AP Literature Summer Reading Assignments

I. Allusion Research Jigsaw: An allusion is a reference, explicit or implicit, to something in previous literature or history. This is an important literary concept that you will encounter repeatedly in poetry, drama, and fiction. With allusions, authors can engage the reader in making associations and creating meaning. However, if you are unaware of allusions you will miss some of these meanings. This is not okay for an AP student!

You are assigned to a group based on your last name and need to learn the following allusions well. You may read whatever sources you wish: children’s tales, the Bible, encyclopedias, or reference books. I highly recommend Edith Hamilton’s Mythology as a good overview of Greek and Roman myths. There are also hundreds of books on the bible, and if you are up for the originals check out Ovid’s Metamorphoses and the New Revised Standard Version of the bible. For Arthurian information only use credible websites (not personal pages). Britannia.com is a good site to start at for Arthurian character and story information. A good place to start for fairy tale research is at the Internet Public Library Pathfinder on the topic: http://www.ipl.org/div/pf/entry/48473.

Biblical Allusions Group 1 Greek and Roman Mythology Group 1 Last names A-E Last names F-J Creation Prometheus (and Io) Adam and Eve Narcissus Cain and Abel The Golden Fleece David and Goliath Orpheus and Eurydice Moses (birth to the promised land) Daedalus (and Icarus) Abraham and Isaac Cupid and Psyche Tower of Babel Pygmalion and Galatea Jonah and the Whale Daphne (and Apollo) Samson and Delilah Perseus Solomon Theseus Job Sirens Joseph and the Coat of Many Colors Muses Armageddon Biblical Allusions Group 2 Greek and Roman Mythology Group 2 Last names K-O Last names P-R Daniel in the Lion’s Den Hercules Elijah Oedipus (including Sphinx) Jezebel Antigone Sodom and Gomorrah The Trojan War (including the fall of Troy, Birth of Jesus Achilles, Hector, Paris, Helen, and the Trojan Parable of the Prodigal Son Horse) Lazarus Midas John the Baptist Bacchus Last Supper Agamemnon, Orestes, and Electra (also known Judas in whole as The Oresteia) Crucifixion and Resurrection Leda and the Swan Doubting Tomas Pandora Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Odysseus/Ulysses (know who he is, do not study The Odyssey) Arthurian Group Fairy Tale Group Last names S-U Last names V-Z Uther and Igraine and the story of Arthur’s The Ugly Duckling birth Snow White Arthur, Guenevere, and Lancelot (their stories Rumpelstiltskin and the love triangle) The Princess and the Pea Sir Gawain and “Sir Gawain and the Green The Pied Piper of Hamelin Knight” (story in verse) Little Red Riding Hood Merlin Hansel and Gretel Morgan le Fay The Frog Prince Nimue alias Vivienne, Lady of the Lake The Fisherman and His Wife Perceval Cinderella Mordred Bluebeard Places: Avalon and Camelot Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Objects: Excalibur, the Sword in the Stone, the Aladdin Holy Grail * Pick the group your name falls into alphabetically and complete the assignment for those stories.

Next, you are going to create a teaching document that includes, in your own words, an explanation of the story with a MLA citation. If you already know the story by heart (and you will probably know a few) double-check with an outside source for accuracy and cite the source. A good MLA reference website to help you create your MLA works cited page is Purdue University’s OWL website: . Each story you explain does not need to be long; written, most should be a paragraph or so. The purpose of the assignment is to give you and your classmates a working knowledge of allusion structures. It does need to be complete, however, because you will be teaching this information to your classmates in the first few days of school. A test will follow. You have a lot of freedom here, but whatever you do please bring 4 copies to class on the first day and impress your classmates and me with this assignment. Note: Wikipedia is not recognized as a credible source by colleges and universities, therefore it is off limits to you. You may want to consult it as a starting point, but always check another source. Two good rules for seeing if a source is credible: 1) See if it exists in another format, i.e. the New York Times has both online and print editions. 2) Check to see if it cites sources. Generally credible sources will cite other credible sources, i.e. websites that cite Ovid’s Metamorphoses or Edith Hamilton’s Mythology will probably be reliable. If in doubt, check with more than one source, or better yet, a librarian.

II. Find 5 poems that contain allusions based on your research. Annotate each poem paying particular attention to how the allusion contributes to the significance of the work as a whole. When annotating, use TPCASST (see below).

III. Read Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood. Annotate the novel as you read. You will have a timed writing on the novel in the first week of school. TP-CASTT Analysis – useful for analyzing poetry

Title: Ponder the title before reading the poem

Paraphrase: Translate the poem into your own words

Connotation: Contemplate the poem for meaning beyond the literal

Attitude: Observe both the speaker's and the poet's attitude (tone)

Shifts: Note shifts in speakers and in attitudes. Devices that help readers discover shift:  Key words (but, yet, however, although)  Punctuation (dashes, periods, colons, ellipsis)  Stanza or paragraph divisions  Changes in line or stanza length, or both  Irony (sometimes irony hides shifts)  Structure (how the work is written can affect its meaning)  Changes in sound (may indicate changes in meaning)  Changes in diction (ex: slang to formal language)

Title: Examine the title again, this time on an interpretive level

Theme: Determine what the poet is saying