Want to know how you would have done the year I took the AP Exam? See if you can get better than a "3" (I should have studied harder):
1987 AP English Lit Exam from apcentral
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Lit Terms: Allusion
Ah, Father's Day. When we got back from the beach I watched "Finding Nemo" with my 2-year-old daughter. We chatted the whole time, mostly about what Nemo was doing and seeing, but my daughter also started pointing out connections that weren't so obvious. For example, when Bruce the shark throws the torpedo into the mines and sets off a chain reaction of explosions,
e>
a bubble pops on the surface next to a pelican sitting on the water next to a companion in the moonlight. When the bubble pops (right next to the pelican's butt), the companion turns, frowns in disgust, says "Nice" and flies away. My daughter looked up at me, said, "Bird tooted!" and started laughing. Now she's asleep and I'm thinking about how I can help you pass the AP Exam next May.
In addition to helping with Montaigne and providing a forum for comments/questions on all the summer texts, this blog will also feature sample AP-style quizzes and topics for writing. Try the exercises in the posts and see what you do well and what you need to work on (also, compare your answers with your colleagues'-- this is an advantage of writing online as opposed to turning in a single copy). This self-evaluation will be an important part of our first two weeks.
I will also use the blog to start you off on the literature terms you're going to need.
The first one is...
ALLUSION: an author's reference to something s/he thinks you should know.
Allusion is an inside joke or understanding between author and reader. Watch the scene in VIDEO #1 (see below), featuring the aforementioned shark named Bruce. At the very end of this clip he peers through an opening at his intended prey and says, "Heeere's Brucie!" My daughter giggles at this point because Bruce is clearly out of his mind. Besides, we've seen this before; she knows Marlin and Dory escape, and Bruce turns out alright after all. But since all my daughter knows about "Heeere's Brucie!" is what's right in front of her, she misses out on some of the humor and most of the information contained in this scene. The allusion to 12-step recovery programs (e.g., standing up in front of a group and saying "Hi, I'm _______...") makes me reflect on the absurdity of sharks working on image problems and addictive behavior. This can also be taken as a satirical comment on the lengths some people have to go in this society just to treat themselves well. "Heeere's Brucie!" also makes me think of Jack Nicholson in "The Shining" (VIDEO #2, below) and the bizarr-o displacement of a homicidal maniac in a children's cartoon. And then, to add yet another layer, I find myself thinking that it's sort of weird for such an innocent line (see VIDEO #3, below) to become popular in such a different and scary way (well, it seemed scary the first time I saw it). Using allusion instead of just having a shark turn mean at the smell of blood helps make Bruce's character more "human" and also invites viewers to apply their own references to "Heeeere's Johnny!" The more viewers know, the more fun they have interpreting the mash-up of images in their heads while Brucie tosses the torpedo at the mines and Marlin and Dory escape. This will also give you something more interesting to say than "So, um, yeah..." when James Franco (a Ph.D. candidate in literature himself) pulls you aside at the Academy Awards after party* and says:
[*You may not get to the Oscars, but you will get to the AP Exam, and questions like this await you there too. I borrowed the idea and basic structure for this one from from the 2011 AP Literature Exam.]
"Hey, I once read this novel by William Styron where a father tells his son that life 'is a search for justice.' So, you saw "Finding Nemo, right? Do you think either Marlin or Nemo understood justice? Do you think their searches for justice were successful or were they looking for something else? What do you think their struggles say about us and the world we make for ourselves?"
Knowledgeable viewers/readers who can connect the dots also understand the deeper subject, what "Finding Nemo" (and every other story) is really all about: us.
VIDEO #1
VIDEO #2
VIDEO #3
[BEFORE YOU WATCH: The original "Heeere's Johnny!" (as invented by Ed McMahon for the pre-Leno Johnny Carson-era "Tonight Show") takes approximately the first three seconds of this clip, followed by a 1:27 "stretched out" version that is guaranteed to annoy you and everyone else within earshot. For more on Ed McMahon check out the youtube link "Remembering Ed McMahon" from CBS]
e>
a bubble pops on the surface next to a pelican sitting on the water next to a companion in the moonlight. When the bubble pops (right next to the pelican's butt), the companion turns, frowns in disgust, says "Nice" and flies away. My daughter looked up at me, said, "Bird tooted!" and started laughing. Now she's asleep and I'm thinking about how I can help you pass the AP Exam next May.
