Advanced Placement
Literature and Composition
Course Handbook
2012-2013
Mrs. Kolling Anderson
Ms. Monson
This handbook is intended to assist you throughout your AP Lit experience. You will find resources that we will
use for the first time this year as well as other, more familiar pieces that are included to remind you of
information previously learned.
Regarding this handbook:
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Bring it to class every day; we will consult it often.
Treat it well; the first copy is free, but you will be charged if you need a replacement.
Keep it; you will find it a valuable resource for other courses, in high school and beyond.
Table of Contents
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Part 1: Course Description
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Part 2: Bloom’s Taxonomy
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Part 3: Analysis and Literature
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Part 4: Archetypes
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Part 5: Literary Terms and Literary Movements
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Part 6: Allusions
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Part 7: Literary Criticism (Lenses)
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Part 8: Writing about Literature: . . . . . . . . . . .
o Audience, Topics, Thesis Statements, Tense, and Quotations
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Part 9: A Few Words About Diction, Tone, Syntax, and Style . .
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Part 10: The Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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49 - 59
o Exam information, Guidelines for Timed Writing, AP Essay Scoring Guide/Rubric,
and processing tools and templates
Part 11: Reading Journal . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Part 1: Course Description
Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition is a full-year, one-credit course open to juniors who
have a high degree of interest in the study of literature and whose level of skill in reading and writing warrants
enrollment in the course. AP Lit has as one of its goals preparation for the national Advanced Placement
examination in May, and students who take the class are expected to sit for that exam.
This course is designed to build on the reading and writing skills developed in previous years of instruction. It
differs from the other English choice for juniors, World Literature, in course content, the intensity of study, the
pace of the course, and the sophistication with which students are expected to read and write. Success in this
course will require a significant commitment of time and energy, the ability to think and work independently,
and the willingness to consider new ideas and ways of knowing. Major goals of the course include engaging
students’ interest in complex literature, sharpening students’ awareness of artistic uses of language, and
developing students’ control of their own language through critical writing about literature.
AP Lit is reading intensive, and its curriculum and expectations reflect those of the college classroom. Thus,
keeping up with assigned readings is the essential first step for all endeavors in this course. Reading selections
are diverse—from classic to modern authors, from epic poems to plays. Thematic concerns vary widely, but all
works are aimed at a mature reader; they will not be censored to avoid issues of language, violence, or
sexuality.
AP Lit is also writing intensive. Students will practice with many impromptu writings, often timed, in
preparation for the test in May. Additionally, students will compose a number of extended writing assignments,
the kind required of college freshmen. The majority of papers will be analytical in nature. When we analyze
literature, we examine its parts carefully and intensely to see what they reveal about the overall work. Analysis
also provides the foundation that allows students a springboard to reach the greater intellectual heights of
synthesis and evaluation—to consider how specific works of literature inform our understanding of broader
concerns and to determine the relative merit of each author’s art and ideas.
AP Lit will allow students
 to read a variety of sophisticated literature
 to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate poetry, plays, stories, and novels
 to engage in a mature discussion of ideas encountered
 to become familiar with a spectrum of literary tools
 to practice literary theory
 to encounter the seminal ideas of human culture
 to write with clarity, confidence, and grace
 to write essays for a variety of purposes
 to develop disciplined, independent, and efficacious work habits
Part 2: Bloom’s Taxonomy
TAXONOMY OF EDUCATION
by Benjamin Bloom
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KNOWLEDGE: Knowledge is defined as the remembering of previously learned material.
This may involve the recall of a wide range of material, from specific facts to complete theories,
but all that is required in the bringing to mind of the appropriate information. Knowledge
represents the lowest level of learning outcomes in the cognitive domain.
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COMPREHENSION:
Comprehension is defined as the ability to grasp the meaning of
material. This may be shown by translating material from one form to another (words and
numbers), by interpreting material (explaining or summarizing), and by estimating future trends
(predicting consequences or effects). These learning outcomes go one step beyond the simple
remembering of materials and represent the lowest level of understanding.
3.
APPLICATION: Application refers to the ability to use learned material in new and concrete
situations. This may include the application of such things as rules, methods, concepts,
principles, laws, and theories. Learning outcomes in this area require a higher level of
understanding than those under comprehension.
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ANALYSIS: Analysis refers to the ability to break down material into its component parts so
that its organizational structure may be understood. This may include the identification of the
parts, analysis of the relationships between parts, and recognition of the organizational
principles involved. Learning outcomes here represent a higher intellectual level than
comprehension and application because they require an understanding of both the content and
the structural form of the material.
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SYNTHESIS:
Synthesis refers to the ability to put parts together to form a new whole.
This may involve the production of a unique communication (theme or speech), a plan of
operations (research proposal), or a set of abstract relations (scheme for classifying information).
Learning outcomes in this area stress creative behaviors, with major emphasis on the
formulation of new patterns or structures.
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EVALUATION: Evaluation is concerned with the ability to judge the value of material
(statement, novel, poem, research report) for a given purpose. The judgments are to be based on
definite criteria. These may be internal (organization) or external criteria (relevant to the
purpose), and the student may determine the criteria to be given them. Learning outcomes in
this area are highest in the cognitive hierarchy because they contain elements of all of the other
categories, plus conscious value judgments based on clearly defined criteria.
Instructional Objectives
Specific Learning Outcomes
Knowledge
Knows common terms.
Knows specific facts.
Knows methods and procedures.
Knows basic concepts.
Knows principles.
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Defines, describes, identifies,
labels, lists, watches, names,
outlines, reproduces, selects, states.
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Comprehension
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Understands facts and principles.
Interprets verbal material.
Interprets charts and graphs.
Translates verbal material to
mathematical formulas.
Estimates future consequences implied in data.
Justifies methods and procedures.
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Application
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Analysis
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Synthesis
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Evaluation
Judges the logical consistency of written
material.
Judges the adequacy with which conclusions
are supported by data.
Judges the value of a work (art, music,
writing) by use of criteria
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Breaks down, diagrams, differentiates,
discriminates, distinguishes, identifies,
illustrates, infers, outlines, points out,
relates, selects, separates, subdivides.
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Writes a well-organized theme.
Gives a well-organized speech.
Writes a creative short story (or poem,
or music).
Proposes a plan for an experiment.
Integrates learning from different areas
into a plan for solving a problem.
Formulates a new scheme for classifying
objects (or events, or ideas).
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Changes, computes, demonstrates,
discovers, manipulates, modifies,
operates, predicts, prepares,
relates, shows, solves
Recognizes unstated assumptions.
Recognizes logical fallacies in reasoning.
Distinguishes between facts and inferences.
Evaluates the relevancy of data.
Analyzes the organizational structure of
a work (art, writing, music).
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Converts, defends, distinguishes,
estimates, explains, extends,
generalizes, gives examples, infers,
paraphrases, predicts, rewrites,
summarizes.
Applies concepts and principles to new
situations.
Applies law and theories to practical
situations.
Solves mathematical problems.
Constructs charts and graphs.
Demonstrates correct usage of a method or procedure.
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Categorizes, combines, compiles,
composes, creates, devises, designs,
explains, generates, modifies,
organizes, plans, rearranges,
reconstructs, relates, reorganizes,
revises, rewrites, summarizes, tells, writes.
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Appraises, compares, concludes,
contrasts, criticizes, describes,
discriminates, explains, justifies,
interprets, relates, summarizes,
supports.
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Part 3: Analysis of Literature
The word analysis was first used by the Greek philosopher Aristotle to mean “to break
into pieces or parts for closer inspection.” Analysis enables us to examine the many
parts that make up a whole. In literature, these “parts” can include everything from an
author’s diction (choice of words) and syntax (arrangement of words) to her use of plot
elements and literary devices (e.g. figurative language, symbolism, tone, and irony). A
solid understanding of the elements of literature will enable you to achieve a deeper
understanding when you read—and, ultimately, a higher score on the AP test.
In other words, to truly gain insight into a work of literature, it is not enough merely to
understand what a piece means; you must also understand how the author uses the
tools at his or her disposal (literary devices) to achieve meaning. For example, in this
course, we will consider how Shakespeare uses diction to define the characters that
populate Hamlet, and we will examine the role that irony plays in Jonathon Swift’s “A
Modest Proposal.”
Once analysis leads to enhanced understanding, you will be in a better position to
synthesize and/or evaluate a work. You can then consider questions like the following:
How does an author’s presentation of a character’s dilemma affect your understanding
of the conflicts that all humans face? How and why does the literary treatment of
social issues evolve over time? In what areas is an author’s work open to criticism?
Which works of art are more successful? Why?
ANALYZING SETTING
Setting is:
 the physical world of the work
 the time in which the action of the work takes place
 the social environment of the characters—manners, customs, and moral values that govern their
society
 the mood or atmosphere—the emotional effect of setting
Questions about Place:
 Where does the action take place? On what planet, in what country, or locale?
 What sensuous qualities does the author give to setting? What does it look like, sound like, smell like,
feel like?
 What dominant impression do you receive about the setting, and what caused it?
 What relationship does place have to character and theme?
 In what ways does the physical, or external, setting correspond to or contrast with the psychological (or
internal) landscape?
 How might setting function symbolically?
Questions about Time:
 In what historical period does the action take place, and how does the period interact with plot?
 How does time period influence the characters? How are they affected by historical events and/or
values?
 How is time period related to theme? How do the author’s concerns reflect the concerns of that period?
 How long does it take for the action to occur? How does the author use time as a thematic and
structuring device?
 How slowly or quickly do characters perceive the passage of time? Do characters’ perceptions of time
reveal internal conflicts and attitudes?
Defining Atmosphere:
Atmosphere refers to the emotional reaction that we and, usually, the characters have to the setting of
the work. Sometimes the atmosphere is difficult to define, but it is often found or felt in the sensuous
quality of the setting.
Additional Strategies for Analyzing Setting:
 Notice the details about physical locales, such as houses, rooms, and outdoor areas.
 Explain the relationship of one or more of the main characters to the physical place. Explain the
influence that place exerts on the character(s).
 Arrange the main events in chronological order. Indicate when each major event occurs.
 Mark passages where a character's emotional state affects the way the passage of time is presented.
 Explain how historical/factual circumstances and/or characters inform our understanding of the work.
 Determine how patterns of behavior that characterize the social environment of the work express a
character’s/author’s approval or disapproval of these patterns.
 Explain the influence one or more of these patterns have on a character or characters.
 Mark sections that contribute to atmosphere. Underline key words and phrases.
 List the traits of the atmosphere.
Synthesis and Evaluation:
 How does the author’s depiction of setting compare with depictions of similar settings by other writers?
 How does the author’s depiction of setting inform our understanding of the various settings in which we
live?
