. The nephews retaliate by beating Sethe with cowhide until her back is split open with wounds. Unknown to Sethe, schoolteacher roasts Sixo alive and hangs Paul A for trying to escape the plantation. Before she leaves Sweet Home, Sethe confronts Paul D, who is shackled in an iron collar for his part in the escape attempt. Sethe then makes her own escape.

Sethe flees through the woods and, with the help of Amy Denver, a runaway white indentured servant, gives birth to her fourth child. Then, with the help of Stamp Paid, a black ferryman, she crosses the Ohio river into freedom.

Safely reunited with her mother-in-law, Baby Suggs, and her babies in Cincinnati, Sethe enjoys 28 days of contentment. Then one day as Stamp Paid replenishes the woodpile and Baby Suggs and Sethe work in the yard, schoolteacher, the sheriff, a slave catcher, and one of schoolteacher's nephews arrive to recapture Sethe and her children. To spare her children a return to bondage, Sethe slices the throat of the eldest girl, tries to kill her two boys, and threatens to dash out the brains of her infant daughter, Denver. The sheriff takes Sethe and Denver to jail, and Sethe is condemned to hang. She leaves her cell long enough to attend her daughter's funeral. Three months later, pressure from the Quaker abolitionist Edward Bodwin and the Colored Ladies of Delaware, Ohio produces Sethe's freedom. She barters sex for a gravestone inscribed "Beloved" to mark her daughter's burial site. Immediately, Beloved's ghost makes itself known in Baby Suggs's house at 124 Bluestone Road.

Sethe is granted a release from her death sentence, but after leaving jail she finds the black community closed to her. With the aid of Mr. Bodwin, she locates work and manages to build a stable, though solitary, life. Her mother-in-law withdraws completely from the community and dies several years later. Shortly after Baby Suggs's death, Sethe's sons leave home, unnerved by the presence of Beloved's ghost. Left with only Denver, Sethe lives in uneasy solitude.

Years later, after escaping a cruel Georgia prison and wandering North, Paul D arrives in Cincinnati and reunites with Sethe. He immediately banishes the disruptive ghost from the house. The two former slaves attempt to form a family, although Denver is uncomfortable with Paul D's presence. Sethe and Paul D's relationship is interrupted by the appearance of a mysterious young woman who calls herself Beloved, the same name that is on the headstone of Sethe's murdered daughter.

Beloved quickly becomes a dominant force in Sethe's house. She drives Paul D out of Sethe's bed and seduces him. She becomes the sole focus of Sethe's life after Sethe realizes that this young woman is the reincarnation of her dead child. Drawing Sethe into an unhealthy, obsessive relationship, Beloved grows stronger while Sethe's body and mind weaken. Sethe quits her job and withdraws completely into the house. With the aid of Denver and some female neighbors, Sethe escapes Beloved's control through a violent scene in which she mistakes Bodwin for a slave catcher and tries to stab him with an ice pick. Beloved vanishes, and Paul D returns, helping Sethe rediscover the value of life and her own self-worth.

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THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll , was an English writer, mathematician, logician, Anglican deacon, and photographer. His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, its sequel Through the Looking-Glass, which includes the poem Jabberwocky, and the poem The Hunting of the Snark, all examples of the genre of literary nonsense. He is noted for his facility at word play, logic, and fantasy. There are societies in many parts of the world. dedicated to the enjoyment and promotion of his works and the investigation of his life.

During his early youth, Dodgson was educated at home. His "reading lists" preserved in the family archives testify to a precocious intellect: at the age of seven, he was reading books such as The Pilgrim's Progress. He also suffered from a stammer – a condition shared by most of his siblings– that often influenced his social life throughout his years. At the age of twelve, he was sent to Richmond Grammar School (now part of Richmond School) at nearby Richmond.

SUMMARY:

Alice sits in her armchair at home, drowsily watching her pet kitten, Kitty, as she unravels a ball of string. She snatches Kitty up and begins telling her about “Looking-Glass House,” an imaginary world on the other side of the mirror where everything is backward. Alice suddenly finds herself on the mantelpiece and steps through the mirror into Looking-Glass House. On the other side of the mirror, Alice discovers a room similar to her own but with several strange differences. The chessmen stand in the fireplace in pairs, oblivious to Alice’s presence. She comes to the aid of the White Queen’s daughter, Lily, but realizes that the chess pieces cannot see her. Alice becomes distracted by a book on the shelf, in which she reads a nonsensical poem entitled “Jabberwocky.” Frustrated by the strange poem, she sets off to explore the rest of the house.

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Alice leaves the house and spots a beautiful garden in the distance, but every time she tries to follow the path to the garden she finds herself back at the door to the house. Confused, she wonders aloud how to get to the garden, and to her surprise a Tiger-lily responds. Other flowers join in the conversation, and several of them start to insult Alice. Alice learns from the flowers that the Red Queen is nearby, and Alice sets off to meet her. Alice meets the Red Queen, and the two engage in conversation, but the Red Queen constantly corrects Alice’s etiquette. Alice looks out over a field, sees a great game of chess in progress, and tells the Red Queen that she would like to join. The Red Queen tells Alice she can stand in as a White Pawn and marks a course for Alice, explaining that when she reaches the end of the game, Alice will become a Queen.

Alice inexplicably finds herself on a train with a Goat, a Beetle, and a man dressed in white paper. They each nag Alice until the train eventually lurches to a halt. Alice finds herself in a forest, conversing with a chicken sized Gnat, who tells her about the different insects of Looking-Glass World. After learning the names of the insects, Alice sets off again and discovers that she has forgotten the names of things, even her own name. She comes across a Fawn, who has also forgotten the names of things, and the two press on through the forest.

When Alice and the Fawn emerge from the forest, their memories of names come back, and the Fawn runs away in fear of Alice. Alice soldiers on alone until she meets Tweedledum and Tweedledee, an identical pair of heavyset men. The twins ignore Alice’s repeated requests for directions and recite a poem instead. Tweedledum and Tweedledee notice the Red King sleeping nearby and explain to Alice that she exists only as a figment of the Red King’s dream. Upset at first, Alice decides that the two of them speak nonsense. A fight spontaneously erupts between Tweedledum and Tweedledee over a broken rattle. A giant crow swoops down and interrupts the fight, sending Tweedledum and Tweedledee running.

Alice slips away and encounters the White Queen, who explains that time moves backward in Looking-Glass World. As they speak, the White Queen plasters her finger, then screams in pain, and finally pricks her finger on a brooch. After explaining to Alice that she used to practice the impossible daily, she transforms into a sheep in a shop. The Sheep asks a disoriented Alice what she would like to buy. Though the shop is full of curious things, Alice finds that she cannot fix her eye on any one thing. The Sheep asks Alice if she knows how to row. Before she knows it, Alice finds herself in a boat with the Sheep, rowing down a stream. The boat crashes into something and sends Alice tumbling to the ground. When she stands she finds herself back in the shop. She purchases an egg from the Sheep, who places the egg on a shelf. Alice reaches for the egg and finds herself back in the forest, where the egg has transformed into Humpty Dumpty.

Humpty Dumpty sits on a wall and criticizes Alice for having a name that doesn’t mean anything, explaining that all names should mean something. Humpty Dumpty treats Alice rudely, boasting that he can change the meanings of words at will. When Alice learns this, she asks Humpty Dumpty to explain the words of the nonsense poem “Jabberwocky” to her. He defines the words of the first stanza and then recites a portion of his own poem. He abruptly bids her goodbye, and Alice storms off, annoyed. All of a sudden, a loud crash shakes the forest and she watches soldiers and horsemen run by.

Alice comes across the White King, who explains to her that he has sent all of his horses and men, presumably to put the shattered Humpty Dumpty back together again. The King’s messenger Haigha approaches and informs them that the Lion and the Unicorn are doing battle in the town. Alice sets off with her new companions toward the town to watch the battle. They catch up with another of the King’s messengers, Hatta, who explains the events of the fight thus far. The Lion and Unicorn stop battling and the White King calls for refreshments to be served. The White King tells Alice to cut the cake, but she finds that every time she slices the cake the pieces fuse back together. The Unicorn instructs Alice that Looking-glass cakes must be passed around first before they are sliced. Alice distributes the cake, but before they begin eating, a great noise interrupts, and when Alice looks up, she finds herself alone again.

The Red Knight gallops up to Alice and takes her as a prisoner. The White Knight arrives at Alice’s side and vanquishes the Red Knight. Alice and the White Knight walk and talk together, and Alice finds a friend in the eccentric chessman. He promises to bring her safely to the last square where she will become a queen. As they walk, he tells her about all of his inventions before sending her off with a song. She crosses the final brook and finds herself sitting on the bank with a crown on her head.

Alice finds herself in the company of the Red Queen and the White Queen, who question her relentlessly before falling asleep in her lap. The sound of their snoring resembles music. The sound is so distracting that Alice doesn’t notice when the two queens disappear. Alice discovers a castle with a huge door marked “QUEEN ALICE.” Alice goes through the door and finds a huge banquet in her honor. She sits and begins eating, but the party quickly devolves into total chaos. Overwhelmed, Alice pulls away the tablecloth and grabs the Red Queen.

Alice wakes up from her dream to find herself holding Kitty. She wonders aloud whether or not her adventures where her own dream or the dream of the Red King.

