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AP English Literature & Composition
Online Syllabus
Instructor: Lana Dannenbring-Eichstadt
Mailing Address: PO Box 138 Wessington, SD 57381
Phone: 605.354.3589
E-mail Address: lana.dannenbring@k12.sd.us
Course Overview
“An AP English Literature and Composition course engages students in the careful reading and critical
analysis of imaginative literature. Through the close reading of selected texts, students deepen their
understanding of the ways writers use language to provide both meaning and pleasure for their readers.
As they read, students consider a work‟s structure, style and themes, as well as such smaller-scale
elements as the use of figurative language, imagery, symbolism and tone” (The College Board AP English
Course Description, Fall 2010: 49). A rigorous course, literary analysis forms the bulk of the academic
writing with the inclusion of creative writing and oral or posted presentations interspersed for increased
learning and sharing. This course is designed to challenge students to stretch beyond current levels of
skill in writing “to increase students‟ ability to explain clearly, cogently, even elegantly, what they
understand about literary works and why they interpret them as they do” (AP English Course
Description, Fall, 2010: 51). These skills will prepare the students to better meet the challenges of the AP
English Literature and Composition exam and the rigorous standards of university courses.
South Dakota State Standards Underscored by Course: Appendix A
National Standards as Set by NCTE: Appendix B
Course Goals
At the end of the academic year, students should be able to
 closely read and critically analyze imaginative literature through annotation, freewriting, and
keeping a dialectical journal;
 recognize the structure and style of a work and how it creates tone and theme;
 identify figurative language, imagery, and symbolism in a work and their effectiveness in
producing meaning;
 respond to representative works from various genres and periods, knowing a few works well;
 recognize the social, cultural, and historical values a work embodies and reflects;
 discuss literary criticism as it applies to a work;
 write critical analysis of literature for understanding and evaluation; and
 present information and discovery through posted presentations of research and analysis.
Required Texts:
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Nevill Coghill, translator. New York: Penguin
Books, 2003.
Hunt, Douglas. The Riverside Anthology of Literature, Third Edition. New York:
Houghton Mifflin Co., 1997.
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ISBN: 0-395-76070-4 Rankin, Estelle M. and Barbara L. Murphy. 5 Steps to a 5 AP English Literature,
2010- 2011 Edition McGraw-Hill, publisher
http://www.mhprofessional.com/product.php?cat=111&isbn=007162192X ISBN: 007162192X /
9780071621922
Additional Novels and Plays: (available in libraries or school resources or purchased new or used from
bookstores; preferred editions are those ISBN numbers listed below)
Hamlet, William Shakespeare, Roma Gill, editor
ISBN: 13: 9780198321071 Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
ISBN: 0-393-92636-2
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte
ISBN: 13: 9780141441146
The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger
ISBN: 13: 9780316769174
Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston
ISBN: 9780060838676
The following syllabus is tentative. All work is designed to move the student toward improved
competency in reading, writing, and thinking. Additions or changes may be made to enhance student
learning.
First Semester:
Introductory Unit
Annotating for critical reading
MLA format required of all papers for this class
Plagiarism: Definition and Consequences Writing the AP Essay
Weekly Practice from the following:
Identifying Literary Devices and their Effectiveness
Comprehension skills in annotation, mnemonic devices such as TP-CASTT, DIDLS
Vocabulary
Grammar/Usage
Study of diction, detail, imagery, syntax, and voice and its effectiveness in literary
works read this year
Close reading, followed with writing of literary analysis of literary works
Independent Reading: Two novels will be assigned as independent readings throughout
the year:
The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger (alternative novel available)
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte
Thematic Units:
Writing About Literature with a Short Story Focus
Short stories and writing of critical analysis will be interspersed throughout the year.
