A.P. English Literature and Composition North Scott High School Instructor: Carolyn Keck College Board Approved Course Syllabus

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1 A.P. English Literature and Composition North Scott High School Instructor: Carolyn Keck College Board Approved Course Syllabus Goals: The overriding goals for this college-level course are to help students read attentively and perceptively, understand how language complements content, develop an appreciation of literature, and write insightfully and fluidly about it. Objectives: * Students will read classic and contemporary texts comprised of novels, plays, short stories, poems, and literary criticism by diverse writers from varied cultures across five centuries of study * Students will study these texts to explore meaning and will respond to the ideas, issues and themes implicit in them with clarity of thought and expression * Students will produce timed expository, analytical, and argument essays on a weekly basis that prepare them for the AP English Literature exam * Students will apply technical writing and grammar lessons to improve their self-expression and to elevate their writing style * Students will study other artistic mediums such as art slides and film clips -- in conjunction with literature -- to better discern the marriage of form and function * Students will analyze how authors use language (i.e. diction, syntax, tone, imagery, point of view. etc.) in order to enhance meaning * Students will consider the literature's social, historical, political, and cultural context when probing meaning * Students will develop advanced skills in writing style demonstrating varied syntax, rich diction and vivid detail, powerful verbs, descriptive adjectives and adverbs, and dense language to achieve voice * Students will rewrite longer essays after receiving instructor and peer feedback in areas such as organization, detail and commentary, and writing style * Students will produce longer and more complex essays that demonstrate advanced skills in composition and analysis * Students will recognize the universality of literature * Students will use literature as a mirror to view the self and others * Students will develop independence of thought and mature habits of critical thinking While the above objectives are the backbone of this course, they perhaps do not fully convey the exciting journey upon which we are about to embark in AP English Literature. It is with tremendous excitement that I have the honor of introducing to you some of the greatest works of literature that have ever been produced. It is my hope that by the end of the course, you will see how many of the themes, allusions, archetypes and even sound bites from the literature have become embedded in our culture, and you are able to recognize them everywhere (ex. Big Brother was not a TV show first).

2 At the beginning of the year, we will focus on analyzing the literature and poetry with depth and understanding, while we learn the "nuts of bolts" of advanced writing that allow you to showcase your ideas with greater style and sophistication. Such lessons include instruction on topics such as passive voice, power verbs, descriptive adjectives and adverbs, academic diction, embedded quotes, dependent and independent clauses, pronoun-antecedent agreement, dropping prepositions (don t) and varied syntax, among others. I will also spend instructional time teaching you how create and refine strong introductions, conclusions; I will also instruct you on paragraph organization and development from clear topic sentences to a balance of detail and commentary to effective concluding sentences, fluid transitions and different kinds of essay organization from topical to chronological. With time and application, your writing will achieve greater fluidly and power. You will become very comfortable working with a scoring guide rubric by the end of the year. While an important activity is weekly timed writing, you will also revise essays at home and in class. Please consider the first-draft comments I have given you regarding (for example) deeper analysis, tighter commentary and more embedded quotation; others may need to spend more time on the language of the essay itself incorporating (for example) richer diction, varied syntax and descriptive detail. Still others may need more practice in organizing the essay itself with tighter paragraphs, smoother transitions, and more textual evidence to support thesis. Classroom instruction will help students evaluate essays (excellent, good, fair, poor) according to a 9-point rubric in terms of content, style and organization. We will use peer editing also to discuss, critique and revise your work. We will also review critical literary terminology such as diction, syntax, imagery, tone, figurative language, etc. that we will be using constantly to dig deeper into the texts we study. In the later fall, you will begin a literary term project that asks you to pair terms with examples from literature and analyze how the example relates to the larger meaning of the work such as theme, conflict, character, symbolism, etc. In the fall, you will produce 15 terms; in the spring, you will produce 10. You may not repeat a term that you have already used and explored. This course is both reading and writing intensive and offers opportunities for you to work cooperatively and independently. We will study approximately six major works together Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, The Canterbury Tales, Pride and Prejudice, The Tempest, A Farewell to Arms, The Awakening, Not Without Laughter -- as well as extensive poetry study with in-depth focus on the poetry of T.S. Eliot, Emily Dickinson and Langston Hughes. In the fall, you will have the choice of an independent classic; in the spring, you can select a more contemporary text to explore. Units, assignments, and themes for the literature appear in the course outline that follows. An important class activity will be the ongoing reading and scoring of essays according to the College Board rubric to give you a better understanding of the elements which make for a successful, passing essay. All of your formal writing will be assessed by a content/style rubric that we will visit and revisit throughout the year and should reflect your very best Standard English and composition skills. I expect you to incorporate the grammar and writing essentials instruction I referenced earlier as you write, revise and resubmit.

