American Literature / Unit 12 AML 1117 short lesson, about 20 seconds
*An American Tragedy*
Captions available
The idea
Based on a real case, An American Tragedy follows a poor young man whose ambition and a pregnancy lead to a drowning that may or may not be murder, and then to execution. The book spends itself on the pressure, not the act.
In practice
A drowning, and a system that produced it.
Where people slip
The verdict on the death is deliberately unclear.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it