| This course is constructed based upon the most recent AP English Literature
and Composition Course Description, available as a free download at
apcentral.collegeboard.com (C1)
PAGE DOWN TO UNIT TIMEFRAME IF YOU HAVE ALREADY SEEN THIS DESCRIPTION!
The literature (prose, poetry, and drama) to be covered in this course
varies from year to year, but will always include representative texts from
the 16th century through contemporary times in British Literature, as well
as from American writers (C2). Specific texts are included within each unit.
Possible additional texts include, but not limited to, those listed in the
Textbooks/Course Materials section of this syllabus.
Our year is divided into four quarters, each nine weeks in length. The
course is constructed around a chronological approach to British and
American literature, with departures from chronology as necessary for
recursive examination of the recurring themes of individuals rejected by
their societies, and the human desire to seeks answers about our existence
and its meanings (C2, C3). Departures from the strict chronology also occur
to fill in the gaps of students' background knowledge of Western Culture and
its literary cornerstones (Greek Mythology, Arthurian legends).
During each nine weeks, students will always engage in writing personal
journals wherein they consider their own reactions to writing and reading
(C4), poetry responses that will grow into deeper readings and writings in a
variety of analytical and critical styles, including but not limited to
formalist, biographical, psychological, and historical. Specific references
to the text (e.g. properly cited quotations) are absolutely required as
students explain meaning (C4). They will also read intensively, discuss
thoroughly, argue vituperatively, discover multiple meanings upon multiple
re-readings, and create essays which will receive peer and teacher feedback
and constructive criticism throughout the writing process as they evaluate
the artistry and value of a work (C4, C5). Vocabulary studies are interwoven
with the readings and writings of the course, with literary terms being
defined through use and growing familiarity, just as a more wide-ranging
vocabulary will develop through exposure, use, and practice (C5).
Particular attention is paid to increasing students’ skills in analyzing and
discussing figurative language, but the chronological approach also allows
for an important understanding of social and historical values contemporary
to the work. These are parlayed into sophisticated discussions and analyses
of the literature’s structure, style, and themes. (C3)
Evaluation of students’ skills will include their informal writings such as
journals and the first drafts of poetry responses; timed essays written in
the style of AP Literature and Composition exam questions; formal literary
essays taken through all the steps of the writing process; usage of
vocabulary, variety in sentence structure, logical organization including
the use of transitions and repetition to add emphasis, both specific detail
and appropriate generalization, and an awareness and use of purpose, tone,
diction, structure, and personal style (C5); class discussions; practice
multiple-choice questions in the style of the AP Literature and Composition
exam questions; tests, quizzes, and impromptu writings related to current
readings. Grade weight for each assignment is based upon the time and effort
required for success in each assignment, or each part of each assignment.
It should be noted that time frames are approximate, and may be lengthened
or shortened as needed. Because each unit focuses on developing and honing
the same skills, and merely presents a different time period or form of
literature, students will meet all course requirements even if some units
are covered less thoroughly than others. All required texts are provided by
the school and school system (Resource Requirements).
Writing Assignments Throughout the Year
Poetry Responses
Many students, I find, have a bit of a fear of poetry. They view it as dense
and incomprehensible, and shy away from examining it more closely.
Therefore, in order to increase their comfort levels with a variety of poems
and poetic styles, for most of the year, the students will be given a list
of poems from either The Bedford Introduction to Literature or Sound and
Sense. They are expected to read and re-read these twelve or fifteen poems
each week, and to write a response to one. The responses are due every
Monday the class meets.
During the first quarter, responses are personal in nature: memories brought
to the fore by the reading, the poems’ relationship to their own life
experiences, and any universal ideas which they may find applicable beyond
the world of the poem and their own lives (Writing to Understand, C4).
In the second quarter, students’ responses are expected to become more
analytical and expository in nature: explication of the poet’s meaning and
message, and discussion of figurative language employed within the work. MLA-
style citations and direct quotation are expected (Writing to Explain, C4).
For the third quarter, expectations are more complex. Students must begin to
relate the poems which they read to the social and cultural values which the
poet is attempting to express. To that end, they must know about the time
and society in which the poet was writing, and include that information in
their analysis. MLA citations and specific textual evidence are still
required, but students are additionally expected to judge the poem’s
artistic merit, as well. Because the expectations are higher, these poetry
responses are more in the nature of rough drafts. Students will select one
to develop into a more detailed paper for each half of the nine weeks,
complete with all the stages of the writing process, peer editing, and
teacher conferencing (Writing to Evaluate, C4).
