Semester 1 Final Exam Study Guide

Transcription

1 Semester 1 Final Exam Study Guide Your semester 1 exam will be comprised of three parts: 1. Knowledge and Understanding (25%) Questions in this section will be multiple choice or short answer. Questions could cover the plot, characters, conflict, setting, theme, and narrative perspective from Pygmalion, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and/or The Taming of the Shrew. Questions could cover terminology, either in definition or in practice (i.e. Read the following lines. What type of imagery is exemplified by the underlined portions?) Questions could cover vocabulary. Expect to be asked about the Shakespeare Facts of the Day. 2. Close Reading Analysis (25%) You will be given two passages to choose from. You will be expected to analyze the author or playwright s use of figurative and literary techniques. This portion of the exam will be based on the quality of your ideas and your thoroughness. The passages could be extracted from Pygmalion, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and/or The Taming of the Shrew. 3. Literary Essay (50%) You will be given an option of four prompts. Choose one and compose a structured, formal essay. You will be expected to use a DAYTCST introduction and at least one MEAEAL paragraph. Prepare your quotation collection to bring in. Remember, it may be typed, but it must be in hard copy and there are no notes allowed. You may only include context to the point of identifying which character has spoken the lines you have written (i.e. no more than Dorian says ). Any quotation collections with information beyond this will be taken away. The literary essay could be based on Pygmalion, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and/or The Taming of the Shrew. Use the rest of this packet to go into each category of the exam more deeply. Remember also to use the resources already posted on Homework Central, too!

2 KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING (25%) In addition to reviewing the plot, characters, conflict, setting, narrative perspective, and theme of each of the three major literary works, review the following terms. When applicable, note how they might be used or exemplified in the works we have read so far this year. 1. Novel 2. Play 3. Book 4. Author 5. Playwright 6. Parody 7. Marxist Literary Criticism 8. Patriarchy 9. Technique (including examples of figurative, language, and literary techniques such as diction, personification, metaphor, simile, repetition, alliteration, and so forth) 10. Stage directions 11. Irony 12. Satire 13. Shakespearean comedy 14. Internal conflict 15. External conflict 16. Temptation motif 17. Faustian bargain 18. Characterization 19. Imagery (visual, olfactory, gustatory, auditory, tactile) 20. Symbolism 21. Point of view or narrative perspective (including first person, third person omniscient, and third person limited) 22. Motif 23. Gothic fiction 24. Victorian era 25. Elizabethan England 26. DAYTCST 27. MEAEAL Remember to review vocabulary words from Pygmalion and The Picture of Dorian Gray: 1. Tremulous 2. Truculent 3. Enmity 4. Scrupulous 5. Languidly 6. Listlessly 7. Candor 8. Capricious 9. Paradox 10. Mediocrity 11. Supercilious 12. Gilt 13. Shrill 14. Efficacy 15. Sordid 16. Placid 17. Sullen 18. Affluence 19. Degradation 20. Egotism 21. Irrevocable 22. Ardent 23. Disdain 24. Callousness 25. Atone 26. Tedious 27. Abject 28. Affinity 29. Idolatry 30. Induce 31. Misanthrope 32. Pall 33. Argot 34. Garrulous 35. Obsequious 36. Decried

3 37. Detriment 38. Doleful 39. Insolence 40. Stanch 41. Profligacies 42. Balustrade 43. Parody 44. Culminated 45. Entreat 46. Precipice 47. Corroborative 48. Inordinate 49. Joviality 50. Unadulterated 51. Gaunt 52. Infamy 53. Writhed 54. Abdicate 55. Jaded 56. Scepticism/skepticism 57. Plenitude 58. Presentiment 59. Spectral 60. Procuring 61. Renunciation 62. Stagnate 63. Uncouth 64. Tarnished 65. Unsullied 66. Visage 67. Gumption 68. Plight 69. Amiable 70. Deprecate 71. Appalled 72. Melancholy 73. Resent 74. Hastily 75. Impertinent 76. Repudiate 77. Haughtily 78. Articulate 79. Bilious 80. Mendacity 81. Rebuke 82. Impetuous 83. Petulance 84. Pretension 85. Contemplate 86. Cynical 87. Pedantic 88. Extricate 89. Discreet 90. Sanguinary 91. Consolation 92. Pallor 93. Fervently 94. Presumptuous 95. Subjective 96. Condescend 97. Perfunctorily 98. Pantomime 99. Malice 100. Pathos 101. Deplorable 102. Peremptorily 103. Sniveling 104. Elocution 105. Reluctant 106. Remonstrance 107. Relent 108. Dogmatically 109. Emphatically 110. Audacity 111. Unabashed 112. Indignant 113. Provocation 114. Resignation 115. Demean 116. Magnanimous 117. Sneer 118. Avert 119. Transfiguration 120. Supplant 121. Loath CLOSE READING ANALYSIS (25%) This section can be challenging to review for, but here are some study tips: 1. Make sure you know a variety of ways and techniques an author or playwright might incorporate into his or her style. These could include diction or word choice, metaphors, similes, personification, alliteration, repetition, word order, sentence structure, punctuation, imagery, and so forth. 2. Try choosing a page from one of our three major texts at random and writing a close reading analysis. Make sure you time yourself try to keep your analysis around 20 minutes. 3. Review how to quote the text, integrating quotations into your writing and using proper citation. 4. Review the sample posted on HC under The Taming of the Shrew resources.