 Is the author’s selection and creation of setting effective? How might it have been more so?
 Is the setting supposed to be believable? Does it succeed? Why and/or why not?
ANALYZING PLOT AND STRUCTURE
The Elements of Plot:
 Exposition: the introduction of setting, characters, and conflict at the beginning of a work
 Rising Action: the events that complicate or intensify the conflict
 Climax: the point of greatest tension or the turning point, after which the ending has a
feeling of inevitability
 Falling action: the events that capture the fallout of the climax
 Resolution: where conflicts may or may not be resolved before the work ends
Probably the most revealing question you can ask about a work of literature is: What
conflicts does it dramatize?
Questions about Conflict:
 What conflicts does the work dramatize?
o What is the main conflict? What are the minor conflicts? How are all the conflicts related?
o What causes the conflicts?
o Which conflicts are external and which are internal?
 Who is the protagonist?
 What qualities or values does the author associate with each side of the conflict?
 Where does the climax occur? Why?
 How is the main conflict resolved? Which conflicts go unresolved? Why?
Additional Strategies for Thinking about Plot:
 List the qualities of the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s).
 On one side of a piece of paper, list the external conflicts of the work. On the other side, list the internal
conflicts. Draw a line between the external and internal conflicts that seem related.
 List the key conflicts. For each conflict, list the ways in which the conflict has been resolved, if it has.
Mark the conflicts that are left unresolved.
 List the major structural units of the work (chapters, scenes, parts). Summarize what happens in each
part. What relationship do the actions or conflicts have to the structure?
 Are certain episodes narrated out of chronological order? What is the effect of the
arrangements of episodes?
 Are certain situations repeated? If so, what do you make of the repetitions?
 Describe the qualities that make the situation at the beginning unstable. Describe the qualities that
make the conclusion stable, if in fact it is stable. List the causes of stability/instability.
Questions Concerning Narrative Pace: Every story is told at a certain pace with variations in
speed. When the unfolding of quick or violent action is important, for example, the narrator may use action
verbs rather than verbs of being to create the effect of headlong speed. However, in novels of
ideas or manners, where extended discussions of ideas by characters or by the narrator results in little action,
the narrative pace slows down.
 How does the writer hold our attention? How are suspense and/or excitement produced to move plot
forward?
 What is the cause/effect nature of storytelling (paying attention to exposition, conflict, and resolution)?
 How is the story told in time? Is the narrative flow interrupted (perhaps by dialogue, flashback,
digression, etc.)? Why?
 How does point of view help emphasize the narrator's or character’s development from
innocence to awareness?
Synthesis and Evaluation:
 Are the conflicts presented in the work of contemporary significance?
 Where and how are the author’s biases revealed?
ANALYZING CHARACTER
Basic Terms:
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Direct Characterization: The author/narrator tells what the characters are like.
Indirect Characterization: The author/narrator shows, rather than tells, what a character is
like through
o external details, such as dress, bearing, looks
o a character’s thoughts, deeds, speech
o what characters say about one another
Static characters remain the same throughout the work
Dynamic characters change in some way, typically grow in understanding
Epiphany: the climax of this growth, a sudden revelation of truth experienced by a character
Round: A round character is a major character in a work of fiction who encounters conflict and is
changed by it. Round characters tend to be more fully developed and described than flat, or static,
characters. If you think of the characters you most love in fiction, they probably seem as real to you as
people you know in real life. This is a good sign that they are round characters.
Flat: A flat character in a work of fiction typically does not undergo substantial change or growth in
the course of a story. Also referred to as "two-dimensional characters" or "static characters."
Questions to ask about characters:
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Are they flat, round, static, or dynamic?
If they change, how and why do they change?
What steps do they go through to change?
What events or moments or self-revelation produce these changes?
Does what they learn help or hinder them?
What problems do they have?
How do they attempt to solve those problems?
What types or stock characters do they represent? (ex: repressed housewife, mad scientist)
If the characters are complex, what makes them complex?
Do they have traits that contradict one another and therefore cause internal conflicts?
Do they experience epiphanies? When? Why?
What does the epiphany reveal to the character and to us?
How does one character relate to others in the novel?
Do they have speech mannerisms, gestures, or modes of dress that reveal their inner selves?
What does a character’s emotional state reveal about him/her?
Keep in mind—the conflicts created through the plot directly affect character development.
Synthesis and Evaluation:
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In what ways are the character’s struggles reflective of our own?
How is the protagonist’s plight similar to and different from that of other literary figures? What does that
comparison reveal?
Are a character’s actions consistent with what we know about her/him?
ANALYZING POINT OF VIEW
First Person: Because the first person narrator understands other characters only by interpreting
what other characters say and do and cannot enter the minds of the other characters, s/he is unable
to grasp their inner thoughts. The reader, then, must determine whether the narrator’s perspective is
trustworthy; It is essential to determine if a first person narrator is a reliable observer of the
world about him/her!
Questions about First Person Point of View:
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Does the narrator have biases which may color his/her perceptions of other characters and make
his/her conclusions inaccurate?
Do you need to question the validity and accuracy of the narrator’s opinions? Why?
Does limited sensitivity, knowledge, or powers of language limit the narrator’s ability to tell the story
accurately?
Is there a discrepancy between what the narrator thinks is happening and what you, the reader,
understand? First person offers excellent opportunities for dramatic irony. Often the heart of the story
may lie in the difference between what the narrator perceives and what the reader perceives.
Does the narrator represent the author’s perspective or contradict it? First person
offers no opportunity for direct interpretation by the author and the presence of irony will undercut the
narrator’s story. Consequently, identifying the narrator’s attitude with the author’s must be undertaken
with extreme caution.
Are there shifts in point of view? A change in narrator changes the biases through
which the story is told. If narrators change, consider what the purposes of the author might be.
Qualities of Omniscient Point of View:
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The narrator knows all about the characters, externally and internally.
The narrator may comment on events and characters, explaining their significance to the reader.
The narrator may offer multiple perspectives on the same event.
Most flexible and permits the widest scope. Used skillfully, the author can achieve simultaneous
breadth and depth.
Also the most subject to abuse. Continually shifting viewpoint may cause a breakdown in coherence or
unity.
The narrator may shift focus from a close view to a larger perspective.
Qualities of Limited 3rd Person Point of View:
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Story portrayed through eyes of one character
A sense of distance from other characters
Approximates conditions of life in that only one character’s thoughts are known.
Story more unified in this point of view.
Qualities of Objective Point of View
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Readers not directly influenced by author’s statements.
Reader’s perceptions influenced subtly through author’s selection of detail.
Allows readers to make inferences through observing dialogue and external action.
Synthesis and Evaluation:
 What literary movement might have influenced the author’s selected point of view?
 What is lost/gained by employing selected point of view?
ANALYZING SYMBOLISM
Symbolism: A symbol is an object, place, name, character, or event that, by virtue of the
associations we make as readers, represents something more, something other than itself.
Consider the following:
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Symbols are built on individual, cultural, or archetypal associations we make as readers.
Neither writer nor reader is fully in control of these associations. We acquire the associations all
through life, often without being aware that we are acquiring them.
While a writer may intend to express certain meanings, the meaning he or she expresses will exceed
what was consciously intended. Literature is rich and has lasting value because of its surplus meaning,
the many layers of meaning it can convey to varied readers.
The meaning of a literary symbol must be established and supported by the entire context of the story.
The story itself must furnish a clue that a detail is to be taken symbolically. In the absence of such
signals, we should be reluctant to identify an idea as symbolical.
Symbols nearly always signal their existence by emphasis, repetition, or position.
A symbol may have more than one meaning. It may suggest a cluster of meanings. At its most
effective a symbol is like a multifaceted jewel: it flashes different colors when turned in the light. This is
not to say that it can mean anything we want.
When it is used effectively in a work of fiction, a symbol deepens the thematic resonance and involves
the reader more deeply in the discovering and making of meanings.
Questions about Symbolism:
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Begin with a story's title. Are there images that repeat, refer to, or echo the title?
Do characters’ names have significance beyond the literal? For example, they might be biblical or the
name itself might reveal something about what that character represents.
Do characters seem to represent a type or group who hold similar characteristics? Do some characters
fall into character archetypal patterns, such as the evil character with the ultimately good heart or the
temptress archetype?
Consider common archetypal symbols: light and dark, fire and ice, natural vs. mechanistic world, haven
vs. wilderness, the underworld, water vs. desert, heaven vs. hell, crossroads, mazes, towers, fog,
weather, colors, seasons, wounds or illness, etc. (Refer to Archetype amplification that follows.)
Are places used symbolically? What values seem associated with a particular setting? They could
stand for certain values or ideals those who live there hold, or conversely, could represent behaviors
the author wants to criticize.
Do you notice the use of motif, recurring words, images, or other patterns that take on symbolic weight
through repetition? What might they symbolize?
What objects seems to carry extra weight or significance beyond the literal? What associations do you
ascribe to those objects and what might those associations
What events seem to carry the most significance? What larger significance beyond the event itself
might it represent?
Synthesis and Evaluation:
 Why do symbols resonate more profoundly than more overt expressions of ideas?
 What symbols are reflective of the defining ideas of our time?
 Where does the author’s use of symbolism seem too heavy handed?
 Discuss examples of the most and least effective use of symbols in literature.
ANALYZING THEME
The Key Questions:
 What is the subject? (That is, what is the work about?)
 Then, what is the theme? (That is, what does the work say about the subject?)
 And finally, in what direct and indirect ways does the work communicate its theme(s)?
Human Nature:
 What image of humankind emerges from the work? Are people, for example, generally good; deeply
flawed?
The Nature of Society:
 Does the author portray a particular society or social scheme as life-enhancing or life-destroying? What
causes and perpetuates this society? If the society is flawed, how is it flawed?
 Are characters we care about in conflict with their society? If so, in what ways do they conflict with that
society? Do these characters want to escape from it?
Human Freedom:
 What control over their lives do the characters have? Do they make choices in complete freedom? Are
they driven by forces beyond their control?
 Does Providence or some grand scheme govern history, or is history simply random and arbitrary?
Ethics:
 What are the moral conflicts in the work? Are they clear cut or ambiguous? That is, is it clear to us
what is right and what exactly is wrong?
 What rights are in opposition to one another? If right opposes wrong, does right win in the end? To
what extent are characters to blame for their actions?
 When moral conflicts are ambiguous in a work, right often opposes right, not wrong. (Don't forget to
examine these issues from the perspective of every character.)
Look for a Moral Center:
 Does the author vest one character with right action and right thought? (That is, what the author seems
to think is the right action and the right thought).
 Is there one character who seems clearly good and who often serves to judge other characters?
Additional Strategies to Develop an understanding of theme:
 List the subject or subjects for the work. For each subject, see if you can state a theme in a complete
sentence.