Formal Essays
As each major work of literature is completed, students will either take a
test, have a discussion day, or write a formal essay. The topics for these
papers will come from past AP Literature and Composition Open Questions, and
their work will be partially evaluated using College Board rubrics.
Additionally, they will be graded on their levels of improvement throughout
the year in vocabulary usage and variety, elegance of writing with varied
sentence structures, organization and coherence, specific details used to
prove analytical generalizations, and rhetorical skills (C5). Thus, even
students who begin the year at low levels, if they show improvement
throughout the course of these papers, will be able to achieve grades of
which they can be proud.
Reading Assignments
When major works of literature are assigned for reading, students are given
a copy of the text and a time frame for completion. These are accompanied by
questions to assist them in focusing on the work’s plot, setting, character,
conflicts, themes, symbolism, and figurative language. Usually, halfway
through each time frame, students and teacher engage in a discussion day for
understanding and interpretation (shorter works will not have this halfway
point for discussion; particularly dense or challenging works may be divided
into thirds, rather than halves). At the end of the time frame, students
take a test or write a paper, and another discussion day is held. Please
note the list of representative works included in the Textbooks/Course
Materials section of the syllabus (C2).
Exam Preparation and Practice
All year, students will practice AP Literature and Composition Exam-style
questions. For both multiple choice and essay questions, we will begin by
working in groups and without time limits, using discussion and interaction
to determine correct answers or suitable essay approaches. As the year
progresses, students will receive instruction in strategies and skills to
improve their analytical skills when faced with objective questions. Groups
will be reduced in size, time limits will be shortened, and by the third
quarter, students will be capable of approaching AP-style questions at
speed, with accuracy, success, and comfort.
Journals
Three to five times a week, students will enter the room to find a writing
prompt on the board. They are expected to take five minutes and do a quick
write of at least one-half page on the prompt immediately upon entering the
classroom. Prompts may range from a line in our readings, to current events,
to quotations from famous writers and thinkers, to single adjectives or
nouns. These quick write topics can lead into essays written in class or
independently, and are equivalent to the brainstorming step in the writing
process (C5). This informal quick-write time is also intended to allow
students to explore their thoughts and feelings on a wide range of topics
(C4, Writing to Understand), and to serve as the basis for future poetry,
short stories, and essays to be submitted for publication and in writing
contests.
Tests and Quizzes
Such evaluations will be used mainly to ensure that students possess the
necessary knowledge of such basics as plot and character for a particular
work, or for the historical background of a period in history (C2). The main
foci of the course are the literature and the writings which students
develop.
UNIT NAMES AND TIMEFRAMES
Unit One – Introduction to the Course (Week One)
Content and/or Skills Taught:
I will give students an overview of the materials and skills to be covered
in the course. We will discuss expectations for reading the selected works,
in class and extended writing assignments, discussions, and the literature
to be covered.
Summer Reading Evaluations and the Writing Process
Students enter the course with a variety of skill levels in writing and
literary analysis. Some come in barely able to construct a coherent
paragraph, while others enter already adept at the writing of the ubiquitous
five paragraph theme. One of the Summer Reading assignments is designed to
give me an idea of the students’ current capabilities in writing, and is
based on AP Literaturestyle essay questions. I read all of the assignments
and conference with the students on how to improve their writing, and the
class as a whole works on learning how to develop coherent thesis statements
and introductory paragraphs by looking at examples of good, bad, and
indifferent responses to the topic from past AP essay answers. Students will
rewrite their introductions with the help of peer editing and teacher
conferencing. After this, they will correct their citations to reflect
proper MLA format, and will polish their arguments. This rewriting and
editing is only the first step in many exercises throughout the year to
improve expository and analytical writing.
Beowulf Reading Assignment
Students are issued a copy of Beowulf for independent reading, along with a
reading guide consisting of questions designed to aid in understanding. They
will have one week to read the epic and prepare for discussion and testing.
They will be expected to take note of, and be prepared to evaluate, the
effect of a society’s beliefs on its literature, and to examine our major
course themes of individuals rejected by their societies, and humanity’s
desire to seek answers about ourselves, our origins, and the meanings of our
lives.
