THEMES, THANES
AND
THUNDER
Advanced Placement English Composition and Literature
*
F r e d e r I c k
A .
D o u g l a s s
A c a d e m y
“Crescat scientia; vita excolatur”
Dr. Debra Crump, Principal
Dr. Tawanna Eweling, Assistant Principal
*
Mr. Douglas Key, Assistant Principal
Mr. Casey J. D. Ramel-Hoeksema, Instructor
General Course Information:
Grade level (s) offered: 12
1.0 Credits (1/2 per semester)
Prerequisites: Honors English III is highly recommended; it is expected that students enrolled in AP English Literature
and Composition will take the AP exam in May.
Brief Course Description:
We will be analyzing literature from the point of view of the writer as well as of the reader to determine how the
literature affects its readers and in what ways. We will "measure" literature against the history of philosophy to
understand how literature fits into its own time as well as in all time. We will ask, "What is art?" and try to determine
the qualities of great literature. In addition, our literary analysis will look at style and structure and a writer's diction,
imagery, use of detail, language and syntax and to what effect. Vocabulary study is important. Writing well about
literature is a key component of the class. Students will keep a writing log over the course of the year to document
their improvement and to engage themselves in thinking about their writing.
This Advanced Placement Literature and Writing course is designed to teach beginning-college writing through the
fundamentals of rhetorical theory, and follows the curricular requirements described in the AP English Course
Description.
Course Outcomes:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
to give students knowledge and skills they need to score a 3 or higher on the AP English
Literature and Composition exam. It is an expectation of the class that all students will take the
AP exam in May
to promote students' imaginative abilities in reaction to literature
to help students find and explain (through discussion and writing) what is of value in literature
to understand the nature of literature in an artistic sense and in its historical & universal sense
to study vocabulary in the context of the literature and with college level word lists; to help
students advance in vocabulary skills to cope with unfamiliar language
Methods of Instruction:
Discussion is the primary way in which students come to understand a particular work of fiction or poetry. Discussion
is both large group and small group. Discussions are sometimes student led. Cooperative learning groups are also used
extensively in this class. There are projects/assignments to be done individually as well.
Resources/Texts:
(Texts listed below are generally included in course, but will vary from year to year).
Sophie's World, Jostein Gaarder
Oedipus Rex, Sophocles
The Canterbury Tales, (Selected Tales including the Knight's Tale) Chaucer
The Inferno, Dante
The Metamorphosis, Kafka (Independent reading)
Tess of The D’Urbervilles, Hardy
A Doll’s House, Ibsen
The Death of Ivan Ilych, Tolstoy
Paul’s Case, Cather
Greenleaf, O’Connor
A Good Man is Hard to Find, O'Connor
Good Country People, O'Connor
Araby, Joyce
The Dead, Joyce
The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde
Brave New World, Huxley (Independent reading)
1984, Orwell
One Hundred Years of Solitude, Marquez
Native Son, Wright (Independent reading)
Much Ado About Nothing or Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare
Various Web Resources
Other:
Adventures of Huck Finn
The Age of Innocence
The American
As You Like It
The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
Billy Budd
Bless Me, Ultima
Brave New World
Catch-22
The Color Purple
The Crucible
Death of a Salesman
A Doll's House
Ethan Frome
A Gesture of Life
Go Tell It On The Mountain
Invisible Man
King Lear
Madame Bovary
Middlemarch
Mrs. Dalloway
1984
Obasan
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
Persuasion
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
The Portrait of a Lady
Rosencrantz and Gildenstern Are Dead
The Scarlet Letter
Surfacing
The Sun Also Rises
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Typical American
Sophie's World, Jostein Gaarder
Oedipus Rex, Sophocles
The Canterbury Tales, (Selected Tales including
The Inferno, Dante
The Metamorphosis, Kafka (Independent
Tess of The D’Urbervilles, Hardy
A Doll’s House, Ibsen
The Death of Ivan Ilych, Tolstoy
Paul’s Case, Cather
Greenleaf, A Good Man is Hard to Find, &
Good Country People O’Connor
Araby, The Dead, Joyce
The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde
Brave New World, Huxley (Independent
1984, Orwell
One Hundred Years of Solitude, Marquez
Native Son, Wright (Independent reading)
Much Ado About Nothing or Merchant of
Venice, Shakespeare
Scarlet Letter (Summer reading)
The Crucible
Walden
Uncle Tom's Cabin
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
My Antonia
The Sound and The Fury
Death of a Salesman
The Awakening
I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings (optional)
Various short stories and poetry
Addendum:
reading)
reading)
the Knight's Tale) Chaucer
Assessment:
Assessment is done primarily through essays. Some quizzes are given (weekly vocabulary quizzes). Knowledge of
literary terms is tested. Students are expected to be active participants in discussions. An exam is given at the end of
first semester. Students who take the AP test in May are not required to take the second semester exam. Students will
create a writing log to help with self-assessment of writing.
Our writing is organized according to the traditional rhetorical strategies − narration, description, exemplification,
cause/effect, definition, comparison/contrast, and argumentation. All papers encourage students to vary sentence
length and structure. As an instructor I point out particularly well-constructed phrases and apt word choices, subtle
and appropriate transition statements, and original illustrative details. Students must state their thesis statement at
the end of the paper, which allows me to comment on how well the writing style (tone, diction, sentence structure,
choice of examples) achieves their stated purpose. Students should be able to pinpoint and clearly explain the
particular effect an author achieves in a piece of writing and show how the author achieves that effect through the
use of such elements as symbols, imagery, diction, and structure and organization.
The class will discuss some vital aspect of writing daily, including: invention and Aristotle’s artistic proofs (ethos,
pathos, logos), disposition or structure, and style (diction, syntax, figurative language, mechanics).
Through writing assignments and class discussions, students will be able to show that they can draw parallels and
distinctions between the literature and the compositions.
Essay Summary:
Essay (1): Tone, irony--Oedipus Rex
Essay (2): Setting--Canterbury Tales
Essay (3): Tone, attitude --The Inferno
Essay (4): Imagery --The Metamorphosis
Essay (5): Character--A Doll House
Essay (6): Compare/Contrast
Essay (7): Analysis of a prose passage: diction, tone, imagery--1984
AP Practice Essay (8): Obason
AP Practice Essay (9): Death of a Toad
AP Practice Essay (10): A White Heron
Essay (11) Expository analysis (first of two) (Due at the end of first quarter).
The social and cultural values of this piece will focus students in writing associated with a pupilchosen work which has been covered in the first half of the course.
12. Essay (12): Responding to a critical analysis (Due at the end of second quarter).
This critical paper, explicating poetry and drama, is research-based. Each paper will use specific
and well-chosen evidence to articulate an argument about poems, drama, and fiction.
Specifically, these critical essays are to be based on close textual analysis of structure, style
(figurative language, imagery, symbolism, tone), and social/historical values.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
100-93 %
A
92-90
A-
89-87
B+
86-83
B
82-80
B-
79-77
C+
76-73
C
72-70
C-
69-67
D+
66-63
D-
62-60
D-
59-0
Exempt


