Welcome to AP Lit.!  Our year actually begins in some ways right now with the summer reading.  Please bring the same commitment to doing this part of the course which got you accepted into the program.
 

Specific Directions for texts:

If you can do so, please buy copies of the books and highlight and write marginal notes.  This will help you review quickly and efficiently when you need to. For the summer of 2002, I am allowing highlighting and annotation in lieu of journals.

Reading response journals may be substituted for the highlighting and annotation for all three novels if the student choses or if library copies are used. All journals and/or annotated, highlighted copies will be collected Thurs., Sept. 5, the first day of school.  I will return them as needed to take the essay tests on these works.  Use the following format if you decide to do the journals.
 

• fold page in half lengthwise
• left hand side- copy quotations which express character development, a  theme of the work or an archetype (your choice of topic-use a variety for each work).  Be sure to use quotation marks and a page number for each
• right hand side- describe the character, theme or archetype as you interpret it

Xerox Old and New Testament:  These are provided for two reasons:

• to familiarize you with the allusions necessary to the study of AP literature
• to expose you to the language of the King James Bible, also the language of Shakespeare and other writers of his time period

Please highlight and write marginal notes on your copies.  I will collect and possibly give a quiz on the stories.  You do not have to do journals for the Bible material.
 

Some additional comments on the summer selections:

I have tried to select material that you can read without detailed class instruction.
However, these are not “beach books” to be read merely for plot.  Consider the following as you read:
 

• Song of Solomon:  A journey of self-discovery.  Look for parallels to The Odyssey by Homer.

• The Awakening: Watch for symbols-log them.  Is the ending tragic or heroic? This book was shocking and disturbing when it was written at the turn of the century.  Why?

• A Prayer for Owen Meany: Consider the role of the narrator. He is more prominent than in many first-person novels. Analyze him. In what ways is he the focus of the novel rather than Owen Meany? Faith is a major theme of the novel. Look for discussions of how we get it, keep it, lose it and where it comes from. Irving has commented that Owen is descended from the Christ Child and the Ghost of Christmas Past in Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Annotate examples.

Assessment:

On Sept. 6 (Friday), you will take the first of two in-class AP style essay exams on summer reading. We will evaluate your essays during the following week using the AP rubric and real scored sample student essays.  You will have an opportunity to practice using the real AP rubric to score samples as well.

We will do a second in-class writing one week later on Sept. 13 (Friday), also for a test grade.

Assessment on the Bible Xeroxes will be by quiz to be announced in Sept.
 

Have a wonderful summer.  If you have questions, you can call the school and someone will reach me at home.
 

Mrs. Filak

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