The Summer Reading Assignment

Transcription

1 The Summer Reading Assignment (Advanced Placement English Language and Composition ~ S. Loftin) DIRECTIONS: Before returning to school, read F. Scott Fitzgeralds s The Great Gatsby to complete this summer reading assignment. Use this assignment to guide your reading and to prepare for discussions and related assignments, including the test that will be given during the first week of the school year. You may use this assignment during the quiz. A typed, hard copy of this assignment is due on the first day of school---monday, August 19 (A) / Tuesday, August 20 (B). Submit the components of this assignment in sequence based on the section numbers. Include a title page as your first sheet. Follow the model title page that is provided on this packet s last page. Type all sections---one-sided---using 12 font Times New Roman, Ariel, Calibri, or Cambria. Doublespace the paragraphs you develop for Section 6, Section 7, and Section 10. Because all parts of this summer reading assignment must be typed, these sheets only provide a model. The 2014 AP Exam for English Language and Composition will be administered at 8 A.M. on Friday, May 10. SECTION 1: Explain each of the following terms in the context of the early twentieth century. Flapper The Great War Women s Suffrage Bootlegger 1

2 SECTION 2: Social and economic class play a significant role in The Great Gatsby. Tom Buchanan represents old money---a term that refers to families who have been wealthy for several generations. Jay Gatsby represents new money---a term that refers to individuals who acquire their fortunes within their lifetimes and spend it conspicuously. Tom s and Gatsby s behaviors and attitudes are suggestive of the conflicting values between old and new money. For each character, select three instances in which issues concerning his wealth and status arise. Provide a concrete detail (in your own words) and a supporting quote from the text (with MLA parenthetical citation) for each instance and commentary concerning what each suggests about the character. Tom Concrete Details and Supporting Quotes with Parenthetical Citation What It Suggests about His Character Gatsby Concrete Details and Supporting Quotes with Parenthetical Citation What It Suggests about His Character 2

3 SECTION 3: Flashbacks are moments when the narration moves back to an earlier point in time. Identify three flashbacks, and discuss how each flashback develops your understanding of Jay Gatsby. Provide a flashback (in your own words) and a supporting quote from the text (with MLA parenthetical citation) for each flashback. Flashback How It Develops Jay Gatsby 3

4 SECTION 4: Accidents as Motif In literature, a motif is a recurring object, concept, or structure in a work of literature that allows a reader to see main points and themes that the author is trying to express, in order that the reader might be able to interpret the work more accurately. Use this literary definition to help you with this two-part activity. Two cars are involved in the complex action in Chapter Seven. For the first part of this activity, list the events in chronological order, paying attention to and discussing the details, including the drivers of the two vehicles, the places they visit, and the significant events at each location. Please remember to include supporting quotes with parenthetical citations. For this activity s second part, examine each of the car accidents in The Great Gatsby, and for each accident, note both of the bulleted items below: who is involved the cause of the accident Both events connect to Fitzgerald s development of the idea of carelessness. Using both accidents and two or three examples from the rest of the book, explain Fitzgerald s commentary on how carelessness works in society. Please remember to include supporting quotes with parenthetical citations. 4

5 SECTION 5: Party Comparisons Over the course of the novel, the social interactions of the characters take on increasing significance. The parties one throws and attends can reveal a great deal about an individual, especially if those parties are held up in contrast with one another. Looking at the party thrown by Tom and Myrtle at their hideaway in New York and at the first lavish affair thrown by Gatsby which Nick attends, compare the host(s) of the party and party-goers, and draw conclusions about what each party reveals about its host(s). Please remember to include supporting quotes with parenthetical citations. The Guests Descriptions Tom and Myrtle s Party Details That Describe the Party (setting, events, impressions) Conclusions That Can Be Drawn about the Host(s) Gatsby s First Party 5

6 SECTION 6: Nick s Character Characterization: In a paragraph that contains seven to ten sentences, explain how Nick has changed by the end of the novel. Embed one concrete detail from the beginning of the novel and one concrete detail from the end of the novel to support your explanation. Note the example below that illustrates how to embed (integrate) the supporting quotes you choose. Notice how the quote is a fluent part of the sentence as a whole. The quote is neither placed in a separate sentence, nor is the quote awkwardly placed in the sentence. Please remember to include supporting quotes with parenthetical citations. Example By the end of the novel, Huck declares that he can t stand (Fitzgerald 324) the idea of being adopted by Aunt Sally. Ensure that your paragraph masterfully contains the seven bulleted elements below: begins with an attention-grabbing debatable claim/assertion in the topic sentence provides proof for the topic sentence s claim/assertion shows how the evidence supports the claim/assertion avoids digression and includes only relevant details provides transitions that logically connect ideas and show relationships ends with a strong concluding sentence that pulls together the paragraph s main idea and leaves a lasting impression on your reader s mind without introducing a new subject avoids using first-person and second-person pronouns and references Section 7: Thesis Statement Thesis Statement: In a complete sentence, explain what F. Scott Fitzgerald suggests about materialism, the American Dream, or love. Remember that the thesis statement must contain both the subject and the claim/assertion (the author s opinion about that topic). In the example of a thesis statement below, note that the subject is underlined, and the claim/assertion is bolded only for the purpose of illustration. Also, note that the claim/assertion, which includes the subject, can stand alone as a sentence by itself. In your thesis statement, ensure that you italicize the title of the novel and that you include the author s full name. Example In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee suggests that prejudice makes true justice impossible. 6

7 SECTION 8: Colors and Personality Fitzgerald symbolically uses colors as indicators of personality in his characters. Color can tell a careful reader much about who a character is and what his or her personality is like. Locate two places where color is used to significantly reveal or reinforce an idea about a character s personality, and explain how color is used in context to give a reader a deeper understanding. Please remember to include supporting quotes with parenthetical citations. Quotation(s) with Parenthetical Citation about Color and Character Context Within the Novel Where Color Is Mentioned Explanation of What the Use of Color Contributes to a Reader s Knowledge of the Character s Personality 7

8 Section 9: Author s Style In literature, an author writes in a particular style in order to convey meaning. Elements of style may include diction (word choice), syntax (sentence structure), or point of view ---all of which establish the tone (attitude of the writer or narrator towards the subject). In the following space, record how Fitzgerald describes three important settings in the novel and how those choices affect the tone. Concrete Details That Describe a Significant Setting along with Textual Evidence with Parenthetical Citation Commentary on How the Stylistic Choices Affect the Tone 8

9 SECTION 10: Evaluation of the Work In a paragraph that contains seven to ten sentences, discuss whether or not we still have the same social and economic class issues that are explored in F. Scott Fitzgerald s The Great Gatsby. Ensure that your paragraph masterfully contains the six bulleted elements below: begins with an attention-grabbing debatable claim/assertion in the topic sentence provides proof for the topic sentence s claim shows how the evidence supports the claim avoids digression and includes only relevant details provides transitions that logically connect ideas and show relationships ends with a strong concluding sentence that pulls together the paragraph s main idea and leaves a lasting impression on your reader s mind without introducing a new subject 9

10 Analysis of F. Scott Fitzgerald s The Great Gatzby: The Summer Reading Assignment by Indira Singh AP English Language and Composition Period 1A Ms. S. Loftin August 19,