 Explain how the title, subtitle, epigraph, chapter titles, and names of characters may be related to
theme(s).
 Describe the work's depiction of human behavior.
 Describe the work's depiction of society. Explain the representation of social ills and how they might be
corrected or addressed.
 List the moral issues raised by the work.
 Name the character who is the moral center of the work. List his or her traits that support your choice.
 Mark statements by the author or characters that seem to state or imply themes.
Synthesis and Evaluation:
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Does the theme of the work reinforce values you hold, or does it challenge them?
Are the work’s themes still relevant?
Are the author’s themes undercut by his/her biography? For instance, was she/he a beneficiary of the
social structures her/his work criticizes?
Part 4: Archetypes
What is an archetype?
An archetype is an original model or type which other similar things are patterned after, in other words a prototype or first
model for all others. But here’s a narrower definition for use in discussing literature: an archetype is an
object, character, situation, symbol, or theme that recurs in the literature of diverse cultures, regardless
of time and place, frequently enough to be considered universal.
Carl Jung, an eminent psychologist, first applied the term archetype to literature. He recognized that there were universal
patterns in all stories and mythologies regardless of culture or historical period and hypothesized that part of the human
mind contained a collective unconscious shared by all members of the human species, a sort of universal, primal memory.
Joseph Campbell, an expert in the arena of mythology, took Jung’s ideas and applied them to world mythologies. In A
Hero with a Thousand Faces, among other works, he refined the concept of hero and the hero’s journey (which,
interestingly, George Lucas used to formulate the Star Wars saga). Campbell argued that we all unconsciously respond to
archetypes in similar ways; by studying and recognizing archetypal patterns in literature, we can bring our understanding
to a conscious level.
The term archetype can be applied to an image, motif, theme, symbol, idea,
character type, or plot pattern, and archetypes can be expressed in myths,
folklore, dreams, fantasies, religions, and literature.
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One of literature’s most basic archetypes involves heroes and their journeys . . .
Heroic Archetypes:
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Hero as warrior (Odysseus): A near god-like hero faces physical challenges and external enemies
Hero as lover (Prince Charming): A pure love motivates the hero to complete his quest
Hero as Scapegoat (Jesus): Hero suffers for the sake of others
Transcendent Hero: The hero of tragedy whose fatal flaw brings about his downfall, but not without achieving some kind of
transforming realization or wisdom (Greek and Shakespearean tragedies—Oedipus, Hamlet, Macbeth, etc.)
Romantic/Gothic Hero: Hero/lover with a decidedly dark side (Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre)
Proto-Feminist Hero: Female heroes (The Awakening by Kate Chopin)
Apocalyptic Hero: Hero who faces the possible destruction of society (Neo in The Matrix)
Anti-Hero: A non-hero, given the vocation of failure, frequently humorous (Homer Simpson)
Defiant Anti-hero: Opposer of society’s definition of heroism/goodness. (Heart of Darkness)
Unbalanced Hero: The Protagonist who has (or must pretend to have) mental or emotional deficiencies (Hamlet, One Flew Over
the Cuckoo’s Nest)
The Other—the Denied Hero: The protagonist whose status or essential otherness makes heroism possible (Invisible Man by
Ralph Ellison, The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan)
The Superheroic: Exaggerates the normal proportions of humanity; frequently has divine or supernatural origins. In some
sense, the superhero is one apart, someone who does not quite belong, but who is nonetheless needed by society.
(Mythological heroes, Superman)
Types of Archetypal Quests/Journeys:
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The quest for identity
The epic journey to find the promised land/to found the good city
The quest for vengeance
The warrior’s journey to save his people
The search for love (to rescue the princess/damsel in distress)
The journey in search of knowledge
The tragic quest: penance or self-denial
The fool’s errand
The quest to rid the land of danger
The grail quest (the quest for human perfection)
Stages of a Hero’s Journey:
Stage 1: Departure—The hero is called to adventure, although he is reluctant to accept.
Stage 2: Initiation—The hero crosses a threshold into a new, more dangerous world, gaining a more mature
perspective.
Stage 3: The Road of Trials—The hero is given supernatural aid, endures tests of strength, resourcefulness, and
endurance.
Stage 4: The Innermost Cave—The hero descends into the innermost cave, an underworld, or some other place
of great trial. Sometimes this place can be within the hero’s own mind. Because
of this trial, the hero is reborn in some way—physically, emotionally, or
spiritually. Through this experience, the hero changes internally.
Stage 5: Return and Reintegration with Society—The hero uses his new wisdom to restore fertility and order
to the land.
Conventions/Characteristics of the Hero’s Journey:
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The hero is naïve and inexperienced
The hero meets monsters or monstrous men
The hero has a strange, wise being as a mentor
The hero yearns for the beautiful lady who is sometimes his guide or inspiration
The hero must go on a journey, learn a lesson, change in some way, and return home
The hero often crosses a body of water or travels on a bridge.
The hero is born and raised in a rural setting away from cities
The origin of the hero is mysterious or the hero losses his/her parents at a young age, being raised by animals or a wise
guardian
The hero returns to the land of his/her birth in disguise or as an unknown
The hero is special, one of a kind. He/she might represent a whole nation or culture
The hero struggles for something valuable and important
The hero has help from divine or supernatural forces
The hero has a guide or guides
The hero goes through a rite of passage or initiation, an event that marks a change from an immature to a more mature
understanding of the world
The hero undergoes some type of ritual or ceremony after his/her initiation
The hero has a loyal band of companions
The hero makes a stirring speech to his/her companions
The hero engages in tests or contests of strength (physical and/or mental) and shows pride in his/her excellence
The hero suffers an unhealable wound, sometimes an emotional or spiritual wound from which the hero never completely
recovers.
Situational Archetypes
Archetype
Description
The Quest
What the Hero must accomplish in order to bring fertility
back to the wasteland, usually a search for some talisman,
which will restore peace, order, and normalcy to a
troubled land.
The Task
The nearly superhuman feat(s) the Hero must perform in
order to accomplish his quest.
The Journey
The journey sends the Hero in search of some truth that
will help save his kingdom.
The Initiation
The adolescent comes into his maturity with new
awareness and problems.
The Ritual
The actual ceremonies the Initiate experiences that will
mark his rite of passage into another state. A clear sign of
the character's role in his society
The Fall
The descent from a higher to a lower state of being usually
as a punishment for transgression. It also involves the loss
of innocence.
Death and Rebirth
The most common of all situational archetypes, this motif
grows out of a parallel between the cycle of nature and the
cycle of life. Thus morning and springtime represent birth,
youth, or rebirth, while evening and winter suggest old
age or death.
Battle between Good
and Evil
Obviously, a battle between two primal forces. Mankind
shows eternal optimism in the continual portrayal of good
triumphing over evil despite great odds.
The Unhealable
Wound
Either a physical or psychological wound that cannot be
fully healed. The wound symbolizes a loss of innocence.
Example
Character Archetypes
Archetype
Description
The Hero
The Hero is a protagonist whose life is a series of wellmarked adventures. The circumstances of his birth are
unusual, and he is raised by a guardian. He will have to
leave his kingdom, only to return to it upon reaching
manhood. Characterized by courage, strength, and
honor, the hero will endure hardship, even risk his life
for the good of all. Leaves the familiar to enter an
unfamiliar and challenging world.
Young Man from the
Provinces
The Hero returns to his home and heritage where he is
a stranger who can see new problems and new
solutions
The Initiates
The Initiates are young heroes or heroines who must
go through some training and ceremony before
undertaking their quest.
Mentor
The Mentor is an older, wiser teacher to the initiates.
He often serves as a father or mother figure. He gives
the hero gifts (weapons, food, magic, information),
serves as a role model or as hero’s conscience.
Mentor - Pupil
Relationship
In this relationship, the Mentor teaches the Hero/pupil
the necessary skills for surviving the quest.
The Threshold
Guardian
Tests the hero’s courage and worthiness to begin the
journey
Father - Son Conflict
In this relationship, the tension is built due to
separation from childhood or some other source when
the two meet as men.
Hunting Group of
Companions
These are loyal companions willing to face hardship
and ordeal in order to stay together.
Loyal Retainers
The Retainer's duty is to reflect the nobility and power
of the hero.
Friendly Beast
An animal companion showing that nature is on the
side of the hero
The Shadow
A worthy opponent with whom the hero must struggle
in a fight to the end. Must be destroyed or neutralized.
Psychologically can represent the darker side of the
hero’s own psyche.
The Devil Figure
The Evil Figure with
Ultimately Good
Heart
This character is evil incarnate.
A devil figure with the potential to be good. This
person is usually saved by the love of the hero.
Example
The Creature of
Nightmare
A monster usually summoned from the deepest,
darkest part of the human psyche to threaten the lives
of the hero/heroine. Often it is a perversion or
desecration of the human body.
The Scapegoat
An animal, or more usually a human, whose death in a
public ceremony expiates some taint or sin of a
community. They are often more powerful in death
than in life.
The Outcast
A character banished from a social group for some real
or imagined crime against his fellow man, usually
destined to wander form place to place.
The Platonic Ideal
A woman who is a source of inspiration to the hero,
who has an intellectual rather than physical attraction
to her
Damsel in Distress
A vulnerable woman who needs to be rescued by the
hero. She is often used as a trap to ensnare the
unsuspecting hero.
The Earth Mother
Symbolic of fruition, abundance, and fertility, this
character traditionally offers spiritual and emotional
nourishment to those with whom she comes in contact.
Often depicted in earth colors, has large breasts and
hips symbolic of her childbearing capacities.
The Temptress or
Black Goddess
Characterized by sensuous beauty, this woman is one
to whom the protagonist is physically attracted and
who ultimately brings about his downfall. May appear
as a witch or vampire
White Goddess
Good, beautiful maiden, usually blond, may make an
ideal marriage partner; often has religious or
intellectual overtones.
The Unfaithful Wife
A woman married to a man she sees as dull or distant
and is attracted to more virile or interesting men.
Star-Crossed Lovers
Two characters engaged in a love affair fated to end
tragically for one or both due to the disapproval of
society, friends, family, or some tragic situation.
Symbolic Archetypes
Archetype
Description
Light vs. Darkness
Light usually suggests hope, renewal, or intellectual
illumination; darkness implies the unknown, ignorance, or
despair.
Innate Wisdom vs.
Educated Stupidity
Some characters exhibit wisdom and understanding of
situations instinctively as opposed to those supposedly in
charge. Loyal retainers often exhibit this wisdom as they
accompany the hero on the journey.
Supernatural
Intervention
Spiritual beings intervene on the side of the hero or
sometimes against him.