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THE RAPE OF THE LOCK

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 – 30 May 1744) was an 17th-century English poet. He is best known for his satirical verse, as well as for his translation of Homer. Famous for his use of the heroic couplet, he is the second-most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, after Shakespeare.

Alexander Pope was born to Alexander Pope Senior (1646–1717), a linen merchant of Plough Court, Lombard Street, London, and his wife Edith (née Turner) (1643–1733), who were both Catholics. Edith's sister Christiana was the wife of the famous miniature painter Samuel Cooper. Pope's education was affected by the recently enacted Test Acts, which upheld the status of the established Church of England and banned Catholics from teaching, attending a university, voting, or holding public office on pain of perpetual imprisonment. Pope was taught to read by his aunt, and went to Twyford School in about 1698/99. He then went to two Catholic schools in London. Such schools, while illegal, were tolerated in some areas.

In 1700, his family moved to a small estate at Popeswood in Binfield, Berkshire, close to the royal Windsor Forest. This was due to strong anti-Catholic sentiment and a statute preventing Catholics from living within 10 miles (16 km) of either London or Westminster. Pope would later describe the countryside around the house in his poem Windsor Forest. Pope's formal education ended at this time, and from then on he mostly educated himself by reading the works of classical writers such as the satirists Horace and Juvenal, the epic poets Homer and Virgil, as well as English authors such as Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare and John Dryden. He also studied many languages and read works by English, French, Italian, Latin, and Greek poets. After five years of study, Pope came into contact with figures from the London literary society such as William Wycherley, William Congreve, Samuel Garth, William Trumbull, and William Walsh.

SUMMARY:

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Belinda arises to prepare for the day’s social activities after sleeping late. Her guardian sylph, Ariel, warned her in a dream that some disaster will befall her, and promises to protect her to the best of his abilities. Belinda takes little notice of this oracle, however. After an elaborate ritual of dressing and primping, she travels on the Thames River to Hampton Court Palace, an ancient royal residence outside of London, where a group of wealthy young socialites are gathering for a party. Among them is the Baron, who has already made up his mind to steal a lock of Belinda’s hair. He has risen early to perform and elaborate set of prayers and sacrifices to promote success in this enterprise. When the partygoers arrive at the palace, they enjoy a tense game of cards, which Pope describes in mock-heroic terms as a battle. This is followed by a round of coffee. Then the Baron takes up a pair of scissors and manages, on the third try, to cut off the coveted lock of Belinda’s hair. Belinda is furious. Umbriel, a mischievous gnome, journeys down to the Cave of Spleen to procure a sack of sighs and a flask of tears which he then bestows on the heroine to fan the flames of her ire. Clarissa, who had aided the Baron in his crime, now urges Belinda to give up her anger in favor of good humor and good sense, moral qualities which will outlast her vanities. But Clarissa’s moralizing falls on deaf ears, and Belinda initiates a scuffle between the ladies and the gentlemen, in which she attempts to recover the severed curl. The lock is lost in the confusion of this mock battle, however; the poet consoles the bereft Belinda with the suggestion that it has been taken up into the heavens and immortalized as a constellation.

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THE ROVER

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Aphra Behn (14 December 1640? – 16 April 1689) was a British playwright, poet, translator and fiction writer from the Restoration era. As one of the first English women to earn her living by her writing, she broke cultural barriers and served as a literary role model for later generations of women authors. Rising from obscurity, she came to the notice of Charles II, who employed her as a spy in Antwerp. Upon her return to London and a probable brief stay in debtors' prison, she began writing for the stage. She belonged to a coterie of poets and famous libertines such as John Wilmot, Lord Rochester. She wrote under the pastoral pseudonym Astrea. During the turbulent political times of the Exclusion Crisis, she wrote an epilogue and prologue that brought her into legal trouble; she thereafter devoted most of her writing to prose genres and translations. A staunch supporter of the Stuart line, she declined an invitation from Bishop Burnet to write a welcoming poem to the new king William III. She died shortly after.
She is famously remembered in Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own: "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn which is, most scandalously but rather appropriately, in Westminster Abbey, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds.". Her grave is not included in the Poets' Corner but lies in the East Cloister near the steps to the church.

SUMMARY:

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"The Rover," alternatively known as "The Banish't Cavaliers," is the most frequently read and performed of Aphra Behn's plays (Burke, 118). First performed by the Duke's Company at the Dorset Garden Theatre in 1677, the play was initially published anonymously (Burke, 118). Only in the prologue of the third edition did Behn finally take credit for the play. It is believed that it took her this long to claim authorship because she was afraid of potential plagiarism charges, as the play closely resembles Thomas Killigrew's "Thomaso."

The Rover follows the escapades of a band of banished English cavaliers as they enjoy themselves at a carnival in Naples. The story strings together multiple plotlines revolving around the amorous adventures of these Englishmen, who pursue a pair of noble Spanish sisters, as well as a mistress and common prostitute.

The titular character is a raffish naval captain, Willmore. He falls in love with a wealthy noble Spanish woman named Hellena, who is determined to experience love before her brother, Pedro, sends her to a convent. Hellena falls in love with Willmore, but difficulties arise when a famous courtesan, Angellica Bianca, also falls in love with Willmore.
As this plot unravels, Hellena's older sister, Florinda, attempts to avoid an unappealing arranged marriage to her brother's best friend, and devises a plan to marry her true love, Colonel Belvile. Finally, the third major plot of the play concerns English countryman Blunt, a naive and vengeful man who becomes convinced that a girl, Lucetta, has fallen in love with him. When she turns out to be a prostitute and thief, he is humiliated and attempts to rape Florinda as revenge against all women for the pain and damage that Lucetta has caused him.
In the end, Florinda and Belvile are married, and Hellena and Willmore commit to marry one another.

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PARADISE LOST

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse.

Milton's poetry and prose reflect deep personal convictions, a passion for freedom and self-determination, and the urgent issues and political turbulence of his day. Writing in English, Latin, Greek, and Italian, he achieved international renown within his lifetime, and his celebrated Areopagitica (1644)—written in condemnation of pre-publication censorship—is among history's most influential and impassioned defences of free speech and freedom of the press.

William Hayley's 1796 biography called him the "greatest English author", and he remains generally regarded "as one of the preeminent writers in the English language",though critical reception has oscillated in the centuries since his death (often on account of his republicanism). Samuel Johnson praised Paradise Lost as "a poem which...with respect to design may claim the first place, and with respect to performance, the second, among the productions of the human mind", though he (a Tory and recipient of royal patronage) described Milton's politics as those of an "acrimonious and surly republican".

SUMMARY:

Each book of Paradise Lost is prefaced with an argument, or summary. These arguments were written by Milton and added because early readers had requested some sort of guide to the poem. Several of the books also begin with a prologue. The prologue to Book I states Milton's purpose: to tell about the fall of man and justify God's ways to man.
The epic begins traditionally in medias res. Satan and the other rebellious angels awake to find themselves in Hell on a lake of fire. Satan is lying beside Beelzebub. Satan raises himself from the lake and flies to the shore. He calls for the other angels to do the same, and they assemble by the lake. Satan tells them that all is not lost and tries to inspire his followers. Led by Mammon and Mulciber, the fallen angels build their capital and palace, Pandemonium. The highest ranking of the angels then assemble for a council.
In the council, Satan asks what the demons think should be the next move against God. Moloch argues for open warfare. Belial twists Moloch's arguments, proposing that nothing should be done. Mammon, the materialistic angel, argues that they do the best with what they have. Finally, Beelzebub, Satan's second in command, proposes that the angels try to get at God through his new creation, Man. Beelzebub's proposal, which is really Satan's proposal, is adopted, and Satan volunteers to find the new world and new creatures. He leaves at once, flying to the Gate of Hell. There, he meets his children, Sin and Death. Sin opens the gate for Satan who flies out into Chaos and Night. Sin and Death follow him. Finally, in the distance Satan sees Earth.
God watches Satan approach Earth and predicts his success in corrupting Man. Man has free will. But God omnisciently knows what will happen. God adds that Man can be saved through mercy and grace, but he must also accept the just punishment of death, unless someone takes on death for Man. The Son offers to become a man and suffer death in order to overcome it. The angels rejoice.
In the meantime, Satan, sitting on the edge of the Earth, cannot see the way to Man. Satan disguises himself as a cherub and flies to the sun to talk with the archangel, Uriel. Uriel shows Satan the way to Man.