4 ESSAY (50%) In this section you will find old essay questions and various samples, including a review of MEAEAL and DAYTCST. Remember, you will be graded on your knowledge of the text, your response to the question, your analysis of the text (i.e. quotations and analysis), structure (DAYTCST and MEAEAL/MEAL), and your use of language (present tense, avoid contractions, formal use of language, proper notation of the text s title, and so forth). When you begin reviewing for the essay portion of your exam, first start by reviewing weak points in previous essays. Try making a list of things you need to focus on. It s then a good idea to actually practice writing an essay. This will help you gather the quotations you need, but it will also help you review the structures we have gone over this semester. Hopefully this portion of the guide is helpful to you! Past Essay Questions The essay prompts that appear on your semester final will not include these essay prompts exactly, but they are a good point at which to begin your review and study. Explain the role of symbolism in the text. Explain how Oscar Wilde s use of imagery in his 1891 novel The Picture of Dorian Gray reflects his views on Aestheticism. Explain how characterization contributes to one of the work s main messages. Consider Oscar Wilde s 1891 novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. Trace the temptation motif throughout the novel, picking out several key moments to prove how the major conflict evolves throughout the novel. Explain how Oscar Wilde s use of light and dark imagery in his 1891 novel The Picture of Dorian Gray contributes to Dorian s characterization. Many people consider the ending of a work of literature to be the best or most important part. Explain how a character s final actions contribute to his/her characterization. Many people consider the ending of a work of literature to be the best or most important part. Explain how a character s final actions contribute to the overall message of the work. Consider Oscar Wilde s 1891 novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. Explain how Dorian resolves his internal conflict in the final chapter of the text. How does his way of resolving this conflict contribute to the main message/s of the text? Consider Oscar Wilde s 1891 novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. To what extent is Dorian a dynamic (one who changes from beginning to end) or static character (one who stays the same from beginning to end)? What role does violence play in the novel? To what extent does narrative perspective (point of view) shape meaning in the novel? Who assumes a position of power and why? How do the powerful justify their power? To what extent does the structure of the literary work hinder or enhance a reader s understanding of its main themes and messages? Analyze George Bernard Shaw s 1912 play Pygmalion from a Marxist critical perspective. Explain how characterization reveals George Bernard Shaw s main message about gender in his 1912 play Pygmalion. Explain the ways in which George Bernard Shaw has commented upon the real issues of his society through the composition of his 1912 play Pygmalion.