College Essays
Students are asked to visit the websites of colleges to which they are
considering application. They must find and print out a minimum of two essay
topics from two different colleges, and bring those to class on the Tuesday
after Labor Day for use as narrative writing assignments.
Major Assignments and/or Assessments:
Beowulf Reading Assignment, as above
College Essays, as above
Unit Two – Anglo Saxon Literature (Weeks Two and Three)
Beowulf and Grendel (Gardner)
At this time, students have already completed a Summer Reading journal on
Grendel, and have read all of Beowulf. We will begin this unit with a
discussion day on Beowulf, which will be followed with a lecture and
notetaking on AngloSaxon culture from Elements of Literature. Students
will draw correlations between their new information and the epic poem, and
then the class will write create individual outlines for an essay comparing
and contrasting two locations in the poem, a typical AP style essay topic.
Teacher conferences will give students a chance to refine their organization
before beginning the essay. Rough drafts will be subject to peer editing,
and final drafts will be turned in on Monday of the second
week.
Samples of AngloSaxon kennings and shorter poems (from Elements of
Literature) will be examined and analyzed, with particular attention paid to
the style, tone, and diction of the times.
The unit will continue with discussion days on the philosophies inherent in
Grendel, as well as the adaptation of the story for a modern audience.
Students will be expected to analyze and argue using textual details from
both works, and to decide which of the works has more artistic and cultural
value for its time (C4, Writing to Evaluate). This evidence will be used to
craft a literary review of each work, wherein students urge readers to enjoy
or avoid the literature, giving persuasive reasons for each course of
action urged.
Major Assignments and/or Assessments:
AP Style Essay (1991 AP Open Question): Many plays and novels use contrasting
places (for example, two countries, two cities or towns, two houses, or the
land and the sea) to represent opposed forces or ideas that are central to
the meaning of the work. Choose a novel or a play that contrasts two such
places. Write an essay explaining how the places differ, what each place
represents, and how their contrast contributes to the meaning of the work.
Unit Three – Greek Drama (Weeks Four and Five) (C2)
I have discovered, in the time during which I have taught Advanced Placement
Literature and Composition, that many students enter this challenging
academic arena with little or no knowledge of Greek Mythology. Because it is
a fundamental cornerstone of Western society, as well as a rich treasure
trove of literary allusion, I have found that it is essential to ensure that
the students have a solid grounding in the basic myths, as well as a
knowledge of the Greek gods which approaches reflex (C3). To that end,
although doing so requires going “backward” in our chronological approach to
British and American literature, the second unit of the year focuses on
Greek Mythology, as well as two plays by Sophocles and one by Aristophanes,
should time allow (Oedipus Rex, Antigone, and Lysistrata)(C2).
We will begin this unit with a lecture and notetaking on the Greek Gods, and
students will be assigned some of the more important myths to read in small
groups, followed by presentations to the class as a whole (C3). Students
will be tested on their basic knowledge of the myths and gods, after which
we will read the three plays in a combination of class readings, discussion,
and independent reading.
Once again, the plays relate well to our course themes of individuals unable
to function in their society, and mankind’s continuing search for meaning
about themselves, their origins, and their place in the world. Once again,
actual AP multiple choice questions and essay topics from past exams,
focusing on relevant poetry analysis or including multiple allusions to our
unit’s subject matter, will be given to the students in order to improve
their writing and analytical skills.
Major Assignments and/or Assessments:
AP Style Essay (1981 AP Open Question) The meaning of some literary works is
often enhanced by sustained allusions to myths, the Bible, or other works of
literature. Select a literary work that makes use of such a sustained
reference. Write a well organized essay in which you explain the allusion
that predominates in the work and analyze how it enhances the work's
meaning.
AP Style Essay (1998 Poetry Question) The story of Odysseus’ encounter with
the Sirens and their enchanting but deadly song appears in Greek epic poetry
in Homer’s Odyssey. An English translation of the episode is reprinted in
the left column below. Margaret Atwood’s poem in the right column is a
modern commentary on the classical story. Read both texts carefully. Then
write an essay in which you compare the portrayals of the Sirens. You
analysis should include discussion of tone, point of view, and whatever
poetic devices (diction, imagery, etc.) seem most important. (C4, C5)
Unit Four – Medieval Literature (Weeks Six and Seven)
Everyman, The Canterbury Tales, Sir Gawaine and the Green Knight (C2) This
unit will begin with a lecture and notetaking on Medieval culture from
Elements of Literature, which will be followed with an examination of the
prologue from The Canterbury Tales as a primary source for the society of
the time. Students will be issued a copy of Everyman for independent reading.
