Summer Reading for AP Literature

Summer Reading for AP Literature

Due: First Day of School

All students must read:

How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster (Revised editon – 2014) and 1984 by George Orwell (Signet edition)

Expectations

The Summer Reading Assignments are to be completed independently. Students are expected to generate responses that reflect their independent views, analysis and interpretations of each of the readings.

Below are assignments that are to be completed and turned in on the first day of school.

Assignment 1:

READ:How to Read Literature Like a Professor – Thomas C. Foster

Respond to 10 of the assignments listed below. Your selection of assignments should be representative of the entire work (Do not simply complete the assignments for chapters 1-10); select assignments throughout the entire piece. EACH STUDENT MUST COMPLETE THE ASSIGNMENT FOR CHAPTER 27 – THE TEST CASE. Your responses should reflect both your understanding of that chapter’s topic and your ability to apply that concept to various works.

Type your response in MLA format with page numbers, MLA heading, equally double-spaced in Times New Roman, size 12 font. Provide the chapter number and title for each assignment. Responses should be approximately 8-12 sentences; however, please ensure you have directly addressed all parts of the selected questions.

Introduction: How'd He Do That?

How do memory, symbol, and pattern affect the reading of literature? How does the recognition of patterns make it easier to read complicated literature? Discuss a time when your appreciation of a literary work was enhanced by understanding symbol or pattern.

Chapter 1 -- Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It's Not)

List the five aspects of the QUEST and then apply them to something you have read (or viewed) in the form used on pages 3-5.

Chapter 2 -- Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion Explain how acts of communion are important to literary works. What connection between characters do acts of communion show?

Chapter 3: --Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires

What are the essentials of the Vampire story? Apply this to a literary work you have read or viewed.

Chapter 4 -- --Now, Where Have I Seen Her Before?

Define intertextuality. Discuss an example that has helped you in reading a specific work.

Chapter 5 -- When in Doubt, It's from Shakespeare...

Discuss a work that you are familiar with that alludes to or reflects Shakespeare. Show how the author uses this connection thematically. Read pages 44-46 carefully. In these pages, Foster shows how Fugard reflects Shakespeare through both plot and theme. In your discussion, focus on theme.

Chapter 6 -- ...Or the Bible

Discuss the various forms of Biblical allusions. Discuss an example from a work you have read previously.

Chapter 7 -- Hanseldee and Greteldum

Think of a work of literature that reflects a fairy tale. Discuss the parallels. Does it create irony or deepen appreciation?

Chapter 8 -- It's Greek to Me

Discuss topics or elements of plots inspired by characters or situations from Greek mythology.

Chapter 9 -- It's More Than Just Rain or Snow

Discuss the importance of weather in literary works

Chapter 10 – Never Stand Next to the Hero

Chapter 11 --...More Than It's Gonna Hurt You: Concerning Violence

Discuss the two kinds of violence found in literature. Show how the effects are different.

Chapter 12 -- Is That a Symbol?

Review the author’s discussion on symbolism in this chapter. What new ideas/topics were presented?

Chapter 13 -- It's All Political

Assume that Foster is right and "it is all political." Use his criteria to show that one of the major works assigned to you as a freshman is political.

Chapter 14 -- Yes, She's a Christ Figure, Too

Apply the criteria to a major character in a significant literary work. Try to choose a character that will have many matches.

Chapter 15 -- Flights of Fancy

Select a literary work in which flight signifies escape or freedom. Explain in detail.

Chapter 18 -- If She Comes Up, It's Baptism

Think of a "baptism scene" from a significant literary work. How was the character different after the experience? Discuss.

Chapter 19 -- Geography Matters…

Discuss at least four different aspects of a specific literary work that Foster would classify under "geography."

Chapter 20 -- ...So Does Season

Discuss the ways in which authors use the seasons to signify important elements of their works.

Chapter 21 -- Marked for Greatness Select a character with a physical imperfection and analyze its implications for characterization. Chapter 22 -- He's Blind for a Reason, You Know

Review the author’s central idea in this chapter.

Chapter 23 -- It's Never Just Heart Disease... And Rarely Just Illness

Review the author’s central idea in this chapter. Recall two characters who die of a disease in a literary work. Discuss the effectiveness of the death as related to plot, theme, or symbolism.

Chapter 24 -- Don't Read with Your Eyes

After reading Chapter 24, choose a scene or episode from a novel, play or epic written before the twentieth century. Contrast how it could be viewed by a reader from the twenty-first century with how it might be viewed by a contemporary reader. Focus on specific assumptions that the author makes, assumptions that would not make it in this century.

Chapter 25 – It’s My Symbol and I’ll Cry If I Want To

Review the author’s central idea in this chapter.

Chapter 26 -- Is He Serious? And Other Ironies

Select an ironic literary work and explain the irony in the work.