3 You will be asked to produce and revise many different types of writing. Formal compositions will include the following: personal statement/college essay; timed essays; and formal essays (personal, expository and argumentative). For the timed essays, we will use the scoring guidelines as used by the AP English Literature and Composition Exam for that specific question. Informal writing will include free responses, creative writing and reflections/responses on literary criticisms. We will also do Multiple Choice practice in class. While I will teach you the strategies how to be more successful on multiple-choice questions, the work we do in class discussion on style analysis of many prose passages and poems will also help you substantially. Hopefully, the outline below will give you a good idea of what to expect for both the fall and spring semester in terms of the literature and the assignments. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need help of any kind. Please keep absences to an absolute minimum. I look forward to a rich and exciting year. Fall Semester Poetry: An Overview An introduction to Reading and Writing Poetry (Sound and Sense, fourth edition by Laurence Perrine and Thomas R. Arp) Students will learn creative and analytical techniques that enable them to read poetry and write about it responsively and insightfully AP Literary Glossary Students will receive an AP Glossary of Literary and Rhetorical Terms to study and memorize over the course of the next two semesters. The understanding of these terms will assist students in their discussion and analysis of literature Sir Gawain and the Green Knight translated by Brian Stone Discussion Questions: According to some scholars, the poem may have been inspired by English folk plays for the Christmas season. In that case, the role of the Green Knight might have been analogous to that of Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas or, in contemporary times, Santa Claus. Compare the Green Knight to one or more of these figures that personify Christmas. Admirers of President John F. Kennedy sometimes referred to his administration as Camelot after the legendary court of King Arthur. His detractors sometimes used the same name, but in an ironic way. What do you think was the reason for this designation? Was it appropriate? Why or why not? Topics: Bertilak, who is also the Green Knight, remains a mysterious figure even at the end of the poem. Do you think he is basically good, evil or fundamentally ambiguous? Perhaps even more mysterious than Bertilak is Morgan le Fay. How do you think her presence changes the poem? What is her significance? With his portrait of Camelot, the Gawain poet may have been

4 satirizing the courts of his own time, the latter fourteenth century. He criticizes, among other things, the superficiality of the lords and ladies. Many of his implicit criticisms, such as an excessive preoccupation with fashion and glamour, could also be made of contemporary American society. How much do you think people have changed since the time of the Gawain poet? The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer Discussion Questions: Using Chaucer's Prologue to The Canterbury Tales, describe the rising middle class of fourteenth-century England. Explain the variety of occupations, the degree of wealth, the level of education, and the beginnings of political power represented among the pilgrims. What general impressions about religion does the General Prologue leave? Which characters are empowered by race, gender, and class and which are not? What role does Christianity play in the journey? How is the text itself ambiguous? Explore the symbolism and significance of the each story. Topics: What features make the Knight s Tale a romance? An "anachronism" is a literary "slip" in which the author inserts something into a work that could not have happened or which could not have existed at the time the work is set. Explain the anachronism in The Knight's Tale. How does it relate to the meaning of the work? Contrast the corrupt clergyman in the Prologue with the Parson. Poetry: A Critical Case Study: Andrew Marvell s To His Coy Mistress : Sound and Sense: An Introduction Both student analysis and response, as well as critical excerpts from formalist, biographical, historical, psychological and sociologist perspectives We will tie Chaucer s and Marvell s themes into their social and cultural context and how they are the forerunners of 20 th -century modern literature Short Stories: selected short stories by modern American authors Essays: A character caught between colliding cultures A social occasion that is meaningful (timed essay including scoring guide and anchor papers) A symbol that is significant to the work as a whole Students will revise one of the above essays after receiving peer/instructor feedback. We will review a rubric prior to submission that includes the elements of composition instruction and mini lessons that we have covered in class to date. Instructor will conduct individual writing conferences in and out of class College Essay Finding the right focus; reviewing model essays; writing and charting to brainstorm; writing with style; revising for maximum impact in terms of language and content