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Looking at Earth, Satan is taken with its beauty but quickly overcomes his sympathy to concentrate on what he must do. He sees Adam and Eve and is entranced with their beauty. As Satan listens to the pair, they talk about God's one commandment that they not eat from the Tree of Knowledge under penalty of death. Satan immediately begins to formulate a plan.
Uriel, on the sun, becomes suspicious of the cherub whose face shows changing emotions and goes to warn Gabriel. Gabriel says that he and his angels will capture any interlopers in the Garden, and late that night Ithuriel and Zephron capture Satan whispering in Eve's ear. The two angels bring Satan before Gabriel, who, with God's help, banishes the tempter from Earth.
When Eve awakes, she tells Adam of her troubling dream. Adam comforts her, reminding her that they are safe if they obey God. God decides to send the angel Raphael to warn Adam and Eve to be wary of Satan. Raphael goes to Earth where he eats with Adam and Eve. After the meal, Raphael tells Adam about the great rebellion in Heaven.
Raphael says that Lucifer (Satan) was jealous of the Son and through sophistic argument got his followers, about one third of the angels, to follow him to the North. There, only one of Satan's followers stood up against him — Abdiel, who returned to God.
Satan attacks God and the Heavenly Host, whose power has been limited by God. Nonetheless, God's forces have little difficulty in defeating the rebels. Michael splits Satan in half, which is humiliating, but not deadly, because Satan, as an angel, cannot die. After the first day of battle, the rebels construct a cannon and begin the second day's battle with some success. God's forces begin to pull up mountains and hurl them at the rebels, burying them and their cannons. God is amused at the presumption of the rebels but does not want the landscape destroyed. He sends the Son forth by himself in a chariot. The rebels are quickly herded into Hell.
Next, Raphael responds to Adam's questions about the creation of the world. The angel explains the day-by-day creation of the world in six days. Then, in an effort to keep the angel engaged in conversation, Adam asks about the motions of the heavenly bodies. Raphael explains that Adam should leave some questions to God's wisdom. Next, Adam describes his own creation, his introduction to Eden, and the creation of Eve. He describes how beautiful Eve is to him and the bliss of wedded love. Raphael gives Adam a final warning about Satan as he leaves.
Having been gone from Eden for eight days, Satan returns, sneaking in through a fountain near the Tree of Knowledge. He takes the form of a serpent to try to trick Man. When Adam and Eve awake, they argue over whether they should work together or alone. Eve finally convinces Adam to let her work by herself. Satan, in serpent's form, approaches Eve and, using clever but fallacious arguments, convinces her to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. After Eve eats, she reveals what she has done to Adam, who, unable to bear the thought of losing Eve, eats also. Having eaten the fruit, the two are overcome with lust and run to the woods to make love. When they awake, they are filled with shame and guilt. Each blames the other.
In Heaven, the angels are horrified that Man has fallen, but God assures them that He had foreknowledge of all that would happen. He sends the Son to Earth to pronounce judgment on the humans and the serpent. The Son goes to Earth and makes his judgments. He adds though, that through mercy, Adam and Eve and all humans may eventually be able to overcome death. In an act of pity, the Son clothes the two humans.
Sin and Death meanwhile have sensed an opportunity on Earth. They construct a huge causeway from Hell to Earth. On their way across, they meet Satan returning to Hell. They proceed to Earth while Satan enters Hell in disguise. Satan appears on his throne and announces what he has done. Expecting to hear the applause of all the fallen angels, he instead hears only hissing as he and all his followers are turned into snakes. When they eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge which appears before them, it turns to bitter ashes.
On Earth, Sin and Death see infinite opportunities. God, looking down on the two, says eventually they will be cast into Hell and sealed up. Adam and Eve lament, but Eve submissively asks Adam's forgiveness. He relents, his love overcoming his bitterness. She suggests suicide as a way to avoid the terrible curse on the world, but Adam says they must obey God.
God sends the angel, Michael, to take Adam and Eve out of Eden. Before doing so, Michael takes Adam to a hill and gives the human a vision of biblical history, ending with the birth of Jesus who will be the savior of Man. Adam rejoices. Adam and Eve together are led out of Eden. Behind them a flaming sword guards the entrance; ahead, they face a new life in a new world.

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FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was an English author, journalist and naval intelligence officer who is best known for his James Bond series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his father was the Member of Parliament for Henley from 1910 until his death on the Western Front in 1917. Educated at Eton, Sandhurst and, briefly, the universities of Munich and Geneva, Fleming moved through several jobs before he started writing.
While working for Britain's Naval Intelligence Division during the Second World War, Fleming was involved in planning Operation Goldeneye and in the planning and oversight of two intelligence units, 30 Assault Unit and T-Force. His wartime service and his career as a journalist provided much of the background, detail and depth of the James Bond novels.
Fleming wrote his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1952. It was a success, with three print runs being commissioned to cope with the demand. Eleven Bond novels and two short-story collections followed between 1953 and 1966. The novels revolved around James Bond, an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond was also known by his code number, 007, and was a commander in the Royal Naval Reserve. The Bond stories rank among the best-selling series of fictional books of all time, having sold over 100 million copies worldwide. Fleming also wrote the children's story Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang and two works of non-fiction. In 2008, The Times ranked Fleming 14th on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".

SUMMARY:

Late one night, James Bond is alternately stalking and being stalked through an ornate garden by a tall, blond assassin. Bond is captured and garrotted to death by a man named Grant. Suddenly, huge floodlights switch on and 'Bond' turns out to be a man wearing a Bond mask - it's all been a training exercise staged by SPECTRE.
Venice: a chess match is under way between the Czechoslovakian Kronsteen and the Canadian MacAdams. Kronsteen receives a message (on a napkin beneath his glass of water!) telling him that "you are required at once." He effortlessly finishes off MacAdams in a couple of moves and leaves. He is next seen on a large, luxury yacht where Ernst Blofeld, SPECTRE's Number One, is amusing himself and Soviet assassin Rosa Klebb (Number Three) with a tank full of exotic fighting fish.
Kronsteen (SPECTRE's Number Five) has arranged the theft of the Soviet Lektor decoding device and asks for the services of a female member of the Russian cryptograph service in Turkey and "the help of the British secret service." Klebb has already chosen a female operative and has been able to keep the fact of her own defection to SPECTRE a secret. Kronsteen explains that the British see a trap as a challenge and that they will be easy to manipulate - and they are certain to use James Bond on the mission, allowing SPECTRE to take revenge for the death of Dr No.
Klebb departs to SPECTRE Island, the organisation's secret training base, where she meets convicted murderer Donald Grant, "a homicidal paranoiac," who escaped from Dartmoor before joining SPECTRE. Grant is being specially groomed for the mission against Bond.