Chapter 27 -- A Test Case

Read “The Garden Party” by Katherine Mansfield, the short story starting on page 262. Complete the exercise on pages 282-283, following the directions exactly. Then compare your writing with the three examples. How did you do? What does the essay that follows comparing Laura with Persephone add to your appreciation of Mansfield's story?

Assignment 2:

Google Classroom Code: kfmbam5

I want you to join the class and participate in an online discussion about the novel. You may discuss any part of the directions below, but I would like you to go deeper and bring up questions of your own. I will be popping in and out all summer.

1984 by: George Orwell

General: 1984 was written in response to Orwell’s fears about Socialism. Although he was himself a Democratic Socialist, he saw some significant flaws in the types of government that evolved in the first half of the 20th century. Written in 1949, he drew a picture of a nightmarish world 35 years in the future. Today, we categorize this novel as dystopian. One of his major ideas, and one that we’ll use as a guide for the first several weeks of study, is the idea of how language can be used (and abused) to shape beliefs, reactions, ideas, and more.

The dialectical journal will be collected on the first day of school.

This journal is to help you think about not just the plot and events of the novel, but the deeper meanings and messages about society and human nature that are revealed. You may need to do brief research to understand a term or concept; this will not be unusual for this class. This isn’t meant to be a static document, but a tool of understanding. You may contact me at ; however, I only check my email once a week during the summer.

I. Annotations: I expect you to take notes as you’re reading. If you own the book, you will write these notes directly on the page. If it is a school-owned book, you’ll use post-it notes. Studying literature is about more than reading the words: it’s considering the effect the text has on you, the reader, the way the author created that effect, and the way the text acts as a link between different societies and time periods. I often hear that annotating slows down your pace of reading. Yes, it does. That’s the point. If annotating as you read annoys you, read the chapter then go back to annotate.

What should you annotate? Well, I recommend looking at the questions below and start by marking potential passages that will help you answer those questions.

These are suggestions:

a. Comment on actions or development of a character, including significant changes in behavior, attitudes, or beliefs.

b. Developments in the plot—you may also make predictions and ask questions of the plot and characters.

c. Anything that intrigues, impresses, amuses, shocks, puzzles, disturbs, repulses, aggravates, etc.

d. Connect ideas to each other or to other texts

e. Note anything you would like to discuss or that you don’t understand

f. The author’s use of technique and the significance, or effect, of that technique. This may include but isn’t limited to: tone, mood, imagery, irony, juxtapositions, symbols, metaphors, diction, syntax and so on.

II. Guided Dialectic Journal: Answer each of the following questions when applicable in the form of a dialectic journal—that is, three columns consisting of your carefully considered response, a supporting quote, and the page number for the quote (I’ve found that it’s easiest to use a table to format this – sample below). For each question, I expect to see a minimum of three supporting quotes; you should, however, crop these quotes to their most essential part. Your response should be lengthier than the quotes used to support it.

A. SETTING:

1. What is the effect of the opening sentence? How does this set the mood of the book? There is a great deal of urban decay—how is this indicative of the way that the Party treats the people?

2. Considering the publication date of the novel, what is the significance of the fact that Goldstein—Public Enemy Number One—has an ethnically Jewish name?

3. What is a totalitarian regime? How does such a regime attain, maintain, and increase power? What is its main concern? How does it compare with other political structures? Democracy, for example?

B. POINT OF VIEW:

1. Winston eventually figures out that Room 101 contains whatever it is the prisoner fears most. O’Brien claims that Room 101 is a place to cure insanity. What argument is Orwell making about point of view and audience? What about the value of an informed populace?

2. How does the fact that this novel is considered dystopian influence the sympathies of the reader?

C. DICTION/RHETORIC:

1. The Party claims that “who controls the present, controls the past” and that “who controls the past controls the future.” How is this demonstrated to be true in the story? How does Winston represent a fallacy in this logic?

2. Of the three Ingsoc mantras, two are natural opposites, but “ignorance is strength” doesn’t fit the pattern. Explain Orwell’s case for ignorance being the same idea as weakness.

D. CHARACTERIZATION (remember that, as readers, we only know about the characters what they say, what they do, and what is said about them. While we can wonder about events outside of the narrative, we can’t use those “maybes” for evidence):

1. How does war—actual or perceived—allow the Party to oppress the people? What other means of oppression are used?

2. In what ways are Winston and Julia alike? How are they significantly different?

3. What is ironic about Parsons’ arrest for thoughtcrime?

4. Ultimately, is Winston a static or dynamic character? Why does the Party need him to be dynamic?

E. CONFLICT:

1. What external symbols are indicative of Winston’s internal conflict(s)? Choose at least three, and explain how each is representative of a part of Winston’s psyche.

