Summer Reading
Marie Ramsey, AP Language and Composition
Students in Advanced Placement Language and Composition are required to read and
respond to a variety of literary works. The following summer reading list is meant to
provide entertainment and challenge for students who have demonstrated success is past
English classes and a willingness to read and analyze works that use a variety of rhetorical
strategies. For this assignment, you will be reading an American play, novel, and work of
journalistic nonfiction. Additionally, you will be paying attention to current events and
finding news articles or editorials that relate in some way to the ideas and issues raised in
the readings.
Students enrolled in AP Language and Composition must read the following three books
by the first day of class: Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, The Great Gatsby by F.
Scott Fitzgerald, and either Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich or The Immortal Life
of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. The assignments for each book will be turned in
separately, and the typed portions will be submitted to turnitin.com. I will provide class
passwords for this on the first day of class.
1. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller has been called the single most important playwright in American History.
Miller extended the established classical definition of tragedy to encompass the common
person as an apt hero for tragic drama. In a democracy with its basis in freedom and
individual rights, the common person is worthy of heroic stature.
In Death of a Salesman, the author has created a contemporary tragic hero and theme.
Willy Loman, derived from Arthur Miller’s observations of human behavior of known
people, possesses an image of himself which he cannot fulfill within ethical bounds.
Tragedy lies in his inability to evaluate himself justly and in the effects of his “dream”
image on others. The flaw lies in his mistaken view of his rightful status in his world, in
his confusion between dreams and reality.
Assignment:
1. Write a brief plot summary of the play.
2. Write a brief description of the main characters and discuss their roles in relation
to one another. What are your opinions of the characters, and how do the
characters influence one another? Discuss Willy, Linda, Biff, Happy, Bernard,
Charlie, Uncle Ben, and Howard Wagner.
3. This play is a dream play—Willy’s dreams of success mingling with his dreams
of the past. His dream is the flawed American dream, which establishes him as the
“common-man hero.” What are Willy’s ideas of success? What is his dream? Is it
flawed? Why or why not?
4. Copy five quotes that you feel reveal important ideas. Make sure you cite the page
numbers.
5. Write down any questions or reactions you have while reading.
Although it is not required, you might enjoy watching one of the film versions of the
play. The 1998 Castle Hill Production starring Dustin Hoffman and John Malkovich is a
good one, and it will help you understand the stage directions and how they support
what’s going on in Willy’s head.
2. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
According to the 75th anniversary edition of The Great Gatsby, it is “the most widely
read, translated, admired, imitated, and studied twentieth-century work of American
fiction.” It is often acclaimed the best picture of the years tagged as the “Jazz Age,” and
if offers a vividly realistic portrayal of the artistic, social, political, and economic climate
of the 1920s.
The style affords a study of the art of exceptional literary craftsmanship. Fitzgerald
developed each chapter as a dramatic entity which climaxes in chapter 7. He chose to
relate these scenes through a narrator, an observer who remains uncorrupted by
materialistic dreams, while the five major characters succumb to a confusion of values
which lead them, in their individual responses to the era, to moral failure,
disillusionment, and eventual misfortune.
Each chapter is rich in imagery, symbols, foreshadowing, juxtaposition, irony, paradox,
sentence patterns, and speech styles. Within Fitzgerald’s mastery of literary technique
lies his criticism of a materialistic society focused on themes of the American dream, its
hopes, illusions, corruption, self-discovery, possessiveness, and paradox.
Assignment:
1. Write down fifteen quotes that strike you as you read. These quotes must be hand
written rather than typed; typed quote logs will not be accepted. Record your
reaction and the page number. Your reaction might be (1) a personal connection
to something in the text, (2) an explanation of why you feel a passage is important
thematically or otherwise, (3) an appreciation for the writing style, (4) a question
you have, or (5) an explanation of why you agree or disagree with a statement
made, etc.
2. Complete the attached study guide. Audible moaning is allowed at this point, but
the purpose is to intentionally slow you down a bit so you don’t overlook the
more complex interactions and ideas in this text. Brief responses are adequate.
