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AP Spanish Literature
Course Overview
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In AP Spanish Literature, Hispanic literature is presented from the medieval period through the
20th century. During the course of study, students will learn the major movements and writers in
Hispanic literature, while recognizing the connections between Peninsular and Latin American
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literary production. Every work on the AP Spanish Literature reading list will be covered
within the course of the year following the chronological approach found in the course textbook.
Students will be provided with Abriendo puertas: Antología de literatura en español Tomo I y
Tomo II. (Evanston, Ill.: McDougal Littell/Nextext, 2003) All works included on the reading list
can be found in the two volume text.
The course objectives are as follows:
1. To learn the major writers, literary movements, and historical trends in Hispanic
literature.
2. To learn the techniques and language of literary analysis, criticism, and theory.
3. To use the Spanish language as the vehicle for in class communication, discussion, and
formal presentation. (The course will be conducted entirely in Spanish.)
4. To prepare the student to take the AP Spanish Literature Exam.
In order to be successful in completing the stated objectives, it is essential that students complete
the reading assignments using the assigned Spanish language text. English language or abridged
versions of the works on the reading list are not approved materials for class.
Course Planner
Semester 1
El Medioevo: los siglos XIV y XV
El conde Lucanor (Juan Manuel)
“Romance del rey moro que perdió Alhama” (Anónimo)
“Romance del conde Arnaldos” (Anónimo)
El Siglo XVI
Lazarillo de Tormes (Anónimo)
Naufragios (Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca)
“Soneto XXIII” (Garcilaso de la Vega)
El Siglo XVII
El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha (Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra)
“Soneto CLXVI” (Luis de Góngora y Argote)
“Salmo XVII” de Heráclito cristiano (Francisco de Quevedo y Villegas)
El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra (Tirso de Molina)
“En perseguirme, Mundo, ¿qué interesas?” (Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz)
“Hombres necios que acusáis” (Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
El Siglo XIX
“En una tempestad” (José María Heredia)
“Vuelva Ud. mañana" (Mariano José de Larra)
“Canción del pirata” (José de Espronceda)
Rima IV “No digáis que agotado su tesoro” (Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer)
Rima XI “Yo soy ardiente, yo soy morena” (Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer)
Rima LIII “Volverán las oscuras golondrinas” (Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer)
“El alacrán de fray Gómez” (Ricardo Palma)
Versos sencillos (José Martí)
“¡Adiós, Cordera!” (Leopoldo “Clarín” Alas)
El Siglo XX
“He andado muchos caminos” (Antonio Machado)
“La primavera besaba” (Antonio Machado)
“Canción de otoño en primavera” (Rubén Darío)
“Lo fatal” (Rubén Darío)
“A Roosevelt” (Rubén Darío)
“Caminante, son tus huellas” (Antonio Machado)
“Tú me quieres blanca” (Alfonsina Storni)
“Peso ancestral” (Alfonsina Storni)
Semester 2
El siglo XX
“Las medias rojas” (Emilia Pardo Bazán)
“Poema 15” (Pablo Neruda)
“El hijo” (Horacio Quiroga)
De Romancero gitano (Federico García Lorca)
“Romance de la pena negra”
“Romance sonámbulo”
“Prendimiento de Antoñito el Camborio”
“Muerte de Antoñito el Camborio”
“Dos patrias” (José Martí)
San Manuel Bueno, mártir (Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo)
“Balada de los dos abuelos” (Nicolás Guillén)
“Sensemayá” (Nicolás Guillén)
“Walking around” (Pablo Neruda)
La casa de Bernarda Alba (Federico García Lorca)
“A Julia de Burgos” (Julia de Burgos)
“La muerte y la brújula” (Jorge Luis Borges)
“No oyes ladrar los perros” (Juan Rulfo)
“Oda a la alcachofa” (Pablo Neruda)
“Chac Mool” (Carlos Fuentes)
“El Sur” (Jorge Luis Borges)
“La noche boca arriba” (Julio Cortázar)
“Continuidad de los parques” (Julio Cortázar)
“Las ataduras” (Carmen Martín Gaite)
“La prodigiosa tarde de Baltazar” (Gabriel García Márquez)
“La viuda de Montiel” (Gabriel García Márquez)
El delantal blanco (Sergio Vodanovic)
“Mi caballo mago” (Sabine R. Ulibarrí)
“Un señor muy viejo con unas alas enormes” (Gabriel García Márquez)
“Autorretrato” (Rosario Castellanos)
“Dos palabras” (Isabel Allende)
Teaching Strategies
I will rely on the following aids and strategies to help students better comprehend the works they
read.
1. Pre-reading activities:
a. Teacher will give brief lecture and notes on the author, historical context, and
literary movement in order to build a knowledge base prior to the reading.
b. Students will be taught a variety of ways to deal with difficult vocabulary. This
will include teaching students not to look up every unknown word they come
across, and instead extract meaning from the context.
c. Teacher will facilitate a pre-reading discussion focusing on pertinent themes,
problems, or questions dealt with in the assigned work.
2. In order to increase comprehension, students will be encouraged to use the Abriendo
Puertas Guía de estudio, highlighters, graphic organizers, and take notes that help them
create a dialogue with the text.
3. Post-reading activities:
a. Students will complete the Después de leer questions at the end of each work in
order to check their own comprehension and practice writing about literature in
Spanish.
b. Students will be given a variety of writing assignments including but not limited
too: character analyses, comparisons and contrasts of different works, and poetry
and prose analyses.
4. Group work and a rigorous discussion (in Spanish) of the various works will provide an
environment in which students will have the benefit of learning from each other.
Student Activities
Students are assigned a variety of oral, written, and group project activities. Activities engaged
in or assigned will always be assigned with the following objectives in mind:
1. Building and improving the Spanish language skill set of the student.
2. Equipping the student with the skills necessary to analyze a poem in order to extract a greater
understanding; keeping in mind the special character of poetry as compared to prose.
3. Equipping the student with the skill necessary to analyze a piece of literature in order to
extract a greater understanding of it.
4. Understanding the cultural, historical, and literary context of all works presented.
5. Increasing the student’s knowledge of the civilization, culture, and literary traditions of the
Spanish-speaking world.
6. Recognizing and understanding universal themes, concepts, and ideas in the Spanish language
literary tradition.
Student Evaluation
1) Each semester the students will be required to write three essays, each designed to prepare
them for the type of writing utilized in the successful completion of the AP Spanish Literature
Exam.
2) Quizzes consisting of multiple comprehension questions and of one or two focused essay
questions will be administered after every work.
3) Every 6 weeks, there will be a comprehensive exam covering the works presented during that
6 weeks of instruction. Exams will consist of comprehension questions, reading passages, and
essay questions.
4) Comprehensive semester exams will be administered in January and May.
5) Once per semester, every student will be assigned an oral presentation covering a particular
work, theme, or literary movement. This assignment will necessitate a significant amount of
independent investigation and use of resource materials.