2. O’Brien says the Proles will never revolt; Winston believes the only hope for the future is with the Proles. What is the rationale behind each argument?

3. In this society, from where do loyalties arise? Why is this question in the conflict section?

F. THEMES:

1. At one point, Winston says he understands the “how, but not the why” behind the party. This is before he is apprehended, tortured, and converted. At any point during this marathon of unfortunate events does he get to know the why? Do the readers ever get to know? If so, what is it?

2. There is a saying that “history is written by the winners.” How is that true in this novel? What real-world examples demonstrate this truth?

3. What is the symbolic significance of the Chestnut Tree Café? Consider the song lyrics, as well.

Credit:

Your dialectical journal will use a three-entry form:

In your written journal you must create a comprehensive response by recording your thoughts and impressions of the setting, tone, mood, imagery, character profiles in a minimum of 3 entries per chapter. As you can see, the guided questions give you ample opportunity to use text examples of these literary terms into your journal. Feel free to add to the list of examples.

SAMPLE Dialectical Journal This is a dialectical journal. You may use it as an example to make your own.

Sample Dialectical Journal Entry: The Things They Carried - by Tim O’Brien Passages from the text / Pg #s
Chapter? / Comments & Questions
“-they carried like freight trains; they carried it on their backs and shoulders-and for all the ambiguities of Vietnam, all the mysteries and unknowns, there was at least the single abiding certainty that they would never be at a loss for things to carry”. / Pg 2, Ch 1 / O’Brien chooses to end the first section of the novel with this sentence. He provides excellent visual details of what each solider in Vietnam would carry for day-to-day fighting. He makes you feel the physical weight of what soldiers have to carry for simple survival. When you combine the emotional weight of loved ones at home, the fear of death, and the responsibility for the men you fight with, with this physical weight, you start to understand what soldiers in Vietnam dealt with every day. This quote sums up the confusion that the men felt about the reasons they were fighting the war, and how they clung to the only certainty - things they had to carry - in a confusing world where normal rules weresuspended.

When you return to school in the August, we will spend class time discussing these books. There will be an assigned essay and an AP multiple choice test. All formal papers will be admitted to Turnitin.com and then hand in a hard copy typed in MLA style and format.

Helpful Hints:

Annotating Text – Reading Strategies

BEFORE READING

Examine the front and back covers (books)

Read the title and any subtitles

Examine the illustrations

Examine the print (bold, italics, etc.)

Examine the way the text is set up (book, short story, diary, dialogue, etc.)

As you examine and read these, write questions, and make predictions and/or connections near these parts of the text.

DURING READING

Mark in the text (if you own it) or Use Post-it Tabs (if it is the school’s):

Characters (who)

When (setting)

Where (setting)

Vocabulary

 ______Important information

Write in the margins or add a Post-it Tab:

Summarize

Make predictions

Formulate opinions

Make connections

Ask Questions

Analyze the author’s craft

Write reflections/reactions/comments

Look for patterns/repetitions

AFTER READING – Preparing to write an essay!

Reread annotations—draw conclusions

Reread introduction and conclusion—try to figure out something new

Examine patterns/repetitions—determine possible meanings

Determine what the title might mean

More Helpful Hints:

HOW should I choose the evidence (quotes) for my reading journal?

Find a line or passage that offers a powerful statement. You are allowed to define the power in any way you wish. Sometimes a passage is particularly persuasive, emotional, descriptive, or meaningful—but there are all kinds of other things that set one line apart from the rest. Decide for yourself.

• Consider the assignment you will be completing on this novel and use your reading journal as a tool. What does the prompt ask you to contemplate? Use your log to trace that idea and you will already have textual support for your essay!

• Find a line or passage that confuses you. You find yourself wondering if you might understand the whole text better if you could make sense of this part.

• Find a line or passage that helps you understand the text or that reminds you of another text that you have read. (How is this similar to or different from the other, and how can that comparison or contrast contribute to our understanding of the text?)

• Find a line or passage that demonstrates a noteworthy way of connecting with and persuading the reader.

• Find a line or passage which made a strong impression on YOU. It could be something you seriously disagree with; if so, go ahead and counter the argument in your Commentary. On the other hand, if it’s something you like, is this something you want to remember and/or live up to in your own life? Would your life be any different if you do?

Spelling and Grammar / Opinions

You can use informal style as long as you write in a way that does not undermine your credibility as a commentator. (Significant grammar problems will affect your readability and your credibility.) Please be certain to use school appropriate language and refrain from the use of profanity. Certainly your personal opinions will be evident in your Commentary section, but remember this is not a place simply to VENT! (I like this book. I hate this book.) Every sentence that you write in the Commentary section must be tied to the Evidence provided. The Commentary section is to be used to help you understand and relate to the text.