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Istanbul: three women leave the Soviet Consulate, one of them, Tatiana Romanova, heading off for a rendezvous with Klebb. Romanova, a former ballet dancer, is a good and loyal worker and is to be rewarded with a special assignment.
London: Bond is enjoying the company of Sylvia Trench on a secluded part of the Thames when he receives a call from Moneypenny telling him that M is looking for him. He promises to report in soon, but decides to finish what he was doing with Sylvia first...
M tells Bond that Romanova has contacted Station T in Turkey, run by agent Karim Bey, asking to defect and bringing with her a Lektor device, which both MI5 and the CIA have been after for years. It also appears that Romanova is claiming to be in love with Bond. Bond realises that it's a trap, but with the Lektor as bait M decides that Bond should take on the mission anyway.
Boothroyd from Q division enters and shows Bond a special black leather attaché case crammed to the gills with all manner of toys and gadgets, including 20 rounds of ammunition, a flat throwing knife, a .22 folding sniper's rifle, 50 gold sovereigns and a tear gas grenade concealed in a tin of talcum powder. Everything an agent needs in fact...
After a brief flirtation with Moneypenny (during which M demands the return of a photograph of Romanova he had let Bond look at earlier), Bond heads off for Istanbul where he is met by a driver sent by Karim Bey. However, even this early in his mission, Bond is being watched, both by a scruffy man in glasses and by Grant, both of who set off after Bond's car. The driver doesn't seem too concerned about their tails, telling Bond that the car behind them is full of Bulgarians working for the Russians and that this sort of cat-and-mouse is all part of the game.
The driver takes Bond to see Bey, whose staff seem to be comprised entirely of his sons! Bey tells Bond that Romanova is making her own plans to meet and that they have nothing to do but wait. Bond checks in to his hotel where he checks his room and finds it full of hidden bugs. Pretending that the bed is too small, Bond asks to be moved but is told by the staff - who all seem to Russian agents - that only the bridal suit is available. He calls their bluff and takes it.
Outside the Russian consulate, Grant abandons his car and drives off in another. The Consulate guard checks the abandoned car and finds a dead Russian agent in the back seat. In the other car, Klebb tells Grant that the Russians will suspect the British and that the Cold War in Turkey is about to heat up. Later Bey and his mistress are nearly killed when a limpet mine attached to the wall of his house suddenly explodes.
Next day, Bey takes Bond down to his cellar where the board a boat and sail off along an underwater canal, eventually coming to a chamber beneath the Russian consulate complete with periscope peeking the Russian's conference room! They spy on a meeting of the leading Russian agents in Turkey, and Bey recognises Bulgarian assassin Krilencu at the table. Bond also gets his first real glimpse of Romanova. He asks Bey for plans of the Russian Consulate and they head for a a gypsy settlement loyal to Bey where Bond can hide from the attentions of Krilencu.
Bond is clearly in his element here - first of all, he is treated to a very close-up performance from a belly dancer and is then fascinated by a gypsy tradition in which two volatile young women in love with the same man must fight each other for the honour of marrying him. The cat fight is interrupted by the violent arrival of Krilencu's men, who set about laying waste to the settlement amid much gunfire and struggling with knives. Grant is lurking nearby and shoots any man who looks like he might be about to kill Bond.
With Bond's help, the gypsies manage to fight off the Bulgars and Bond is hailed a hero. In return he asks that the girl fight be stopped and they agree, but only if Bond decides the winner. That night, the women visit Bond in his quarters.
Next morning: Bond is being pampered by the two gypsy women and that evening he finally leaves with Bey, heading off to sort out the Krilencu problem. They track him to a room in a hotel behind a giant facade advertising the Bob Hope / Anita Ekberg movie Call Me Bwana. Bey uses Bond's folding sniper's rifle to shoot Krilencu through the window of his room which is conveniently placed in Ekberg's mouth!
When he returns to his hotel suite, Bond prepares for a shower but is distracted by noises in his bedroom. He finds Romanova waiting fore him in bed. Never being one to pass up such an opportunity, Bond seduces her and makes plans to take possession of the Lektor device. As Bond and Romanova make love, they are unaware that they are being watched and filmed from behinds a mirror by Grant and Klebb.
The next day, Romanova heads off for a pre-arranged rendezvous at a nearby mosque with Bond, tailed by the scruffy, bespectacled man. Bond joins a tourist tour of the mosque and slips away to meet Romanova. Bond spots the main tailing her, but before he can do anything about it, he is, unseen by Bond, killed by Grant. When Bond finds the body, he also finds the plans for the Russian Consulate he has been seeking. Later, Bond and Bey study the plans and Bey warns him that it all seems to a bit too easy. He also cautions Bond against becoming too involved with Romanova.
Bond meets Romanova on a ferry and gets her to tell him about the Lektor, taping their conversation on a recorder hidden inside his camera. The tape is later analysed back in London by M, Q and other agents. M is embarrassed by Bond and Romanova's more intimate exchanges, but never more than when Bond starts to recount "an interesting experience" he and M enjoyed in Tokyo!
London cables Bond telling him that Romanova's description of the device seems genuine and that he is to go ahead with the deal. He applies for a visa from the Russian Consulate, allowing his access to the building. At a pre-arranged moment, Bey sets off an explosive charge in the chamber beneath the building, releasing tear gas throughout the Consulate. In the resulting chaos, Bond is able to find Romanova and make off with the decoder. After a nasty run-in with a pack of rats in the cellar, Bond and Romanova join Bey and make good their escape. All three board the Orient Express, pursued by Soviet security man Benz who recognises Romanova. Grant is also on the train. Bey has arranged cover for Bond and Romanova as a married couple, which Romanova is very pleased about. Bey sets off to secure the help of the train guard, a man whose services he has used before, leaving Bond and Romanova to carry on where they left off in Bond's hotel suite. Bey later spots Benz listening at the cabin door and warns Bond of the danger. Bey and Bond confront Benz in his cabin and restrain him before Bond returns to Romanova where he fails to resist the power of her slinky new dress...
Later, while heading for the restaurant car, Bond is stopped by the guard with bad news - he takes him to Benz's cabin where the Soviet agent and Bey have apparently killed each other. Bond bribes the Guard not to stop the train at the next stop, an out of the way place where two of Bey's men are waiting. Bond breaks the news of Bey's death to Romanova, accusing her of acting under orders and roughing her up. She insists that she knows nothing and that she really does love Bond.
The train continues on its journey across Europe, finally arriving at Beograd where Bond gets out to stretch his legs. There he meets with one of Bey's sons, explaining why he didn't stop at the pre-arranged rendezvous. He gets the man to send a message to M, arranging for an agent from Station Y to meet him at Zagreb.
In Zagreb, Grant intercepts the British agent and murders him the toilets before Bond can get to him. He then poses as the agent, Nash, and makes contact with Bond, boarding the train with him as it sets off again. In his cabin, Bond tells 'Nash' about the Lektor and about how difficult it will be to get it across the border. 'Nash' invites Bond and Romanova to dinner in the restaurant car, but Bond is suspicious. He sends 'Nash' onahead with Romanova, then checks the tear gas booby trap in his attaché case.
During dinner, 'Nash' spills Romanova's wine and, while refilling the glass, slips in a drug. While she's unconscious in one part of the cabin, Grant knocks Bond out in the other half of the cramped quarters. He relieves Bond of his gun then taunts Bond when he revives. Only now does Bond realise that SPECTRE is involved in his mission and that they have been playing the Russians and the British off against each other. Grant reveals that SPECTRE have been keeping him alive (which is why Grant saved him at the gypsy camp) until he could get the Lektor device for them. He also tells Bond that Romanova knows nothing of what is happening and that Rosa Klebb, whom Bond knows as a SMERSH operative, is running her. He also tells Bond that his death will be staged as a crime of passion - they'll plant the film of Bond and Romanova making love on Romanova and a letter apparently from her threatening to release the film to the press will be planted on him. This way, it'll seem as though she was trying to blackmail Bond and he killed her before taking his own life.
But Bond isn't taking this lying down - he offers to buy a last cigarette for 50 gold sovereigns and dupes Grant into opening the booby trapped attaché case. A struggle breaks out during which Bond and Grant brutally assault each other in the narrow confines of the compartment. Grant tries to garrotte Bond with a wire hidden in his watch, but Bond is able to stab him with the concealed blade from the attaché case, then ends up strangling him. He takes the incriminating reel of film from Grant's pocket.
The train is now slowing down at Grant's pre-arranged escape point and Bond has to get a still very dopey Romanova off it as soon as possible. They manage to escape and Bond neatly overpowers and disarms the contact waiting for the SPECTRE agent. With Romanova sleeping off the effects of the drug in the back, Bond drives off in the contacts flower truck. As dawn breaks, they are spotted and buzzed by a SPECTRE helicopter. The passengers of the helicopter begin bombing the truck with grenades, forcing Bond to leave Romanova hiding beneath the vehicle as tries to attract their attention away from her. He sets off across the fields as the helicopter continuously passes low overhead, almost hitting him. He takes refuge beneath some rocks and uses the folding sniper's rifle to shoot the passenger, who drops a primed grenade and blows the helicopter up. Bond drives on, eventually reaching a boat waiting at a remote dock. Bond and Romanova set off on the boat heading for Venice.
Klebb and Kronsteen try to explain their failures to their leader, but he's an unforgiving sort and has Kronsteen murdered by his henchman Morzeny who kicks him with a poison tipped blade hidden in his boot.
Bond and Romanova are making good progress towards Venice when they are suddenly intercepted by SPECTRE agents aboard a small fleet of power boats. Bond tries to outrun them, but they attack with rifle grenades. It seems that Spectre wants to stop Bond, not kill him. But when their stray bullets puncture several barrels of fuel stored on his boat, Bond throws them overboard and pretends to surrender. But then he fires flares into the water which, now full of oil, explodes, engulfing the pursuing boats in flames.
Finally, Bond and Romanova arrive in Venice and check into a hotel. But it's not quite over for Bond yet. Disguised as a maid, Klebb has managed to get into his room and is trying to whisk the Lektor away from under his nose. Romanova recognises her but, still thinking that she's a SMERSH agent, doesn't give her away. Klebb holds Bond at gun point and gets a reluctant Romanova to help her make off with the Lektor.
But in a last second change of heart, she disarms Klebb who goes toe-to-toe (literally) with Bond, who pins her to a wall with chair as the SPECTRE assassin tries to kick him with her own poison tipped toe-blade. The day is saved when Romanova shoots her. With their mission accomplished, Bond and Romanova take time for a gondola trip and Bond throws the film of him and Romanova making love that he retrieved from Grant into the canal.

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LYSISTRATA

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Aristophanes (c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme Cydathenaeum, was a comic playwright of ancient Athens. Eleven of his thirty plays survive virtually complete. These, together with fragments of some of his other plays, provide the only real examples of a genre of comic drama known as Old Comedy, and they are used to define the genre.
Also known as the Father of Comedy and the Prince of Ancient Comedy, Aristophanes has been said to recreate the life of ancient Athens more convincingly than any other author.His powers of ridicule were feared and acknowledged by influential contemporaries; Plato singled out Aristophanes' play The Clouds as slander that contributed to the trial and subsequent condemning to death of Socrates although other satirical playwrights had also caricatured the philosopher.
His second play, The Babylonians (now lost), was denounced by the demagogue Cleon as a slander against the Athenian polis. It is possible that the case was argued in court but details of the trial are not recorded and Aristophanes caricatured Cleon mercilessly in his subsequent plays, especially The Knights, the first of many plays that he directed himself. "In my opinion," he says through the Chorus in that play, "the author-director of comedies has the hardest job of all ".

SUMMARY:

Lysistrata, a strong and clever Athenian woman with a great sense of individual obligation for the nation, has made a secret plan of meeting among all of the women of Greece to discuss on the topic how to end the Peloponnesian War. She has called the women of Sparta, Thebes, and other cities in the meeting.
Lysistrata procedures with a plan to ask all the women to have sex strike with their husbands till a peace treaty has been signed by the warriors from both sides.
The women are suspicious of the plan and reluctant at first, but with Lysistrata’s power of convincing the women, the agreement is finalized with oath around a wine bowl, and the women agree to avoid all sexual pleasures. Her another plan is with the older women of Athens, who are supposed to seize the Akropolis on the same day. Akropolis holds the treasury of the state without which the warriors cannot continue the war any further due lack of fund.
There are two groups of choruses: the chorus of old men and the chorus of old women in Lysistrata. The chorus of men is seen on the stage with woods and fire to smoke the women out the Akropolis. They are in great rage, but the chorus of women appears with jugs of water on the stage so as to put out the fire of men. The chorus of men is defeated by the chorus of women and the men get a good soak from the jugs of water.

