2016-2017 AP English Literature and Composition Summer Reading

Greetings APE Students!

I congratulate you all on your choice to undertake the challenging rigors of AP Lit and Comp. If you have not had an opportunity to read the course syllabus, I encourage you to do so online at http//[email protected]. The syllabus has been approved by an oversight committee at the College Board, which monitors all Advanced Placement courses.

To prepare for an outstanding start to the course next fall, it is necessary to continue reading literature over the summer months. As in any sport, practice and experience result in advancement of skill. There are 3 (three) readings to complete this summer:

STEP 1: Buy the Books 1. How to Read Literature Like a College Professor by Thomas C. Foster 2. Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson 3. Chronicle of a Death Foretold By Gabriel Garcia Marques

If possible students should purchase their own copies of the novels. It is an advantage to be able to take note in the margins and underline or highlight notable passages. This is known as annotation and is a preferred method of engaging with the text in AP English. We will practice this skill extensively in all of your AP English classes.

STEP 2: Read Foster’s book first! Foster’s book teaches the APE student how to read between the lines. To look at literature as a sum total of parts, that added together make meaning. This is called the Formalist Lens of literary analysis – the very lens the AP Board asks us to use for the test.

For each chapter, annotate for the following:  Identify the claim/main idea  A brief summary of the key ideas (this could be a simple highlight with notations)  Questions inspired by the chapter; about the content or questions to ask about reading and viewing literature based on the content of the chapter  Personal examples that reflect the chapter’s main ideas: This is a list of books or movies that YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH that can be used as examples

Step 3: Read and Annotate Novels  You will need your own PERSONAL copy so that you can ANNOTATE the text as you read.  Following the reading of How to Read Literature Like a Professor, you will READ and ANNOTATE, the Novels (or take exhaustive analysis notes outside the text with linked MLA cited quotations).  You must actively read and annotate these texts, applying the skills and strategies learned from your reading of How to Read Literature Like a Professor.

Pay close attention to themes, characterization, imagery, figurative language, diction, detail, syntax, symbolism, etc. Don’t mark too much. If you mark everything, nothing will stand out. Use your own words--don’t try to be fancy. Remember, your annotations are for you! EVERY SYMBOL/MARK OR HIGHLIGHTED TEXT MUST HAVE AN ANNOTATION.

Annotation Tips for Fiction  Make brief notes at the top of the page or on a sticky note to mark important plot events.  Circle or highlight words that are unfamiliar or unusual. Try to figure out what the words mean through the way they are used; supplement your guesses by consulting a dictionary.  When new characters are introduced, highlight phrases that describe them. (Try not to highlight whole sentences).  Highlight words, images, and details that seem to form a pattern throughout the text. o For example, if a large clock appears in the story, and then you notice the author using the words “timely” or “ticking” in the text, and then an incident occurs in which a character breaks a watch or is late for an appointment, you may have uncovered a pattern of imagery which will lead the close reader to discover a thematic idea. o Highlight these related strands and observe the rest of the text closely to see if the author uses other linked words, images, or details.  Highlight passages you think might be symbolic.  Mark key ideas and note briefly your reflections about them in the margins.  When you get an idea while reading the text, note it in brief form in the margin. You may never think of this idea again unless you write it down.  If you have a question about something in the text, write it on the page when it first occurred to you. BASIC ELEMENTS OF STYLE AND STRUCTURE TO NOTE WHILE READING/ANNOTATING

SETTING - make notes about the time, place, etc. IRONY- A technique that involves surprising, interesting, or amusing contradictions or CHARACTERS- make note of each character’s contrasts. name the first time you see it. Also mark the passages that describe the characters: FORESHADOWING- Important hints that an  Physical appearance author drops to prepare the reader for what is to  Motivations behind his/her actions come, and help the reader anticipate the outcome.  Relationships to other characters  Personality (especially changes in FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE – words or expressions personality) with a meaning that is different from the literal interpretation. Most common: PLOT - events of rising action, climax, falling  METAPHOR -Comparison between two action and resolution otherwise IDENTIFY CONFLICT TYPES- (Man vs. Man, Man  unlike things (i.e. Love is a Rose, Life is a vs. Self, Man vs. Nature, etc.) Make notes Roller periodically at the tops of pages to help you  Coaster, All the World’s a stage, etc.) remember  SIMILE –Comparison of two things often VOCABULARY-Look up words you do not using “like” or “as” (i.e. Brave as a lion, understand. Fits like a glove, Moves like a snail, etc) TONE – Tone is the attitude implied in a literary DICTION – words with significant connotation work toward the subject and the audience. The (beyond the literal meaning) following figures of speech may help when IMAGERY – appeals to any one of the five senses identifying tone in literature. (taste, touch, smell, sight, and hearing) MOOD- The feeling a piece of literature is DETAILS – important and noteworthy facts intended to create in a reader. SYMBOL-Person, place, or thing that represents LANGUAGE – the sound of the text (formal, something beyond itself, most often something informal, colloquial/particular geographical concrete or tangible that represents an abstract location, etc.) idea SYNTAX – basic sentence structure, punctuation, ALLUSION- A reference to a well-known person, arrangement of words in a sentence, etc. place, event, literary work, or work of art to enrich the reading experience by adding meaning POINT OF VIEW - The way the events of a story are communicated from the author to the reader. THEME- The message about life or human nature For further details look up the definitions for 1st, that is “the focus” in the story that the writer 2nd and 3rd person POV. tells. Final Annotation Considerations: Write down your thoughts, questions, insights, and ideas while you read. The important part is that you, the reader, are reading something and then responding to it by making literary connections. The process is meant to help you develop a better understanding of the text as you read.

The most common complaint about annotating is that it slows down your reading. Yes, it does. That’s the point! If annotating as you read annoys you, read a chapter, then go back and annotate. Reading a text a second time is preferable anyway.

Approach the works with an open mind. Let the literature inspire you and stretch your imagination.

The outside reading assignment must be read and annotated before class begins. It is perfectly okay to add to your markings after you finish the book and are working on an essay, but the whole of the job should be done in conjunction with your reading for class preparations.

If you find annotating while you read to be annoying and awkward, do it after you read. Go back after a chapter or assignment and then mark it carefully. You should be reading assignments twice anyway, so this isn’t any less efficient than marking as you read and then rereading the material.

STEP 4: Literary Analysis Project Upon your return to school, your first project/presentation will be to take a chapter from Foster’s book and apply it to both books. This presentation and your annotations will be some of your first grades for the semester.

PLEASE, do not avoid your responsibilities. Happy reading! Ms. Hummel [email protected]