Grading:
Standard English Department Grading Scale
Grades are calculated using total points.
AP & English Department Rubrics for scoring essays



I calculate grades using a total points system.
To figure percentage, divide the total points earned by the total
points possible.
(If figuring in extra credit, add points to the points earned but no
points to the points possible.
Semester exams are worth 20% of the semester grade.
Late Policy

Assignments handed in by 3:15 on the day they are due are
eligible for full credit.
F
 Assignments handed in the day after they are due are eligible
for half credit.
E
 No credit is given for assignments that are two days late.
Assignments that are due while you are absent are expected to be handed in on the day you return. Check your course
calendar often for due dates.
Students engaged in projects that are ongoing are expected to meet benchmark deadlines.
Extra Credit:
Eligibility
All students who have no more than one zero for any quarter may work on extra credit projects for that quarter. A proposal for the
work must be submitted to the teacher prior to doing the work. No project may earn more than 50 points extra credit. All points are
added to that quarter's grade. Projects turned in without prior permission will not receive credit.
Writing the proposal
The proposal should take the form of a letter (can also be emailed) and must include the following:





A statement of your eligibility
The reason you want to do the work (beyond wanting to earn points to improve your grade)
A complete description of the work to be done, including any urls, titles of resources, and materials needed
A timeline for beginning and completing the project
A suggested point value for the work and a justification for that suggestion
Wait for acceptance of your proposal before beginning work on your project.
Other Extra Credit Options