Fire and Ice
Fire represents knowledge, light, life, and rebirth, while
ice, like the desert, represents ignorance, darkness,
sterility, and death.
Nature vs. Mechanistic
World
Nature is good while technology is evil.
The Threshold
Gateway to a new world which the hero must enter to
change and grow
The Underworld
A place of death or metaphorically an encounter with the
dark side of the self. Entering an underworld is a form of
facing a fear of death.
Haven vs. Wilderness
Places of safety contrast sharply against a dangerous
wilderness. Heroes are often sheltered for a time to regain
health and resources
Water vs. Desert
Because Water is necessary to life and growth, it
commonly appears as a birth symbol, as baptism
symbolizes a spiritual birth. Rain, rivers, oceans, etc. also
function the same way. The Desert suggests the opposite.
Heaven vs. Hell
Man has traditionally associated parts of the universe not
accessible to him with the dwelling places of the
primordial forces that govern his world. The skies and
mountaintops house his gods, the bowels of the earth
contain diabolic forces.
The Crossroads
A place or time of decision when a realization is made and
change or penance results
The Maze
A puzzling dilemma or great uncertainty, search for the
dangerous monster inside of oneself, or a journey into the
heart of darkness
The Castle
A strong place of safety which holds treasure or princess,
may be enchanted or bewitched
Example
The Tower
A strong place of evil, represents the isolation of self
The Magic Weapon
The weapon the hero needs in order to complete his
quest.
Symbolizes the destructive power of nature or fate.
The Whirlpool
Symbolizes uncertainty.
Fog
Colors
Red: blood, sacrifice, passion, disorder
Green: growth, hope, fertility
Blue: highly positive, security, tranquility, spiritual purity
Black: darkness, chaos, mystery, the unknown, death,
wisdom, evil, melancholy
White: light, purity, innocence, timelessness (negatives:
death, horror, supernatural)
Yellow: enlightenment, wisdom
Numbers
3—light, spiritual awareness, unity (holy trinity), male
principle
4—associated with the circle, life cycle, four seasons,
female principle, earth, nature, elements
7—the most potent of all symbolic numbers signifying the
union of three and four, the completion of a cycle, perfect
order, perfect number, religious symbol
Part 5: Literary Terms (with Movements and Styles)
Allegory: A work of literature that can be read on
two or more levels—one literal and others symbolic.
Alliteration: repetition of the same consonant sound
used within lines of poetry and prose, as in Five miles
meandering with mazy motion.
Allusion: reference to a person, text, or event outside
the text, as in these William Carlos Williams lines:
According to Brueghel/When Icarus fell/ it was spring.
These are allusions to the 16th century painter
Brueghel and the Greek mythological figure of Icarus.
Antimetabole (Greek, "turning about"): A rhetorical
scheme involving repetition of words in successive
clauses in reverse grammatical order: "One should eat
to live, not live to eat." Or, "You like it; it likes you."
The witches in that Scottish play chant, "Fair is foul
and foul is fair." In poetry, this is called chiasmus.
Antithesis: A figure of speech in which a thought is
balanced with a contrasting thought in parallel
arrangements of words and phrases, such as, "He
promised wealth and provided poverty," or "It was
the best of times, it was the worst of times." Also, an
antithesis is the second of two contrasting or opposing
parts.
Ambiguity: Allows for two or more simultaneous
interpretations of a word, phrase, action, or situation, all of
which can be supported by the context of a work.
Deliberate ambiguity can contribute to the effectiveness
and richness of a work; however, unintentional ambiguity
obscures meaning and can confuse readers.
Ambivalence: coexistence of opposing attitudes or
feelings.
Anachronism: something that is out of its proper or
chronological order, as in the reference to a clock in
Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar.
Analogy: comparison based on similarity.
Anecdote: brief story about an amusing or strange
event.
Antagonist: principal character or force in opposition
to the protagonist or hero of a narrative or drama.
Antecedent: the word, phrase, or clause referred to
by a pronoun
Anticlimax: something trivial or commonplace that
follows a series or significant events. Usually these are
events that follow the climax of a story.
Antihero: A protagonist who is noticeably unheroic.
He/she might be awkward, obnoxious, passive,
pitiful, obtuse, or just normal; but antiheroes are
always flawed in some fundamental way. When the
anti-hero is a central character, the work will
frequently deal with the effect that the flawed
character has on others. Additionally the work may
depict how the character alters over time, either
leading to punishment, un-heroic success or
redemption.
Aphorism: a terse statement of known authorship
which expresses a general truth or moral principle
Apostrophe: a figure of speech that directly
addresses an absent or imaginary person or a
personified abstraction, such as liberty or love
Apotheosis: Elevating someone or something to a
god-like status. Apotheosis is most commonly used to
refer to the Roman pagan process whereby an
Emperor was made into or recognized as a god.
Similarly, American presidents such as Washington
and Lincoln have undergone apotheosis.
Archetype: A term used to describe universal
symbols that evoke deep and sometimes unconscious
responses in a reader. In literature, characters, images,
and themes that symbolically embody universal
meanings and basic human experiences, regardless of
when or where they live, are considered archetypes.
Common literary archetypes include stories of quests,
initiations, scapegoats, descents to the underworld,
and ascents to heaven.
Aside: piece of dialogue intended for the audience
and supposedly unheard by others on stage.
Assonance: close repetition of similar vowels in
conjunction with dissimilar consonant sounds, in the
phrase tilting at windmills.
Autobiography: biography of a person written by that
person.
Bathos: humor caused by a radical juxtaposition of
the serious with the frivolous. One of the most
common types of bathos is the humorous arrangement
of items so that the listed items descend from
grandiosity to absurdity. For instance, "In the United
States, Osama bin Laden is wanted for conspiracy,
murder, terrorism, and unpaid parking tickets.”
Blank verse: verse consisting of unrhymed lines,
usually of iambic pentameter.
Caesura: a pause within a line of poetry that
contributes to the rhythm of the line. A caesura can
occur anywhere within a line and need not be
indicated by punctuation. In scanning a line, caesuras
are indicated by a double vertical line (||).
Canon: Those works generally considered by
scholars, critics, and teachers to be the most
important to read and study, which collectively
constitute the "masterpieces" of literature. Since the
1960s, the traditional English and American literary
canon, consisting mostly of works by white male
writers, has been rapidly expanding to include many
female writers and writers of varying ethnic
backgrounds.
Colloquial: Refers to a type of informal diction that
reflects casual, conversational language and often
includes slang expressions.
Comic relief: A humorous scene or incident that
alleviates tension in an otherwise serious work. In
many instances these moments enhance the thematic
significance of the story in addition to providing
laughter.
Complication: element that complicates the plot and
prevents resolution.
Conceit: an unusual or surprising comparison
between two very different things.
Conflict: opposition between characters or forces in a
work of drama or fiction, especially opposition that
motivates or shapes the action of the plot. Examples
are person versus person; person versus nature; person versus
self.
Connotation: associative meanings of a word in
addition to its literal sense, as in stench (negative), odor
(negative/neutral), smell (neutral), aroma (positive).
Connotation may be personal and individual, or
general and universal.
Catharsis: release of emotional tension, as after an
overwhelming experience, that restores or refreshes
the spirit. Audiences can achieve catharsis by
experiencing great drama.
Consonance: repetition of consonant sounds in
conjunction with dissimilar vowel sounds, as in blank
and think or strong and string.
Characterization: act of creating and developing a
character.
*direct characterization: when the writer states or
describes a character’s traits.
*indirect characterization: when the writer shows a
character’s personality through his or her actions,
thoughts, feelings, words, and appearance, or through
another character’s observations and reactions.
Convention: A characteristic of a literary genre
(often unrealistic) that is understood and accepted by
audiences because it has come, through usage and
time, to be recognized as a familiar technique. For
example, the division of a play into acts and scenes is
a dramatic convention, as are soliloquies and asides.
flashbacks and foreshadowing are examples of literary
conventions.
Chorus: In Greek tragedies (especially those of
Aeschylus and Sophocles), a group of people who
serve mainly as commentators on the characters and
events. They add to the audience’s understanding of
the play by expressing traditional moral, religious,
and social attitudes.
Counter plot: also known as sub-plot; subsidiary
action in a play or story which coincides with the
main action.
Cliché: trite or overused expression or idea, like wise
as an owl, be there for someone, know your own mind, make
the best of it.
Climax: moment of great or culminating intensity in
a narrative or drama, especially the conclusion of a
crisis.
Couplet: . . . Heroic couplet: Two consecutive
lines of poetry that usually rhyme and have the same
meter. A heroic couplet is a couplet written in rhymed
iambic pentameter.
Denotation: specific or direct meaning of a word
found in the dictionary, in contrast to its figurative or
associative meanings. The denotation of home is a
dwelling in which people live; the connotation is
positive and comforting for most people.
Denouement: part of a literary work in which the
complications of the plot are resolved or simplified,
also called resolution.
Epiphany: comprehension of perception of reality
by a sudden realization or discovery which changes a
character.
Deus ex machine: A Latin term meaning "god out of
a machine." In Greek drama, a god was often lowered
onto the stage by a mechanism of some kind to rescue
the hero or untangle the plot. Thus, the term refers to
any artificial device or coincidence used to bring
about a convenient and simple solution to a plot.
Epistle: a kind of letter to a friend or audience. The
epistolary novel is in the form of letter, popular in the
18th century.
Dialect: regional variety of a language distinguished
by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, especially
a variety or speech differing from the standard literary
language or speech pattern of the culture in which it
exists. In a story by Flannery O’Conner, a character
says, “That car ain’t run in fifteen year.”
Diction: choice and use of words in speech or
writing, as part of a writer’s style. Diction may be
formal or informal, plain or ornate, common or
technical, abstract or concrete.
Didactic: a work that intends to teach an ethical,
moral, or religious lesson.
Doggerel: a derogatory term used to describe poetry
whose subject is trite and whose rhythm and sounds
are monotonously heavy-handed.
Double entendre: a word or phrase having a double
meaning, especially when the second meaning is
risqué.
Epigrammatical: terse and ingenious in expression.
Ethos: a means of persuasion based on the
credibility/character of the person making a
claim/appeal/argument
Euphemism: The substitution of a comfortable or
inoffensive expression to replace one that might
offend or suggest something unpleasant, for example,
"He is at rest" is a euphemism for "He is dead."
Exact rhyme: rhyme in which words have identical
sounds like dear/sneer, light/night. Also called perfect
rhyme and full rhyme.
Existentialism: philosophy that emphasizes the
uniqueness and isolation of the individual experience
in a hostile or indifferent universe, regards human
existence as unexplainable, and stresses freedom of
choice and responsibility for the consequences of
one’s acts.
Explication: writing that present a detailed analysis
or thoughtful interpretation of a text, usually
involving close reading and special attention to
figurative language.
