AP SPANISH LITERATURE CLASS
Amundsen High School
Course syllabus 2010-2011
Instructor: Mrs. Sonia Barillas
Course Overview
The AP Spanish Literature course provides students with a variety of opportunities to
expand their knowledge of the Spanish language through Literature, and prepares them for the
A.P. Spanish Literature Exam. This course is conducted completely in Spanish. Activities
revolve around the four skills of language learning: speaking, writing, listening and reading. The
entire AP Spanish Literature reading list is covered in this course, however throughout the course
of their High School career students are exposed and introduced to the Spanish Language and
Literature of Spanish and Latin American writers, thus in their Senior year, students are prepared
for the rigor of this course.
I prefer to teach this course by genres: the poetry, the short tale, the drama and the novel.
I feel that by teaching this way, students are constantly reviewing the chronology of the Spanish
literature, the literary movements and the literary terms. Each genre is covered chronologically,
with its history and social context. The McDougal Littell two volume textbook: Abriendo
puertas is used for the achievement of this course, I also use current events articles to bring
themes to contemporary times.
Objectives:
The objectives of this course are to continue fostering a love and appreciation of the
Spanish Language through Hispanic literature and culture, as well as to prepare the students to
take the AP Spanish Literature Exam. Authors and literary movements will be introduced in their
historical settings. To facilitate these objectives the following procedure will be followed:
 Students are presented with pre-reading activities, quizzes, and test that involved direct
quotations from the works.
 Students are assigned essays crafted in the style of AP Spanish Literature Exam questions
to do at home, and timed essays written in class. To assess the essays rubrics made in the
style of AP Spanish Literature Exam are used.
 Students learned literary terms, literary movements, and vocabulary in the texts that date
from the medieval period to the present times.
Course Planner:
First Semester
Poetry - The analysis of syllabic structure and poetic devices as they relate to the themes of
poetry are introduced during this period. Students engage in both oral and written analyses of
poems and are taught to write using the guidelines required for the AP curriculum. (8 weeks)
 Middle Ages, the Golden Age, Twentieth Century.
Major themes: Honor, the tenacity of the individual, social and political criticism,
oppression, solitude, carpe diem.
Works studied:
Anonymous: “Romance de la pérdida de la Alhama”, “Romance del Conde
Arnaldos”
Federico García Lorca: From Romancero gitano
“Romance de la luna, luna”


“Romance de la pena negra”
“La monja gitana”
“Prendimiento de Antoñito el Camborio en el camino de
Sevilla” and “Muerte de Antoñito el Camborio”
“Romance Sonámbulo”
Garcilaso de la Vega: “Soneto XXIII”
Luis de Argote y Góngora: “Soneto CLXVI”
Francisco de Quevedo y Villegas: “Un soneto dos versiones”, “Salmo XVII”
José María Heredia: “En una tempestad”
José de Espronceda: “Canción del pirata”
Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer: “Rimas IV, XI, LIII”
José Martí: “Versos sencillos”, “Dos patrias”
Rubén Darío: “A Roosevelt”, “Canción de otoño en primavera”, “Lo fatal”
The Woman’s voice in poetry
Works studied:
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: “En perseguirme, mundo, ¿qué interesas?”, “Hombres
necios que acusáis”
Alfonsina Storni: “Tú me quieres blanca”, “Peso ancestral”
Julia de Burgos: “A Julia de Burgos”
Rosario Castellanos: “Autorretrato”
Twentieth Century Existentialism, Sociopolitical and Ethnic Poetry
Works studied:
Antonio Machado: “He andado muchos caminos”, “La primavera besaba”,
“Caminante, son tus huellas”
Pablo Neruda: “Poema 15”, “Walking around”, “Oda a la alcachofa”
Nicolás Guillén: “Balada de los dos abuelos”, “Sensemayá”
The Short Tale. Spanish and Latin American Short Tale. (11 weeks)
Major themes: Relationships between parent and child, Social and political criticism,
Man vs. Society, The fine line between reality and fantasy.