In addition to helping with Montaigne and providing a forum for comments/questions on all the summer texts, this blog will also feature sample AP-style quizzes and topics for writing. Try the exercises in the posts and see what you do well and what you need to work on (also, compare your answers with your colleagues'-- this is an advantage of writing online as opposed to turning in a single copy). This self-evaluation will be an important part of our first two weeks.
I will also use the blog to start you off on the literature terms you're going to need.
The first one is...
ALLUSION: an author's reference to something s/he thinks you should know.
Allusion is an inside joke or understanding between author and reader. Watch the scene in VIDEO #1 (see below), featuring the aforementioned shark named Bruce. At the very end of this clip he peers through an opening at his intended prey and says, "Heeere's Brucie!" My daughter giggles at this point because Bruce is clearly out of his mind. Besides, we've seen this before; she knows Marlin and Dory escape, and Bruce turns out alright after all. But since all my daughter knows about "Heeere's Brucie!" is what's right in front of her, she misses out on some of the humor and most of the information contained in this scene. The allusion to 12-step recovery programs (e.g., standing up in front of a group and saying "Hi, I'm _______...") makes me reflect on the absurdity of sharks working on image problems and addictive behavior. This can also be taken as a satirical comment on the lengths some people have to go in this society just to treat themselves well. "Heeere's Brucie!" also makes me think of Jack Nicholson in "The Shining" (VIDEO #2, below) and the bizarr-o displacement of a homicidal maniac in a children's cartoon. And then, to add yet another layer, I find myself thinking that it's sort of weird for such an innocent line (see VIDEO #3, below) to become popular in such a different and scary way (well, it seemed scary the first time I saw it). Using allusion instead of just having a shark turn mean at the smell of blood helps make Bruce's character more "human" and also invites viewers to apply their own references to "Heeeere's Johnny!" The more viewers know, the more fun they have interpreting the mash-up of images in their heads while Brucie tosses the torpedo at the mines and Marlin and Dory escape. This will also give you something more interesting to say than "So, um, yeah..." when James Franco (a Ph.D. candidate in literature himself) pulls you aside at the Academy Awards after party* and says:
[*You may not get to the Oscars, but you will get to the AP Exam, and questions like this await you there too. I borrowed the idea and basic structure for this one from from the 2011 AP Literature Exam.]
"Hey, I once read this novel by William Styron where a father tells his son that life 'is a search for justice.' So, you saw "Finding Nemo, right? Do you think either Marlin or Nemo understood justice? Do you think their searches for justice were successful or were they looking for something else? What do you think their struggles say about us and the world we make for ourselves?"
Knowledgeable viewers/readers who can connect the dots also understand the deeper subject, what "Finding Nemo" (and every other story) is really all about: us.
VIDEO #1
VIDEO #2
VIDEO #3
[BEFORE YOU WATCH: The original "Heeere's Johnny!" (as invented by Ed McMahon for the pre-Leno Johnny Carson-era "Tonight Show") takes approximately the first three seconds of this clip, followed by a 1:27 "stretched out" version that is guaranteed to annoy you and everyone else within earshot. For more on Ed McMahon check out the youtube link "Remembering Ed McMahon" from CBS]
Saturday, June 18, 2011
The Poisonwood Bible
This posting is for any conversations about The Poisonwood Bible, including (but not limited to):
*Barbara Kingsolver's life and work
*Time period and related literature
*Characters
*Plot
*Allusion to cultural references and other works
*Themes: spirituality, religion, emotion and other thought influencers
If you have any questions, comments, or ideas as you read, post a comment and create a thread.
*Barbara Kingsolver's life and work
*Time period and related literature
*Characters
*Plot
*Allusion to cultural references and other works
*Themes: spirituality, religion, emotion and other thought influencers
If you have any questions, comments, or ideas as you read, post a comment and create a thread.
Pride & Prejudice
This posting is for any conversations about Pride & Prejudice, including (but not limited to):
*Jane Austen's life and work
*Time period and related literature
*Characters
*Plot
*Movies, plays, and other adaptations (zombies & vampires included)
*Themes: love, courtship, marriage, family/generational relationships
If you have any questions, comments, or ideas as you read, post a comment and create a thread.
*Jane Austen's life and work
*Time period and related literature
*Characters
*Plot
*Movies, plays, and other adaptations (zombies & vampires included)
*Themes: love, courtship, marriage, family/generational relationships
If you have any questions, comments, or ideas as you read, post a comment and create a thread.
On Education: Montaigne #2
This week's topic as you think about Montaigne is education. As a twelve-year veteran of the system (assuming you began in kindergarten) you undoubtedly have your own opinions about education. How has your education helped you think? What practices are effective and what needs to be modernized? What do you think of this article on homework, which ran on the front page of The New York Times?