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The magistrate comes to the Akropolis asking for the funds for the naval ships in the war. The Commissioner is greatly shocked to see the women at the Akropolis and orders the police to arrest Lysistrata and her supporting women. In that humorous conflict the policemen are scared off. The Commissioner complaints the men of Athens that they have been too flexible and have allowed unnecessary freedom to the women of the city.
The Commissioner and Lysistrata are left behind to argue about the Peloponnesian War. Lysistrata argues that war is a big concern of women because women have sacrificed greatly for it, women have given their husbands and their sons for the sake of war. Lysistrata further adds that it has become difficult for a woman to find a husband. The women mockingly dress the Commissioner as a woman first and later as a corpse.
After some considerable time, the sex-strike of Greek women begins to take effect on the men. Lysistrata finds Kinesias, the husband of Myrrhine, coming to the Akropolis to see his wife. Kinesias has a full erection and is madly desperate for his wife. But, Myrrhine skillfully rejects his sex proposal, saying they can enjoy sex when peace exists between Athens and Sparta. It is so amusing that Myrrhine hints that she could make love to Kinesias and makes him more desperately willing for sex but later leaves him in great pain. He now can only think about the peace treaty between the two states.
One Spartan messenger arrives in the Akropolis who is also suffering from a hard erection. The messenger describes about the helpless situation of the Spartan warriors caused due to sex strike and appeals for the peace treaty. When men from both states meet at the Akropolis for the discussion of the peace treaty, all men have full erections. Lysistrata addresses them on the need of the reconciliation between the states. She reminds them all about their previous role of helping each other at the time of need. Then the Spartan and the Athenian leaders come to the point to implement land rights which will eventually end the war. The peace treaty is signed by both sides and Lysistrata gives the women back to their men. The play ends with happy song sung by both men and women's choruses.

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THE ILLIAD

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Homer is best known as the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey. He was believed by the ancient Greeks to have been the first and greatest of the epic poets. Author of the first known literature of Europe, he is central to the Western canon.
When he lived, as well as whether he lived at all, is unknown. Herodotus estimates that Homer lived no more than 400 years before his own time, which would place him at around 850 BCE or later.Pseudo-Herodotus estimates that he was born 622 years before Xerxes I placed a pontoon bridge over the Hellespont in 480 BCE, which would place him at 1102 BCE, 168 years after the fall of Troy in 1270 BCE. These two end points are 252 years apart, representative of the differences in dates given by the other sources.
The importance of Homer to the ancient Greeks is described in Plato's Republic, which portrays him as the protos didaskalos, "first teacher", of the tragedians, the hegemon paideias, "leader of Greek culture", and the ten Hellada pepaideukon, "teacher of [all] Greece". Homer's works, which are about fifty percent speeches, provided models in persuasive speaking and writing that were emulated throughout the ancient and medieval Greek worlds. Fragments of Homer account for nearly half of all identifiable Greek literary papyrus finds in Egypt.

SUMMARY:

Nine years after the start of the Trojan War, the Greek (“Achaean”) army sacks Chryse, a town allied with Troy. During the battle, the Achaeans capture a pair of beautiful maidens, Chryseis and Briseis. Agamemnon, the leader of the Achaean forces, takes Chryseis as his prize, and Achilles, the Achaeans’ greatest warrior, claims Briseis. Chryseis’s father, Chryses, who serves as a priest of the god Apollo, offers an enormous ransom in return for his daughter, but Agamemnon refuses to give Chryseis back. Chryses then prays to Apollo, who sends a plague upon the Achaean camp.
After many Achaeans die, Agamemnon consults the prophet Calchas to determine the cause of the plague. When he learns that Chryseis is the cause, he reluctantly gives her up but then demands Briseis from Achilles as compensation. Furious at this insult, Achilles returns to his tent in the army camp and refuses to fight in the war any longer. He vengefully yearns to see the Achaeans destroyed and asks his mother, the sea-nymph Thetis, to enlist the services of Zeus, king of the gods, toward this end. The Trojan and Achaean sides have declared a cease-fire with each other, but now the Trojans breach the treaty and Zeus comes to their aid.

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With Zeus supporting the Trojans and Achilles refusing to fight, the Achaeans suffer great losses. Several days of fierce conflict ensue, including duels between Paris and Menelaus and between Hector and Ajax. The Achaeans make no progress; even the heroism of the great Achaean warrior Diomedes proves fruitless. The Trojans push the Achaeans back, forcing them to take refuge behind the ramparts that protect their ships. The Achaeans begin to nurture some hope for the future when a nighttime reconnaissance mission by Diomedes and Odysseus yields information about the Trojans’ plans, but the next day brings disaster. Several Achaean commanders become wounded, and the Trojans break through the Achaean ramparts. They advance all the way up to the boundary of the Achaean camp and set fire to one of the ships. Defeat seems imminent, because without the ships, the army will be stranded at Troy and almost certainly destroyed.
Concerned for his comrades but still too proud to help them himself, Achilles agrees to a plan proposed by Nestor that will allow his beloved friend Patroclus to take his place in battle, wearing his armor. Patroclus is a fine warrior, and his presence on the battlefield helps the Achaeans push the Trojans away from the ships and back to the city walls. But the counterattack soon falters. Apollo knocks Patroclus’s armor to the ground, and Hector slays him. Fighting then breaks out as both sides try to lay claim to the body and armor. Hector ends up with the armor, but the Achaeans, thanks to a courageous effort by Menelaus and others, manage to bring the body back to their camp. When Achilles discovers that Hector has killed Patroclus, he fills with such grief and rage that he agrees to reconcile with Agamemnon and rejoin the battle. Thetis goes to Mount Olympus and persuades the god Hephaestus to forge Achilles a new suit of armor, which she presents to him the next morning. Achilles then rides out to battle at the head of the Achaean army.
Meanwhile, Hector, not expecting Achilles to rejoin the battle, has ordered his men to camp outside the walls of Troy. But when the Trojan army glimpses Achilles, it flees in terror back behind the city walls. Achilles cuts down every Trojan he sees. Strengthened by his rage, he even fights the god of the river Xanthus, who is angered that Achilles has caused so many corpses to fall into his streams. Finally, Achilles confronts Hector outside the walls of Troy. Ashamed at the poor advice that he gave his comrades, Hector refuses to flee inside the city with them. Achilles chases him around the city’s periphery three times, but the goddess Athena finally tricks Hector into turning around and fighting Achilles. In a dramatic duel, Achilles kills Hector. He then lashes the body to the back of his chariot and drags it across the battlefield to the Achaean camp. Upon Achilles’ arrival, the triumphant Achaeans celebrate Patroclus’s funeral with a long series of athletic games in his honor. Each day for the next nine days, Achilles drags Hector’s body in circles around Patroclus’s funeral bier.
At last, the gods agree that Hector deserves a proper burial. Zeus sends the god Hermes to escort King Priam, Hector’s father and the ruler of Troy, into the Achaean camp. Priam tearfully pleads with Achilles to take pity on a father bereft of his son and return Hector’s body. He invokes the memory of Achilles’ own father, Peleus. Deeply moved, Achilles finally relents and returns Hector’s corpse to the Trojans. Both sides agree to a temporary truce, and Hector receives a hero’s funeral.

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CRIMES AND PUNISHMENT

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky (11 November 1821 – 9 February 1881), sometimes transliterated Dostoevsky, was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist and philosopher. Dostoyevsky's literary works explore human psychology in the troubled political, social, and spiritual atmosphere of 19th-century Russia. Many of his works are marked by a preoccupation with Christianity, explored through the prism of the individual confronted with life's hardships and beauty.
He began writing in his 20s, and his first novel, Poor Folk, was published in 1846 when he was 25.
His major works include Crime and Punishment (1866), The Idiot (1869), Demons (1872) and The Brothers Karamazov (1880). His output consists of 11 novels, three novellas, 17 short novels and numerous other works. Many literary critics rate him as one of the greatest psychologists in world literature.His 1864 novella Notes from Underground is considered to be one of the first works of existentialist literature.
Born in Moscow in 1821, Dostoyevsky was introduced to literature at an early age through fairy tales and legends, and through books by Russian and foreign authors. His mother died in 1837, when he was 15, and around the same time he left school to enter the Nikolayev Military Engineering Institute. After graduating, he worked as an engineer and briefly enjoyed a lavish lifestyle, translating books to earn extra money. In the mid-1840s he wrote his first novel, Poor Folk, which gained him entry into St. Petersburg's literary circles.

SUMMARY:

Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, a former student, lives in a tiny garret on the top floor of a run-down apartment building in St. Petersburg. He is sickly, dressed in rags, short on money, and talks to himself, but he is also handsome, proud, and intelligent. He is contemplating committing an awful crime, but the nature of the crime is not yet clear. He goes to the apartment of an old pawnbroker, Alyona Ivanovna, to get money for a watch and to plan the crime. Afterward, he stops for a drink at a tavern, where he meets a man named Marmeladov, who, in a fit of drunkenness, has abandoned his job and proceeded on a five-day drinking binge, afraid to return home to his family. Marmeladov tells Raskolnikov about his sickly wife, Katerina Ivanovna, and his daughter, Sonya, who has been forced into prostitution to support the family. Raskolnikov walks with Marmeladov to Marmeladov’s apartment, where he meets Katerina and sees firsthand the squalid conditions in which they live.
The next day, Raskolnikov receives a letter from his mother, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, informing him that his sister, Dunya, is engaged to be married to a government official named Luzhin and that they are all moving to St. Petersburg. He goes to another tavern, where he overhears a student talking about how society would be better off if the old pawnbroker Alyona Ivanovna were dead. Later, in the streets, Raskolnikov hears that the pawnbroker will be alone in her apartment the next evening. He sleeps fitfully and wakes up the next day, finds an ax, and fashions a fake item to pawn to distract the pawnbroker. That night, he goes to her apartment and kills her. While he is rummaging through her bedroom, looking for money, her sister, Lizaveta, walks in, and Raskolnikov kills her as well. He barely escapes from the apartment without being seen, then returns to his apartment and collapses on the sofa.