Samples of Medieval ballads and romances will be read and discussed in
class, with students doing related quickwrites and imitation exercises.
During the discussion day on Everyman, I expect that we will range into the
broader area of religion’s influence on literature throughout the ages, with
students bringing in evidence from novels and plays from all ages which they
have read in their prior English courses. Additionally, students will write
a short paper discussing allegory and its effectiveness or lack thereof in
presenting the author’s message. They will be asked to pay special attention
to tone, diction, and word choice for this assignment.
Because the Arthurian legends are a cornerstone of literary knowledge upon
which many allusions and references are based throughout Western literature,
and central to the analysis of so many British and American writers, this
fictional world will be examined in detail to give students necessary tools
for recognizing allusion and developing the ability to discuss its relevance
to the work in which it appears (C3). We will examine a few of the most
culturally significant stories in their entirety, particularly those
including Sir Gawaine (The Green Knight, The Loathly Lady) because of their
strong emphasis on the cultural ideas of chivalry and a woman’s role. The
idea of original sin which permeates Western culture will also be examined,
in reference to Arthur’s origins and eventual downfall.
As with Greek Mythology, the students’ Arthurian knowledge will be put to
the test with actual AP multiple choice questions and essay topics from past
exams, focusing on relevant poetry analysis or including multiple allusions
to the unit’s subject matter.
Major Assignments and/or Assessments:
Allegory Paper, as above
AP Multiple Choice Poetry Questions (Andrew Marvell, “A Dialogue Between
Body and Soul”)
AP Style Essay (1980 AP Open Question) A recurring theme in literature
is "the classic war between a passion and responsibility." For instance, a
personal cause, a love, a desire for revenge, a determination to redress a
wrong, or some other emotion or drive may conflict with moral duty. Choose a
literary work in which a character confronts the demands of a private
passion that conflicts with his or her responsibilities. In a wellwritten
essay show clearly the nature of the conflict, its effects upon the
character, and its significance to the work (C4, C5).
Unit Five: Renaissance Poetry (Weeks Eight and Nine)
This unit will begin with a review of “The Elements of Poetry,” as presented
in Bedford. Next, the class will focus in on Renaissance poetry with a
lecture and notetaking on the time period, with particular emphasis on
changes in British society relating to religion, world power, and the
reasons for the development of new types of literature, specifically poetry
(Elements of Literature).
Various Renaissance authors will be examined, as will the structures used to
create their poetry (particularly the sonnet). In order to make the poetry
more relevant to the modern student, we will include the case study from
Bedford, “The Love Poem.” A special focus will be given to the differences
in style between Petrarchan, Shakespearean, and Spenserian sonnets, and to
the high style of vocabulary used within the poems by these authors.
Students will keep vocabulary lists and practice using the words
appropriately and correctly in discussion and in writing.
During this unit, students will practice their analytical and argumentative
skills through discussion and quick writes on specific poems, or even
specific stanzas or lines within poems. Correct use of poetic terminology
and vocabulary is a must (C4). Practice will also continue with AP style
multiple choice and essay questions.
Major Assignments and/or Assessments:
AP Poetry Essay (1990 Poetry Question) Selection: Soliloquy ("Uneasy lies
the head that wears the crown" from Henry IV, Part II, Shakespeare) In the
soliloquy, King Henry laments his inability to sleep. In a well organized
essay, briefly summarize the King's thoughts and analyze how the diction,
imagery, and syntax help to convey his state of mind (C4, C5).
Sonnet Analysis: Students will select one sonnet by Shakespeare, and do
multiple drafts of a close line by line formal analysis of its structure,
tone, diction, symbolism, and meaning. Peer editing and teacher feedback
will take place throughout the process, both before and after each step. No
students will be allowed to select the same sonnets for their writing. (C4,
C5)
AP Essay (1984 Open Question) Select a line or so of poetry, or a moment or
scene in anovel, epic poem, or play that you find especially memorable.
Write an essay in which you identify the line or the passage, explain its
relationship to the work in which it is found and analyze the reasons for
its effectiveness. Do not base your essay on a work that you know about only
from having seen a television or movie production of it. Selecta work of
recognized literary merit (C4, C5).
| |
