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- The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe. “I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country, and at length found myself, as the shades of evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher.”
- The Birthmark by Nathanial Hawthorne. “His love for his young wife might prove the stronger of the two; but it could only be by intertwining itself with his love of science, and uniting the strength of the latter to his own.”
- The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County by Mark Twain. “You never see a frog so modest and straightforward as he was, for all he was so gifted.”
- The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. “I cry at nothing, and cry most of the time.” Charlotte Perkins Gilman... …entered a long-drawn depression soon after he birth of her daughter and was angered by the advice of the time for her to concentrate on a quiet domestic life away from any creative endeavours.
- “Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving, 1820. Irving shot to international fame by importing plot devices of German folk tales into American settings. He also uses “Rip Van Winkle” to showcase how American culture changed from a slow-moving rural culture to a bustling, politically-oriented culture after the Revolutionary War brought Americans independence from Britain.
- “The Fall of the House of Usher,” by Edgar Allen Poe, 1839.
- “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe, 1843. Great examples of the American romance (not the love-story kind of romance, but the supernatural, spooky-story kind).
- “The Birthmark,” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, 1843.
Exploring the Rich Tapestry of 19th Century American Short Stories. by Stephen. Welcome to 19th Century! Discover the captivating world of American short stories during the 19th century. Dive into the rich narratives, explore the themes that shaped the era, and uncover the hidden gems of this remarkable literary genre.
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American Romanticism. America's 19th century romanticism explored concepts of awe, nature, heroism, gothic horror, and the literary imagination. American Romanticism literature explored concepts of awe, heroism, gothic horror, and nature. Read classic Romantic short stories and poems on CommonLit.
- ‘Thesignal-Man’
- ‘The Happy Prince’
- ‘The Magic Shop’
- ‘The Gift of The Magi’
- ‘Rip Van Winkle’
- ‘Désirée’S Baby’
- ‘The Body Snatcher’
- ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’
- ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’
- ‘B24’
Author: Charles Dickens Year:1866 Written by one of England’s greatest novelists, ‘The Signal-Man’ is an eerie ghost story about a railway signal-man who is haunted by foreboding, spectral visions. Favourite Line: ‘So little sunlight ever found its way to this spot, that it had an earthy, deadly smell; and so much cold wind rushed through it, that ...
Author: Oscar Wilde Year:1888 ‘The Happy Prince’ is a melancholy tale, reflecting the style of a fairy-taleor fable – which is, after all, where short stories found their roots as a genre. The story looks at themes of love and sacrifice, wealth and poverty, and the nature of true beauty. Favourite Line: ‘At that moment a curious crack sounded insid...
Author: H.G. Wells Year:1903 ‘The Magic Shop’ is a curious tale that follows a father and son’s experience of visiting a ‘genuine magic shop’. While the little boy explores the shop, seeing only joy and wonder, his father is confronted with much more sinister visions. The story therefore examines how we experience the world as children versus how w...
Author: O. Henry Year:1906 ‘The Gift of the Magi’ is a simple story about a young married couple’s quest to find each other the perfect Christmas gift. In securing these ‘perfect gifts’, however, each partner is forced to give up something highly valuable and precious to them, resulting in a rather unfortunate twist. Favourite Line: ‘But in a last ...
Author: Washington Irving Year:1819 After falling asleep in the woods, the ‘henpecked’ Rip Van Winkle awakes to find his village deeply changed, and is startled to discover twenty years have passed. One of the greatest classic short stories to emerge in America, ‘Rip Van Winkle’ takes a metaphorical look at the changing American identity following ...
Author: Kate Chopin Year:1893 Set in Louisiana, prior to the American Civil War (a time when slavery was still considered ‘lawful’), ‘Désirée’s Baby’ examines the injustices of racism and gender discrimination. Favourite Line: ‘“But above all,” she wrote, “night and day, I thank the good God for having so arranged our lives that our dear Armand wil...
Author: Robert Louis Stevenson Year:1884 Inspired by the Burke and Hare murders of 1828, ‘The Body Snatcher’ is a Gothic tale that follows two med students, involved in crimes of grave robbing, in order to keep their anatomy professor supplied with instructional cadavers. Favourite Line: ‘We were all startled by the transformation, as if a man had ...
Author: Charlotte Perkins Gilman Year:1892 Flying the flag for feminism in this story, Charlotte Perkins Gilman provides an interesting and unsettling exploration of the oppression of women in nineteenth century society. Favourite Line: ‘At night in any kind of light, in twilight, candle light, lamplight, and worst of all by moonlight, it becomes b...
Author: Edgar Allan Poe Year:1843 Of course, we couldn’t have a classic short story list without including the ‘Father of the Short Story’ himself, Mr. Edgar Allan Poe. It is always difficult to choose only one story from such a prolific writer, but in our opinion, ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’ serves as an excellent example of Poe’s prowess in the short s...
Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Year:1899 Anyone who has heard the name Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would know he is most famous for his hugely popular Sherlock Holmes stories. But perhaps not everyone realises what a talented and prolific writer he truly was – particularly in the genre of the short story. The Sherlock Holmes stories themselves are, of c...
Oct 7, 2009 · Short stories from the nineteenth century. by. Davies, David Stuart. Publication date. 2000. Topics. Short stories, English, English fiction. Publisher. [Ware] : Wordsworth Editions.
Jan 1, 2001 · 3.77. 152 ratings17 reviews. Short Stories from the Nineteenth Century is a wonderful collection of classic stories specially selected and introduced by David Stuart Davies.