Here are some thoughts from Montaigne. Does his view on education surprise you? Does it seem like what you would expect from him? Do you agree/disagree with him? As you did last week (thanks for your comment, Alex!), please feel free to compare these ideas with what you read. Take notes on the ideas and the writing style, and remember that I will be hosting in-class essays on these topics during the first week of school, so if anyone has ideas or questions, please don't be shy-- start posting your comments now.
montaigne2 education
Here are some thoughts from Montaigne. Does his view on education surprise you? Does it seem like what you would expect from him? Do you agree/disagree with him? As you did last week (thanks for your comment, Alex!), please feel free to compare these ideas with what you read. Take notes on the ideas and the writing style, and remember that I will be hosting in-class essays on these topics during the first week of school, so if anyone has ideas or questions, please don't be shy-- start posting your comments now.
montaigne2 education
Saturday, June 11, 2011
About the Summer Reading & On Stream of Consciousness: Montaigne #1
This year’s summer reading is a mix of eras, styles, topics and genres. Pride & Prejudice is widely acknowledged as a classic masterpiece. As you read, think, and take notes on this book, pay close attention to how Jane Austen describes the details of marriage as a cultural custom and how she develops a conflict. What is it about her style that makes an “old” story so attractive to new audiences? (Pride & Prejudice was released as a feature film in 2005; give your imagination the chance to “see” the book first, then check out the movie’s imdb entry—does the cast look/act/speak as you imagined?)
Barbara Kingsolver’s Poisonwood Bible was published in 1998. Studying a contemporary author gives readers the chance to ask about the thinking behind the text (as they did in this BBC interview). How are the topics of gender, politics, religion, and social custom dealt with in this book? What similarities and differences do you see between Kingsolver’s writing and Austen’s?
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne is in a class by himself. You can’t escape the word essay in school, but the way we use it has nothing to do with the way Montaigne meant it when he titled his book Essays. In school the word suggests three paragraphs of tightly structured sentences with appropriate transitions sandwiched by an introduction and a conclusion. In Montaigne’s French, however, essays literally means “tries” or “attempts.” Today's world of first-person musings on blogs, texts, tweets and facebook pages was preceded by a world in which hardly anyone wrote this way. Montaigne was one of the earliest Western authors to try to capture and organize his thoughts as they occurred.
In 2010 New York’s Other Press published a book by Sarah Bakewell entitled How to Live: Or A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer. I’ve never met Ms. Bakewell, but after finishing the book I miss her. Reading How to Live while reading Montaigne’s Essays was like walking through a dark cave with a trusted guide who’s telling you all about what you can't see. Ms. Bakewell explained Montaigne’s writing in the context of his life. I understand Montaigne's ideas and his style more clearly because of Ms. Bakewell's descriptions of the people and events that influenced his thinking and approach to writing.
Following is the first of several excerpts from How to Live that may help shed some light on your reading of Montaigne. NOTE: These excerpts aren't written for children and they may contain words, names or ideas that are unfamiliar. Lector caveo. Yes, I could have been less annoying by avoiding the Latin and simply using the English, “Reader beware.” [And don't get the impression that I know more than a few phrases in Latin; I got this one from an online translator.] However, that would have failed to illustrate the point that there will be things in nearly every text we read that you won’t recognize, and that in the end you and you alone are responsible for making sure that you understand what you read. If you don’t get it all the first time around, or if you don't recognize names like Plutarch, Heraclitus or Seneca, congratulations: you're just like everyone else, including me, who examines something closely for the first time. Don't be shy about getting answers. Look up words and literary allusions, and make sure your references are credible (we'll discuss this further in class). Crowdsource by posting questions and ideas on the blog so we can respond. Send me an email at dpreston.learning@gmail.com if you get stuck.
Because Montaigne’s writing is so different from a fictional narrative, we should examine it differently. Check the blog each Sunday night for a new topic to focus on as you read. See what insights you can unearth and think about how your notes (see previous post on Active Reading Notes) help you remember and organize the information you read. Post your ideas, observations, questions and criticisms (professionally, please) to the blog.
Each Friday I will read your posts and contribute to the thread. This is neither a formal assignment nor extra credit. (Possible Q: What’s in it for me? Certain A: 1) Getting a head start on mastering material we’ll need to accomplish our goals this year, including a 100% success rate on the AP Exam; 2) Meeting our colleagues and creating a sense of community to give us feedback and help us when we need it; and 3) Experiencing immediate success instead of just sitting around wishing we didn’t have to read.)
