Pride & Shame
These two emotions couldn't feel more different, yet pride and shame are linked by how we see ourselves—and how we want others to see us. This collection explores texts that navigate the emotional terrain of pride and shame.
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Family, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Hope, Loneliness, Memory, Shame & Pride, Gender Identity, Childhood & Youth, Fathers, Friendship, Mothers, Siblings, Self Discovery, Art, Equality, Good & Evil, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Trust & Doubt
Tags Realistic Fiction, LGBTQ+, Children`s Literature
Publication year 2020
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, Shame & Pride, Sexual Identity, Coming of Age, Fathers, Self Discovery, Social Class, Power & Greed, Truth & Lies
Tags Romance, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 1953
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Shame & Pride, Race, War
Tags Historical Fiction, Race & Racism, African American Literature, American Literature, World History, Classic Fiction
“Flying Home” is the titular story of Ralph Ellison’s collection published in 1944. It tells the story of Todd, a Black Air Force candidate in flight training school in Macon County, Alabama, during World War II. As one of the first Black people accepted into the school, Todd is determined to prove that his capabilities are equal to those of his white counterparts. The story addresses themes of Fear of Judgment, Opportunities and the American... Read Flying Home Summary
Publication year 1988
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Truth & Lies, Shame & Pride, Good & Evil, Power & Greed, Education, The Past, Perseverance
Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Italian Literature, Historical Fiction, Philosophy
Originally published in Italian in 1988, Foucault’s Pendulum is a postmodern conspiracy thriller by Italian author Umberto Eco. Eco, a scholar of semiotics, culture, and medieval philosophy, was best known for writing stories that investigated the overlap between these topics, such as his 1980 historical mystery novel, The Name of the Rose.Foucault’s Pendulum concerns Casaubon, Belbo, and Diotallevi, three editors at an Italian publishing house who devise a grand narrative of world history based on... Read Foucault's Pendulum Summary
Publication year 2019
Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction
Themes Family, Mothers, Shame & Pride, Hope, Gratitude, Hate & Anger
Tags Realistic Fiction, Poverty, Trauma & Abuse, Children`s Literature, Biography
Publication year 2013
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Immigration, Food, Social Class, Community, Globalization, Economics, Education, Politics & Government, Nation, Shame & Pride, Conflict, Justice, Safety & Danger, Power & Greed, Truth & Lies
Tags Anthropology, Social Justice, Sociology, Health, Education, Education, Anthropology, Food, Politics & Government
Publication year 1978
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Childhood & Youth, Perseverance, Shame & Pride, Gender Identity, Coming of Age, Death, Family, Siblings
Tags Indian Literature, Education, Education, Asian Literature, Classic Fiction
“Games at Twilight” is a short story written by Indian author Anita Desai. It was originally published in 1978 in a collection titled Games at Twilight and Other Stories, which contains several texts that explore different aspects of Indian life in urban settings. That same year, Desai was nominated for the Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize and the Sahitya Akademi Award for her novel Fire on the Mountain. “Games at Twilight” focuses on a young boy who... Read Games at Twilight Summary
Publication year 2007
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, Shame & Pride, Mothers, Siblings, Self Discovery
Tags Magical Realism, Fantasy
Garden Spells is the debut novel by American author Sarah Addison Allen, published in 2007. The novel, an example of the urban fantasy genre, relates the story of a pair of Southern sisters coming to terms with their heritage. The book became a New York Times bestseller, was recognized on the American Library Association’s Reading List for Best Women’s Fiction of 2007, and won the 2008 SIBA Book Award for fiction. Following the success of... Read Garden Spells Summary
Publication year 2015
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Shame & Pride
Tags Realistic Fiction, LGBTQ+, Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction
Genderqueer writer Alex Gino wrote George in response to an unfulfilled, youthful wish for a positive representation of a transgender person. The novel tells the story of ten-year-old George, who is anatomically a boy, but knows she is a girl. George has won the Stonewall Book Award, the Lambda Literary Award, and the E.B. White Honor.The novel opens with George sneaking into the bathroom to look at her secret stash of girls’ magazines, concealing them... Read George Summary
Publication year 1881
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Truth & Lies, Religion & Spirituality, Family, Regret, Guilt, Shame & Pride, Femininity
Tags Drama, Psychological Fiction, Scandinavian Literature, Realism, Victorian Period, Dramatic Literature, Health, Religion & Spirituality, Finance, Love & Sexuality, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction
The play Ghosts (1881) by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen chronicles the complicated relationship between Helen Alving and her son, Oswald. Ghosts documents a day in the life at the Alving estate as Helen prepares to open an orphanage in honor of her late husband. A three-act play, Ghosts explores the complex social issues of sexually transmitted infections, incest, and euthanasia—topics that made the play highly controversial when it was first produced.Ghosts followed the success of... Read Ghosts Summary
