AP Literature and Composition Summer Reading Supplemental Assignment to Accompany to How to Read Literature Like a Professor In Arthur Conan Doyle s The Red-Headed League, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson both observe Jabez Wilson carefully, yet their differing interpretations of the same details reveal the difference between a good reader and a bad reader. Watson can only describe what he sees; Holmes has the knowledge to interpret what he sees, to draw conclusions, and to solve the mystery. How to Read Literature Like a Professor can be your guide to learning how to solve literary mysteries. It will help transform you from a naïve, sometimes confused Watson to an insightful, literary Holmes. Informed readers develop the insight to recognize symbols, archetypes, and patterns in literature, as will you when you have learned and practiced these methods. As Foster points out, developing this skill requires the same type of practice necessary to excel as an athlete or musician, so the more you work at it, the better you will get. NOTES: When asked to discuss a book you have read before, you may use any book you have read in or out of school, including this summer s other reading selections for AP IV (unless otherwise noted). You may substitute an occasional movie for literary works in this assignment but not more than once per section (3 times total), but remember your choice of literary works and films are an indication of your literary background. Multiple references to Netflix films or Harry Potter will be considered questionable. Discuss means to write at least one paragraph. Be specific! Fully answer each question, providing definitions and examples as required for each section. Follow the directions for the assignment. Do not write volumes, however, concise, yet thorough and thoughtful, responses will suffice. This book studies archetypes in literature, meaning the constructs are not literal. For example, Chapter 3: Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires is not about actual vampires in books (i.e. Twilight, Dracula, etc.). Rather, it is studying the qualities of vampires and attributing those qualities to characters that can be considered vampiric. Similarly, Chapter 14: Yes, She s a Christ Figure, Too does not recount biblical stories, but characters that have similar qualities to the Christian ideal. Keep that in mind when responding to those chapters. A LOT of AP teachers have their students read this book, thus A LOT of students have performed similar tasks. DO NOT go searching the internet for examples to complete this assignment. You may not use examples from Foster s book, either. This project should be completed entirely by you. YOU. Yourself. Alone. No help. If you find yourself relying on the internet or online sites like Schmoop, Sparknotes, etc., to complete this assignment, do us both a favor and drop this class. Those are fine to refresh your memory or check comprehension, but should not be used in place of analysis. If you are not committed to honoring the process, please do not waste your time or mine. Drop.
FORMATTING: Typed, double spaced, 12 point font (no funky fonts), 1 inch margins, with standard MLA heading on page one (heading is single spaced see example below). Your Name Husbands AP English IV Date Please label your responses by chapter number and title (i.e. Chapter 3: Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires) followed by your response. With each response you must include the title of the novel/film/story and the author you have chosen to discuss (cited correctly, which means the novel/film title is italicized and story titles are in quotation marks). Your assignment will be submitted via Schoology the first day of class in August. ASSIGNMENTS: Though you are expected to read the entire book, you are only required to complete 15 of the 28 listed assignments (5 from each section). SECTION 1: Introduction Chapter 9 (Choose 5 entries to complete from this section.) Introduction Chapter 1 Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It s Not) Chapter 2 Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion How do memory, symbol, and pattern affect the reading of literature? How does the recognition of patterns make it easier to read complicated literature? Briefly describe a time when your appreciation of a literary work was enhanced by understanding symbol or pattern. What is the Faust legend and how does Raisin in the Sun exemplify it? List the five aspects of the QUEST Then apply them to something you have read, using the format from the example cited on pp. 4-5. Do not use actual knights/damsels as examples. Think outside the box. Choose a meal from a literary work you have read and apply the ideas of Chapter 2 to this literary depiction. What is the significance of the meal in that particular scene? Discuss each purpose of the meal. Show whether the characters get along, or not. What do professors mean when they say, *Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar?
Chapter 3 Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires Chapter 4 Now, Where Have I Seen Her Before? Chapter 5 When in Doubt, It s from Shakespeare Chapter 6 or the Bible Chapter 7 Handseldee and Greteldum Chapter 8 It s Greek to Me Chapter 9 It s More Than Just Rain or Snow What are the essentials of the vampire story? Apply this to a literary work you have read or viewed. Remember: this is not an actual vampire story (Twilight, Dracula). Rather, it is studying the qualities of vampires and attributing those qualities to characters that can be considered vampiric. Define inter-textuality. Discuss two examples that have helped you in reading specific works in your high school reading experience. How have works played off each other (i.e. Lion King is the story of Hamlet)? Discuss a work that you are familiar with that alludes to or reflects Shakespeare. In your discussion, focus on theme. Show how the author uses this connection thematically. [note: Read pages 39-41 carefully. In these pages, Foster shows how Fugard reflects Shakespeare through both plot and theme.] Name some biblical allusions in literature (not actual Bible stories) that Foster does not mention. Be creative and imaginative. Discuss the implications of that biblical allusion on the story. Why did the author allude to the Bible? Think of a work of literature that reflects a fairy tale (again, this can t actually be a fairy tale). Discuss the parallels. Does it create irony or deepen appreciation? How? Briefly describe the Greek myths that are familiar to you. Where are they echoed in other literature? What is the purpose for Greek myths in other literature? Discuss the importance of weather in a specific literary work. Focus not on how weather drives plot, but rather on symbolism, mood created, effect on character development, etc. SECTION 2: Chapters 10 18 (Choose 5 entries to complete from this section.) Chapter 10 Never Stand Next to the Hero Based on Foster s observations regarding character, why is the title of this chapter appropriate? What observations/arguments regarding character dynamics stood out to you? Provide your own example of the sacrificial sidekick to the hero character. Model your description of the characters relationship as Forster has, though yours should be briefer.
