The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
Interphase refers to that period of time between periods of mitotic division in the cell. Mitotic division (mitosis) is that time in a cell's development when it has duplicated its genetic information, and is actively involved in dividing into daughter cells. Because much attention has been paid to the fascinating process of mitosis, many people have mistakenly looked upon interphase as a quiet, resting phase existing between the more important, more active phases of cell division. In fact, interphase is more than just a "between" phase, as its name mistakenly suggests. The largest part of a cell's existence is spent in this interphase. It is the period of time during which the cell's true functions are carried out, during which time any products of the cell are elaborated, and during which the cell actually has the opportunity to grow. While the interphase nucleus (the part of the cell containing genetic material in the form of chromosomes) exists in a form which is hard to study under a microscope, the rest of the cell (the cytoplasm and its organelles) are at their peak of activity. Later in interphase, the chromosomes in the nucleus will duplicate (replicate) themselves), in preparation for mitosis.