Honors English 10 Mrs. Ruselink and Mr. Adelsperger

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1 Honors English 10 Mrs. Ruselink and Mr. Adelsperger Cry, the Beloved Country, by Alan Paton Mandatory Summer Reading and Accompanying Project Like several schools in the area, Carroll High School has developed a summer reading project for students enrolling in Honors English and Advanced Placement English. Teachers for each level have chosen novels that augment and complement the course s focus. Selections for English 10 Honors will include short stories, poetry, and nonfiction by a diverse collection of authors and an informational text Success is a Choice, as well as Alan Paton s Cry, the Beloved Country, Shakespeare s Othello and King Lear, Sophocles Antigone, and Mark Twain s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Your Task: For the English 10 Honors Summer Reading Project, each student must read parts 1 and 2 of the novel Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. This book is important in its writing style and thought-provoking themes. Students can purchase their selection through local bookstores or online sources. Borrowing the book from a library is an option; however, students must bring the book with them for the first weeks of class as we will continue to use the novel for class activities. In addition to the reading, students must complete a mandatory reader response journal and an open book introduction worksheet to be handed in the first day of school. In addition to reading parts 1 and 2 and completing the assigned tasks, students are also highly encouraged to annotate their texts. Students will be allowed to use their books on the test at the end of this unit. Annotating includes both highlighting and note taking. Students should make note of questions, unknown vocabulary, observations, connections to theme, character development, etc. Students should focus on the themes listed below: the injustices created by a white-controlled society in a majority black country the breakdown of the tribal culture and the traditional African family the erosion and destruction of the land the corrosive effects of fear vs. love as the hope for personal and societal redemption IMPORTANT: If you have any questions over the summer, please direct them to Mr. Adelsperger at tyler.adelsperger@nacs.k12.in.us or Mrs. Ruselink at Cheryl.Ruselink@nacs.k12.in.us your may go to the junk mail folder, so make sure you title it summer reading and allow several days for it to appear the junk mail folder. Again, you must bring your assignment already printed out in hard copy form and your book to class the first day of school.

2 Step 1: Mandatory Project for Summer Reading: Introduction Worksheet Before starting the novel, it is beneficial to read the introductory information on pages This will help you to have a better understanding of the time period in which the book was written, the societal events that took place during that time in South Africa, and the author s purpose/position when writing the novel. *See Worksheet attached. Do this first! Step 2: Mandatory Project for Summer Reading: Reader Response Journal While you are reading your summer reading novel, you need to be actively engaged in thinking through the ideas the author is presenting and analyzing how the author is presenting those ideas. In this activity you will keep a response journal to capture some of these ideas and give your opinion and interpretation of them. The novel is divided into three books (sections). You will be reading the first two books. After each one, you are to write a journal entry responding to the prompts provided for a total of two responses (you may keep the responses on the same document; just label them). You need to use textual evidence (more than one quote) from the book for support of your thoughts in your responses. For the reader response journal, use MLA format to set it up correctly: double-spaced, Times New Roman 12-point font, 1 margins, and proper heading. Look at the example heading below so that you will understand how to start your journal. At the top of your project, use the proper header (last name and page number) in the upper right-hand corner and the proper heading double-spaced in the upper left-hand corner including: Your name Your teacher s name Class name (English 10 Honors) and class period Date of Submission (example: 13 August 2014) Smith 2 In your journal response, don t forget to put the textual evidence from the book in quotation marks and include the page number in parentheses followed by the period. Also, your responses should be two pages in length. Keep structure and organization in mind when writing. Below are the prompts for each section of the novel. RESOURCE: Check your use of MLA format and quoting passages from the book at

3 Book I prompt: An intercalary chapter is a section or passage that does not involve the main characters or advance the narrative. Authors Alan Paton and John Steinbeck were noted for the use of this literary technique to articulate their viewpoints. In a one-two page typed response, identify the themes expressed in Chapter Nine and explain how the use of this intercalary chapter contributes to the overall development of the themes up to this point in the novel. Consider whether the author could have achieved the same effect through the use of dialogue and exposition within narrative. Cite specific examples from the text to support your argument. AVOID PLOT SUMMARY. Book II prompt: The motifs of light and darkness are commonly used in Western literature to symbolize good and evil, hope and despair, knowledge and ignorance. Similarly, darkness and light often symbolize sin and redemption. In a one-two page typed response, analyze the author s use of the motifs of light and darkness, and consider how the use of these motifs contributes to the overall tone and message of the first two parts of the book. IMPORTANT: If you have any questions over the summer, please direct them to Mr. Adelsperger via at tyler.adelsperger@nacs.k12.in.us or Mrs. Ruselink at Cheryl.Ruselink@nacs.k12.in.us

4 Cry, the Beloved Country Introduction Directions: You may use your book to find information, but put your answers in your own words. Read the introduction information at the beginning of the book: from Note on the 1987 Edition through the Introduction, pages 7-30). Then, respond to the following questions in your own words. I 1. Explain in the history of South Africa how and why its peoples came to live there. 2. Explain the political decisions of South Africa and the effects these had. II 3. Give details about Paton s background. 4. Give details about Paton s profession and his approach to it. 5. What did Paton say the underlying causes of African crime were? III 6. Who are the three characters we learn of? 7. What did Paton think of Abraham Lincoln? (Be specific.)

5 8. What is Msimangu s fear? (Put in your own words what he means by his statement.) IV 9. Describe the reaction of South Africans to the book. 10. Complete the timeline by indicating what happened in each year Describe in detail (but in your own words) what Archibald MacLeish thought of Alan Paton. 12. Describe Paton s purpose in writing Cry, the Beloved Country.