5 We will reviews models of three college essay modes: personal essay, personal reminiscence, and essay of experience. Students will revise essay after peer and instructor feedback for early assessment Poetry: Diction, Tone, Imagery, and Figures of Speech (Bedford s Poetry: An Introduction) Written and oral analysis and discussion of the following poetic elements and how they enhance meaning: levels of diction; denotations and connotations; persona; ambiguity; syntax; dramatic monologue; carpe diem; patterns of imagery; poetry vs. prose; the metaphor family (metaphor, simile, synecdoche, metonymy, personification, apostrophe, hyperbole, understatement, paradox, oxymoron) Selections include poetry from five centuries include the following poems: Andrew Marvell s To His Coy Mistress, Thomas Hardy s The Convergence of the Twain, Galway Kinnell s The Quick and the Dead, Matthew Arnold s Dover Beach, Wilfred Owen s Dulce et Decorum Est, Gary Soto s Who Will Know Us?, Anne Bradstreet s The Author to Her Book, Margaret Atwood s February, Sylvia Plath s Mirror, Essay of analysis: John Donne s A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning this lesson will include teacher model and rubric essay will be shared in class and we will peer edit, evaluate and revise your essay with emphasis on incorporating quotes, diction, syntax, descriptive adjectives and adverbs, power verbs and clarity of thought and expression. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (foundation for the modern romantic comedy) Questions: Explore Darcy s attraction to Elizabeth -- as well as Elizabeth s reaction to Darcy s marriage proposal why is she insulted? Discuss Darcy s strengths and weakness why is he such a popular romantic character? How does entailment play an important role in the novel? Why is it important to the story that it begins with Mrs. Bennet? Compare/contrast characters who grow versus characters who refuse to change what are the implications and consequences? Topics: The title serving as the central theme; class, status, and power politics; nature and culture; parallel loves and lives Essays: A second couple who serves as a foil for the first A character who is morally ambiguous Two settings whose contrast is meaningful to the work as a whole Independent Novel I Students will choose an independent classic novel prior to 1900 from a list of selections including (not limited to) the following: the novels of Jane Austen, Emily Bronte s Wuthering Heights, Mark Twain s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Charles

6 Dickens A Tale of Two Cities, Bram Stoker s Dracula, Thomas Hardy s The Mayor of Casterbridge Students will create three typed pages (or five hand-written) of reading logs with reflection, commentary and query reflecting close reading and analysis Students will produce an AP Short Form that demonstrates insight and understanding about the novel, as well as employing advanced writing techniques Multiple-choice: Ongoing practice in Multiple Choice Questions in Preparation for the AP English Literature and Composition Examination (Fifth Edition) by Richard Vogel and Charles F. Winans Literary Terms Students produce 15 literary terms analyses using class texts Students may re-submit scored terms for a higher grade Due before Winter Break; students must keep track of returned Literary Terms with weekly score; organize and submit for a final grade in Dec. with an alphabetical table of contents by term and a point grand total Spring Semester Poetry: Symbols, Allegory, Irony, Sounds, Meter and Rhythm (Bedford s Poetry: An Introduction) Written and oral analysis and discussion of the following poetic elements and how they enhance meaning: conventional vs. contextual symbols; allegory and didactic poetry; forms of irony; satire; ballads; sound devices; patterns of rhyme Selections include poetry from five centuries include the following poems: Robert Frost s Acquainted with the Night, Julio Marzan s Ethnic Poetry, Robert Browning s My Last Duchess, William Blake s The Chimney Sweeper, Emily Dickinson s A Bird came down the Walk, Edgar Allen Poe s The Bells, Maxine Hong Kingston s Restaurant, John Keats Ode to a Nightingale, Timed in-class writing on poetry comparing and contrasting two Renaissance sonnets including samples and scoring guide The Tempest by William Shakespeare Questions: How does Prospero use background information to influence Miranda? Who is the play s tragic hero and what is his tragic flaw? How is the royal family dysfunctional? How is the tension between imprisonment and freedom meaningful? How is the tension between legitimacy and illegitimacy meaningful? What is the significance of appearance versus reality

