Welcome to AP Literature and Composition I!
I’m sure you can’t wait for your summer to begin. However, before you get lost in your own literary world, you have a summer reading assignment for class next fall.
I hope to send you off this year with a challenging and thought-provoking summer reading experience. For your summer reading, you will read Divergent by Veronica Roth, How to Read Literature Like a Professor by
Thomas Foster, and The Iliad by Homer. All the reading and written responses give you the opportunity to reflect upon the author’s style and how that style creates meaning
Step One
As you read Divergent , you should annotate WITHIN the novel and include BOTH comments and markings on the following literary devices: setting, character, plot, theme, and imagery.
If you are unable to annotate within the novel, you may use sticky notes that should include CLEAR references and notes to the above devices, OR create a chart/notes and track outside the book. To ensure originality ALL
ANNOTATIONS MUST BE DONE BY HAND!
This assignment will be worth 20 points; be sure to follow the rubric below labeled Divergent .
In his text, How to Read Literature Like a Professor , Thomas Foster explains how to read literary works more deeply. Focusing on theme, symbolism, allusions, intertexuality, and other devices, he will give you tips on how to be a more analytical reader, an important skill for this course. For this portion of the assignment you are to complete Chapter Review Sheets for each chapter. The format and a sample can be found in the following pages. This assignment will be worth 25 points.
Finally, you are to read The Iliad by Homer and keep a Dialectical Journal as you read. On the following pages you will find detailed instructions on how to complete this portion of the assignment. This assignment will be worth 120 points.
Step Two
Within the first two weeks of school, you will take a comprehensive reading quiz on both Divergent and The
Iliad . These quizzes will be worth between 20 and 30 points each.
There will be no quiz over How to Read Literature Like a Professor ; however, your notes and readings will be used and/or referenced throughout the course of the year.
Step Three
Within the first two weeks of school, you will be completing writing assignments on the two literary novels.
Topics for discussion and a rubric will be given once the reading quizzes are complete. Both writing pieces will be analytical and will be worth 40 and 50 points each (including drafts, outlines, and final essays).
Should you have any questions, concerns, or need further clarification, please contact Ms. Catherine
Klod at klodc@queenofpeacehs.org
or msklod23@gmail.com
.
!

Name:
How to Read Literature Like a Professor Chapter Review
Directions: Summarize the essential findings for each chapter (but not the interlude or examples), citing specific examples. Use the template below, and refer to the examples (one is attached and I did the first chapter for you). You may type or write this by hand, but you should bring it to school on the first day of class.
Please also do a quick summary of the Introduction. Do not skip it!
Directions: Summarize the essential findings for your assigned chapter, citing specific examples. Use the template below, and refer to the example on the following pages. Use this template for each of the 26 chapters.
1.
Chapter # and title:
2.
Most important idea (sometimes in bold, but you need to elaborate):
3.
Minor ideas:
4.
Major works cited:
5.
Important Example used:
6.
How the example is important:
7.
How can we use this to analyze or better understand the literature?
8.
How can we apply this beyond the implications here?
9.
What is the writer’s purpose in using the technique discussed?

Name: *Sample – Chapter One*
How to Read Literature Like a Professor Chapter Review
Directions: Summarize the essential findings for each chapter (but not the interlude or examples), citing specific examples. Use the template below, and refer to the examples You may type or write this by hand, but you s hould bring it to school on the first day of class.
Please also do a quick summary of the Introduction. Do not skip it!
Directions: Summarize the essential findings for your assigned chapter, citing specific examples. Use the template below, and refer to the example on the following pages. Use this template for each of the 26 chapters.
1.
Chapter # and title: Every Trip Is a Quest (Except When It’s Not)
2.
Most important idea (sometimes in bold, but you need to elaborate):
“The real reason for a quest is always self­knowledge” (3). Questers are often young and inexperienced.
The reason for the quest (journey/trip/adventure) is never the stated reason. The person really needs to learn about him/herself.
3.
Minor ideas:
“A quest consists of five things (a) a quester, (b) a place to go, (c) a stated reason to go there, (d) challenges and trials en route, and (e) a real reason to go there” (3). **Always and never are rarely used in literary analysis. Writers are always changing things up, so there are few certainties (5).
4.
Major works cited:
Thomas Pynchon’s Crying of Lot 49 , Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
, Edmund Spenser’s
Faeire Queen
Sophocles’
Oedipus the King , Huck Finn, The Lord of the Rings, North by Northwest, Star Wars
5.
Important Example used:
In Thomas
Pynchon’s Crying of Lot 49
, the quester, Oedipa, thinks she needs to drive from San Francisco to Southern California to be the executor of her former lover’s will. She encounters enormous and terrifying obstacles that eventually break her down until she finds that she can rely on herself, not men or other “stronger” characters. She acquires self-knowledge. The actual physical journey is not as important as the journey she takes in her own mind.
6.
How the example is important:
This shows that the “quest” is really about learning about yourself and that it can be applied in any situation, from a trip to the store for milk, to a modern­day, LSD­referencing adventure.
7.
How can we use this to analyze or better understand the literature?
We should know that characters who go on a trip or journey (and it doesn’t always have to be physical) are on a quest for self­knowledge. A change in setting or a struggle will indicate this. The structure is often the same with the five steps. And the quester will gain understanding of him/herself. It’s a modernday knight’s tale.
8.
How can we apply this beyond the implications here?
Start paying attention when anyone “hits the road,” as Foster says (5). This isn’t always true, but we should be on the lookout for quests in any novel we read.
9.
What is the writer’s purpose in using the technique discussed?
The writer wants us to pay more attention to what the character is learning than how he/she does it. The details of the journey are not always important, but the character will learn something about him/herself, and that’s what the author would like us to s