5 Here are a couple of sample essays. The first example is a poetry essay, and the second example is based on Lord of the Flies. EXPLAIN HOW THE AUTHOR USES THREE STYLISTIC DEVICES TO EXPRESS A THEME IN THE POEM BECAUSE I COULD NOT STOP FOR DEATH BY EMILY DICKINSON. Death is most people s greatest fear. Yet Emily Dickinson, a reclusive poet known for ruminating about death, felt differently. Many of her poems discussed death in a neutral or even sometimes positive way, suggesting that death would be an experience that people should feel differently about. Dickinson s poem Because I Could Not Stop for Death, first published posthumously in 1890, features the speaker confronting death. In Because I Could Not Stop for Death, poet Emily Dickinson ironically explains that death is a pleasant passage that eventually comes to everyone through the use of personification, rhythm, and an extended metaphor. Dickinson s use of personification depicts death as a gentleman, a man who is chivalrous and kind towards others. In the first two lines of the poem, the speaker states that Because I could not stop for Death, / He kindly stopped for me (1-2). Death, capitalized like a name, is represented as someone kindly who stops to pick up the speaker at her house. This image is very unlike the gruesome and gory Grim Reaper that is the common characterization of death. While taking the speaker on her passage to the afterlife, Death slowly drove, he knew no haste (5). Again, like a gentleman, Death does not rush the speaker. He is patient, kind, and attentive to her needs. Personification makes death like a gentleman. He is not scary, but a pleasant, kind, and helpful person. The regular rhythm in the poem at first seems ironic, but reflects the fact that death is being presented as something satisfying or agreeable rather than frightening or tragic. Each stanza begins with 8 syllables in the first line, 6 syllables in the second, then 8 again in the third, and 6 again in the fourth. This pattern produces a quicker rhythm in first and third line of each stanza, slower in second and fourth, emphasizing the second and fourth, which usually contain the most revealing ideas in the poem such as eternity and immortality. Clearly, there is a continuity of syllables in each stanza since the pattern repeats. Consequently, this provides musicality to the poem. The regular rhythm makes the poem lighter in tone, which seems ironic to reader at first since death is usually something frightening. However, upon deeper reading it becomes clear that the musical nature of the poem fittingly reflects death as a calm passage instead of a fearsome and unknown event. Lastly, Dickinson is able to portray death as something positive through her use of extended metaphor in the fourth stanza. The speaker states that she and Death paused before a house that seemed / A swelling of the ground (17-8). When the reader imagines this house it is at first difficult to recognize it as a grave. Yet the poem s topic of death combined with the house s description as a swelling of the ground reveal that the speaker has indeed arrived at her new home, but that new home is her tomb. The speaker then notes that The roof was scarcely visible, / The cornice but a mound (19-20). Here, in the metaphor s extension, the house is illustrated as deep in the ground, further cementing the idea that the home is in fact a grave. Interestingly, the grave is described in a very normal and neutral way. Many people think of a grave as a cold and frightening representation of the end of life, but here the speaker easily and pleasantly refers to it like a home. Death is a normal part of life that does not have to be difficult or scary. In fact, in one of her most widely-read poems, Because I Could Not Stop for Death, Emily Dickinson proves that death can be a pleasant passage instead of a finite end. Throughout the poem, personification makes death appear a gentleman, rhythm gives the poem a whimsical or musical feel, and an extended metaphor makes the speaker s grave seem more like a home. It is true that death is a part of the cycle of life, but it is also something that most people fear. That being said, is it possible to view death in a new light? Death can and should be viewed as an accepted life event, and as Dickinson proves, a pleasant release from hardship and toil.