Student led parent/teacher conferences earn up to 20 points; it is your responsibility to arrange for this conference
during normal parent/teacher conference times.
Literary Terms:
Allegory
Alliteration
Allusion
Amplification
Anagram
Analogy
Anaphora
anastrophe
Anthropomorphism
Animal related words
Antithesis
Aphorism
Apostrophe/
AUTHORIAL INTRUSION
Assonance
Bibliomancy
Cacophony
Caesura
Characterization
Chiasmus
Conflict
Connotation
Consonance
Denotation
Diction
Ekphrastic
Emulation
Epithet
Euphony
Flashback
Foreshadowing
Hyperbole
Imagery
Internal Rhyme
Inversion
Irony
Metaphor
Metonymy
Motif
Negative Capability
Nemesis
Oxymoron
Onomatopoeia
Paradox
Pathetic Fallacy
Periodic Structure
Personification
Point of View
Plot
Polysyndeton
Portmanteau
Puns
Rhyme Scheme
Rhythm & Rhyme
Satire
Setting
Simile
Stanza
Stream of Consciousness
Symbol
Synecdoche
Syntax
Theme
Tone
Tragedy
Verisimilitude
Verse
Course Outline:
Semester One: (18 weeks)
INTRODUCTORY UNIT (2 weeks)
Review Summer Assignment: Making Connections activity
Introduce Vocabulary Study
Introduce Lit Terms Study
Review Writing About Literature
o 6+1 Traits & AP Scorecard
o The writing log binder
o Active & passive voice
o Conciseness: eliminating wordiness
o Paragraph unity
o CSE (Claim/Support/Explanation)
o Answering the "So What?" question
o MLA format
o What makes a good, even great AP essay?
OEDIPUS REX (2 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: irony, classical tragedy, Greek drama
o Thematic Focus: self-knowledge, pride, arrogance
o Essay (1): Tone, irony
CANTERBURY TALES (3 weeks)
o Study the General Prologue (attempt to read in Middle English), The Pardoner's Tale (on video),
The Knight's Tale, The Miller's Tale & The Reeve's Tale.
o Background information on Chaucer and his times.
o All students memorize & recite the first 18 lines of the GP in Middle English to understand a bit of
what English used to be.
o
o
o
o
Students read one more tale independently and complete short assignment
Analytical Focus: Structure, diction, symbolism, imagery
Thematic Focus: chivalric values, love, human idealism
Essay (2): Setting
THE INFERNO (2 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: structure (terza rima), diction, tone, symbolism, figurative language
o Thematic Focus: heroic journey, choices
o Essay (3): Tone, attitude
THE METAMORPHOSIS (Independent novel)
o Analytical Focus: Point of view, imagery, diction, tone
o Thematic Focus: Existentialism, value of the individual
o Essay (4): Imagery
A DOLL’S HOUSE (3 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: Character, Irony, Point of View
o Thematic Focus: Women's Rights
o Essay (5): Character
TESS OF THE D’URBERVILLES (2 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: Style; the Victorian novel
o Thematic Focus: Choices/Women’s role in society
SHORT FICTION Unit (4 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: various literary elements, as applicable
o Thematic Focus: various themes
o Essay (6): Compare/Contrast
SEMESTER EXAM
o
A practice AP exam is given as the 1st semester exam
Semester Two:
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (3 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: humor, irony, satire, syntax
o Thematic Focus: Manners & Conventions/Romanticism vs. German Pragmatism
o Research and report on Victorian manners/customs
o Video
BRAVE NEW WORLD (Independent novel)
o Analytical Focus: Dystopian genre, diction, style
o Thematic Focus: value of art, what it means to be human, ethics of science & technology
1984 (3 weeks)
o
o
o
o
Analytical Focus: Point of view, diction, tone, imagery, syntax
Thematic Focus: Dissolution of language, innate vs. learned behavior, objective reality
Activity: Logical Fallacies
Essay (7): AP Essay, analysis of a prose passage: diction, tone, imagery
MERCHANT OF VENICE (2 weeks)
o Analytical Focus: Shakespearean structure
o
o
Thematic Focus: Anti-Semitism, women in power, disguise
Activity: Analyzing passages
NATIVE SON (Independent novel)
o Analytical Focus: plot, point of view, diction, tone
o Thematic Focus: Racism, Anti-Semitism, and Individual vs. Society
POETRY (3 weeks) (various selections from Sound and Sense, Perrine)
o Analytical Focus: elements of poetry
o Thematic Focus: varies with poem
TEST PREP (4 weeks)
o Practice Objective Tests: three versions
o Review answering strategies
o Practice AP essays: (in class, 40 minutes)
o (8) Obason
o (9) Death of a Toad
o (10) A White Heron
AP ENGLISH LITERATURE & COMPOSITION EXAM
(First part of May)
FINAL PROJECT (3 weeks) (after test through end of year)
Students suggest a project that
o Integrates the study of the literature/concepts/themes we have studied
o Incorporates web page or some other technology
o Requires all students to write/contribute
o Is a public performance

WEEKLY
Vocabulary Quizzes