Elegiac: lamenting or mournful tone.
End rhyme: rhyming words repeat at the end of lines.
Enjambment: continuation of grammatical structure
in a poem beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza
and into the next. Also called run-on line; it is the
opposite of an end-stopped line. An example is this
poetic line by Vernon Watkins: He stands unflattering
while the gulls/ And oyster-catchers scream.
Epic: A long narrative poem about the adventures of
a hero of great historic or legendary importance. The
setting is vast and the action is often given enormous
significance through the intervention of supernatural
forces such as gods, angels, or demons. Epics are
typically written in a classic style of grand simplicity
with elaborate metaphors and allusions that enhance
the symbolic importance of a hero's adventures. Some
well-known epics are Homer's Iliad and Odyssey,
Virgil's Aeneid, and John Milton's Paradise Lost.
Exposition: part of a story that provides the
background information to understand the characters
and the action.
Extended metaphor: a comparison which continues
to be elaborated through detail.
Eye rhyme (or Sight rhynme): rhyme which gives the
impression of exact rhyme but does not have identical
sounds, as in come/home, forth/worth.
Falling actions: part of the narrative that follows the
climax.
Farce: A type of comedy characterized by a wide
range of humor, weird incidents, and often vulgar
subject matter. Much of the "comedy" in film and
television could accurately be described as farce.
Fiction: literary work whose content is produced by
the imagination and is not necessarily based on fact.
Figurative language: language which uses figures of
speech (e.g. simile, metaphor, personification,
alliteration) and imagery.
Flashback: literary or cinematic device in which an
earlier event is inserted into the normal chronological
order of a narrative, showing events that happened at
an earlier time.
Flat character: character which does not change,
with few traits, static.
Foil: character that by contrast underscores or
enhances the distinctive characteristics of another.
Foot (metric): unit of rhythm, long/short,
stressed/unstressed. Terms for the number of feet per
line: 1-monometer; 2-dimeter; 3-trimeter; 4tetrameter; 5-pentameter; 6-hexameter; 7-heptameter;
8-octameter.
Foreshadowing: technique of arranging events and
information so that later events are prepared for or
shadowed before.
Free verse: verse with no regular meter or line
length; depends on natural speech’s rhythms.
Genre: category of artistic composition, marked by a
distinctive style form, or content, e.g. epic, tragedy,
lyric, comedy, satire, novel, short story.
Hero: The protagonist, central character in a work of
literature. See section on archetypes
Hubris: the most common defect in a tragic hero
which leads to his or her downfall; in some tragedies,
often overbearing pride or presumption, arrogance.
Hyperbole: figure of speech in which exaggeration is
used for emphasis or effect, as in I could sleep for a year
or this book weighs a ton.
Iamb: metrical foot consisting of unstressed and
stressed syllable (U/) as in the word defeat.
Iambic pentameter: poetic line of five iambic feet.
Imagery: use of vivid or figurative language to
represent objects, actions, or ideas.
Incongruity: something in the work which shows a
discrepancy or contradiction.
Irony:
*verbal: when what is said is not what is meant,
when meaning is contrary to the words.
*dramatic: when the audience or reader knows
something that a character doesn’t.
*situational: when what happens contradicts
expectations.
Jargon: technical vocabulary peculiar to a trade or
profession.
Juxtaposition: to juxtapose is to place things side by
side for the purposes of comparing or contrasting
Literal: primary, non-figurative meaning of words,
dictionary meaning.
Litotes: The opposite of hyperbole, e.g. saying not
bad to something which is very good or beautiful. See
meiosis.
Logos: a means persuading by the use of reasoning
Lyric poetry: typically does not tell a story; instead
focuses on expressing the poet’s/speaker’s personal
thoughts and feelings.
Meiosis: Understatement; the opposite of
exaggeration: "I was somewhat worried when the
psychopath ran toward me with a chainsaw." Litotes
is a type of meiosis in which the writer uses a
statement in the negative to create the effect: "You
know, Einstein is not a bad mathematician."
Metaphor: figure of speech in which a word or phrase
that ordinarily designates one thing is used to
designate another, thus making an implicit
comparison, as in Shakespeare phrases and lines a sea
of troubles or all the world’s a stage.
Meter: pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables;
particular arrangement of words in poetry, such as
iambic pentameter, determined by the kind and
number of metrical units in a line. In English verse,
the following meters are the most common:
Iambic: U/
dactylic: /UU
Trochaic: /U spondaic: //
Anapestic: UU/
Metonymy: Using a vaguely suggestive, physical
object to embody a more general idea. Some examples
include using the metonym crown in reference to royalty
or the entire royal family, or stating "the pen is mightier
than the sword" to suggest that the power of education
and writing is more potent for changing the world than
military force.
Monologue: literary composition in which a single
person speaks alone, with or without an audience.
Also known as dramatic monologue. Compare to
soliloquy.
Parody: imitative use of words, style, attitude, tone,
and ideas of an author in such a way as to make them
look ridiculous. The Scary Movie series parodies
horror films.
Mood: pervading impression or atmosphere of a
literary work.
Pathos: quality which invokes feelings of tenderness,
pity, or sorrow; a means persuading by appealing to
the reader's emotions
Motif: A conspicuous, recurring element, such as a
type of incident, a device, an object, a reference, or
verbal formula. The repetition of a motif reinforces a
thematic element. Recall the color red in “The
Scarlet Ibis.”
Motivation: reason that explains or partially explains
a character’s thoughts, feelings, actions, or speech.
Myth: explanations of the natural order and cosmic
forces; story which is not “true” and which involves
supernatural elements.
Narrative: writing which tells a story, with a
beginning, middle, and end.
Person: the speaker (first person; “I”) the individual
addressed (second person; “you”) and the individual
or thing spoken of (third person; “he/she/it”)/
Persona: voice or character representing the
speaker in a literary work.
Personification: figure of speech in which inanimate
objects or abstractions are given human qualities or
are represented as possessing human form, as in
Hunger sat shivering on the road or Flowers danced
about the lawn.
Plagiarism: stealing of other people’s words,
dishonesty in written work.
Narrator: person telling a story in a literary work.
Nonfiction: prose works other than fiction.
Plot: plan of events or main story in a narrative or
drama.
Octave: groups of eight lines of poetry, especially the
first eight lines of a Petrarchan sonnet, rhyming abba
abba.
Poetic justice: term which conveys the idea that the
evil are punished appropriately and the good
rewarded as they should be.
Ode: lyric poem which honors something and has a
stately tone and style.
Poetic license: liberty allowed to the poet to work
(even distort) the language according to his/her needs
in use of figurative speech, rhyme, syntax, for
example.
Omniscient: having total knowledge, knowing
everything.
Onomatopoeia: formation of use of words such as
buzz or murmur that imitate the sound associated with
the objects or actions they refer to.
Oxymoron: figure of speech in which incongruous or
contradictory terms are combined, as in a deafening
silence or an honest thief.
Paradox: seemingly contradictory statement that
may nonetheless be true: standing is more tiring than
walking.
Parallelism: repetition of a sentence pattern or
grammatical structure. An example are these lines
from an Elizabeth Barrett Browning sonnet: I love thee
freely, as men strive for Right;/ I love thee purely, as they
turn from Praise.
Point of view: position of a narrator in a piece of
literature: first person, third person limited, third
person omniscient.
Preface: introduction to a literary work.
Prologue: opening section of a work, a kind of
interjection which is part of the work.
Prose: ordinary speech or writing, without metrical
structure.
Protagonist: main character in a drama or other
literary work.
Proverb: short, pithy saying in frequent and
widespread use that expresses a basic truth or
practical precept.
Pseudonym: name other than his/her own taken by
the author. For example, Mark Twain is the
pseudonym of Samuel Clemens.
Pun: play on words, sometimes on different senses of
the same word and sometimes on the similar sense or
sound of different words. Hamlet says to Claudius I
am too much in the sun, playing on the word son.
Quatrain: stanza or poem of four lines
Realism: a vague term, but generally the
documenting of life with bare truth, not idealism;
focus on gritty, truthful scenes of people and their
(usually difficult) lines.
Refrain: phrase, line, or lines repeated at internals
during a poem.
Resolution: The conclusion of a plot’s conflicts and
complications. The resolution, also known as the
falling action, follows the climax in the plot. See also
dénouement.
Rhetoric: art or study of using language effectively
and persuasively.
Rhyme scheme: arrangement of rhymes in a poem or
stanza
Rhythm: patterned, recurring alternations of
contrasting elements of sound or speech.
Rising action: part of a drama or story in which
conflicts are complicated/build toward comes before
the climax.
Round character: character which is dynamic and
complex, has many traits.
Sarcasm: a form of verbal irony used to express
contempt or to ridicule.
Satire: literary work in which human vice or folly is
attacked through irony, derision, or wit.
Scansion: analysis of verse into metrical patterns.
Sestet: group of six lines, especially the last six lines
of a Petrarchan sonnet.
Setting: time, place, and circumstances in which a
narrative, drama, or film takes place.
Simile: figure of speech in which two essentially
unlike things are compared, often in a phrase
introduced by like or as, as in How like the winter bath
my absence been or So are you to my thoughts as food to life
(Shakespeare).
Slang: language of the street, common, informal
language.
Slant rhyme: rhyme that is not true, either deliberate
so or because of incompetence—other/powder
Soliloquy: dramatic form of discourse in which a
character reveals his or her thoughts when alone of
unaware of the presence of other characters.
Sonnet: 14-line verse form usually having one of
several conventional rhyme schemes and written in
iambic pentameter. Common types are
Shakespearean (Elizabethan) and Petrarchan (Italian).
Stanza: group of lines in poetry.
Stereotype: a fixed idea or conception of a character
or an idea which does not allow for any individuality,
often based on religious, social, or racial prejudices.
Stream of Consciousness: literary technique that
presents the thoughts and feelings of a character as
they develop. From James Joyce’s Ulysses: Yes.
Thought so. Sloping into the Empire. Gone. Plain soda
would do him good.
Style: way in which something is said, done,
expressed or performed.
Subjectivity: personal experience and feeling, the
opposite of objectivity, where the writer is outside the
work, detached from it.
Subtext: what is implied but not written.
Suspense: anxiety or apprehension resulting from
an uncertain, undecided, or mysterious situation.
Symbol: something that represents something else by
association, resemblance, or convention, especially a
material object used to represent something
intangible, e.g. Eiffel Tower=France.
Synecdoche: a figure of speech by which a part is put
for the whole, e.g. “If you don’t drive properly, you
will lose your wheels.” “Wheels” represent the entire
car.
Synthesis: description of one kind of sense impression by
using words that usually describe another, as in I heard a
blinding roar.