Assignment Directives: The Iliad by Homer
1.
Check out from the school, purchase, or borrow a copy of The Iliad by Homer. Be sure to get the right copy! I recommend the following:
Robert Fagles, and Bernard M. G. W. Knox. The Iliad. New York: Penguin Books, 1991. Print.
ISBN:0-14-044592-7
There is an abundance of material available about the epic poem on the internet, but you are NOT to use any of these sources as you read the poem. I am familiar with these resources, and do not want to see any ideas from these sites in your work. DO NOT use outside sources to complete this assignment.
2.
As you read the epic poem, take one page of dialectical journaling on each of the 24 “books.” You will have a total of 24 pages of dialectical journaling. Each page should have at least two entries. DO NOT TYPE.
This should be in your own writing on notebook paper. See an example of a dialectical journal on the following pages.
Your purpose for reading this classical epic poem is to appreciate and analyze the literature, while also building a foundation of classic Greek mythological knowledge. Since we will begin the year with a brief study in Greek mythology and many of the poems, novels, and plays we read first semester will depend on your knowledge of mythological allusions, this epic poem provides a necessary foundation for the course. Reading the translator’s preface, the introduction and maps will help with your analysis. While reading and creating the dialectical journals, focus on the following:
 Characters – take note of the different characters that are introduced in each book, including the Gods.
Try to analyze the motivations of the characters. Also look for similarities and differences between characters.

Plot – take notes on the rising action, significant events that advance the plot, climax, falling action and the denouement.

Theme – take notes on the message or insight about life that Homer presents. Look for his comments on love, friendship, and the role of women.

Connections—make observations about connections between the story and other literature, your own experiences, or real world situations.

Interpretations—make your own interpretations as to the meaning of significant events.

Challenge the text—ask questions that challenge the meaning of the text and attempt to answer the questions.
A note on reading the epic poem:
This is an epic poem and does not read easily like ephemeral modern works of fiction. For this reason, concern yourself with reading for the larger ideas while not fretting over detail. Interact with the book regularly by asking yourself questions, reading from companion texts, and stopping to understand after each book.
This poem is best read in manageable chunks and not all at once. Pace yourself and allow yourself plenty of time to read.
Additionally, you should focus primarily on the books where the most crucial plot points occur and skim the rest. The most crucial books are: 1, 6, 9, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, and 24.

