Class

This thematic collection covers texts that investigate the particularly fraught dynamics and divisions of class, including Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and Ernesto Galarza's Barrio Boy.

The Scarlet Pimpernel

by Emma Orczy

Publication year 1905

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Social Class, Marriage, Revenge, Hate & Anger, Fear, Conflict

Tags Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction, Action & Adventure, Romance, Social Class, Mystery & Crime Fiction, French Literature, World History

Published in 1905, The Scarlet Pimpernel, by Baroness Emma Orczy, is a historical romance adventure novel about a wealthy English baronet with a secret life as a hero who rescues the innocent from the French Reign of Terror. Told mainly from the viewpoint of his wife, the book—based on the successful London play of the same name—birthed a series of Scarlet Pimpernel novels, movies, and TV productions. It ushered in the secret-identity genre of adventure... Read The Scarlet Pimpernel Summary

The School for Scandal

by Richard Brinsley Sheridan

Publication year 1777

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Social Class, Love, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies

Tags Classic Fiction, Comedy & Satire

The School for Scandal is a comedy of manners written by Richard Sheridan. The play was initially performed at the Drury Lane Theater in 1777. Though the play premiered well into the 18th century, it is often included in collections of Restoration comedies (1660-1710), as it shares many common elements with the comedies of manners from that period and the period immediately following it. Like many comedies of manners, The School for Scandal relies on... Read The School for Scandal Summary

The Sea-Wolf

by Jack London

Publication year 1904

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Religion & Spirituality, Social Class, Death

Tags Classic Fiction, Action & Adventure, Psychological Fiction, Social Class, American Literature, World History, Historical Fiction

Jack London’s novel The Sea-Wolf, originally published in 1904, draws inspiration from an ocean voyage London took in the Pacific nearly a decade prior to his writing the novel. London himself was an avid adventurer and once spent seven and a half months on the crew of the Sophia Sutherland. This study guide references the Signet Classics 2013 edition of The Sea-Wolf.Along with London’s other famous works, The Call of the Wild and White Fang... Read The Sea-Wolf Summary

The Secret Lion

by Alberto Alvaro Rios

Publication year 1984

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Coming of Age, Social Class, Friendship

Tags Coming of Age, Symbolic Narrative

“The Secret Lion” first appeared in Alberto Álvaro Ríos’s first short story collection, The Iguana Killer, published in 1984. Ríos, an Arizona native and distinguished professor at Arizona State University for 35 years, is a poet and author whose works center on his experience growing up Latinx. His work is now largely considered classic Chicano literature. Ríos received the Latino Literary Hall of Fame award for his memoir, Capirotada, and was named Arizona’s inaugural poet... Read The Secret Lion Summary

The Secret Place

by Tana French

Publication year 2014

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Hate & Anger, Shame & Pride, Femininity, Death, Appearance & Reality, Social Class, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Irish Literature, Coming of Age

Written by Irish American author Tana French, The Secret Place (2014) combines elements of thrillers and police procedurals and follows Dublin detectives Stephen Moran and Antoinette Conway as they pursue new leads in a year-old murder case on the grounds of a private Catholic boarding school. As the detectives sort through hidden pieces of evidence and conflicting stories, they interview two groups of female students who provide only partial, often conflicting stories. The murder victim... Read The Secret Place Summary

The Septembers Of Shiraz

by Dalia Sofer

Publication year 2007

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Religion & Spirituality, Loyalty & Betrayal, Social Class, Safety & Danger, Art, The Past, Fear, Nation, Nostalgia

Tags Historical Fiction, World History, Arts & Culture, Middle Eastern Literature, Realistic Fiction, Life-Inspired Fiction, Incarceration, Middle Eastern History, Trauma & Abuse, Politics & Government, Jewish Literature

The Septembers of Shiraz (2007), a novel by Iranian writer Dalia Sofer, recounts the experiences of the Amins, an Iranian Jewish family, during the Iranian Revolution in the late 1970s. The book is closely based on Sofer’s family history: When Sofer was 10, her family fled Iran, crossing the border to Turkey with the help of smugglers. The Septembers of Shiraz depicts the changing atmosphere and events that characterize the treatment of the wealthy class... Read The Septembers Of Shiraz Summary

These Summer Storms

by Sarah MacLean

Publication year 2025

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Grief, Hate & Anger, Love, Death, The Past, Place, Family, Fathers, Mothers, Siblings, Self Discovery, Social Class, Fame, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Romance

... Read These Summer Storms Summary

The Shadow King

by Maaza Mengiste

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Hope, Regret, Gender Identity, Masculinity, Race, Social Class, Colonialism, Nation, War

Tags African American Literature, World History, Historical Fiction, Military & War, History: African

... Read The Shadow King Summary

The Shards

by Bret Easton Ellis

Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Sexual Identity, Hate & Anger, Coming of Age, Gender Identity, Mental Health, Childhood & Youth, The Past, Social Class, Loyalty & Betrayal, Safety & Danger, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Psychological Fiction, LGBTQ+

... Read The Shards Summary

The Shock Doctrine

by Naomi Klein

Publication year 2007

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Social Class, Globalization, Politics & Government, War, Order & Chaos, Power & Greed

Tags Business & Economics, Politics & Government, World History, Social Justice, Political Science, Philosophy

The Shock Doctrine (2007) is a critique of neoliberalism by Canadian writer and activist Naomi Klein. Klein analyzes the history of neoliberalism and its relationship with crises to argue that neoliberal economics—as promoted by Milton Friedman and his acolytes—exploit and create crises to impose neoliberal policies on unwilling populations through undemocratic means. In Klein’s view, this happens through the mechanism of “shock therapy,” through which nations take advantage of crisis moments to strategically introduce new... Read The Shock Doctrine Summary

The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace

by Jeff Hobbs

Publication year 2014

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Social Class, Race, Family, Friendship, Community, Education

Tags Race & Racism, Crime & Law, Sociology

The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace (2014) by Jeff Hobbs is a biography that chronicles the life of Rob Peace, a brilliant young Black man. Raised in East Orange, a crime-ridden suburb of Newark, New Jersey, Rob overcame numerous barriers to study biochemistry and molecular biophysics at Yale University. Despite academic success and a seemingly bright future, his life was tragically cut short when he was killed in a drug-related shooting at the... Read The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace Summary

The Sleeper and the Spindle

by Neil Gaiman

Publication year 2014

Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction

Themes Memory, Revenge, Femininity, Gender Identity, Aging, Social Class, Beauty, Good & Evil, Literature, Power & Greed

Tags Fantasy, Fairy Tale & Folklore

The Sleeper and the Spindle is a standalone short story written by English American author Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Chris Riddell. It first appeared unillustrated in the 2013 anthology Rag & Bones: New Twists on Timeless Tales. The story is a loose retelling of Sleeping Beauty, featuring two unnamed female characters who act as reimagined versions of the sleeping princess and of Snow White. It uses classic fairy tale tropes and motifs to upend... Read The Sleeper and the Spindle Summary