6 Notice that in this poetry essay, the body paragraphs are color-coded: Main idea Evidence or example Analysis and explanation Evidence or example Analysis and explanation Link back to thesis statement and consider the effect the main idea has on the reader or audience. Now let s focus in on the introduction and the conclusion. In a sense, the two are mirror images. They should relate so that your paper is cohesive and clear. That being said, it s important that your conclusion attempt to push more deeply. Try considering the effect the main message of the text has on the audience or reader. The introduction should have: 1. DUCKS: Define or describe the word, words, or phrase that is at the heart of your essay. Look into your thesis statement, and ask yourself, What is this really all about? Remember to avoid dictionary definitions; YOU define YOUR terms. Remember also that this should be a big, broad statement you have not yet introduced the text! Remember also that it is more effective to define or describe an idea rather than a technique. 2. AND: Author 3. YELLOW: Year of publication 4. TRUCKS: Title 5. CONSTANTLY: Context. This could be author background information, details about the period in which the author wrote, or even how the text was received in the time of its publication versus now. Context grounds the text in some type of reality. 6. SWIM: Summary 7. TOGETHER: Thesis statement. Remember that the thesis statement is the most important part of the introduction. You should have an argument and a plan (an outline or explanation of how you will be proving your overall point). If needed, this can be split into two sentences or written as one. Notice that I can, to an extent, play around with the order of the introduction, but I should ALWAYS start with DUCKS and end with TRUCKS. The conclusion should have the three Rs : 1. Review of the main argument in the thesis statement. 2. Review of the main points of each body paragraph. Consider writing one sentence for each. 3. Reflection on you opening D sentence/s from your introduction. In the end, your introduction and conclusion are mirror images: Death is most people s greatest fear. Yet for Emily Death is a normal part of life that does not have to be Dickinson, a reclusive poet known for ruminating about difficult or scary. In fact, in one of her most widely-read death, felt differently. Many of her poems discussed poems, Because I Could Not Stop for Death, Emily death in a neutral or even sometimes positive way, Dickinson proves that death can be a pleasant passage suggesting that death would be an experience that instead of a finite end. Throughout the poem, people should feel different about. Dickinson s poem personification makes death appear a gentleman, Because I Could Not Stop for Death, first published rhythm gives the poem a whimsical or musical feel, and posthumously in 1890, features the speaker confronting an extended metaphor makes the speaker s grave seem death. In Because I Could Not Stop for Death, poet more like a home. It is true that death is a part of the cycle Emily Dickinson ironically explains that death is a of life, but it is also something that most people fear. That pleasant passage that eventually comes to everyone being said, is it possible to view death in a new light? Death through the use of personification, rhythm, and an can and should be viewed as an accepted life event, and as extended metaphor. Dickinson proves, a pleasant release from hardship and toil.

7 CONSIDER WILLIAM GOLDING S USE OF SYMBOLISM IN LORD OF THE FLIES. EXPLAIN HOW SYMBOLISM IS USED TO EXPRESS MEANING IN THE BOOK. It is a commonly held belief that all people are both good, meaning they have the natural inclination to act charitably and empathetically, and bad, meaning they have the inherent tendency to commit sinful and selfish acts. In his 1954 novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding, an English writer and war veteran, explores the tug-of-war between righteousness and malevolence in human nature. The novel depicts a group of boys who are stranded on an island and come in contact with many unique elements that symbolize ideas or concepts relating to and representing their natures. Through the use of symbols such as the pig's head, the beast, and Piggy's specs, Golding demonstrates that humans, when liberated from society's rules and taboos, allow their natural capacity for evil to dominate their existence. One of the most important and most obvious symbols in Lord of the Flies is the object that gives the novel its name, the pig's head. Golding's description of the slaughtered animal's head on a spear is very graphic and even frightening. The pig's head is depicted as "dim-eyed, grinning faintly, blood blackening between the teeth," and the "obscene thing" is covered with a "black blob of flies" that "tickled under his nostrils" (137-8). As a result of this detailed, striking image, the reader becomes aware of the great evil and darkness represented by the Lord of the Flies, and when Simon begins to converse with the seemingly inanimate, devil-like object, the source of that wickedness is revealed. Even though the conversation may be entirely a hallucination, Simon learns that the beast, which has long since frightened the other boys on the island, is not an external force. In fact, the head of the slain pig tells him, "Fancy thinking the beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn't you? I'm part of you?" (143). At the end of this scene, the immense evil represented by this powerful symbol can once again be seen as Simon faints after looking into the wide mouth of the pig and seeing "blackness within, a blackness that spread" (144). Thus, evil, epitomized by the pig's head, that is causing the boys' island society to decline, is inherently present within man. Another of the most important symbols used to present the theme of the novel is the beast. In the imaginations of many of the boys, the beast is a tangible source of evil on the island. However, in reality, it represents the evil naturally present within everyone, which is causing life on the island to deteriorate. Simon begins to realize this even before his encounter with the Lord of the Flies, and during one argument over the existence of a beast, he attempts to share his insight with the others. Timidly, Simon tells them, "Maybe, maybe there is no beast. What I mean is, maybe it's only us" (89). In response to Simon's statement, the other boys, who had once conducted their meetings with some sense of order, immediately begin to argue more fiercely. The crowd gives a "wild whoop" when Jack rebukes Ralph, saying "Bollocks to the rules! We're strong, we hunt! If there's a beast, we'll hunt it down! We'll close in and beat and beat and beat!" (91). Clearly, the boys' fear of the beast and their ironic desire to