Publication year 1979
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Conflict, Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Fear, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Loneliness, Memory, Regret, Shame & Pride, Revenge, Aging, Death, The Past, Animals, Appearance & Reality, Environment, Beauty, Fate, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Music, Art, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Religion & Spirituality, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies, Gender Identity, Masculinity, Femininity, Sexual Identity, Friendship, Marriage, Mothers, Siblings, Teamwork, Order & Chaos, Justice, Equality
Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Religion & Spirituality
Publication year 1993
Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction
Themes Mental Health, The Past, Femininity, Shame & Pride, Gender Identity, Death, Memory, Science & Technology
Tags Depression & Suicide, Mental Illness, Psychology, Gender & Feminism, Addiction & Substance Abuse, Health, Trauma & Abuse, Modern Classic Fiction, Psychology, Classic Fiction, Biography
Susanna Kaysen’s 1993, Girl, Interrupted, is a memoir that explores Kaysen’s time as a teenage psychiatric patient in McLean Hospital in the late 1960s. Kaysen explores the murky definitions of mental health and illness, as she recounters her experience of being diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder and makes compelling arguments about the subjective nature of personality, behavior, and disorder. Girl, Interrupted is a bestselling book and was adapted into the 1999 film starring Winona Ryder... Read Girl, Interrupted Summary
Publication year 1971
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Mental Health, Shame & Pride, Coming of Age, Family, Friendship, Self Discovery, Community, Justice, Truth & Lies
Tags Depression & Suicide, Addiction & Substance Abuse, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Psychology, Psychology, Mental Illness, Classic Fiction
Initially advertised as an anonymous, true story of a teenage girl, Go Ask Alice (1971) by Beatrice Sparks is an epistolary novel, or a fictional work structured as a diary. The diary entries chronicle two years of a teen girl’s experience with social acceptance, family relationships, and drugs—primarily marijuana, LSD, and amphetamines. Although Beatrice Sparks initially claimed to be the diary’s editor, considerable evidence suggests that she’s the sole author of the fictional work. Nevertheless... Read Go Ask Alice Summary
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Fear, Hope, Love, Revenge, Shame & Pride, Femininity, Masculinity, Sexual Identity, Death, Family, Friendship, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Art, Fate, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies
Tags Romance, Horror & Suspense, New Adult
Publication year 1978
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes War, Shame & Pride, Guilt
Tags Military & War, American Literature, Education, Education, World History, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction
Going After Cacciato, by Tim O’Brien, is a novel about a young soldier’s experiences in the Vietnam War. However, as the New York Times noted in its initial review of the novel upon its publication in 1978, “call[ing] Going After Cacciato a novel about war is like calling Moby Dick a novel about whales.” The novel does not simply recount the events of the war; it dives into the inner life of its protagonist, Paul... Read Going After Cacciato Summary
Publication year 2022
Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Hope, Loneliness, Memory, Nostalgia, Mental Health, Shame & Pride, Coming of Age, Death, Family, Self Discovery, Art, Order & Chaos
Tags Coming of Age, Love & Sexuality
Publication year 1955
Genre Short Story, Fiction
Themes Religion & Spirituality, Good & Evil, Shame & Pride, Mothers, Daughters & Sons, Truth & Lies
Tags Southern Gothic, Education, Education, American Literature, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction
“Good Country People” first appeared in Flannery O’Connor’s short story collection A Good Man is Hard to Find in 1955 and is widely regarded as an exemplary work of Southern Gothic literature. Like many of O’Connor’s works, “Good Country People” contains a critique of the American South and religious hypocrisy rooted in O’Connor’s worldview informed by her Catholic faith. This study guide uses the 1988 Library of America edition of Flannery O’Connor’s Collected Works. The... Read Good Country People Summary
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Disability, Mental Health, Conflict, Perseverance, Shame & Pride, Coming of Age, Family, Friendship, Community, Justice
Tags Realistic Fiction, Children`s Literature
Publication year 1953
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Religion & Spirituality, Race, Sexual Identity, Family, Shame & Pride, Fathers, Equality
Tags Life-Inspired Fiction, Love & Sexuality, Religion & Spirituality, Race & Racism, American Literature, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction
Go Tell it on the Mountain is a semi-autobiographical novel by James Baldwin. Published in 1953, the novel tells the story of a teenager in 1930s Harlem named John Grimes as well as his wider family, dealing with themes of religion, sexuality, and race. This guide uses an eBook version of the Modern Penguin Classics edition of the novel. Plot SummaryGo Tell it on the Mountain is set on the 14th birthday of the protagonist... Read Go Tell It on the Mountain Summary
Publication year 1890
Genre Poem, Fiction
Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Guilt, Memory, Shame & Pride, Disability, Masculinity, Race, Death, Colonialism, War, Religion & Spirituality
Tags Classic Fiction, Military & War