Students will identify elements of fiction: point of view; character; setting; theme; plot;
symbolism/allusions
Students read two or three short stories, followed by writing a critical analysis on one of the
elements strongly identified in one of the stories. The teacher assesses most analyses; however, each
student will assess at least one of his or her analyses following a detailed rubric. Stories to be read will
be selected from the following:
o Plot and Structure
 “Snares,” by Louise Erdrich
 “The Child by Tiger,” Thomas Wolf
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 “The Three Strangers,” Thomas Hardy
o Setting
 “The Guest,” Albert Camus
 “A Moment Before the Gun Went Off,” Nadine Gordimer
o Character
 “Miss Brill,” Katherine Mansfield
 “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” Flannery O‟Conner
o Point of View
 “Hills Like White Elephants,” Ernest Hemingway
 “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner
o Theme
 “The Rocking Horse Winner,” D.H. Lawrence
 “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Charlotte Perkins Gilman
o Symbolism
 “The Birthmark,” Nathaniel Hawthorne
 “Araby,” James Joyce
o Humor and Pathos
 “The Catbird Seat,” James Thurber
 “A Christmas Memory,” Truman Capote
Irony and Satire
Canterbury Tales, Chaucer: “The General Prologue,” “The Pardoner‟s Tale,”
“The Wife of Bath‟s Tale,” plus and one of the following: “The Miller‟s Tale” or “The
Nun‟s Priest‟s Tale”
Research:
o Geoffrey Chaucer
o Middle Ages:
Social Structure
Language—Middle English
The Church
Analytical focus:
Poetic structure, imagery, irony, and satire
Irony and satire on social conventions:
The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde (Online)
Research:
o English Victorian Era and its Social Conventions
o Oscar Wilde
Analytical focus: farce, comedy of manners, and social satire
“A Modest Proposal,” Jonathan Swift (Online)
Research:
o Ireland in the early 18th century
Analytical focus: Swift‟s satire as political statement
Moral Dilemmas/Tragedy
Oedipus the King, Sophocles (Riverside Anthology)
Research and Analytical focus: irony, classical tragedy, Greek drama and
functions of the chorus, Aristotelian Theory
Thematic focus: self-knowledge, pride, arrogance, elusiveness of truth
Poems about Oedipus Rex and/or containing allusions to the play
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Partnership Project: Identifying significant lines revealing the past, conflict, character‟s personality
and behavior, foreshadowing the future, and expressions of wise advice.
Test or Writing Prompt
Hamlet, Shakespeare
Research:
o Shakespeare
o The setting of the play
Analytical focus: Shakespearean Structure; Elizabethan language
Thematic focus: tradition of revenge; psychological tragedy;
Possible comparison of scenes in various productions of Hamlet with lead actors Laurence Olivier,
Kenneth Branagh, and Ethan Hawke followed by a written evaluation of which scene has the best
artistry, quality, and stage directions to reflect the scene‟s meaning
Study Group‟s focus on an aspect of Hamlet: father and son relationships; foils; women and their
roles; Hamlet‟s madness; family dynamics—Hamlet and his mother, Polonius and his children; friends—
loyal and disloyal; Claudius and Gertrude—love or lust?
Poetry about Hamlet or alluding to Hamlet
Essay based on AP prompt or Test
The Death of a Salesman, Miller (Riverside Anthology)
Research: Arthur Miller, 1940‟s in the US; the American Dream;
Analytical Focus: a memory play/flashbacks; character analysis
Thematic focus: Comparing and contrasting the American Dream (to include the part athletics might
play) in the 1940s and today; elusiveness of truth; family dysfunction
Writing analytical paragraphs over designated text
Timed writing (two or three prompts from AP exams of years gone by) using the play as source and
or Project on the American dream and tragic hero
Introduction to Poetry
Structure: foot, line, stanza
Rhyme
Reading and responding to random poetry
Second Semester
Weekly Practice to include any of the following:
Grammatical/usage problems
Sentence variation with imitation exercises and practice in combining sentences for
greater fluency and academic finesse
AP type multiple-choice questions
Timed writing from old AP exams writing prompts
Elements of Poetry
Poetry Immersion (may be interspersed throughout the year)
Review of elements of poetry: foot, line, stanza, rhyme
Types of Poetry
o The Ballad:
“Bonny Barbara Allan,” Anonymous
“La Belle Dame Sans Merci,” John Keats
o The Lyric
“Childhood Is the Kingdom Where Nobody Dies,” Edna St. Vincent Millay
“Wild Nights, Wild Nights,” Emily Dickinson
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“Dover Beach,” Matthew Arnold
“To His Coy Mistress,” Andrew Marvell
o The Ode
“Ode to the West Wind,” Percy Bysshe Shelley
“Ode on a Grecian Urn,” John Keats
o The Elegy
1st stanza of “Adonais,” by Percy Bysshe Shelley
“Elegy for Jane,” Theodore Roethke
“In Memory of W.B. Yeats,” W.H. Auden
o The Dramatic Monologue
“Porphyria‟s Lover,” Robert Browning
“My Last Duchess” Robert Browning
“Ulysses,” Alfred Lord Tennyson
o The Sonnet
Petrarchan and Shakespearean sonnets will be selected from the works of Shakespeare, Milton,
Wordsworth, e.e. cummings, Keats, St. Vincent Millay, Donne, and others
Poetic devices, such as diction, connotation, detail, tone, imagery, and symbolism, and their
effectiveness in establishing meaning
Written analyses and explications on packets of poetry
Essays of compare and contrast of two poems on similar subjects from the following:
“The Harlem Dancer: by Claude McKay and “The Island Women of Paris,” Rita Dove
“The Hunt” by Molly Peacock and “Whoso List to Hunt,” Sir Thomas Wyatt
“To One Who Has Been Long in City Pent” and “Bright Star! Would I Were Steadfast as Thou Art,” both
poems by John Keats
“Loveliest of Trees,” A.E. Housman and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” Robert Frost
“On the Sonnet” John Keats and “Sonnet,” Billy Collins
“Spring,” Gerard Manley Hopkins and “Spring and All,” William Carlos Williams
“To the Mercy Killers,” Dudley Randall and “How Annandale Went Out,” Edwin Arlington Robinson
“The Writer,” Richard Wilbur and “The Thought Fox,” Ted Hughes
Personal Identity and Integrity
Master Harold and the Boys, Athol Fugard (if time allows)
Research
o Apartheid in South Africa
o Men of magnitude:
Analytical focus: character, irony, complexity of conflict driven plot
Test: themes, significant quotations, symbolism, conflicts characters face influenced by Apartheid
and by family dysfunction
Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad
Research European Imperialism
The African Congo in the mid-late 1800s
Analytical focus: motifs, psychological literary criticism; literal and psychological journeys
“Shooting an Elephant,” George Orwell, nonfiction essay
Poem “The Hollow Men,” T.S. Eliot
Quizzes and creative work to display understanding
Essay based on AP writing prompts
Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston
o Research: Harlem Renaissance Project
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Analytical focus: free indirect discourse, symbolism, frame story and its effectiveness, point of
view
o Timed writings using past AP prompts
o Reading poems of several Harlem Renaissance poets
o Multiple-choice quizzes
o Test/Essay
Concluding expectations for the above novels and plays: Students may be required to complete a
Major Works Data Sheet for selected novels or plays read for a comprehensive review of the works.