Interlude Does He Mean That? Chapter 11 More Than It s Gonna Hurt You: Concerning Violence Chapter 12 Is That a Symbol Chapter 13 It s All Political Chapter 14 Yes, She s a Christ Figure, Too Chapter 15 Flights of Fancy Chapter 16 & 17 It s All About Sex Except Sex Chapter 18 If She Comes Up, It s Baptism What is Foster s message re: allusions and how/why authors use them (or don t)? Do you agree with Foster s assessment? Disagree? Why? Other thoughts about this Interlude? Explain the two kinds of violence found in literature and how the effects of each kind of violence are different. Provide examples from your literary experience of both kinds of violence. How are allegory and symbol different? Discuss one specific example you ve had with symbolism in literature. (You can model the way Foster discusses symbols in this chapter to explain the significance of your symbol.) Remember: symbols are not always objects; actions and events can be symbols, too. Assume that Foster is right and "it is all political." Use his criteria to show that one of the major works assigned to you in high school reading is political. (You may use any text you ve read in any high school English course.) Apply the list of criteria on page 126 to a major character in a significant literary work you have read. Using these criteria, explain how your chosen character fits the Christ Figure characterization. Try to choose a character that will have many matches. Discuss in detail an instance in literature in which flight (literal or metaphorical) signifies escape or freedom. OK...the sex chapters. Let s remain calm and mature The key idea from this chapter is that "scenes in which sex is coded rather than explicit can work at multiple levels and sometimes be more intense that literal depictions" (141). The ideas from these chapters that will linger with us are 1) the difference between sex scenes in literature and pornography and 2) the idea that sex scenes in good writing usually have a much deeper intent (SYMBOLISM!) than the opportunity to present an interesting human activity. In other words, sex is often suggested with much more art and effort than it is described, and, if the author is doing his job, it reflects and creates theme or character. Choose a novel or movie in which sex is SUGGESTED, but not described, and discuss HOW the relationship is suggested and how this implication affects the theme or develops characterization. Think of a "baptism scene, as Foster defines it, from a significant literary work you ve read. How was the character different after the experience? Discuss. Remember: rain does not baptize.
SECTION 3: Chapters 19 27 (Choose 5 entries to complete from this section.) Chapter 19 Geography Matters Chapter 20 So Does Season Interlude One Story Chapter 21 Marked for Greatness Chapter 22 He s Blind For a Reason, You Know Chapter 23 It s Never Just Heart Disease And Rarely Just Illness Chapter 24 Don t Read with Your Eyes Chapter 25 It s My Symbol and I ll Cry If I Want To Discuss at least four different aspects of one specific literary work that Foster would classify under "geography." Find a poem that mentions a specific season. Then discuss how the poet uses the season in a meaningful, traditional, or unusual way. Submit a copy of the poem not from Foster s book, with your analysis. The Poetry Foundation (online) would be a good source for a search. Write your own definition of archetype and identify/explain a modern example. Select a character with a physical imperfection and analyze its implications for characterization. Was that character born with his/her imperfection, or was he/she physically harmed by self or other character(s)? How does the origin of the physical imperfection affect characterization? Select a character with a physical or metaphorical blindness and analyze its implications for characterization. Select a character with a heart problem ( disease ) and analyze its implications for characterization. Discuss a character who dies from disease in a literary work. Consider how this death reflects the "principles governing the use of disease in literature" outlined by Foster. Discuss the effectiveness of the death as related to plot, theme, or symbolism. After reading Chapter 25, choose a scene or episode from a novel, play, or epic written before the twentieth century (that means before 1900). Contrast how it could be viewed by a reader from the twenty-first century with how it might be viewed by a reader of its own time. Focus on specific assumptions that the author makes about his/ her audience assumptions that would not be obvious in this century to clarify the contrast.
Chapter 26 Is He Serious? And Other Ironies Chapter 27 A Test Case Select an ironic literary work and explain the multi-vocal nature of the irony in the work. Short stories offer particularly great material here. Read The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield, the short story beginning this chapter. Complete the exercise on pages 265-266, following the directions exactly: answer the two questions using the numbered strategies (pp. 282-283) Then compare your writing with the three examples: How did you do? What does the essay that follows comparing Laura with Persephone add to your appreciation of Mansfield's story? Which character in the story do you identify with? Why? NOTE: If you have any questions re: this assignment, please email me. Don t wait until the last minute!