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.

Finding Margaret Fuller

by Allison Pataki

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Literature, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Identity: Femininity, Life/Time: Midlife, Life/Time: The Future, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Self Discovery, Society: Class, Society: Community, Society: Education, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice

Tags Historical Fiction, History: U.S., Gender / Feminism, History: World

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Fleishman Is in Trouble

by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage

Tags Jewish Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Fleishman Is in Trouble is the debut novel by journalist and writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner. Originally published in 2019, it is a satiric novel work of domestic fiction. The book was long listed for the 2019 National Book Award. This guide references the June 2019 hardcover edition by Penguin Random House.Plot SummaryThe story is told by a narrator, Libby, who speaks in both third and first person. Rachel and Toby Fleishman, professionals in their 40s who... Read Fleishman Is in Trouble Summary

Flight Behavior

by Barbara Kingsolver

Publication year 2012

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Life/Time: Birth, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Mothers, Society: Globalization, Natural World: Environment

Tags Climate Change, Science / Nature, Modern Classic Fiction

Barbara Kingsolver’s 2012 novel Flight Behavior presents a symbolic connection between Dellarobia Turnbow, an unhappy farm wife who secretly dreams of running away from it all, and a surprising migration of monarch butterflies that alight upon her in-laws’ property in Feathertown, Tennessee. As the butterflies struggle to survive and reproduce to continue their species, Dellarobia struggles in her efforts to deal with the consequences of her past decisions and the possibility of her new life... Read Flight Behavior Summary

Flight Of The Sparrow

by Amy Belding Brown

Publication year 2014

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Race, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Relationships: Family, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Indigenous, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality

Tags Historical Fiction, History: U.S., Survival Fiction, History: World

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For Love

by Robert Creeley

Publication year 1962

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Lyric Poem, Post Modernism, Love / Sexuality

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For Whom the Bell Tolls

by Ernest Hemingway

Publication year 1940

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Relationships: Marriage, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags American Literature, Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Military / War, History: World

For Whom the Bell Tolls (1940) is a novel by the Modernist American author Ernest Hemingway. The novel tells the story of Robert Jordan, an American volunteer working as a demolition specialist for the Republican army during the Spanish Civil War. Robert, sent to blow up a bridge to aid a Republican offensive, enlists the aid of a band of guerrilla fighters in the mountains. Robert falls in love with a woman in their care... Read For Whom the Bell Tolls Summary

Frankissstein

by Jeanette Winterson

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Femininity, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: Sexuality, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Future, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Marriage, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Modern Classic Fiction

Frankissstein is a novel by Jeanette Winterson that combines speculative and historical fiction in revisiting Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, Frankenstein. Winterson is a prolific author, known for her explorations of physical reality, gender, sexuality, and identity. Her first novel, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, won the 1985 Whitbread Prize for First Novel, and Frankissstein was longlisted for the 2019 Booker Prize. Winterson is a professor of Creative Writing at the University of Manchester, and... Read Frankissstein Summary

Galatea

by Madeline Miller

Publication year 2013

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage

Tags Mythology, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Relationships, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, History: World

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Gargantua And Pantagruel

by François Rabelais, Transl. Thomas Urquhart

Publication year 1564

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Relationships: Marriage, Self Discovery, Society: Education, Society: Politics & Government

Tags Classic Fiction, Play: Comedy / Satire, Fantasy, Humor, French Literature

The Life of Gargantua and Pantagruel is a series of five novels written in French by François Rabelais in the 16th century. The novel-cycle relates the adventures of two giants in hyperbolic, satirical prose. Using humor ranging from slapstick to irony, Rabelais explores serious themes such as the development of education and religious reformation. The books are noted for their colorful, rich literary style, bursting with puns, allusions, and social commentary. An early example of... Read Gargantua And Pantagruel Summary

Gerald's Game

by Stephen King

Publication year 1992

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Marriage, Self Discovery, Identity: Mental Health, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt

Tags Fantasy, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Survival Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Trauma / Abuse / Violence

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Ghost Story

by Peter Straub

Publication year 1979

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Life/Time: Aging, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Environment, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Music, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Sexuality, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Teams, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Equality

Tags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Fantasy, Religion / Spirituality

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Gift From The Sea

by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Publication year 1955

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage, Life/Time: Midlife, Identity: Femininity

Tags Inspirational, Philosophy, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Gender / Feminism, Philosophy, Biography, Self Help, Classic Fiction, Religion / Spirituality

Gift from the Sea is a 1955 work of inspirational nonfiction literature by American author Anne Morrow Lindbergh. While vacationing on Captiva Island, Florida, Lindbergh explores the questions of how to find a new, more natural rhythm of life and how to gain a deeper relationship with herself and others. To gain inspiration for this, she discusses various shells that she finds on the beach. The first two shells she finds symbolize the importance of... Read Gift From The Sea Summary

Gimpel the Fool

by Isaac Bashevis Singer, Transl. Saul Bellow

Publication year 1953

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

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Giovanni and Lusanna

by Gene A. Brucker

Publication year 1986

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Marriage

Tags History: European, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Education, Education, Italian Literature, Medieval Literature / Middle Ages, History: World

In Giovanni and Lusanna: Love and Marriage in Renaissance Florence, published in 2004, historian Gene Brucker describes the events of a single relationship in fifteenth-century Florence. This “microhistory” of a romance and subsequent court trial demonstrates how Florentine society treated love, marriage, and social class.In Chapter 1, Brucker reveals that he learned of the relationship between Giovanni di Ser Lodovico della Casa and Lusanna di Girolamo through the records of the notary Ser Filippo Mazzei... Read Giovanni and Lusanna Summary

Gold Digger

by Susie Tate

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Gender, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Self Discovery, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice

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Goodbye, Mr. Chips

by James Hilton

Publication year 1934

Genre Novella, Fiction

Themes Society: Education, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Marriage

Tags Historical Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Education, British Literature

Goodbye, Mr. Chips, James Hilton’s novella about a mild-mannered teacher at a fictional British boys’ school, originally appeared in 1933 as a supplement to the British Weekly, an evangelical newspaper. Its popularity, however, led to its reprinting in the April 1934 issue of the American magazine Atlantic Monthly and later, its publication as a book by Little, Brown and Company in the US and by Hodder & Stoughton in the United Kingdom. An instant bestseller... Read Goodbye, Mr. Chips Summary

Good Talk

by Mira Jacob

Publication year 2019

Genre Graphic Memoir , Nonfiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Identity: Race, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Fathers, Society: Community, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: The Future, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness

Tags Race / Racism, Politics / Government, September 11 Attacks, Relationships, LGBTQ, Grief / Death, Parenting, Social Justice, Immigration / Refugee, Biography

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Hannah Coulter

by Wendell Berry

Publication year 2004

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Marriage, Society: War

Tags Historical Fiction

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