7 motif? Which character in the play is the most sympathetic? Keeping in mind Elizabethan philosophy, to what degree are the play s themes and issues ambiguous? Topics: Elizabethan World; Chain of Being; sonnets; video clips from different film versions comparison/contrast Essays: Shakespeare passage prose essays from other plays; open questions: character in exile, character foil, a setting, a parent-child relationship; characters who hold power/characters who seek power Long essay: Persuasive essay: five pages in length with at least three articles of literary criticism referenced subject of choice Students submit a thesis and detailed outline for instructor approval and comments prior to writing a first-draft Review of MLA format for citation Direct instruction: review of the essential elements of composition (clear thesis, using quotes smoothly and effectively, balancing quotes and commentary, paragraph development and organization, etc.), grammar (pronoun usage, active voice, punctuation, use of prepositions, etc.) and style (powerful verbs, varied syntax, descriptive imagery, rich diction, etc.). These elements will be included in a grading rubric that we will review prior to paper submission You will be expected to rewrite long essay for a final draft after you receive instructor feedback in writing conference Poetry: Poetic Forms and Open Form (Bedford s Poetry: An Introduction) Written and oral analysis and discussion of the following poetic elements and how they enhance meaning: fixed form; free verse; rhyme scheme; couplet; heroic couplet; tercets and triplets; terza rima; quatrain; ballad; Petrarchan and Shakespearean sonnets; villanelle; sestina; epigram; limerick; elegy; ode; picture Selections include poetry from five centuries include the following poems: William Wordsworth s The World is Too Much with Us, William Shakespeare s My Mistress eyes are nothing like the sun, Edna St. Vincent Millay s I will put Chaos into fourteen lines, Seamus Heaney s Mid-term Break, Percy Bysshe Shelley s Ode to the West Wind, Walt Whitman s I Sing the Body Electric, William Carlos Williams The Red Wheelbarrow Two short papers analyzing poems in unit Independent Novel II Students will choose an independent contemporary novel after 1900 from a list of novels and plays including the following: Aldoux Huxley s Brave New World, Joseph Heller s Catch 22, J.D. Salinger s Catcher in the Rye, Ernest Hemmingway s A Moveable Feast,

8 Khalid Hosseini s The Kite Runner, Toni Morrison s Beloved, Ralph Ellison s Invisible Man Students will read and analyze the novel independently Students submit a thesis and detailed outline for instructor approval and comments prior to writing a first-draft Students will pick a thesis and write a five-page paper on a topic of their choice with at least three articles of literary criticism tying in historical, cultural and social factors, for example -- referenced and cited Classroom workshop for revision and discussion with peers/instructor for feedback prior to submission of first-draft Poetry: A Study of Emily Dickinson: Bedford s Poetry: An Introduction Both student analysis and response on her poetry s form, content and meaning, as well as critical readings of Dickinson s poems Instruction on the artistic value and unique contributions of Dickinson s poetry to literature. We will also explore the poetry of her contemporary Walt Whitman and his unique contributions to the art form. Comparason/contrast essay comparing the poetry of Dickinson to Frost (timed essay including scoring guide and anchor papers) Poetry: A Study of Langston Hughes: Bedford s Poetry: An Introduction Both student analysis and response on Hughes poetry s form, content and meaning, as well as perspectives and critical readings Instruction on the Harlem Renaissance Movement and its significance to American culture and politics Not Without Laughter by Langston Hughes & The Awakening by Kate Chopin a comparson/contrast unit subject to books for The Awakening Questions: What do conversations in the novel reveal about the time? What generalizations can you make about the women in the novel? Discuss how each man is a product of his environment. How does society impact the individual? What contribution does the black storytelling tradition make to this novel? How does Hughes use language to enhance his novel? Discuss the many reasons this novel is considered an coming of age story. How is the novel a quest? Why was the novel unpopular during its own era? Topics: Black vs. Black Prejudice; Black vs. White Prejudice; Dialect; Point of View and Voice; Poetic Prose; Life on the Muck ; Man vs. Nature Short Story: Kate Chopin s The Story of an Hour an interpretation paper based on point of view and its contribution to the meaning of the work as a whole. We will also discuss the thematic ties with Not Without Laughter. Essays:

9 Why the dialect is an essential component to novel How point of view enhances novel s meaning How a rural setting is important to the meaning of novel (timed essay with scoring guide and anchor papers) A social occasion that is significant to the work Multiple-choice * Ongoing practice in Multiple Choice Questions in Preparation for the AP English Literature and Composition Examination (Fifth Edition) by Richard Vogel and Charles F. Winans Literary Terms Students produce 10 literary terms analyses using class texts Students may re-submit instructor scored terms for a higher grade AP English Literature Exam Practice Students will complete three timed full-length AP English Literature released exams in December, February, and April in class We will review both the multiple-choice and the essay portion of the exam in class to help students better assess their strengths, weaknesses and ongoing progress in the course Students will meet with instructor to get more feedback as needed