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Waking up the next day, Raskolnikov frantically searches his clothing for traces of blood. He receives a summons from the police, but it seems to be unrelated to the murders. At the police station, he learns that his landlady is trying to collect money that he owes her. During a conversation about the murders, Raskolnikov faints, and the police begin to suspect him. Raskolnikov returns to his room, collects the goods that he stole from the pawnbroker, and buries them under a rock in an out-of-the-way courtyard. He visits his friend Razumikhin and refuses his offer of work. Returning to his apartment, Raskolnikov falls into a fitful, nightmare-ridden sleep. After four days of fever and delirium, he wakes up to find out that his housekeeper, Nastasya, and Razumikhin have been taking care of him. He learns that Zossimov, a doctor, and Zamyotov, a young police detective, have also been visiting him. They have all noticed that Raskolnikov becomes extremely uncomfortable whenever the murders of the pawnbroker and her sister are mentioned. Luzhin, Dunya’s fiancé, also makes a visit. After a confrontation with Luzhin, Raskolnikov goes to a café, where he almost confesses to Zamyotov that he is the murderer. Afterward, he impulsively goes to the apartment of the pawnbroker. On his way back home, he discovers that Marmeladov has been run over by a carriage. Raskolnikov helps to carry him back to his apartment, where Marmeladov dies. At the apartment, he meets Sonya and gives the family twenty rubles that he received from his mother. Returning with Razumikhin to his own apartment, Raskolnikov faints when he discovers that his sister and mother are there waiting for him.
Raskolnikov becomes annoyed with Pulcheria Alexandrovna and Dunya and orders them out of the room. He also commands Dunya to break her engagement with Luzhin. Razumikhin, meanwhile, falls in love with Dunya. The next morning, Razumikhin tries to explain Raskolnikov’s character to Dunya and Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and then the three return to Raskolnikov’s apartment. There, Zossimov greets them and tells them that Raskolnikov’s condition is much improved. Raskolnikov apologizes for his behavior the night before and confesses to giving all his money to the Marmeladovs. But he soon grows angry and irritable again and demands that Dunya not marry Luzhin. Dunya tells him that she is meeting with Luzhin that evening, and that although Luzhin has requested specifically that Raskolnikov not be there, she would like him to come nevertheless. Raskolnikov agrees. At that moment, Sonya enters the room, greatly embarrassed to be in the presence of Raskolnikov’s family. She invites Raskolnikov to her father’s funeral, and he accepts. On her way back to her apartment, Sonya is followed by a strange man, who we later learn is Svidrigailov—Dunya’s lecherous former employer who is obsessively attracted to her.
Under the pretense of trying to recover a watch he pawned, Raskolnikov visits the magistrate in charge of the murder investigation, Porfiry Petrovich, a relative of Razumikhin’s. Zamyotov is at the detective’s house when Raskolnikov arrives. Raskolnikov and Porfiry have a tense conversation about the murders. Raskolnikov starts to believe that Porfiry suspects him and is trying to lead him into a trap. Afterward, Raskolnikov and Razumikhin discuss the conversation, trying to figure out if Porfiry suspects him. When Raskolnikov returns to his apartment, he learns that a man had come there looking for him. When he catches up to the man in the street, the man calls him a murderer. That night Raskolnikov dreams about the pawnbroker’s murder. When he wakes up, there is a stranger in the room.
The stranger is Svidrigailov. He explains that he would like Dunya to break her engagement with Luzhin, whom he esteems unworthy of her. He offers to give Dunya the enormous sum of ten thousand rubles. He also tells Raskolnikov that his late wife, Marfa Petrovna, left Dunya three thousand rubles in her will. Raskolnikov rejects Svidrigailov’s offer of money and, after hearing him talk about seeing the ghost of Marfa, suspects that he is insane. After Svidrigailov leaves, Raskolnikov and Razumikhin walk to a restaurant to meet Dunya, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and Luzhin. Razumikhin tells Raskolnikov that he is certain that the police suspect Raskolnikov. Luzhin is insulted to find that Raskolnikov, contrary to his wishes, is in attendance at the meal. They discuss Svidrigailov’s arrival in the city and the money that has been offered to Dunya. Luzhin and Raskolnikov get into an argument, during the course of which Luzhin offends everyone in the room, including his fiancée and prospective mother-in-law. Dunya breaks the engagement and forces him to leave. Everyone is overjoyed at his departure. Razumikhin starts to talk about plans to go into the publishing business as a family, but Raskolnikov ruins the mood by telling them that he does not want to see them anymore. When Raskolnikov leaves the room, Razumikhin chases him down the stairs. They stop, face-to-face, and Razumikhin realizes, without a word being spoken, that Raskolnikov is guilty of the murders. He rushes back to Dunya and Pulcheria Alexandrovna to reassure them that he will help them through whatever difficulties they encounter.
Raskolnikov goes to the apartment of Sonya Marmeladov. During their conversation, he learns that Sonya was a friend of one of his victims, Lizaveta. He forces Sonya to read to him the biblical story of Lazarus, who was resurrected by Jesus. Meanwhile, Svidrigailov eavesdrops from the apartment next door.
The following morning, Raskolnikov visits Porfiry Petrovich at the police department, supposedly in order to turn in a formal request for his pawned watch. As they converse, Raskolnikov starts to feel again that Porfiry is trying to lead him into a trap. Eventually, he breaks under the pressure and accuses Porfiry of playing psychological games with him. At the height of tension between them, Nikolai, a workman who is being held under suspicion for the murders, bursts into the room and confesses to the murders. On the way to Katerina Ivanovna’s memorial dinner for Marmeladov, Raskolnikov meets the mysterious man who called him a murderer and learns that the man actually knows very little about the case.
The scene shifts to the apartment of Luzhin and his roommate, Lebezyatnikov, where Luzhin is nursing his hatred for Raskolnikov, whom he blames for the breaking of his engagement to Dunya. Although Luzhin has been invited to Marmeladov’s memorial dinner, he refuses to go. He invites Sonya to his room and gives her a ten-ruble bill. Katerina’s memorial dinner goes poorly. The widow is extremely fussy and proud, but few guests have shown up, and, except for Raskolnikov, those that have are drunk and crude. Luzhin then enters the room and accuses Sonya of stealing a one-hundred-ruble bill. Sonya denies his claim, but the bill is discovered in one of her pockets. Just as everyone is about to label Sonya a thief, however, Lebezyatnikov enters and tells the room that he saw Luzhin slip the bill into Sonya’s pocket as she was leaving his room. Raskolnikov explains that Luzhin was probably trying to embarrass him by discrediting Sonya. Luzhin leaves, and a fight breaks out between Katerina and her landlady.
After the dinner, Raskolnikov goes to Sonya’s room and confesses the murders to her. They have a long conversation about his confused motives. Sonya tries to convince him to confess to the authorities. Lebezyatnikov then enters and informs them that Katerina Ivanovna seems to have gone mad—she is parading the children in the streets, begging for money. Sonya rushes out to find them while Raskolnikov goes back to his room and talks to Dunya. He soon returns to the street and sees Katerina dancing and singing wildly. She collapses after a confrontation with a policeman and, soon after being brought back to her room, dies. Svidrigailov appears and offers to pay for the funeral and the care of the children. He reveals to Raskolnikov that he knows Raskolnikov is the murderer.
Raskolnikov wanders around in a haze after his confession to Sonya and the death of Katerina. Razumikhin confronts him in his room, asking him whether he has gone mad and telling him of the pain that he has caused his mother and sister. After their conversation, Porfiry Petrovich appears and apologizes for his treatment of Raskolnikov in the police station. Nonetheless, he does not believe Nikolai’s confession. He accuses Raskolnikov of the murders but admits that he does not have enough evidence to arrest him. Finally, he urges him to confess, telling him that he will receive a lighter sentence if he does so. Raskolnikov goes looking for Svidrigailov, eventually finding him in a café. Svidrigailov tells him that though he is still attracted to Dunya, he has gotten engaged to a sixteen-year-old girl. Svidrigailov parts from Raskolnikov and manages to bring Dunya to his room, where he threatens to rape her after she refuses to marry him. She fires several shots at him with a revolver and misses, but when he sees how strongly she dislikes him, he allows her to leave. He takes her revolver and wanders aimlessly around St. Petersburg. He gives three thousand rubles to Dunya, fifteen thousand rubles to the family of his fiancée, and then books a room in a hotel. He sleeps fitfully and dreams of a flood and a seductive five-year-old girl. In the morning, he kills himself.
Raskolnikov, who is visiting his mother, tells her that he will always love her and then returns to his room, where he tells Dunya that he is planning to confess. After she leaves, he goes to visit Sonya, who gives him a cross to wear. On the way to the police station, he stops in a marketplace and kisses the ground. He almost pulls back from confessing when he reaches the police station and learns of Svidrigailov’s suicide. The sight of Sonya, however, convinces him to go through with it, and he confesses to one of the police officials, Ilya Petrovich.
A year and a half later, Raskolnikov is in prison in Siberia, where he has been for nine months. Sonya has moved to the town outside the prison, and she visits Raskolnikov regularly and tries to ease his burden. Because of his confession, his mental confusion surrounding the murders, and testimony about his past good deeds, he has received, instead of a death sentence, a reduced sentence of eight years of hard labor in Siberia. After Raskolnikov’s arrest, his mother became delirious and died. Razumikhin and Dunya were married. For a short while, Raskolnikov remains as proud and alienated from humanity as he was before his confession, but he eventually realizes that he truly loves Sonya and expresses remorse for his crime.

