Marriage

"It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages," said philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. The texts in this collection depict happy and unhappy marriages—and those that fall somewhere in between.

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Joy, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Sexuality, Life/Time: Midlife, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Mothers, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos

Tags Romance, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Fate, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Friendship

Tags Historical Fiction, Southern Literature, Survival Fiction, American Civil War


Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Natural World: Place, Society: Class, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Win & Lose

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Fantasy


Publication year 1926

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance

Tags Harlem Renaissance, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Gender / Feminism, Education, Education, African American Literature, American Literature, History: World, Classic Fiction

The short story “Sweat” by American author Zora Neale Hurston was first published in 1926 in Fire!!, a single-issue magazine published during the Harlem Renaissance. Hurston was an anthropologist and writer whose works included many essays on anthropology and folklore focused on African American communities in the American South and the Caribbean, as well as novels and short stories. Her interest in anthropology is reflected in her creative work. For example, she often wrote dialog... Read Sweat Summary


Publication year 1964

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage

Tags Romance, Relationships


Publication year 1981

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Gender, Identity: Race, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags Race / Racism, Class, African American Literature, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction


Publication year 1994

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Love

Tags Lyric Poem


Publication year 1934

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Love

Tags Classic Fiction, Romance, Drama / Tragedy, American Literature, Mental Illness, French Literature, History: World

In 1934, F. Scott Fitzgerald published his fourth and final (completed) novel, Tender Is the Night. Considered by the author to be his masterpiece, the book captures the same Jazz Age-prose style and Lost Generation philosophy as his previous novels, with the added depth of being arguably his most personal novel. Unlike The Great Gatsby, which was published in the middle of the 1920s, Tender Is the Night reflects upon the Roaring Twenties after they... Read Tender Is the Night Summary


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Class

Tags Modern Classic Fiction, Romance, New Adult


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Relationships: Marriage

Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Social Justice, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 1990

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict

Tags Religion / Spirituality, Self Help, Relationships, Psychology, Christian literature, Love / Sexuality


Publication year 2025

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Self Discovery, Society: Community

Tags Self Help, Finance / Money / Wealth, Business/Economics, Psychology, Philosophy


Publication year 1985

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Family

Tags Romance, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction

Anne Tyler’s The Accidental Tourist is a literary fiction novel that follows the character-driven story of Macon Leary, who must navigate life following the death of his son and the dissolution of his marriage. The Accidental Tourist was originally published in 1985 and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. The Accidental Tourist is Anne Tyler’s 10th novel and one of her most recognized works. This study guide follows the paperback Berkley edition released in... Read The Accidental Tourist Summary


Publication year 1963

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Identity: Gender, Values/Ideas: Beauty

Tags Free verse, Poetry: Dramatic Poem, Satire, Confessional


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Romance, Contemporary Literature


Publication year 1932

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage

Tags Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Education, Education, History: World, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction

The Artificial Silk Girl, by Irmgard Keun, originally published in 1932 as Das kunstseidene Mädchen, is an example of Neue Sachlichkeit, a German literary movement of the Weimar Republic (1918-1933). This guide follows the 2019 Penguin Modern Classics version translated by Kathie von Ankum. Plot SummaryDoris, an 18-year-old German girl from a mid-sized town in the Ruhr Valley, dreams of becoming a star and living a life of luxury. She comes from a lower-middle-class family, lives... Read The Artificial Silk Girl Summary


Publication year 1956

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Sexuality, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Mothers, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality

Tags Psychology, Philosophy, Self Help, Love / Sexuality, Relationships, Sociology


Publication year 1963

Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Femininity, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags American Literature, Classic Fiction, Southern Gothic

The Ballad of the Sad Café and Other Stories (1951) is a collection of short stories and a novella by Carson McCullers. The author, a seminal part of the Southern Gothic Literature genre, rose to fame with her first novel, The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1940), which shares many themes with the stories in the collection. Other notable works by McCullers include the novels Reflections in a Golden Eye (1941) and The Member of... Read The Ballad of the Sad Cafe Summary


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Friendship, Identity: Femininity

Tags Indian Literature, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 1999

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Life/Time: Aging

Tags Canadian Literature

“The Bear Came Over the Mountain” is one of Alice Munro’s most popular works and tackles themes of infidelity, love, and hypocrisy. The short story was first published in The New Yorker in December 1999 and was later included in Munro’s Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage short story collection in 2001, her 10th collection. “The Bear Came Over the Mountain” received a movie adaptation titled Away from Her in 2006. Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage... Read The Bear Came over the Mountain Summary