10 A.P. English Literature NSHS -- Keck Terminology Review April 2014 Figures of Speech metaphor; simile; personification; synecdoche; metonymy; controlling metaphor; implied metaphor; extended metaphor; chiasmus ( Pleasure s a sin, and sometimes sin s a pleasure ; conceit Syntactical Devices rhetorical question; front loading; end loading; loose sentence; periodic sentence; run-on sentence; sentence fragment; parallelism; antithesis; anaphora; inversion; repetition; grammar; polysyndeton Devices of Irony verbal irony; situational irony; dramatic irony; cosmic irony; sarcasm; paradox; oxymoron; hyperbole; understatement; pun; wit Devices in Satire Devices of Irony (above) + humor; parody; caricature; dramatic persona Poetic Devices meter; rhythm; rhyme; feminine rhyme; masculine rhyme; slant rhyme; internal rhyme; iambic pentameter; blank verse; euphony; cacophony; enjambment; caesura; foot; couplet; heroic couplet; fixed form; open form/free verse; scansion; end-stopped line; stanza; Sonic Devices alliteration; assonance; consonance; onomatopoeia; euphony; cacophony Types of Poems ballad; ode; Shakespearean sonnet; Petrarchan sonnet; villanelle; elegy; sestina; limerick; lyric; narrative; soliloquy; dramatic monologue; didactic poetry; doggerel; epic; epigram; haiku; pastoral; terza rima Fictional Genres quest; satire; drama; romance; picaresque; vignette; allegory; anecdote; farce; parable; tragedy; comedy; coming-of-age Devices of Plot exposition; conflict; climax; conclusion; denouement Other Literary Devices that Enhance Meaning diction; imagery; foreshadowing; symbol; allusion; tone; mood; theme; internal and external conflict; setting; analogy; antagonist; archetype; colloquial; jargon; juxtaposition; motif; style; voice

11 Narration 1 st person narrator; 2 nd person narrator; 3 rd person omniscient; 3 rd person limited omniscient; 3 rd person objective; stream of consciousness; framed narrative; multiple narrators; flashback Literary Movements Humanism (Renaissance): Artists looked to Latin and Greek texts to harmonize these great texts with the Bible and strengthen Christianity. Ex. Shakespeare s plays and sonnets; Marlowe s The Passionate Shepherd to His Love ; Herrick s To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time ; Marvell s To His Coy Mistress; Carpe Diem; Dunne s A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning (twin compass conceit) Age of Reason (Enlightenment): The natural world was increasingly being explained by science. Satire exposes social problems. Ex. Swift s A Modest Proposal ; Jane Austen s P&P Romanticism: Artists looks to nature as a means of being more spiritually connected to God. In economics, the laissez-faire policy gave capitalists the rationale to ignore the problems of the poor. Ex. William Blake s The Chimney Sweepers ; Wordsworth s Tintern Abbey ; Coleridge s Kubla Khan ; Byron s She Walks in Beauty ; Keats Ode on a Grecian Urn The Victorians: A time of overwhelming growth, prosperity, and progress, Victorians moved from rural areas to cities in rapidly growing industrialized cities. Many changes in lifestyle threatened traditional social structures. Ex. Browning s My Last Duchess ; Matthew Arnold s Dover Beach ; Rudyard Kipling s The Brown Man s Burden ; Charles Dickens, Mark Twain s Huck Finn; Emily Dickinson; Walt Whitman The Moderns: 1900-present Unprecedented change worldwide occurs due to technology, wars, politics, psychology, economics, science, religion and education. Many modern writers explore themes about the condition of humanity today many see the situation as bleak. Ex. Forster s A Passage to India, The Hollow-Men and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock ; Fitzgerald s The Great Gatsby; Owen s Dulce et Decorum Est ; Hardy; Plath; Kingston; Kinnell Realism/Naturalism: (part of Moderns) A style of writing that embraces the gritty and graphic details of life. The characters are usually conditioned and controlled by environment, heredity, instinct or chance. Ex. Steinbeck s Grapes of Wrath Harlem Renaissance (part of Moderns): 1920 s A group of African-American writers, painters, sculptors, actors, and musicians who were active in New York City s Harlem. Ex. Langston Hughes; Hurston s Their Eyes are Watching God