G UIDELINES FOR THE D IALECTICAL J OURNALS
The term “Dialectic” means “the art or practice of arriving at the truth by using conversation involving question and answer.” Think of your dialectical journal as a series of conversations with the texts we read during this course. The process is meant to help you develop a better understanding of the texts we read. Use your journal to incorporate your personal responses to the texts. You will complete the following parts of the dialectical journal for the assigned text.
There is to be NO collaboration with other students. Any assistance from the internet, movies, or secondary sources such as Spark notes or Cliff Notes will be viewed as cheating. If you have questions about format, email me!
Instructions:
1.
Purchase a spiral bound notebook or composition book.
2.
Fold the pages in half vertically OR draw a vertical line down the middle of the page.
3.
Label the top of each column: left – TEXT and right – RESPONSE
4.
In the TEXT column cite passages verbatim from the novel including quotation marks and page numbers (in other words, CITE correctly!) – Example (Klod 2). Please note – there are NO commas in an internal citation! a.
Choose passages throughout the entire memoir, not just all from the beginning or the end. b.
Passages should be more than a sentence in length. c.
When should you write passages down? When you find: i.
Details that seem important to you ii.
Effective &/or creative use of imagery or symbolism iii.
Passages that remind you of your own life or something you’ve seen before iv.
Turns in the plot v.
An interesting or potentially significant quotation vi.
A passage that makes you realize something you hadn’t seen before vii.
Examples of patterns: recurring images, ideas, colors, symbols or motifs. viii.
Passages with confusing language or unfamiliar vocabulary ix.
Events you find surprising or confusing x.
Passages that illustrate a particular character or setting xi.
Effective use of literary devices xii.
You agree or disagree with something a character says or does xiii.
Something relevant about the writer’s style
5.
In the RESPONSE column reflect upon the passages. a.
Raise questions about the beliefs and values implied in the text b.
Give your personal reactions to the passage, the characters, the situation c.
Discuss the words, ideas, or actions of the author or character d.
Tell what it reminds you of from your own experience e.
Write about what it makes you think or feel f.
Argue with or speak to the character or author g.
Compare the text to other characters or novels h.
Make connections to any themes that are revealed to you i.
Make connections among passages or sections of the work j.
Analyze a passage and its relationship to the story as a whole. k.
Analyze the text for use of literary or rhetorical devices (tone, structure, style, imagery, etc.) l.
DO NOT MERELY SUMMARIZE THE PLOT
6.
Each RESPONSE must be at least 60 words (include word count at the end of at least one of the two responses for each book.)
7.
Write down your thoughts, questions, insights, and ideas while you read or immediately after reading a chapter so the information is fresh.
8.
After you take notes, you should regularly reread the previous pages of notes and comments
9.
First person is acceptable in the RESPONSE column
10.
Remember the quotations do not have to be dialogue!
11.
Yes, this journal is to be done by hand AND using blue or black ink.
To ensure neatness, I would suggest that you use only one side of the paper
.

Sample Journal:
Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin
TEXT
“The completeness of this transformation appalled me.
It was unlike anything I had imagined. I became two men, the observing one and the one who panicked, who felt negroid even into the depths of his entrails”
(Griffin 11).
RESPONSE
In many movies and books, people wake up and realize how old they truly are. I think that the people this happens to feel the same as Mr.
Griffin does because he feels that he is still a white man; but when he looks in the mirror, he notices that his skin color disagrees with his thoughts. Likewise, some people feel they are still young, but they are trapped in the body of a person who looks too old and too different to be them. (85 words)
The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
TEXT
“They carried like freight trains; they carried it on
RESPONSE
O’Brien chooses to end the first section of the novel their backs and shoulders-and for all the ambiguities of Vietnam, all the mysteries and unknowns, there was at least the single abiding certainty that they would never be at a loss for things to carry” (O’Brien 2). with this sentence. He provides excellent visual details of what each solider in Vietnam would carry for day-to-day fighting. He makes you feel the physical weight of what soldiers have to carry for simple survival. When you combine the emotional weight of loved ones at home, the fear of death, and the responsibility for the men you fight with, with this physical weight, you start to understand what soldiers in Vietnam dealt with every day. This quote sums up the confusion that the men felt about the reasons they were fighting the war, and how they clung to the only certainty - things they had to carry - in a confusing world where normal rules were suspended. (128 words)
Grading
Forty-eight (48) Textual Entries – meaningful passage and correct citation format _____ / 24
Responses – thoughtful and insightful interpretations and commentaries, and
thoroughly addresses all parts of the text (2 points each)
*Please note: In the directives for the RESPONSE column, the response choices in bold print (G – K) are considered HIGHER LEVEL questions; therefore, more frequent use or focus on those responses are more worthy
Total
of an A/B assessment then those that are not bolded (A-F).
_____/ 96
_____/120

NAME________________________________________________
19-20 (A) Well Done! Your annotations are strong, thoroughly present from start to finish and rich in independent thought. Thank you for your hard work!
17-18 (B) Not too bad! Thorough annotations present throughout the novel with quality commentary and thought; independent thought evident but not to extent of “A” work
15-16 (C) Average; consistent annotations present throughout the novel with some commentary; observations are relatively pedestrian
13-14 (D) Below Standard; though present throughout the novel, these annotations are base and sporadic; little commentary offered in margins
12 or below (F) Incomplete
: the preceding standards for your annotations are based on full completion of the annotation assignment. If the novel has not been annotated to the end, the base of your score will begin with the percentage of the novel that you have correctly annotated. For example, if you did a stellar job of annotating the first 7 chapters of your novel and did not annotate (or very weakly) the next 7 chapters, your grade will fall into the 12 or below point range; 50% since you have done 50% of the assignment.