Syntax: sentence construction
Tetrameter: line of verse consisting of four metrical feet.
Theme: central idea of a work.
Thesis: main idea of a paper to be proven.
Tone: general quality, effect, or atmosphere; writers’
attitude (especially towards the readers), manner, mood.
Topic sentence: main, focusing idea of a paragraph.
Tragedy: drama or literary work in which the main
character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow,
especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, a moral
weakness, or an inability to cope with unfavorable
circumstances.
Transition: word, phrase, sentence, or series of sentences
connecting one part of a discourse to another.
Trope: another word for figurative language—metaphor,
simile, irony, metonymy, etc. are examples of tropes.
Turning point: observable moment when in a narrative
there is a definite change in direction and one becomes
aware that it will now move towards the end.
Vernacular: standard native language of a country or
locality; everyday language spoken by a people as
distinguished from the literary language.
Verse: line of metrical writing; stanza; poetry in general.
Vignette: sketch or short composition.
Voice: distinctive style or manner of expression of an
author or a character in a book.
Zeugma: figure of speech in which a word stands in the
same relation to two other terms, but with a different
meaning, a common device in satire. I lost my pride and my
wallet at the carnival. or After a hard day of work she gave me
love and a plate of warm cookies.
WRITING MOVEMENTS AND STYLES
Impressionism: a nineteenth-century movement in literature and art which advocated a recording of the artist’s personal impressions of the
world, rather than a strict representation of reality.
Modernism: a term for the bold new experimental styles and forms that swept the arts during the first third of the twentieth century.
Naturalism: a nineteenth century literary movement that was an extension of realism and that claimed to portray life exactly as it was , while
also stressing that forces beyond human control dictate our lives.
Rationalism: a movement that began in Europe in the seventeenth century, which held that we can arrive at truth by using our reason rather
than relying on the authority of the past, on the authority of the Church, or an institution. Also called Neoclassicism and Age of Reason.
Realism: a style of writing, developed in the nineteenth century that attempts to depict life accurately without idealizing or romanticizing it.
Especially concerned with portraying social issues.
Regionalism: literature that emphasizes a specific geographic setting and that reproduces the speech, behavior, and attitudes of the people
who live in that region.
Romanticism: a revolt against Rationalism that affected literature and the other arts, beginning in the late eighteenth century and remaining
strong throughout most of the nineteenth century. In opposition with an emphasis on reason, romantics stressed the significance of feelings
and emotion, and they were particularly interested in the power and mystery of the natural world.
Surrealism: a movement in art and literature that started in Europe during the 1920s. Surrealists wanted to replace conventional realism with
the full expression of the unconscious mind, which they considered to be more real than the “real” world of appearances.
Symbolism: a literary movement that originated in late nineteenth century France, in which writers rearranged the world of appearances in
order to reveal a more truthful version of reality.
Transcendentalism: a nineteenth century movement in the Romantic tradition, which held that every individual can reach ultimate truths
through spiritual intuition, which transcends reasons and sensory experience.
TIMELINE:
Rationalism/Neoclassic Era: 1770s - early 1800s
Romanticism: early 1800s - 1870s
Realism: 1850s -early 1900s
Regionalism: 1884 - early 1900s
Naturalism: late 1800s - mid 1900s
Modernism: 1920s - 1945
Post-Modernism: 1945 – [?]
Part 6: Allusions
An allusion is a reference in a literary work to a person, place, or thing in history or another work of
literature. Allusions are typically indirect or brief references to well-known characters or events, and
they are often used to summarize broad, complex ideas or emotions in one quick, powerful image. For
example, to communicate the idea of self-sacrifice one may refer to Jesus, as part of Jesus' story
portrays him dying on the cross in order to save mankind (Matthew 27:45-56).
MYTHOLOGICAL ALLUSIONS
Achilles' heel – today, one spot that is most vulnerable; one
weakness a person may have. Achilles was invulnerable
except for his heel (Achilles tendon).
Adonis – handsome young man; Aphrodite loved him.
Aeolian –anything pertaining to wind; god who was Keeper
of Wind
Apollo – a physically perfect male; the God of music and
light; known for his physical beauty
Argus-eyed—omniscient, all-seeing; from Argus, the 100eyed monster that Hera had guarding Io
Athena/Minerva – goddess of wisdom, the city, and arts;
patron goddess of the city of Athens
Atlantean – strong like Atlas –who carried the globe (world)
on his shoulders
Aurora – ,early morning or sunrise; from the Roman
personification of Dawn or Eos
Bacchanal – n; wild, drunken party or rowdy celebration;
from god of wine Bacchus
Bacchanalian – adj.; pertaining to a wild, drunken party or
celebration from god of wine, Bacchus (Roman), Dionysus
(Greek)
Calliope – series of whistles --circus organ ; from the Muse
of eloquence or beautiful voice
Cassandra – a person who continually predicts misfortune
but often is not believed; from (Greek legends) a daughter of
Priam cursed by Apollo for not returning his love; he left her
with the gift of prophecy but made it so no one would believe
her
Centaur – a monster that had the head, arms, and chest of a
man, and the body and legs of a horse
Chimera – a horrible creature of the imagination, an absurd
or impossible idea; wild fancy; a monster with a lion's head, a
goat's body, and a serpent's tail, supposed to breathe out fire
Cupidity – eager "desire" to possess something; greed or
avarice; Roman god of love (Greek name is Eros)
Erotic – of or having to do with sexual passion or love;
Greek god of love, Eros
Furor – (Latin- furere to rage) wild enthusiasm or excitement,
rage; fury, "run like fury"; any one of the three Furies
Gorgon – a very ugly or terrible person, especially a repulsive
woman.; Medusa, any one or three sisters have snakes for hair
and faces so horrible that anyone who looked at them turned
to stone
Halcyon – clam, peaceful, tranquil --Archaic bird supposed to
breed in a nest on the sea and calm the water, identified with
the kingfisher (Latin< Greek halkyon)
Harpy – a predatory person or nagging woman; from harpy, a
foul creature that was part woman, part bird
Hector – to bully; from Hector, the son of Priam (king of
Troy), and the bravest Trojan warrior. Killed Achilles' friend
Patroclus.
Helen (of Troy) – Hellenistic; of or relating to Greece, or a
Specialist of language or culture in Greece; symbol of a
beautiful woman; from Helen of Troy, the daughter of Leda
and Zeus—the cause of the Trojan War.
Herculean – very strong or of extraordinary power; from
Hercules, Hera's glory, the son of Zeus. He performed the 12
labors imposed by Hera.
Hydra-Headed – having many centers or branches, hard to
bring under control; something bad you cannot eradicate; from
Hydra, the 9-headed serpent that was sacred to Hera. Hercules
killed him in one of the 12 labors.
Iridescent – a play of colors producing rainbow effects; from
Iris, goddess of the rainbow
Jovial – good humored; from the word Jove, used to express
surprise or agreement (Jupiter)
Junoesque – marked by stately beauty; comes from the word
Juno, the wife of Jupiter, the Goddess of light, birth, women,
and marriage
Lethargy – n., abnormal drowsiness or inertia; from the word
Lethe, a river in Hades that caused drinkers to forget their past
Medea—sorceress or enchantress; from Medea who
helped Jason and the Argonauts capture the Golden
Fleece; known for her revenge against Jason when he
spurned her for the princess of Corinth
Mentor – a trusted counselor or guide; from Mentor, a
friend of Odysseus' son, who was entrusted with his
education
Mercurial -- adj., suddenly cranky or changeable;
Roman Mythology, of or relating to the god Mercury
Mercury/Hermes – a carrier or tidings, a newsboy, a
messenger; messenger of the gods, conductor of souls to
the lower world, and god of eloquence; the fabled
inventor, wore winged hat and sandals
Mnemonics – a device used to aid memory; the
personification of memory, Mnemosyne., who gave
birth to the nine Muses, who supposedly gave good
memory in storytelling.
Morphine – a bitter white, crystalline alkaloid used to
relieve pain and induce sleep; Morpheus was a god that
could easily change form or shape
Muse – some creature of inspiration ; the daughters of
Mnemosyne and Zeus, divine singers that presided over
thought in all its forms
Narcissism – being in love with our own self-image;
named for Narcissus, a handsome young man who
despised love. Echo, a nymph who was in love with
him, was rejected and decreed, "Let he who loves not
others, love himself." Hearing this, he fell in love with
his image, while gazing in a pond, and drowned himself
trying to capture it.
Nemesis - just punishment, one who inflicts due
punishment; goddess who punishes crime; but more
often she is the power charged with curbing all excess,
such as excessive good fortune or arrogant p ride.
Neptune - the sea personified; the Roman god
associated with Poseidon, god of the water and oceans.
Niobe- mournful woman; from Niobe, whose children
were slain by Apollo and Artemis because of her
bragging; the gods pitied her and turned her into a rock
that was always wet from weeping
Odyssey - a long journey; named for Odysseus, the
character in The Odyssey, by Homer. Odysseus makes
his long journey back from the Trojan War,
encountering several obstacles along the way.
Olympian - majestic in manner, superior to mundane
affairs; any participant in the ancient or modern
Olympic games; named after 12 gods that were
supposed to reside on Mt. Olympus.
Paean - a song of joy; a ritual epithet of Apollo the
healer. In Homeric poems, an independent god of
healing named Paean or Paeon, who took care of Hades
when the latter was wounded.
Pandora's Box - Something that opens the door for bad
occurrences, opened by someone known for curiosity;
named for Pandora who was the first mortal, sent by
Zeus, to punish man for Prometheus’ theft of fire. For
her curiosity in opening the box, Zeus gave her all
human ills in the world, leaving only hope at the bottom.
Parnassus - Mountain was sacred to arts and literature;
any center of poetic or artistic activity; .poetry or poets
collectively, a common title for selection of poetry;
named after the hero of Mt. Parnassus, the son of
Poseidon and a Nymph. He founded the oracle of
Python, which was later occupied by Apollo.
Pegasus - Poetic inspiration; named after a winged horse
which sprang from the blood of Medusa at her death; a
stamp of his hoof caused Hippocrene, the fountain of the
Muses, to issue poetic inspiration from Mount Helicon.
Phoenix - a symbol of immortality or rebirth; named
after the Egyptian Mythology phoenix, a long bird
which lived in the Arabian desert and then consumed
itself in fire, rising renewed from the flame to start
another long life.
Plutocracy - a government by the wealthy; named after
Pluton, the "Rich Man," a ritual tile of Hades. He was
originally the god of the fields because the ground was
the source of all wealth, ores and jewels.
Promethean - life-bringing, creative, or courageously
original; named after a Titan who brought man the use
of fire which he had stolen from heaven for their benefit.
