Advanced Placement Literature and Composition

Summer Assignment

Ms. Tonya Conrad

tonya.conrad@christina.k12.de.us 

Dear AP Lit Students and Parents,

Welcome to Advanced Placement Literature and Composition! The summer assignment is designed to expand students’ approach to literature and to develop their close reading and analytical skills in preparation for the AP Exam. There are several components to this assignment that must be completed BEFORE classes commence in the fall.

The AP Lit summer assignment has three requirements: (1) novel reading and annotation, (2) literary terms definitions and examples, and (3) grammar and writing practice. These assignments are designed to prepare you for success in the AP Literature course and also to begin preparing for the AP Test and subsequent college-level English coursework. I have no problem with you discussing these assignments and readings with other students; however, all written assignments should be your work alone.

Please understand that I require students to read the ACTUAL books – you may not rely on Cliffs Notes, Spark Notes, movies or any other internet source or watered-down versions as substitutes for reading the actual texts. Abbreviated sources will not properly prepare you to pass exams or complete writing tasks. DON’T PANIC! You WILL survive the summer reading and writing assignments. You may struggle, but this is a normal and necessary part of the learning process. Additionally, you should take this work seriously. This assignment will constitute a major portion of your first nine-weeks’ grade. Do not wait until the last minute to attempt this assignment.

Summer Assignment Instructions--There are three summer assignments outlined below. All summer assignments are due the first day of school regardless of the semester you are enrolled for AP Lit.

1. Novel Reading and Annotation Assignment

● Select two novels (one from each column) from the lists below to read. These novels can be found at your local library and bookstores and on Amazon. With a little searching, most can be found online in PDF form.

Select ONE from American Literature AND Beloved by Toni Morrison

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

Select ONE from British Literature Atonement by Ian McEwan

Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

● Make sure to give yourself enough time to read the books in order to take thorough notes and annotate as you read. You will need to use 5 colors as you take notes according to the annotation guide below. You may type your notes and submit them to the first assignment on the first day of class OR you may take notes in your book if it belongs to you OR you may make notes in a notebook to turn in separately. If you turn in your novel, your name must be clearly written on the cover or on a post-it note attached to the cover. If you turn in a notebook, your name and the title of your chosen novel must be clearly written on the first page.

● Am I going to tell you how many post-it/sticky notes you should have for each chapter? No way! I’ll let you decide what sets an A apart from a B or C project…or (insert gasp) a D or F. Based on your 12 years of being a student, you know the difference and expectations. Plus, this is an honors course and your first opportunity to present your knowledge and work ethic. ● Annotation Guide 

○ Characters, settings, and relationships--purple--pay attention to how the setting of a piece, the perspective of the narrator, and the details of the relationships between the characters influence the motivations of the characters and our interpretation of the piece.

○ Conflicts--orange--pay attention to the main conflict and multiple complications or secondary conflicts and how the cause-effect relationship influences the rising and falling of characters.

○ Vocabulary--blue--Make sure to write down unfamiliar vocabulary words and look up their definitions. Also, make a note of words and phrases that stand out to you: beautiful language or sound, unexpected, repeated, or seem important, relate to theme

○ Literary Devices and Author’s Style--green--find examples of literary devices, pay attention to author’s diction and syntax (word choice and sentence structure), note shifts in mood and tone

○ Questions, Thoughts, and Reactions--yellow--Record your questions, thoughts, and reactions as you read. Use some of the questions below to help you in determining what to write about each chapter.

■ What is the theme of the piece? How do you feel about the author’s message? ■ What is the writers' purpose? To explain? To inform? To persuade? Amuse? Motivate? Is there more than one purpose? Does the purpose shift at all?

■ How does the writer develop his/her ideas? Narration? Description? Definition? Comparison? Analogy? Cause and Effect? Example? Chronological vs. sequential? ■ How are the characters revealed? Does the author provide backstory information? What are the characters’ motivations and how do their experiences influence their actions?

■ What is the sentence structure like in the text? Does the writer use fragments or run-ons? Are there any patterns in the sentence structure? Can you make any connections between the patterns and the writers' purpose?

■ How does the writer use diction? Is it formal? Informal? Technical? Jargon? Slang? Is the language emotionally evocative? Does the language change throughout the piece? How does the language contribute to the writers' aim?

■ Is there anything unusual in the writers' use of punctuation? (italics, capitals, underlining, ellipses, and parentheses) Is punctuation over- or under used? Are important terms repeated throughout the text? Why?