kill the beast shows that the hold which society's rules once had over them has been loosened during the time they have spent without supervision on the island. The evil within the boys has more of an effect on their existence as they spend more time on the island, isolated from the rest of society, and this decline is portrayed by Piggy's specs. Throughout the novel, Piggy represents the civilization and the rules from which the boys have been separated. Interestingly, as Piggy loses his ability to see, so do the other boys lose their vision of that civilization. When the story begins, Piggy can see clearly with both lenses of his spectacles intact, and the boys are still fairly civilized. For example, at one of their first meetings, the boys decide that they "can't have everybody talking at once" and that they "have to have Hands up like at school" (33). However, after some time passes, the hunters become more concerned with slaughtering a pig than with being rescued and returning to civilization. When they return from a successful hunt in the jungle chanting "Kill the pig, cut her throat, spill her blood," Ralph and Piggy attempt to explain to the hunters that having meat for their meals is not as important as keeping the signal fire burning (69). In an ensuing scuffle, Jack knocks Piggy s specs from his face, smashing one of the lenses against the mountain rocks and greatly impairing his vision, symbolizing the boys transition to a more savage society. Finally, after Jack forms his own tribe of savages, he and two of his followers ambush

8 Ralph, Piggy, and Samneric, and in the midst of "a vicious snarling in the mouth of the shelter and the plunge and thump of living things," Piggy's specs are stolen, leaving him virtually blind (167). Meanwhile, Jack returns to Castle Rock, "trotting steadily, exulting in his achievement," as he has practically abandoned all ties to civilized life (168). Lord of the Flies is a story that portrays the dark, deteriorating life that results from mankind's inherent capacity for evil, which is allowed to control humans when they are freed from the rules of society. Throughout the novel, Golding uses many different objects as symbols to illustrate this theme. Some of those objects would be insignificant in real life and would most likely be taken for granted. However, in Lord of the Flies, the Lord of the Flies itself, the beast, and Piggy s specs are each vital to the story's theme. Thus, while there is goodness in each of us, sin and selfishness take over in the absence of society s rules and expectations, proving that, inherently, humans are evil and sinful creatures. Your introduction and conclusion are mirror images: It is a commonly held belief that all people are both good, meaning they have the natural inclination to act charitably and empathetically, and bad, meaning they have the inherent tendency to commit sinful and selfish acts. In his 1954 novel Lord of the Flies, William Golding, an English writer and war veteran, explores the tug-of-war between righteousness and malevolence in human nature. The novel depicts a group of boys who are stranded on an island and come in contact with many unique elements that symbolize ideas or concepts relating to and representing their natures. Through the use of symbols such as the pig's head, the beast, and Piggy's specs, Golding demonstrates that humans, when liberated from society's rules and taboos, allow their natural capacity for evil to dominate their existence. Lord of the Flies is a story that portrays the dark, deteriorating life that results from mankind's inherent capacity for evil, which is allowed to control humans when they are freed from the rules of society. Throughout the novel, Golding uses many different objects as symbols to illustrate this theme. Some of those objects would be insignificant in real life and would most likely be taken for granted. However, in Lord of the Flies, the Lord of the Flies itself, the beast, and Piggy s specs are each vital to the story's theme. Thus, while there is goodness in each of us, sin and selfishness take over in the absence of society s rules and expectations, proving that, inherently, humans are evil and sinful creatures. Here s another great example of an introduction and conclusion: Conscience, the internal character of ones mind, With the help of the yellow book, the portrait, and opium is what gives a person guidance on the decisions and and opium dens, Oscar Wilde is able to clearly explain to actions he/she chooses to make in his/her everyday the readers that a person cannot live his or her life solely life. In his 1891 novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, on instinct. Instead, one must listen to his or her author Oscar Wilde portrays the importance of the conscience in order to make wise decisions that will not change in ones personal character and the importance jeopardize his or her being. The yellow book represents how of listening to one s conscience. Being an author of easily manipulated a person can be into doing things when he the Victorian era, Oscar Wilde's novel demonstrates or she is presented with such things. The portrait is a direct the importance of admitting and repenting for one's representation of Dorian's soul and what is on his conscience, sins, no matter how horrid they may be, and of living for when he murders Basil, the red shows on the portrait a life of honesty and righteousness. Dorian, the main representing the blood of Basil on the hands of Dorian. The character of the novel, goes through many internal opium and opium dens are representative of how when Dorian conflicts dealing with drug abuse and his own uses these substances he is not able to make smart decisions as conscience and dirty soul. He also experiences the to what he is going to do, because the opium takes away he matters of treacherous external conflicts, as he ability to think clearly while he is under that influence. While, commits two murders, one of his beloved, Sybil, and at first, The Picture of Dorian Gray seems like a story of an the second of his admirer, Basil. While Dorian comes indecisive man who has no direction in his thoughts, it to realize that his life is not in a very pleasing state, becomes a story of a murderer with a dirty conscience who he tries to repent for all things he has done. Dorian s finds the worst ways possible to cleanse his soul. By the end evolution of character from naïve to corrupt is of the novel conscience is defined as how a person goes about portrayed by the yellow book, the portrait, and the repenting for his or her sins and horrid actions; all people will opium and opium dens, proving that living a commit actions in their lives that they regret, but what is righteous life means living by one s conscience. important is how he or she goes about making up for those actions.