Protean - taking many forms, versatile; named after
Proteus, a god of the sea, charged with tending the
flocks of the sea creatures belonging to Poseidon. He
had the ability to change himself into whatever form he
desired, using this power particularly when he wanted to
elude those asking him questions.
Psyche - the human soul, self, the mind; named after
Psyche, a maiden who, after undergoing many hardships
due to Aphrodite’s jealousy, reunited with Cupid and
was made immortal by Jupiter; she personifies the soul
joined to the heart of love.
Pygmalion – someone (usually a male) who tries to
fashion someone into the person he desires; from a myth
adapted into a play by George Bernard Shaw; a womanhating sculptor who makes a female figure of ivory who
Aphrodite brings to life for him.
Zeus – a powerful man; king of the gods, ruler of Mt.
Olympus, vengeful hurler of thunderbolts
ALLUSIONS FROM LITERATURE:
Saturnalia - a period of unrestrained revelry; named
after the ancient Roman festival of Saturn, with general
feasting in revelry in honor of the winter solstice.
Babbitt - a self-satisfied person concerned chiefly with
business and middle-class ideals like material success; a
member of the American working class whose
unthinking attachment to its business and social ideals is
such to make him a model of narrow-mindedness and
self-satisfaction ; after George F. Babbitt, the main
character in the novel Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis
Saturnine - sluggish, gloomy, morose, inactive in
winter months; named after the god Saturn, often
associated with the god of the Underworld.
Brobdingnagian - gigantic, enormous, on a large scale,
enlarged ; after Brobdingnag, the land of giants visited
by Gulliver in Gulliver’s Travels, by Jonathan Swift
Sibyl - a witch or sorceress; a priestess who made
known the oracles of Apollo and possessed the gift of
prophecy.
Bumble - to speak or behave clumsily or faltering, to
make a humming or droning sound; Middle English
bomblem; a clumsy religious figure (a beadle) in a work
of literature
Pyrrhic victory - adj.; a too costly victory; from
Pyrrhus, a Greek king who defeated the Romans in 279
BC, but suffered extremely heavy losses in the fight
Sisyphean - greedy and avaricious; from the shrewd
and greedy king of Corinth, Sisyphus, who was doomed
forever in Hades to roll uphill a heavy stone, which
always rolled down again.
Stentorian - having a loud voice; after Stentor, a
character in the Iliad who could shout as loudly as 50
men. He engaged in a shouting match against Hermes
and was put to death after losing.
Stygian - dark and gloomy; named after the river Styx,
a river in the Underworld. The water is poisonous for
human and cattle and said to break iron, metal and
pottery, though it is said a horse's hoof is unharmed by
it.
Tantalize- from King Tantalus, who reigned on Mt.
Sipylus and was condemned to reside in a beautiful
river with sumptuous fruits just out of reach and the
water undrinkable, always tempting him as punishment
for excessive pride (he boiled his son and fed the broth
to trick the gods).
Terpsichorean - pertaining to dance; for Terpsichore,
one of the nine muses, sometimes said to be the mother
of the sirens and the protector of dance.
Titanic - large, grand, enormous; after Tityus, a giant,
the son of Zeus and Elara. His body covers over two
acres. Or after the Titans, the offspring of Chronus and
Rhea, who went to war against Zeus and the other
Olympian gods.
Volcanoes – originated from Vulcan, the Roman god of
fire, whose forge is said to be under mountains
Vulcanize - to treat rubber with sulfur to increase
strength and elasticity ; from the Roman God of Fore
and Metallurgy, Vulcan/Hephaestus
Cinderella - one who gains affluence or recognition
after obscurity and neglect, a person or thing whose
beauty or worth remains unrecognized; after the fairytale heroine who escapes form a life of drudgery through
the intervention of a fairy godmother and marries a
handsome prince
Don Juan - a libertine, profligate, a man obsessed with
seducing women ; after Don Juan, the legendary 14th
century Spanish nobleman and libertine
Don Quixote – someone overly idealistic to the point of
having impossible dreams; from the crazed and
impoverished Spanish noble who sets out to revive the
glory of knighthood, romanticized in the musical The
Man of La Mancha based on the story by Cervantes
Panglossian - blindly or misleadingly optimistic; after
Dr. Pangloss in Candide by Voltaire, a pedantic old
tutor
Falstaffian - full of wit and bawdy humor; after Falstaff,
a fat, sensual, boastful, and mendacious knight
who was the companion of Henry, Prince of Wales
Frankenstein - Anything that threatens or destroys its
creator; from the young scientist in Mary Shelley's novel
of this name, who creates a monster that eventually
destroys him
Friday - A faithful and willing attendant, ready to turn
his hand to anything; from the young savage found by
Robinson Crusoe on a Friday, and kept as his servant
and companion on the desert island
Galahad - A pure and noble man with limited ambition;
in the legends of King Arthur, the purest and most
virtuous knight of the Round Table, the only knight to
find the Holy Grail
Jekyll and Hyde – A capricious person with two sides
to his/her personality; from a character in the famous
novel Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde who had more than one
personality, a split personality (one good and one evil)
Lilliputian – descriptive of a very small person or of
something diminutive, trivial or petty; after the
Lilliputians, tiny people in Gulliver’s Travels by
Jonathan Swift
Little Lord Fauntleroy - refers either to a certain type
of children's clothing or to a beautiful, but pampered
and effeminate small boy; from a work by Frances H.
Burnett, the main character, seven-year-old Cedric
Errol, was a striking figure, dressed in black velvet with
a lace collar and yellow curls
Lothario - used to describe a man whose chief interest
is seducing a woman; from the play The Fair Penitent
by Nicholas Rowe, the main character and the seducer
Malapropism - The usually unintentional humorous
misuse or distortion of a word or phrase, especially the
use of a word sounding somewhat like the one intended,
but ludicrously wrong in context - Example: polo bears.
Mrs. Malaprop was a character noted for her misuse of
words in R. B. Sheridan's comedy The Rivals
Milquetoast - a timid, weak, or unassertive person;
from Casper Milquetoast, who was a comic strip
character created by H.T. Webster
Pickwickian - humorous, sometimes derogatory; from
Samuel Pickwick, a character in Charles Dickens'
Pickwickian Papers
Pollyanna - a person characterized by impermissible
optimism and a tendency to find good in everything, a
foolishly or blindly optimistic person; from Eleanor
Porter's heroine, Pollyanna Whittier, in the book
Pollyanna
Pooh-bah - a pompous, ostentatious official, especially
one who, holding many offices, fulfills none of them, a
person who holds high office ; after Pooh-Bah LordHigh-Everything-Else, character in The
Mikado, a musical by Gilbert and Sullivan
Quixotic - having foolish and impractical ideas of
honor, or schemes for the general good; after Don
Quixote, a half-crazy reformer and knight of the
supposed distressed, in a novel by the same name
Robot - a machine that looks like a human being and
performs various acts of a human being, a similar but
functional machine whose lack of capacity for human
emotions is often emphasized by an efficient, insensitive
person who functions automatically, a mechanism
guided by controls from Karel Capek's Rossum's
Universal Robots (1920), taken from the Czech
"robota," meaning drudgery
Rodomontade - bluster and boasting, to boast
(rodomontading or rodomontaded); from Rodomont, a
brave, but braggart knight in Bojardo's Orlando
Inamorato; King of Sarza or Algiers, son of Ulteus, and
commander of both horse and foot in the Saracen Army
Scrooge - a bitter and/or greedy person; from Charles
Dickens' A Christmas Carol, an elderly stingy miser
who is given a reality check by 3 visiting ghosts
Simon Legree - a harsh, cruel, or demanding person in
authority, such as an employer or officer that acts in this
manner ; from Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher
Ward, the brutal slave overseer
Svengali - a person with an irresistible hypnotic power ;
from a person in a novel written in 1894 by George
Mauriers; a musician who hypnotizes and gains control
over the heroine
Tartuffe - hypocrite or someone who is hypocritical;
central character in a comedy by Moliere produced in
1667; Moliere was famous for his hypocritical piety
Uncle Tom - someone thought to have the timid service
attitude like that of a slave to his owner; from the
humble, pious, long-suffering Negro slave in Uncle
Tom's Cabin by abolitionist writer Stowe
Uriah Heep - a fawning toadie, an obsequious person;
from a character in Charles Dickens' David Copperfield
(1849-50);
Walter Mitty – a commonplace non-adventuresome
person who seeks escape from reality through
Daydreaming, a henpecked husband or dreamer; after a
daydreaming henpecked “hero” in a story by James
Thurber
Yahoo - a boorish, crass, or stupid person; from a
member of a race of brutes in Swift's Gulliver's Travels
who have the form and all the vices of humans
BIBLICAL ALLUSIONS:
Absalom – a son who brings heartache to his father; from the third son of David, King of Israel. Exiled for three
years before he was allowed to return to the court or see his royal father, Absalom plotted to cause a rebellion against
his father to overtake the kingdom because he heard Solomon was to succeed David. When Absalom was killed in
battle, King David grieved for his son in spite of his treachery against him
Alpha and Omega - The beginning and the end, from a quote in Revelations in the New Testament
Cain- a brother who kills a brother; from the story of Adam and Eve’s son Cain, who killed his brother Abel out of
jealousy
Daniel – one known for wisdom and accurate judgment; from a wise leader in the Old Testament who was able to
read the handwriting on the wall
David and Bathsheba – represents a big sin; from King David’s affair with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah. After they
had an affair and she became pregnant, David had her husband Uriah put on the front lines of battle so he would die.
The "Bathsheba Affair" formed a critical turning point in King David's life. Prior to this, he had prospered greatly,
but afterward, his personal fortunes were greatly diminished. Nathan the prophet confronted David after he took
Bathsheba for his wife and trapped him into admitting his own guilt.
Eye of the Needle - A very difficult task; from famous narrow gateway called “the needle.” In the NT, Jesus said it
was easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than for a rich man to enter heaven.
Filthy Lucre - Money or profits; from a story in the NT of Jesus casting moneylenders out of the Temple
Goliath – a large person; from the giant from the Philistine city of Gath, slain by David, when he was a shepherd
boy
Good Samaritan – someone who helps another person, perhaps someone of a different race or background; from a
NT parable about a Samaritan, a traditional enemy of the Hebrews, who stopped to help a Jewish man who had been
beaten and left for dead at the side of the road.
Handwriting on the wall – what the future holds; from the OT story of Daniel, who was able to accurately predict
some mysterious writing that appeared on a wall (translated, it predicted the imminent death of the king)
Ishmael – one who is cast out as being unworthy; the son of Abraham and his handmaiden Hagar, he was cast out
into the desert when his wife Sarah had their son Isaac; therefore said to be the ancestor of the nomadic desert tribes
of Arabs
Jacob - grandson of Abraham, son of Isaac and Rebekah, brother of Esau, and the traditional ancestor of Israelites.