■ Are there any particularly vivid images that stand out? What effect do these images have on the writers' purpose?

■ Are devices of comparison used to convey or enhance meaning? Which tropes--similes, metaphors, personification, hyperbole, etc. does the writer use? When does he/she use them? Why?

■ Does the writer use devices of humor? Puns? Irony? Sarcasm? Understatement? Parody? Is the effect comic relief? Pleasure? Hysteria? Ridicule?

2. Literary Devices Assignment--Define and find examples for the following literary devices. Create a chart like the one below or notecards or another study device and study them. There will be quizzes given on these terms intermittently throughout the school year.

Literary Term Definition Example ad hominem

allegory

alliteration

allusion

ambiguity

anachronism

anaphora

antithesis

apostrophe

archetype

auditory imagery

catharsis

chiasmus

cliché

colloquialism

comic relief

connotation

consonance

denotation

dialect

diction

didactic

digression

dramatic irony

elliptical

enthymeme

epiphany

epithet

ethos

euphemism

existentialism

figurative language

foreshadowing

generalization

gustatory imagery

hamartia

hubris

hyperbole

idiom

juxtaposition

kinesthetic imagery

logos

metaphor

metonymy

modernism

mood

motif

olfactory imagery

onomatopoeia

oxymoron

paradox

parallelism

parody

pathos

pedantic

personification

pun

realism

red herring

rhetoric

rhetorical criticism rhetorical question satire

simile

situational irony

stream of consciousness syllogism

symbol

synecdoche

synesthesia

syntax

tactile imagery

thesis

tone

verbal irony

visual imagery

voice (in writing)

wit

3. Grammar and Writing Practice--the most critical focus and area that we will focus on most in AP Lit is critical analysis and writing. The type of writing that we will practice this year will be highly focused and reveal your depth of knowledge and skills. In order to prepare, the summer assignment consists of two components: grammar practice and short essay drafting.

a. Grammar Practice--DON’T STRESS! It looks like a lot of pages, but most of the pages are explanations and examples. Print OR use Kami to complete.

i. Unit 1--Complete activities 1-7 (Do Not complete the Writing Application) ii. Unit 2--Complete activities 1-8 (Do Not complete the Writing Application) iii. Unit 3--Complete activities 1-4 (Do Not complete the Writing Application) iv. Unit 4--Complete activities 1-5 (Do Not complete any of the Writing

Applications)

b. Writing Practice--Choose 2 of the prompts below (1 for each novel) to respond in a short essay (no longer than one typed page each). Make sure that your essay:

i. does not merely summarize the plot.

ii. responds to the prompt with a thesis that presents a defensible interpretation and a clear and logical line of reasoning.

iii. provides evidence to support your line of reasoning.

iv. explains how the evidence supports your line of reasoning.

v. uses appropriate grammar and punctuation in communicating your argument. Be precise in your word choice and explanations.

Prompt Choices:

1. A symbol is an object, action, or event that represents something or that creates a range of associations beyond itself. In literary works a symbol can express an idea, clarify meaning, or enlarge literal meaning. Choose one of your summer-reading novels in which a symbol reveals something complex about the characters or themes within the work. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze what complex idea or meaning the symbol reveals and how it contributes to an interpretation of the work as a whole.

2. In some works of literature, a character who appears briefly, or does not appear at all, is a significant presence. Choose one of your summer-reading novels in which such a character affects action, theme, or the development of other characters. Then, in a well-written essay, 

analyze the effect of this character and how it contributes to an interpretation of the work as a whole. 

3. Names are often keys to the significance of literary characters. Choose one of your summer-reading novels in which a central figure’s name gives access to that character’s ambiguity or complexity. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how the name illuminates that character and how it contributes to an interpretation of the work as a whole. 

4. Consider the following quote: “. . . the beauty of the world . . . has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder.” (—Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own) Woolf’s statement suggests that literary work achieves its greatest power by blending humor and suffering, laughter and anguish. Choose one of your summer-reading novels in which humor and suffering interact. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how the complex effect of this interaction contributes to an interpretation of the work as a whole. 

5. In a novel by William Styron, a father tells his son that life “is a search for justice.” Choose one of your summer-reading novels in which a character responds in some significant way to justice or injustice. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how the character’s understanding and pursuit of justice contribute to an interpretation of the work as a whole.