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FATHERS AND SONS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev (November 9, 1818 – September 3, 1883) was a Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright. His first major publication, a short story collection entitled A Sportsman's Sketches (1852), was a milestone of Russian Realism, and his novel Fathers and Sons (1862) is regarded as one of the major works of 19th-century fiction.
Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was born into a family of Russian land-owners in Oryol, Russia, on November 9, 1818. His father, Sergei Nikolaevich Turgenev, a colonel in the Russian cavalry, was a chronic philanderer[citation needed]. Ivan's mother, Varvara Petrovna Lutovinova, was a wealthy heiress, who had an unhappy childhood and suffered in her marriage. Ivan's father died when Ivan was sixteen, leaving him and his brother Nicolas to be brought up by their abusive mother. Ivan's childhood was a lonely one, in constant fear of his mother who beat him often. After the standard schooling for a son of a gentleman, Turgenev studied for one year at the University of Moscow and then moved to the University of Saint Petersburg from 1834 to 1837, focusing on Classics, Russian literature, and philology. From 1838 until 1841 he studied philosophy, particularly Hegel, and history at the University of Berlin. He returned to Saint Petersburg to complete his master's examination.

SUMMARY:

Arkady Nikolaevich returns to his father's farm at Maryino on the 20th of May 1859. His father, Nikolai, is ecstatic to see him, and happily takes in Bazarov, Arkady's new friend from school in Petersburg.
Nikolai is a widower who has recently freed his serfs (members of the Russian peasant class, bound to a landowning lord), and he has been selling off his land to make ends meet. He has a relationship with a young girl named Fenichka who used to be a servant, and the two of them now have a son named Mitya. He lives with his brother, Pavel, who used to be a great general.
One morning when Bazarov goes out to collect frogs (he enjoys doing experiments on them), Pavel and Nikolai ask Arkady about his new friend. Arkady proudly tells them that Bazarov is a nihilist, a man willing to question every principle no matter how much it is revered. The two old men are a bit taken aback, and, when Bazarov returns, he and Pavel have an argument. Pavel is much prouder than his brother Nikolai, and he has no patience for the rude young man.
Arkady, though still loyal to his friend, notices how rude Bazarov is. He tried to get him to sympathize with Pavel by telling him Pavel's story. Pavel was a well-respected society man and a captain in the army, but then he lost his head over an enigmatic woman named Princess R. She never accepted his advances, and eventually died in a state of insanity. Bazarov persists in his arrogance, and thinks that Pavel has made a mess of his own life and now preaches to the young.

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A few weeks later, an even larger fight erupts between Pavel and Bazarov. Pavel argues that one cannot live without principles, and that the Russians are a traditional people, a people of faith. Bazarov, for his part, argues that the young can do nothing more useful than renounce everything. Both men lose their tempers, and separate in order to cool off. After observing the argument, Nikolai remembers a time he told his mother that she couldn't understand him because she was of a different generation. He wonders if the same thing has now happened between himself and his son Arkady.
Bazarov and Arkady go to a nearby town to visit a successful relative of Arkady's, Matvei Ilyich Kolyazin. Kolyazin takes Arkady under his wing and invites the two young men to a ball. The same day, Bazarov runs into an old companion named Victor Sitnikov, who insists that they come and have drinks with a clever older woman he has met, Madame Kukshin. Madame Kukshin tries hard to draw Bazarov out, but he is unimpressed and reveals that he has little interest in women's rights – a subject about which she is very passionate.
At the ball, Arkady and Bazarov meet Anna Sergeyevna Odintsov, an acquaintance of Madame Kukshin's. Arkady is instantly smitten with her, and manages to chat with her for most of the night. It is clear, however, that she is more curious about Bazarov. She invites the two of them to her hotel, and then to her place in the country at Nikolskoye.
Anna Sergeyevna grew up very independent. Her father lost his fortune gambling and died young. She and her sister Katya would have had a simple life if she hadn't met Monsieur Odintsov. Anna and Odintsov were married, and, when he died, he left them a fortune.
Over the course of the visit, she and Bazarov become very close. Arkady feels like he is elbowed out, and he is left to spend most of his time with Anna's younger sister, Katya. Though Bazarov can hardly admit it to himself, he is falling in love with Anna Sergeyevna. For her part, she reveals to him that she feels incomplete, that she worries that happiness will elude her. Bazarov is frustrated with her and thinks she is being coy, but he can't help himself. He makes a declaration of love to her, and she rejects him.
The situation at Nikolskoye becomes very tense until Sitnikov arrives, uninvited. Shortly after, Bazarov decides that he will go to visit his parents, who have been dying to see him. Arkady announces that he will also leave, but opts to go to Bazarov's home over riding back to Maryino with Sitnikov. In the carriage, Bazarov tells Arkady that they both acted like fools; that they were too taken in by the women at Nikolskoye. He tells himself that he is over Anna Sergeyevna, and looks forward to seeing his father.
Bazarov's parents, Vassily Ivanych and Arina Vlassyevna, are thrilled to see him. It has been three years, and they clear out a room for him and Arkady and do their best not to fuss over them. Arkady has a talk with Vassily Ivanych about Bazarov, and they both agree that one day he will be a great man. Bazarov, however, seems irritated by his parents. He is in a dark and melancholy mood, and when Arkady comments on his cynicism, the two of them begin to bicker. After just three days, Bazarov decides to leave, though he promises his parents he will return soon. They are crushed, and cling to one another in their grief.
On the way home, Arkady talks Bazarov into making a detour to the Odintsovs'. It is a brief and awkward visit, but Anna Sergeyevna encourages them to stop back at another time. When they return to Maryino, Arkady realizes that he can't stop thinking of the Odintsovs. His father shows him some letters that Anna Sergeyevna's mother sent to Arkady's mother, and Arkady decides to use it as a pretext to return. When he does, Anna Sergeyevna is very happy to see him, but he realizes that it is Katya he can't stop thinking about.
Bazarov is left alone at Maryino, and retires into solitude, working all day. Pavel tolerates him, and Nikolai enjoys popping in to help with experiments. Bazarov begins to become close with Fenichka. One day, the two of them are joking around and he makes a move and kisses her. A moment later, Pavel emerges from behind a nearby bush. Fenichka is embarrassed and angry with Bazarov.
Pavel does not tell his brother what happened. The next day, however, he proposes a duel to Bazarov. Bazarov takes it all as tongue-in-cheek, but agrees. They meet in the morning using the servant Piotr as witness. Pavel fires first and misses, and Bazarov shoots and hits Pavel in the thigh. As soon as Pavel is hit, Bazarov goes and attends to him. Piotr rushes back to get Nikolai. Bazarov and Pavel lie to him and say they fell out over English politics. Bazarov leaves as quickly as he can, and, as Pavel heals, he tells Nikolai that he wants him to do right by Fenichka and marry her. Nikolai is thrilled since the only reason he hadn't already done so was because he was afraid that Pavel would disapprove.
Meanwhile, Arkady is spending a great deal of time with Katya at Nikolskoye. They discuss Bazarov and Anna Sergeyevna, and Katya thinks that Arkady is coming out from under the shadow of Bazarov's influence. Bazarov comes to Nikolskoye to tell Arkady what happened with Pavel. Arkady is shocked, but Bazarov assures him that Pavel is fine. At Arkady's insistence, Bazarov goes to see Anna Sergeyevna.
The two of them are uncomfortable together, though they fall into a companionable relationship. Bazarov reveals to Anna Sergeyevna that Arkady was in love with her when they first met, and she begins to think differently of Arkady. The next day, however, Arkady asks Katya to meet him out on the portico. He tries to propose, but trips over his words. They are interrupted when they overhear a conversation between Bazarov and Anna Sergeyevna, who are walking nearby.
It comes out that Anna Sergeyevna is considering a relationship with Arkady, but as soon as she and Bazarov walk on, Arkady proposes to Katya. She accepts and he is thrilled. Bazarov decides that he must leave and return home. He tells Arkady that this is their last goodbye, and that Arkady lacks the spirit that he himself has. He thinks that gentry will only go so far, they will not fight. Arkady is disappointed that Bazarov doesn't have anything nicer to say to him at their parting, but, when he begins speaking with Katya after Bazarov departs, Arkady quickly forgets him.
Bazarov returns home, and begins helping his father, a doctor, treat the local peasants. Vassily Ivanych is happy and very proud, but he worries that Bazarov is sad and gloomy. One day, Bazarov is in town, and decides to help the local doctors open up a man who recently died of typhus. In the process, he accidentally cuts himself. He is very calm about it, but as the days pass, it becomes clear that he has contracted the disease. He is feverish and bed-ridden.
One of Bazarov's last wishes is for his father to send a message Anna Sergeyevna and tell her that he is dying. His father does so, and Anna Sergeyevna immediately comes to see them with a German doctor in tow. Bazarov is partly delirious. He thinks ironically of all the time he spent considering himself a giant, and now his only problem is how to die decently. At his request, Anna Sergeyevna gives him a kiss on the forehead before she leaves. He dies the same evening.
The book closes with the weddings of Nikolai and Fenichka and Arkady and Katya. Pavel leaves them and goes to Dresden to live out the remainder of his life. The narrator surveys the lives of all the characters before ending by speaking of Bazarov's grave. Bazarov's parents often go there to pray and weep, and the narrator thinks that no matter how stubborn their son was in his nihilism, it is not possible that they weep in vain.

