Gothic, Mystery and Science Fiction/The Short Story Summer Reading Assignment 2020-2021

Mrs. Kennedy

“Read not to contradict and confute, not to believe and take for granted, nor to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider.”

Sir Francis Bacon

**All works are required: 1. “The Black Cat”- Edgar Allan Poe (short story- PDF link) 2. “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (short story- PDF link) 3. “Long Gone”- Sue Graon (short story- PDF link) 4. “The Exiles”- Ray Bradbury (short story- hard copy included)

Haunted castles and supernatural doings, crimes that need to be solved and fiction that incorporates scientific possibilities into its plots make up the works of the first course you will be taking in your senior year of English. While there seems to be some diversity in the three genres in the Gothic, Mystery and Science Fiction course, they are related to one another in myriad of ways and a sort of evolution has occurred within the three. An underlying connective thread is the desire of the authors to frighten, baffle and amaze their readers.

Because the nature of the two classes you will be taking in September and January allow for integration of works, you will read three mystery short stories and one science fiction short story for your summer assignment.

Each of the works was written by an author considered a giant in their respective realms. Edgar Allan Poe has the distinction of being called the virtual inventor of the short story and also “The Father of the Detective Story.” The short story that you will read by Poe, “The Black Cat,” however, is an example of the Gothic genre. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famed detective, Sherlock Holmes, cracks a mystery in “The Adventure of the Speckled Band” and follows the formula that Poe prescribed for detective fiction (which will be covered in more depth during the course of the year.) Sue Graon—who just recently passed away—is a contemporary author whose private investigator breaks a missing persons’ case. Ray Bradbury is one of the foremost science fiction authors and the work you will read by him is called “The Exiles” where many of the most renowned authors are sent to Mars because of the revolutionary and controversial works. (See how many of the authors/works you can name. Take notes on your papers.)

An in-class essay will be written within the first two cycles of classes in September. Please click on the following works to access copies of each:

“The Black Cat”- Edgar Allan Poe:

“The Speckled Band”- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle:

“Long Gone”- Sue Graon:

“The Exiles”- Ray Bradbury

Extra: Prezi Presentation on “The Exiles” https://prezi.com/xlpks4l1gx_x/the-exiles-by-ray-brad bury/

Another extra: A rticle from Redditt- Bradbury's "The Exiles" Serves as a Reading List.

Please be sure to print a copy of the four required short stories and annotate as you read as there will be an in-class essay in the beginning of the year in which y ou may use the annotated copies of the stories. I will be checking—and grading—that you have annotated your copies of the stories. Also, please be familiar with the definitions of the literary terms included.

Instructions for annotating can be found on the last page of this assignment. Be sure to read carefully as this guide can only help you to become a more active and successful reader (a very big part of life as a prospective college student!)

Don’t forget to annotate wisely; you will be able to use your notes for the writing assignment in class. For the mystery works, in particular, you should be “looking for clues.” These will include details that the authors include to help the reader solve the mystery; characterization that portrays the various players in certain ways; clues that are meant to send the reader off the “trail”. Keep an eye out for those kinds of passages.

Some Supplemental Course Materials that you should view. (Click on each of the following)

Conventions of Gothic Literature

Short Biography of Edgar Allan Poe

Ted Ed- "Who IS the Real Sherlock Holmes"

Why Our World Needs Science Fiction

A GUIDE TO EFFECTIVE ANNOTATING

Note-Taking vs. Annotation

The advantage of having one annotated text instead of a set of note papers plus a text should be clear enough: all the information is together and inseparable, with notes very close to the text for easier understanding, and with fewer pieces to keep organized. Think of annotations as “showing your work” while you read, requiring ACTIVE participation with the text, engaging your mind while you read, not skimming the page. Marking important sections can also be helpful in locating them quickly. What the reader gets from annotating is a deeper initial reading and an understanding of the text that lasts, so that when you come back to the text, that initial interchange is recorded for you, making an excellent and entirely personal study tool.