These sheets require the following information:
Characteristics of the genre
Biographical information about the author that may have influenced the work
Historical information about the period of publication that may have influenced the writing of the
work
Plot summary
Description of author’s style and an example
Role and significance of key characters
Themes supported by significant quotations and symbols
Setting
Significance of opening and closing scene in book or Students will complete a project that shows
understanding of the novel or play.
Expectations for student papers: Directions for all papers are clearly written and reviewed in class. At
any point in the writing process, questions can be directed to the instructor in an e-mail for prompt
attention. Students are encouraged to send their introductory paragraphs to the instructor for
instruction and feedback particularly as to the strength and clarity of their thesis statements. Peer
critiquing follows first draft writing, so that students can consider revisions, addition, and deletions to
their papers. Peer critiques look at organization and transitions, as well as fluency of sentence structure,
and effectiveness of introduction and conclusion.
AP Test preparation
Strategies for answering multiple-choice questions
“How to” address writing prompts with the incorporation of old AP test prompts for timed writing
with various novels taught
Practice, practice, practice
Further Suggested Reading Opportunities:
Other suggested novels and plays for further independent reading:
NOVELS:
Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte
Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
Jude the Obscure, Thomas Hardy
The Mayor of Casterbridge, Thomas Hardy
Tess of the D’Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
Native Son, Richard Wright
Black Boy, Richard Wright
Moby Dick, Herman Melville
Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoevsky
The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros
Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
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The Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka
Beloved, Toni Morrison
Song of Solomon, Toni Morrison
The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison
Krik? Krak!, Edwidge Danticat
Ceremony, Leslie Silko
Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton
Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, James Joyce
Blindness, Jose Saramago
The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver
OR others taken from AP list
PLAYS:
Macbeth, William Shakespeare
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare
Pygmalion, George Bernard Shaw
King Lear, William Shakespeare
A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry
Fences, August Wilson
Strategies for Success
Read each day’s assignment. For shorter assignments
(poems, short stories), read the work twice.
Annotate the reading in your book if you own it, or on post-it notes, or in a notebook. Always jot down
questions about areas in the work that are giving you difficulty. For longer works (novel, plays), use a
charting technique with headings of plot, character, motifs, cultural or historical notations, and the like
to help you see the work develop.
Become involved in class Chats, discussions, and postings to the Discussion Board.
Ask questions about difficult concepts or passages.
Respond to the ideas of others in the class and add your own insights or questions. Participation helps
you comprehend and retain the material.
Take notes during class sessions and discussions. Jot down important terms, concepts, passages,
quotations, themes, stylistic devices, and symbols being discussed.
GRADES will be based on a point system. I recommend that you check your grades weekly on
Desire2Learn.
A 90 – 100%
B 80 – 99%
C 70 – 89%
D 60 – 69%
F Below 60%
The Advanced Placement Examination in English Literature and Composition
What is it? The AP English Literature and Composition Examination is a 3-hour test given in the spring by
the College Board. It is composed of multiple-choice and essay questions. A student’s score may range
from 1-5, indicating how qualified the student is in reading comprehension, literary analysis, and essay
composition based on college-level literature.
Students who pass the exam may earn college credit or course exemptions from the college or
university he/she has chosen to attend. I urge students to check the policies of their chosen college or
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university to see if and how credit will be given for passing scores on the AP English exam. Policies may
vary at the different institutions.
When and where is it given? Date: Thursday, May 9, 2013 or Thursday, May 8, 2014 Location: The test
is given at your local school if your school has signed up through the College Board to be a testing site
Who should take the exam? All students who complete the course are required to take the AP Exam.