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THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English crime novelist, short story writer and playwright. She also wrote six romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best known for the 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections that she wrote under her own name, most of which revolve around the investigative work of such characters as Hercule Poirot, Jane Marple, Parker Pyne, Harley Quin/Mr Satterthwaite and Tommy and Tuppence Beresford. She wrote the world's longest-running play, a murder mystery, The Mousetrap. In 1971 she was made a Dame for her contribution to literature.
Christie was born into a wealthy upper-middle-class family in Torquay, Devon. She served in a hospital during the First World War before marrying and starting a family in London. She was initially unsuccessful at getting her work published, but in 1920 The Bodley Head press published her novel The Mysterious Affair at Styles, featuring the character of Hercule Poirot. This launched her literary career.
The Guinness Book of World Records lists Christie as the best-selling novelist of all time. Her novels have sold roughly 2 billion copies, and her estate claims that her works come third in the rankings of the world's most-widely published books, behind only Shakespeare's works and the Bible. According to Index Translationum, she remains the most-translated individual author – having been translated into at least 103 languages. And Then There Were None is Christie's best-selling novel, with 100 million sales to date, making it the world's best-selling mystery ever, and one of the best-selling books of all time.

SUMMARY:

The novel is narrated by Dr. James Sheppard, a physician in the town of King’s Abbott. The story begins with the death of Mrs. Ferrars, who overdosed on Veronal, a sleeping medication. Much of the town (including Dr. Sheppard’s gossip-loving sister, Caroline) believes Mrs. Ferrars poisoned her husband a year before. Caroline now speculates that Mrs. Ferrars has committed suicide with Veronal over the guilt.
Meanwhile, Roger Ackroyd, the town’s wealthiest citizen who was expected to marry Mrs. Ferrars, invites Dr. Sheppard to dinner, claiming he has something important to tell him. Also present at dinner are Mrs. Cecil Ackroyd, Roger’s sister-in-law, Flora Ackroyd, his niece (who recently got engaged to Ackroyd’s stepson Ralph Paton), Geoffrey Raymond, Ackroyd’s young secretary, and Major Blunt, Ackroyd’s friend. Distraught throughout the meal, Ackroyd finally has a private discussion with Dr. Sheppard after dinner. In his study, he reveals to Dr. Sheppard that not only did Mrs. Ferrars actually kill her husband, she was being blackmailed for it. She revealed all of this to Ackroyd before taking her life because of the emotional and financial strain she was under.
Although she didn’t tell him who the blackmailer was, he had a feeling she left a message for him before her death. At that moment, Ackroyd’s secretary Parker arrives with the evening mail, which contains a letter from the late Mrs. Ferrars. Ackroyd begins to read it out loud. In it, Mrs. Ferrars announces she will name her blackmailer and asks Ackroyd to seek revenge on her blackmailer. Ackroyd refuses to read the name of the blackmailer with Sheppard present.
Dr. Sheppard leaves Fernly Park (Ackroyd’s home), but on his walk back bumps into a stranger who asks for directions to the estate. At home, Dr. Sheppard and Caroline are about to go to bed when the phone rings. He explains to Caroline that Parker has called from Fernly Park to tell him that Ackroyd has been murdered. Dr. Sheppard rushes over, but when he gets there Parker denies making the phone call. Nonetheless, they break into Ackroyd’s locked study and find him murdered in his chair.

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The next day, Dr. Sheppard is approached by Flora Ackroyd to help recruit Dr. Sheppard’s new neighbor, the retired Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, to help investigate the murder. Flora is worried that the police are going to blame Ralph Paton for killing her uncle, especially since Ralph, who had been spotted approaching Fernly Park that night, is now nowhere to be found. The police have found footprints matching a pair of shoes that Ralph owned outside the window to Ackroyd’s study, and at 9:30 pm (after Dr. Sheppard had left, but before the body was found at 10:30), Major Blunt and Geoffrey Raymond both overheard Ackroyd speaking to someone in his office.
Because Flora claims to have wished her uncle goodnight at 9:45 pm and Dr. Sheppard is convinced that Ackroyd had been dead at least a half hour when he found the body at 10:30, the police are convinced that the murder was committed between 9:45 and 10:00 pm. Although all members of Ackroyd’s household stood to gain financially from his death, Ralph especially inherited the bulk of his uncle’s fortune. After they have determined that Ralph recently was in a great deal of debt, they suspect him all the more.
Although the police are convinced it is Ralph, Poirot’s thorough investigation leaves him unconvinced. He is fixated on the phone call to Dr. Sheppard (which the police trace, and determine came from the King’s Abbot train station, not Fernly Park), and the position of a grandfather chair in Ackroyd’s office, which had been moved into the center of the room when Dr. Sheppard and Parker found the body. In the course of his investigation, Poirot discovers a goose quill and a piece of cambric in the summerhouse on the Fernly Park grounds, as well as a wedding ring inscribed “From R” in a goldfish pond on the grounds.
Poirot gathers Mrs. Cecil Ackroyd, Flora Ackroyd, Geoffrey Raymond, Major Blunt, and Dr. Sheppard together and accuses all of them of hiding something from him which is relevant to the case. In the meantime, Poirot notes that the parlormaid, Ursula Bourne, is the only person in the household who doesn’t have a clear alibi for the theoretical time of the murder and so identifies her as another suspect. Mrs. Cecil Ackroyd and Geoffrey Raymond quickly come forward to Dr. Sheppard and Poirot to admit their secrets – both separately acknowledge that they were in debt, and Ackroyd’s death resolves most of their money issues.
Poirot also determines that Parker, who he suspected as Mrs. Ferrars’ blackmailer, is guilty of nothing more than snooping on Roger Ackroyd the night of the murder when he heard the word “blackmail.” Parker successfully blackmailed his previous employer, and was hoping to blackmail Ackroyd, as well. The police, meanwhile, have tracked down the stranger who approached Fernly Park the night of the murder. They arrest a man named Charles Kent, who Dr. Sheppard confirms was the stranger.
Meanwhile, Poirot determines that Flora lied about wishing her uncle goodnight at 9:45 on the night of the murder – instead, she had snuck up to his bedroom to steal money to settle some debts of her own, and had to pretend she was merely wishing Ackroyd goodnight to avoid suspicion. In the course of her confession, Major Blunt’s secret love for Flora is revealed when he tries to take the blame for her crime. Poirot convinces Major Blunt to be honest with Flora about his love for her – he assures him that Flora and Ralph Paton are not really in love, but merely engaged for convenience’s sake.
Poirot asks for a meeting with Miss Russell, Ackroyd’s housekeeper. He gets her to admit that Charles Kent is the son she bore out of wedlock many years before, and that he owns the goose quill that they found in the summerhouse. Miss Russell met him there before dinner on the night of the murder after he contacted her; she insists he cannot be the murderer.
Soon, Flora and Major Blunt are engaged, and Poirot traces the owner of the gold ring to Ursula Bourne. After placing a fake notice in the newspaper that the police captured Ralph Paton, Bourne seeks out Poirot and confesses to having married Ralph in secret months before. They met around 9:30 in the summerhouse and fought about his announced engagement to Flora Ackroyd (Ralph agreed to the engagement hoping it would mean his uncle would discharge his debts.)
Poirot summons all the suspects to his home once again and reveals all these discoveries. He further reveals that he has determined Ackroyd purchased a dictaphone the week before and that is what Raymond and Blunt heard when they assumed Ackroyd was talking to someone at 9:30. He then reveals Ralph Paton, who Dr. Sheppard had been hiding by pretending he was a patient in a local asylum. Once Poirot determined what Sheppard had done, he got Ralph out. Ralph admits that he fought with Ursula in the summerhouse, then walked around, frustrated. He does not have an alibi for the time of the murder. Poirot announces that it’s simple: for Ralph to be exonerated, the real murderer must come forward. He claims to know the identity of the real murderer, and explains he will bring the truth to the police the next morning.
He discharges the group, but asks Dr. Sheppard to stay behind. In a stunning plot twist, Poirot reveals that it is Dr. Sheppard who is the murderer. Sheppard stabbed Ackroyd before leaving him that night, programmed the Dictaphone to go off at 9:30 and provide him with an alibi, then snuck around the side of the house, crawled into Ackroyd’s study, locked it from the inside, and planted the footprints with Ralph’s shoes in the mud. He hid Ralph so that the police would find him more suspicious. He murdered Ackroyd because it was he, Dr. Sheppard, who was Mrs. Ferrars’ blackmailer, and he knew if Ackroyd found out he would be ruined.
Faced with the knowledge that Poirot will go to the police in the morning, and hoping that Poirot can keep the truth from his sister Caroline, Dr. Sheppard goes home and prepares to kill himself with an overdose of Veronal.

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