Criteria for Successful Annotation Using your annotated copy of a text six weeks aer your first reading, you can recall the key information with reasonable thoroughness.

o Highlighters: H ighlighters allow you to mark exactly what you are interested in. (Yellow is the least distracting.) The idea is to see the important text more clearly, not give your eyes a psychedelic exercise. While you read, highlight whatever seems to be key information. (Focusing on major characters, setting, themes, symbols, etc... provided here in your study guide.)

o Pencil: A pencil is oen better than a pen because you can make changes. Even geniuses make mistakes, temporary comments, and incomplete notes. While you read, use marginalia—marginal notes—to mark key material. Marginalia can include check marks, question marks, stars, arrows, brackets, and written words and phrases. o Inside Front Cover: M ajor character list with small space for character summary and for page references for key scenes or moments of character development, etc. Keep an orderly, legible list of "key information" with page references. Key information in a novel might include themes; passages that relate to the book's title; characters' names; salient quotes; important scenes, passages, and chapters; and maybe key definitions or vocabulary. Remember that key information will vary according to genre and the reader's purpose, so make your own good plan.

o Inside Back Cover: B uild a list of themes, allusions, images, motifs, key scenes, plot line, etc. as you read. Add page references and/or notes as well as you read.

o Beginning of Each Chapter: P rovide a quick summary of what happens in the chapter. Title each chapter or section as soon as you finish it, especially if the text does not provide headings for chapters or sections.

o Top margins: p rovide plot notes—a quick few words or phrases that summarize what happens here. Go back aer a chapter, scene, or assignment and then mark it carefully.

o Bottom and Side Page Margins: I nterpretive notes (see list below), questions, and/or remarks that refer to meaning of the page. Markings or notes to tie in with notes on the inside back cover. o Interpretive Notes and Symbols: F ind your own system for identifying key information. Utilize question marks, arrows, exclamation points, numbers, stars, asterisks, and letters (ex: S for symbol, T for tone, I for imagery, etc...).

Literary Devices You Should Know:

Note: There will be a test on these terms during the month of September. alliteration allusion antagonist archetype dialogue diction epigraph

flashback foil foreshadowing hyperbole imagery irony juxtaposition metaphor mood paradox personification pun repetition rhyme setting simile symbolism theme tone

CA RL JU NG AND THE AR CHETYPAL FO RM

CA RL JU NG

Carl Jung theorized in his school of analytical psychology that archetypes exist in the subconscious. AR CHETYPES are universal symbols that are held in the psyche and communicate in the hidden language that longs to be expressed within every human being; are images stored in the collective unconscious of humankind; are present in the form of our dreams; and, are universal, manifested in the mythic motifs of all cultures.

CH ARACTER AR CHETYPES

I. TH E HE RO ● The heroic figure has “a thousand faces” but the same basic features: ○ Courageous: confronts evil, endures trials, goal to benefit society. ○ Noble: gives life to something bigger than self. (Hero specifically in western culture: individual vs. power of darkness. Dark side = external monsters.) ● Leaves the safe comfort of the known, has an adventure— QU EST—be yond the ordinary, returns changed—richer, wiser, and/or with a gift for society. ● Is involved in physical or spiritual deeds. ● Experiences trials to test courage, knowledge, and moral capacity. ● Is given assistance, but the last deed is done alone.

II. TH E MO THER GO DDESS ● Earth Mother—Mother Earth; Source of life and death: Life-Death-Rebirth cycle. ● Swallows sun in the west, passes through body at night, gives birth to sun in the east. ● Composite force consisting of both LI GHT and DA RKNESS; she is all loving and terrible. ○ All Loving: Gives birth and nurtures. Warm and protective. Source of energy and life. ○ Terrible: Source of death and destruction. Darkness. Aggressive and abusive.

III. TH E FA THER ● The Father is the authority figure representing law and order. ● He is very masculine, a provider and a protector. ● He is often depicted as the King and is looked up to by the Prince—the prince who will become the archetypal HE RO after going on his QU EST.

IV. TH E BE NEVOLENT GU IDE/ ME NTOR ● Often a wise, older man/woman figure. In Greek mythology he/she often comes in the form of a god or goddess. ● Serves as guardian spirit vs. malevolent forces. ● Functions as a mentor, teacher, or coach. ● Associated with spiritual insight, knowledge, good will, and readiness to help. ● Intervenes when hero is in desperate situation.