9 Let s quickly focus in on body paragraphs. One of the most important and most obvious symbols in Lord of the Flies is the object that gives the novel its name, the pig's head. Golding's description of the slaughtered animal's head on a spear is very graphic and even frightening. The pig's head is depicted as "dim-eyed, grinning faintly, blood blackening between the teeth," and the "obscene thing" is covered with a "black blob of flies" that "tickled under his nostrils" (137-8). As a result of this detailed, striking image, the reader becomes aware of the great evil and darkness represented by the Lord of the Flies, and when Simon begins to converse with the seemingly inanimate, devil-like object, the source of that wickedness is revealed. Even though the conversation may be entirely a hallucination, Simon learns that the beast, which has long since frightened the other boys on the island, is not an external force. In fact, the head of the slain pig tells him, "Fancy thinking the beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn't you? I'm part of you?" (143). At the end of this scene, the immense evil represented by this powerful symbol can once again be seen as Simon faints after looking into the wide mouth of the pig and seeing "blackness within, a blackness that spread" (144). Thus, evil, epitomized by the pig's head, that is causing the boys' island society to decline, is inherently present within man. In her short story Snapshots of a Wedding set in Botswana, South African author Bessie Head illustrates the tenuous conflict between tradition and modernization in the Setswana culture. While the changes that result from modernization can have both positive and negative effects, the narrative voice in the story could be considered ironic in consideration of Head s life, implying the possibility that Head indeed feels that in a world that is progressing and becoming more modern, traditions can be problematic and even stifling. The female character Neo, who is educated through her O levels much like Head herself, is shunned by her family and even by the third person narrator, who notes that she is an impossible girl with haughty, arrogant ways (l ). The narrator is much aligned with Neo s traditional family in believing that a Western education has in some way ruined her, yet it seems strange given Head s biographical connections to Neo, suggesting that the narrator has been created as an ironic contrast to Head s personal feelings. Moreover, the narrator claims that life has treated Neo rather nicely when she essentially forces Kegoletile into a marriage born of her own anxiety and a pregnancy she planned without his consent (l. 53). In addition to the understated combination of rather nicely, one must consider Neo s situation in contrast to the literal meaning of these words. A progressive woman like Head, who was both a teacher and journalist, might not consider this a nice predicament in reality. The fact that Neo pushes herself into this situation combined with the traditional narrator s feelings that this is a positive outcome demonstrates the strains that Neo, and possibly even Head, feels as a modern woman who has become an outsider in her once-familiar society. A close reading of the text and knowledge of Head s personal life lead the reader to recognizing the irony of the narrative voice and thus the subtle comment Head makes about the restrictions traditional societies may inadvertently put on their increasingly modern, young generations. Your opening sentence should be straightforward and clear. Do NOT get into a summary! Remember, the purpose of this text is to provide a convincing analysis, so start with the analysis right away. Notice that, for the most part, the quotations are short, and the analysis is longer. Provide the text, and then closely read it! Remember that a quotation is just any group of words that was said by someone other than you. Starting an analysis sentence with This quotation shows is thus imprecise and ineffective. What is it about the words you presented that affect a reader? In the case of these analysis sentences, the elements of the text that affect the reader are the detailed, striking image. These opening sentences are a bit too long. However, since you (you reading this study guide!) are not familiar with this short story, it is helpful to have a little extra background so I left it in. You re right, though they re a bit long. I like that the person who wrote this incorporated close reading into his/her analysis sentences. He/she considers the understated combination of words and the contrast that s indicated by them. In terms of the sentence that presents the quotation from the text ( treated Neo rather nicely ), I like that the quotation is so smoothly integrated into the sentence.