Works studied:
Horacio Quiroga: “El hijo”
Sabine R, Ulibarrí: “Mi caballo mago”
Juan Rulfo: “No oyes ladrar los perros”
Gabriel García Márquez: “La siesta del martes”, “Un día de estos”, “El ahogado
más hermoso del mundo”, “Un señor muy viejo con unas alas enormes”, “La viuda
de Montiel”, “La prodigiosa tarde de Baltasar”
Leopoldo Alas: “¡Adiós, Cordera!”
Emilia Pardo Bazan: “Las medias rojas”
Carmen Martín Gaite: “Las ataduras”
Ricardo Palma: “El alacrán de Fray Gómez”
Jorge Luis Borges: “El Sur”, “La muerte y la brújula”
Julio Cortázar: “Continuidad de los parques”, “La noche boca arriba”
Carlos Fuentes: “Chac Mool”
Isabel Allende: “Dos palabras”
Review for the First Semester Final Exam.
AP SPANISH LITERATURE CLASS
Amundsen High School
Course syllabus 2010-2011
Instructor: Mrs. Sonia Barillas
Second Semester Syllabus
Second Semester
The Drama – The Golden Age to the Twenthieth Century. (ten weeks)
Major themes: Honor and dishonor, Divine Justice, The struggle against double
standards and hypocrisy, Religion, Oppression, Sexual frustration, Social and
Political criticism, Class struggle.
Works studied:
 History of the Spanish teather
 Federico García Lorca: “La casa de Bernarda Alba” (3 weeks)
 Sergio Vodanovic: “El delantal blanco (3 weeks)
 Tirso de Molina: “El burlador de Sevilla y el convidado de piedra” (3 weeks)
The Novel - From the Middle Age to the Twentieth Century. (ten weeks)
Major themes: Honor, Religion, Social classes, man vs. the unknown
Types of Novels: didactic, picaresque, testimonial, chivalry and modern
Works studied: El infante don Juan Manuel “El conde Lucanor: Ejemplo XXXV
de lo aconteció a un mancebo que casó con una mujer muy fuerte y muy brava”
Anónimo: “Lazarillo de Tormes: Tratados I, II, III, y VII”
Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca: “Naufragios: Capítulos XII, XX, XXI y XXII”
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra: “El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha:
Primera parte, capítulos I, II, III, IV, V y VIII”
Mariano José de Larra: “Vuelva usted mañana”
Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo: “San Manuel Bueno, mártir”
Review for Second Semester Final Exam - Review for AP Exam
Teaching Strategies
 Before reading any literary work I present to students the historic context of the work:
author, country, literary movement and new vocabulary.
 Students have a notebook where they write a synopsis of each literary piece they read.
This strategy helps them review in preparation for quizzes and exams and ultimately
for the AP Exam.
 In order to get a real feeling for drama, I take students to see Spanish plays at a local
Spanish theater.
 To review and prepare for quizzes, exams and the AP Exam I have created a series of
games where students review: literary terms and works with their authors; quotations
from the texts, etc. I have also put these terms and works with their authors in flash
cards. These activities help students review and the same time they enjoy the games.
 I also have a library of videos that students view throughout the school year.
Student Activities
In addition to the readings, analysis, and discussions, the course requires essay writing.
Students write at least two essays for each genre. For instance students analyze and contrast the
work of two different authors. In these essays students must use proper usage of literary terms.
Because of time constraints I ask my students to e-mail me about any questions they have. When
reading controversial or interpretative material I divide the class in groups to encourage
discussion; then each group reports to the class. When students cover the Poetry genre, students
have to write a romance and a soneto. For the Short tale genre, students do posters representing
their favorite short tale. With the Drama genre, students are divided in groups, some students act
out the plays, another group serve as audience for the interpretation of the play, another group
will analyze the theme. The novel, is the last genre students analyze, they also do drawings, from
“Don Quijote de la Mancha”, and Lazarillo de Tormes.
Grading policy:
90% or better =
80% to 94% =
70% to 90% =
60% to 84% =
59% or lower =
A
B
C
D
F
Grading criteria:
Assignments
Homework
Class Participation
Exams
Quizzes
Projects
20%
20%
15%
15%
15%
15%
We have read Syllabus, and are aware of the Grading Criteria and Grading Policy for this
course. We are also aware of the amount of work that has to be done by our daughter/son.
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