Here is the first excerpt from How to Live. I look forward to your thoughts and questions on this.
montaigne1 stream of consciousness
Barbara Kingsolver’s Poisonwood Bible was published in 1998. Studying a contemporary author gives readers the chance to ask about the thinking behind the text (as they did in this BBC interview). How are the topics of gender, politics, religion, and social custom dealt with in this book? What similarities and differences do you see between Kingsolver’s writing and Austen’s?
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne is in a class by himself. You can’t escape the word essay in school, but the way we use it has nothing to do with the way Montaigne meant it when he titled his book Essays. In school the word suggests three paragraphs of tightly structured sentences with appropriate transitions sandwiched by an introduction and a conclusion. In Montaigne’s French, however, essays literally means “tries” or “attempts.” Today's world of first-person musings on blogs, texts, tweets and facebook pages was preceded by a world in which hardly anyone wrote this way. Montaigne was one of the earliest Western authors to try to capture and organize his thoughts as they occurred.
In 2010 New York’s Other Press published a book by Sarah Bakewell entitled How to Live: Or A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer. I’ve never met Ms. Bakewell, but after finishing the book I miss her. Reading How to Live while reading Montaigne’s Essays was like walking through a dark cave with a trusted guide who’s telling you all about what you can't see. Ms. Bakewell explained Montaigne’s writing in the context of his life. I understand Montaigne's ideas and his style more clearly because of Ms. Bakewell's descriptions of the people and events that influenced his thinking and approach to writing.
Following is the first of several excerpts from How to Live that may help shed some light on your reading of Montaigne. NOTE: These excerpts aren't written for children and they may contain words, names or ideas that are unfamiliar. Lector caveo. Yes, I could have been less annoying by avoiding the Latin and simply using the English, “Reader beware.” [And don't get the impression that I know more than a few phrases in Latin; I got this one from an online translator.] However, that would have failed to illustrate the point that there will be things in nearly every text we read that you won’t recognize, and that in the end you and you alone are responsible for making sure that you understand what you read. If you don’t get it all the first time around, or if you don't recognize names like Plutarch, Heraclitus or Seneca, congratulations: you're just like everyone else, including me, who examines something closely for the first time. Don't be shy about getting answers. Look up words and literary allusions, and make sure your references are credible (we'll discuss this further in class). Crowdsource by posting questions and ideas on the blog so we can respond. Send me an email at dpreston.learning@gmail.com if you get stuck.
Because Montaigne’s writing is so different from a fictional narrative, we should examine it differently. Check the blog each Sunday night for a new topic to focus on as you read. See what insights you can unearth and think about how your notes (see previous post on Active Reading Notes) help you remember and organize the information you read. Post your ideas, observations, questions and criticisms (professionally, please) to the blog.
Each Friday I will read your posts and contribute to the thread. This is neither a formal assignment nor extra credit. (Possible Q: What’s in it for me? Certain A: 1) Getting a head start on mastering material we’ll need to accomplish our goals this year, including a 100% success rate on the AP Exam; 2) Meeting our colleagues and creating a sense of community to give us feedback and help us when we need it; and 3) Experiencing immediate success instead of just sitting around wishing we didn’t have to read.)
Here is the first excerpt from How to Live. I look forward to your thoughts and questions on this.
montaigne1 stream of consciousness
Friday, June 3, 2011
Active Reading Notes
Some of you have asked me about how to take active reading notes. I suggest that you focus on three categories of ideas: 1)passages that significantly contribute to your understanding; 2)passages that illustrate a particular literary technique or characteristic of the text; and 3)passages that elicit a personal response from you. As you can see from the example below, when I read the first chapter of Like Water for Chocolate I underlined passages and made notes about (1) symbolism, foreshadowing, and other hints that helped me "get" what the author was trying to say; (2) examples of magical realism, characterization and plot development; and (3) actions or dialogue that made me sit up and take notice (you may find yourself asking questions, or vehemently agreeing/disagreeing, but any time you have an intense reaction is an important moment in the text).
Because many of you will be taking notes on a book you don't own, use your own paper to write the notes-- and keep track of the page numbers! That way when we discuss them you'll be able to refer to the context.
Check back here frequently over the summer. I will post items for discussion so that when we meet in August you'll be ready.
active reading notes lwcf jan -
Because many of you will be taking notes on a book you don't own, use your own paper to write the notes-- and keep track of the page numbers! That way when we discuss them you'll be able to refer to the context.
Check back here frequently over the summer. I will post items for discussion so that when we meet in August you'll be ready.
active reading notes lwcf jan -
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