10 Here are a few more to examine Look specifically at how neither of them use This quotations shows or This shows. The writers of these paragraphs were specific and deliberate about the way they analyzed the text. The prologue s function in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is to create a bridge that both foreshadows the themes and tone of the story to follow and connects the meaning of the title to the narrative itself. To begin with, the protagonist and first-person narrator of the prologue is Marguerite, and this tells the reader that she will most likely have the spotlight pointed on her for the rest of the autobiography. When speaking of herself, Marguerite claims that she is really white and a cruel fairy stepmother...had turned [her] into a too-big Negro girl, with nappy black hair, broad feet and a space between [her] teeth that would hold a number-two pencil. The fact that she emphasizes her race and connects it with such negative imagery proves its significance. This desire to be white instead of black additionally shows the effects Jim Crow era racism had on people, including innocent and vulnerable children. From just the prologue, it is clear to the reader that racial discrimination will be a major focus of the narrative. Moreover, the reader can conclude that most likely the majority of Black-American children found the process of growing up very hard, emphasized by the metaphor within the final lines: If growing up is painful for a Southern black girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat. With this metaphor, comparing a young girl s life to the threat of a painful death, protagonist Marguerite (and thus her older voice Maya) indicates the fear and danger of being aware of the multiple forces of opposition working against her. The lines not only demonstrate the highly figurative style of the prose to follow, but in particular highlight the themes of racial and gender discrimination. Arising from the image of the caged bird in the title, particularly in consideration of the Jim Crow era context, are themes such as liberty and freedom, which are connected to a quotation on page 6: I laughed anyway, partially for the sweet release; still, the greater joy came not only from being liberated from the silly church, but from the knowledge that I wouldn t die from a busted head. This scene creates in the mind of the reader the image of Marguerite during her moment of freedom, when she can, alone, run from the church to her house. She might be symbolized by the image of the bird, who, although being in a cage, still has the power to sing; just like she has to power to be happy even though the problems she has to face are many. The prologue is thus able to introduce the main character and the conflicts that she faces and Angelou s highly figurative style, but more importantly the theme of discrimination, smoothly leading the reader from the title to the main prose of the autobiography. Although the play is set in Venice, Italy, the major social conflicts of the play The Merchant of Venice were specifically chosen in order to reflect the society of Shakespeare s audience. A major conflict during Shakespeare s time was the malevolence between Christians and Jews, especially prominent in the topic of usury. The Merchant of Venice, by Shakespeare, portrays this conflict between the major characters in the story, Shylock, the Jew usurer, and Antonio, the Christian merchant. In a rant, Shylock describes the way that Antonio, and by extension Christians, had been treating him: You call me a misbeliever, cut-throat dog, / and spit upon my Jewish gaberdine (I.iii.108-9). The hostility of Antonio s actions serve as an allusion to the Christian treatment of Jews in England; this makes the play s conflicts more relevant to the audience. In one of Shylock s asides, the Jewish viewpoint on the conflict is revealed as he states, I hate him for he is a Christian; / but more, for that in low simplicity / he lends out money gratis and brings down / the rate of usance (I.iii.39-42). Even though this aside explains the Jewish view on Christians, it still depicts the Jews as the money-grabbing villains. Jewish people were most likely characterized in this way to appeal to Shakespeare s audience, who were mainly English Christians. Moreover, with most of England s population being devout Christians, the Bible s refutation of usury augmented the already present anti-semitism. The hatred of Jews and usury makes the plot more relatable for the early modern English audience. Shylock s hatred of Antonio and the Bible s denial of usury further solidify the social similarities of Venice and England, making the play more relatable for Shakespeare s audience.