3. Choose one of the following nonfiction reads. Both books
are popular “common reads” throughout the country for
incoming college freshmen students. The reading
assignment is the same for each book.
Nickel and Dimed: On (Not)Getting By in America by Barbara
Ehrenreich
Millions of American work full-time for poverty-level wages. Journalist Barbara
Ehrenreich decided to join them. Published in 2001, Nickel and Dimed is the revealing,
compelling, and widely acclaimed result of that decision. To find out if individuals can
survive on the "wages available to the unskilled," Ehrenreich spent 12 months working at
a variety of minimum-wage jobs. Her experiences offer a gritty glimpse into the world of
day-to-day work, a stark picture of living from hand to mouth, and a personal perspective
on the politics of welfare.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
One of the most talked about books of 2010 according to NPR, The Immortal Life of
Henrietta Lacks was a popular 2011 freshman common read. Henrietta Lacks was a poor
black tobacco farmer whose cells – taken without her knowledge in 1951 – became one
of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning,
gene mapping, and more. Henrietta’s cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet
she remains virtually unknown, and her family can’t afford health insurance. This is a
story of the collision between ethics, race, and medicine; of scientific discovery and faith
healing; and of a daughter consumed with questions about the mother she never knew.
Assignment:
1. Choose what you feel are the five most important quotes in the book, copy them, and
cite the page numbers. (These quotes can be typed.) Be prepared to explain why you
chose them.
2. Complete a SOAPSTone analysis of the text. Most of your responses will be relatively
brief.
SOAPStone is an acronym for speaker, occasion, audience, purpose, subject, and tone.
In a SOAPStone analysis, you identify each of these elements.
1. Speaker—The voice or “persona” of the writer. Who is the author, and why is it
important that we know?
2. Occasion—The time and place of the piece and the context that prompted the
writing. How was the writer influenced by the larger occasion: an environment of
ideas, attitudes, and emotions? What was the immediate occasion: the event or
situation that caught the writer’s attention and triggered a response.
3. Audience—Who is the target audience? How is the writing directed at this
audience?
4. Purpose—What is the purpose of the text? What does the writer want readers to
think or do?
5. Subject—What is the subject?
6. Tone—What is the attitude of the author toward his or her subject? Tone is
conveyed by stylistic features such as diction, syntax, imagery, and figures of
speech. Copy at least one quote that you feel captures her tone.
4. Research/Current Event Assignment
For this class, it is important that you pay attention to the news and what is going on in
the world around you so you can intelligently discuss and debate various topics with your
peers. You are required to find and bring at least three news or magazine stories or
editorials that relate in some way to issues raised in the required readings.
English 5-6
Advanced Placement Language and Composition
Turn in this signed form and a check for $44.50 which will cover the cost of your Norton
Sampler, by Tuesday, June 2, 2015. If you fail to do so, you will be placed in regular
junior English. You may also pay the $10 English Lab Fee at this time, or you may do so
during the registration process. This lab fee helps cover English Department expenses for
books and supplies.
If you choose to purchase The Norton Sampler on your own, we are using the 8th Edition
by Thomas Cooley, and you must have it with you the first week of school; I will not be
able to place another order at that time. Used books are available online for significantly
less money if you want to order one on your own. You may also check with current AP
Language students to see if they are interested in selling their used copy.
If you are not currently in honors English, place this signed form and check in my box in
the main office (Ramsey) or bring it to me in my classroom (room 05), where you may
also check out books to complete the summer reading assignment.
**********************
I have read the attached summer reading assignment and understand the completed work
is due on the first day of school.
Student Name (print) _____________________________
Date ___________
Student Signature ________________________________
Parent/Guardian Name (print) _______________________
Parent/Guardian Signature __________________________
Check One
____ I am attaching a check for the Norton Sampler ($44.50). (Checks should be made
out to Reno High School and should note the student’s name/Norton.)
____ I am attaching a check for the Norton Sampler ($44.50) and the English Department
lab fee ($10). (Checks should be made out to Reno High School and should note
the student’s name/Norton.)
____ I will be purchasing the Norton Sampler on my own and will have it with me the
first week of school.