Lake Minneola High School
AP Language and Composition
Pre-Requisite Summer Reading Assignment 2014-15
Use fully expressed ideas to finish all of the following assignments. In other words,
Advanced Placement classes are conducted at a collegiate level. Your ideas should not be expressed in
sentence fragments or with unsupported assertions.
I. Rhetorical Vocabulary:
Look up the definitions of the following words. Create an index card with the word, definition, and an
example of the term.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Alliteration
Allusion
Anaphora
Anastrophe
Antithesis
Aphorism
Apostrophe (not
the ‘)
8. Asyndeton
9. Assonance
10. Chiasmus
11. Connotation
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
Deduction
Diction
Enthymeme
Epistrophe
Euphemism
Ethos
Hyperbole
Imagery
Induction
Idiom
Irony
Jargon
24. Juxtaposition
25. Lending
Credence
26. Logos
27. Metaphor
28. Metonymy
29. Mood
30. Oxymoron
31. Paradox
32. Parallelism
33. Parody
34. Pathos
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
Personification
Polemic
Polysyndeton
Propaganda
Pun
Rhetoric
Rhetorical
device
Sarcasm
Satire
Scheme
Sibilance
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
Simile
Spin
Syllogism
Symbol
Synecdoche
Syntax
Theme
Tone
Understatement
Wit
II. Rhetorical Arguments:
Read the two texts below. Then respond in well-written argumentative essays to each of Free Response
Prompts.
1.
Read Into the Wild by John Krakauer (ISBN: 033045367X or ANY version you have)
 Prompt #1 (2013)
For centuries, prominent thinkers have pondered the relationship between ownership and the
development of self (identity), ultimately asking the question, “What does it mean to own something?”
Plato argues that owning objects is detrimental to a person’s character. Aristotle claims that ownership of
tangible goods helps to develop moral character. Twentieth-century philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre
proposes that ownership extends beyond objects to include intangible things as well. In Sartre’s view,
becoming proficient in some skill and knowing something thoroughly means that we “own” it.
Think about the differing views of ownership. Then write an essay [using Into the Wild] in which you
explain your position on the relationship between ownership and sense of self. Use appropriate evidence
from your reading, experience, or observations to support your argument.
2.
Read Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison (ISBN: 0141184426 or ANY version you have—make sure you
get the correct Invisible Man by RALPH ELLISON and NOT H.G. Wells….)
 Prompt #2 (2009)
“Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents which in prosperous circumstances would have lain
dormant.”—Horace
Consider this quotation about adversity from the Roman poet Horace. Then write an essay using evidence
from Invisible Man that defends, challenges, or qualifies Horace’s assertion about the role that adversity
(financial or political hardship, danger, misfortune, etc.) plays in developing a person’s character. Support
your argument with appropriate evidence from Invisible Man, observation, and experience.
III.
Be prepared for a general reading check quiz over both books.