V. TH E TR ICKSTER ● A clown who plays tricks or otherwise disobeys normal rules and conventional behavior with malicious intent. ● Often a devil character—the tempter. Disrupts the games and plans of humans. A wise fool. ● Is often an ambiguous character—at times has no sex, changes forms, or lives outside of time. ● Keys, clocks, masks, and S ERPENTS/ S NAKES are common symbols associated with the trickster.

VI. TH E TE MPTRESS ● Characterized by sensuous beauty, this woman will physically attract men, distracting them from their goals and ultimately bring about their downfall. ● She is unscrupulous, seductive, and intelligent—much like the trickster. ● The rose is a symbol most commonly associated with the temptress—beautiful and tempting, but will prick you with its thorns.

VII. TH E SH ADOW ● Exists as part of the unconscious mind and is composed of repressed ideas, weaknesses, desires, instincts and shortcomings. ● Is often the darker side of the psyche, representing wildness, chaos, and the unknown. ● In the case of the character with self-esteem issues, this repressed side is instead positive, representing strength and courage.

TH EMATIC AR CHETYPES

I. DE ATH AND RE BIRTH— THE CI RCLE OF LI FE V. GO OD VS. EV IL

II. VE NGEANCE—A V ENGE VS. RE VENGE VI. BE TRAYAL/ DE CEPTION/ T HE MA SK/ “SE EMS”

III. MA TURITY AND GR OWTH—C O MING OF AG E VII. HO ME

IV. SA CRIFICE AND RE DEMPTION VIII. FA TE—D E STINY VS. FR EE WI LL SY MBOLIC AR CHETYPES

I. WA TER II. FI RE Mystery of creation and the life force. Destruction—Hell, burning, evil. The sea: mother of all life; timelessness. Rebirth—Ashes to ashes, dust to The river: death and rebirth. dust; Phoenix. Cleansing/purity—baptism. (Wash away sins.) Sun—Rising=Birth, Setting=Death. Knowledge

III. DE SERT IV. GA RDEN Hopelessness—Hell; barren; wasteland. Paradise—Heaven; balance and harmony; innocence. Unspoiled beauty. ( WE EDS= Corruption/Sin)

V. LI GHT VI. DA RKNESS Good; Hero; White; Wisdom; Truth. Evil; Villain; Black; Foolishness; Deception.

VII. BI RD VIII. SE RPENT/ SN AKE The spirit—self; Represent God/gods. Used as omens in Greek mythology. Devil—Satan/Lucifer; temptation; corruption.

IX. EY E X. CI RCLE Consciousness; vision of the future. “The Circle of Life.” Wisdom or knowledge. “The eyes are the windows to the soul.”

SI GMUND FR EUD’ S PE RSONALITY TH EORY

Sigmund Freud—in his study of the human mind—classified three specific parts of the human psyche, which we will use to analyze the characters in all of our tragedies throughout the year.

ID : The unorganized part of a person that acts on the “pleasure principle”; animal instincts; basic drives. Ruled by the pleasure/pain principle, it includes our basic needs for food, water, sex, etc… It is related to the physical and most basic level of man. The basic instincts of the I D are broken up into two categories: Life and Death/Passion and Self-gratification.

EG O: T he organized, realistic part of the psyche; works on the long term. It works in the real and helps us to make sense of our thoughts—aka our “common sense.” Conscious awareness resides in the ego. Comes from Latin meaning “I myself.” Originally, Freud used the word ego to mean a sense of self, but later revised it to mean a set of psychic functions such as judgment, tolerance, reality-testing, control, planning, defense, synthesis of information, intellectual functioning, and memory. The E GO also acts as a mediator between the id and the super-ego, making sure the needs of both are met.

SU PEREGO: The part of the psyche that aims for perfection. This is the part of one’s conscious that prohibits drives, fantasies, feelings or actions. The S UPEREGO can be thought of as a type of conscience that punishes misbehavior with feelings of guilt. The opposite of the id, it is the “politically correct” part of the psyche.