His name was changed to Israel, and his 12 sons became the 12 Tribes of Israel.
Job- who suffers a great deal but remains faithful; from an OT character whose faith in God was tested by Satan;
though he lost his family and belongings, he remained patient and faithful
Job's comforters – “friends” who try to help by bringing blame; ironically, Job’s "comforters" didn't comfort at all
but were the source of more affliction.
Jonah – one who brings bad luck; an OT prophet who ran from God and sailed to sea. When a storm arose, he
admitted that he was the cause, and the sailors threw him overboard, where he was swallowed by a large fish.
Judas – (n) a traitor or a treacherous kiss (a Judas kiss) ; one of the 12 Apostles, notorious for betraying Jesus. His
surname in Latin means "murderer" or "assassin." Judas disclosed Jesus' whereabouts to the chief priests and elders
for thirty pieces of silver
King Ahab and Jezabel – an evil king of Israel and his treacherous evil wife, synonymous today with evil. Through
her marriage to Ahab, Jezebel introduced the worship of Baal, an idol, to Israel,
inciting mutual enmity with the prophets. She instigated the murder Naboth for the possession of a vineyard. Today
Jezebel means a brazen or forward woman
Manna – a sustaining life-giving source or food; from the sweetish bread-like food that fell from heaven for the
Israelites as they crossed the Sinai Desert to the Promised Land with Moses
Original Sin/The Fall – the idea that all men are innately sinful as a result of Adam and Eve’s fall from the state of
innocence. When they ate of the forbidden fruit, they were cast out of the Biblical Garden of Eden; a post-biblical
expression for the doctrine of Adam's transgression and mankind's consequential inheritance of a sinful nature
because he ate the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge.
Pearl of Great Price – something so precious that one would devote everything to or give up everything for it. .In
one of Jesus' parables, the kingdom of heaven is compared to a pearl of great price, or value, found by a merchant
Philistine – a person indifferent or hostile to the arts and refinement; from Sea-going people from Crete who became
enemies of the Israelites and fought over their lands
Prodigal Son – a wasteful son who disappoints his father; from the NT parable of a man with two sons. When he
split his estate between the two, the younger son gathered his fortune and left home to live the wild life, while the
older son stayed home to work in the fields. When the younger son spent all of the money, he came crawling back to
his father, who accepted him, pardoning his error by saying he was “lost but was found.”
Ruth and Naomi – paragons of love between in-laws; faithful friends. From the OT story of Ruth, who, when her
husband died in battle, left her own land to travel with his mother back to her people.
Samson and Delilah - Treacherous love story. Samson, an Israelite hero and legendary warrior with extraordinary
physical strength, fell in love with Delilah, a Philistine. When Delilah learned that Samson's hair was the source of
his strength, she betrayed him by excepting a Philistine bribe to cut off his hair while he slept. Today the name
Delilah is associated with a voluptuous, treacherous woman.
Scapegoat - (n) one that is made an object of blame for others; the goat was symbolically burdened with the sins of
Jewish people and thrown over a precipice outside of Jerusalem to rid the nation of iniquities.
Sepulcher – tomb in the OT
Sodom and Gomorrah – any place associated with wickedness or sin; from the evil cities of the OT that were
destroyed by fire
Solomon – an extremely wise person; from the son of King David, the Israelite king who wrote Proverbs, and was
known for wisdom
Twelve Tribes of Israel - according to the Old Testament, the Hebrew people took possession of the Promised Land
of Canaan after the death of Moses and named the tribes after the sons and grandson of Jacob (whose name was
changed to Israel): Reuben, Simeon, Judah, Issachar, Zebulum,
Gad, Asher, Dan, Naphtali, Joseph, Manasseh, and Ephraim.
HISTORICAL ALLUSIONS:
Attila - barbarian, rough leader; King of the Huns from 433-453 and the most successful of the barbarian invaders of
the Roman Empire
Berserk - destructively or frenetically violent, mental or emotional upset; a warrior clothed in bear skin who worked
himself into a frenzy before battle
Bloomer – undergarments for dance or active wear; underwear formally worn by females that was composed of
loose trousers gathered at the ankles; invented by Amelia Jenks Bloomer (1818-94), and American social reformer
Bowdlerize - to censor, expurgate prudishly, to modify, as by shortening or simplifying or by skewing content; after
Thomas Bowdler (1754-1825), who expurgated Shakespeare
Boycott - to act together in abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with as an expression of protest or disfavor or
as a means of coercion, the act or an instance of boycotting; after Charles C. Boycott (1832-97),
of Ireland. Boycott, a former British soldier, refused to charge lower rents and ejected his tenants. Boycott and his
family found themselves without servants, farmlands, service in stores, or mail delivery.
Boycott's name was quickly adapted as the term for this treatment.
Canopy - an overhanging protection or shelter, to cover or hover above; Middle English word canape taken from
Latin Canapeum or Conopeum, meaning "net curtains"
Casanova - a man who is amorously and gallantly attentive to women; a promiscuous man.; Giovanni Jacopo
Casanova De Seingalt (1725-98), an Italian adventurer who established a legendary reputation as a lover
Chauvinist - one who has a militant devotion to and glorification of one's country, fanatical patriotism, prejudiced
belief in the superiority of one's own gender, group, or kind; after Nicolas Chauvin a legendary
French soldier devoted to Napoleon
Derrick - a machine for hoisting and moving heavy objects, consisting of a movable boom equipped with
cables and pulleys and connected to the base of an upright stationary beam, a tall framework over a drilled
hole, esp. an oil well, used to support boring equipment; named after a London hangman Derick (1600)
Donnybrook - any riotous occasion; taken from the Donnybrook Fair, held in Dublin County, Ireland
until 1855, which was famous for rioting and dissipation
Dungaree – a style of casual work pants; from a coarse cotton fabric of East Indian origin; from the Hindu
word dungri
El Dorado - a place of reputed wealth; from the legendary city in South America, sought by early Spanish
explorers
Hackney - to make something banal or trite by frequent use, a horse for ordinary riding or driving, a horse
kept for hire, let out, employed, or done for hire; from Hackney, the most common breed of heavy harness
horses in the US.
Horatio Alger – one who believes that a person can make it on his own merits; from (1832-99) American
writer of inspirational adventure books
Laconic - using or marked by the use of few words, brief; Lakonikos, from
the reputation of the Spartans for brevity of speech
Limerick - a humorous or nonsense verse of five lines; from Limerick, a county in Republic of Ireland
where the form is said to have originated
Machiavellian - of or relating to Machiavelli or Machiavellianism, characterized by expedience, deceit
and cunning; after Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1537), a philosopher known for his treaties and political
expediency; wrote "The Prince" (1513)
Marathon - a long distance race; source of the Victory of the Greeks over Persians in 490 B.C.
McCarthyism - modern witch hunt, the practice of publicizing accusations of political disloyalty or
subversions with insufficient regard to evidence, the use of unfair investigatory or accusatory methods, in
order to suppress opposition; after Joseph McCarthy (1908-57), an American politician who as a US
senator from WWI publicly accused many citizens of subversion
Meander - to wander aimlessly; originating from Meander, a river in Turkey noted for its winding course
Mesmerize - to induce the state of being hypnotized; F.A. Mesmer, an Austrian physician who used
hypnotism and developed a theory called "animal magnetism"
Nostradamus - fortune teller; (1503-66) French physician and astrologer who wrote a book of rhymed
prophecies
Sardonic - bitterly ironical, sarcastic, sneering; from a Sardinian plant said to bring on fits of laughter
Shanghai - to cheat or steal, to make drugs, liquor, etc.. to bring or get by trickery or force; a seaport in
East China, from Shanghai because sailor for voyages there were often secured by illicit means
Spartan - frugal and bare, simple, disciplined and stern and brave; having to do with Sparta, an important
City in Greece. The Spartans were known for simplicity of life, severity, courage, and brevity of speech.
Stonewall - hinder or obstruct by evasive, delaying tactics; in cricket: trying to go completely defensive,
blocking every ball without trying to score; relating to Stonewall Jackson (Thomas J. Jackson)
Confederate
General from the remark during the Battle of Bull Run: "Look as Jackson's men; they stand like a stone
wall."
Swiftian - satirical; from Jonathan Swift's famous satire on politics Gulliver's Travels
Sybaritic - luxurious, voluptuous, a person who cares very much for luxury and pleasure; an inhabitant of
Sybars, a town founded by the Greeks in ancient Italy, which was known for its luxury
Thespian - having to do with the theater or acting; relating to Thespians, so called form Thespis, an Attic
poet of the 6th century B.C., reputed to the father of Greek tragedy
Uncle Sam - government of people of the United States; derived from the United States of America Uncle Sam, a businessman with initials on shipping boxes in 1800's
Utopia - an imaginary and perfect society; British 1610, source Thomas More's novel Utopia
Wagnerian - style of music: loud, dramatic, radical; having to do with Wagner, his music, or his musical
styles or theories
Waterloo - A decisive or final defeat or setback; Belgian 1816, source of Napoleon's last defeat
Source: Skip Nicholson via
Tim Averill
ap-english listserv
Part 7: Literary Criticism
Critical Theory:
An Overview of Literary Lenses
Literary theories were developed as a means to understand the various ways people read texts. The
proponents of each theory believe their theory is the theory, but most of us interpret texts according to the
“rules” of several different theories at a time. All literary theories are lenses through which we can see
texts. There is nothing to say that one is better than another or that you should read according to any of
them, but it is sometimes fun to “decide” to read a text with one in mind because you often end up with a
whole new perspective.
What follows is a summary of some of the most common schools of literary theory. These descriptions
are cursory, and none of them fully explains what the theory is all about. But it is enough to get the idea.
Go ahead, try on some new lenses!
1. Psychological/Psychoanalytic Criticism
Major Beliefs
Psychological criticism deals with a work of literature primarily as an expression, in fictional
form, of the personality, state of mind, feelings, and desires of its author. The assumption of
psychoanalytic critics is that a work of literature is correlated with its author’s psychological
being. Thus, reference to the author’s personality is used to explain and interpret the work, and
reading a work is a way of experiencing the distinctive subjectivity or consciousness of its author.
This lens requires that we investigate the psychological features of an author, his/her character(s)
and/or readers, or a work’s literary elements in order to figure out the meaning of a text.
Critical Questions
 What unconscious motives (e.g. repressed wounds, fears, unresolved conflicts, and guilty
desires) are operating in the main character(s)?
 How can the characters’ behavior, narrative events, and/or images be explained in terms of
psychoanalytic concepts (e.g. regression; crisis; projection; conficts between the id, ego, and
superego; or fear of/fascination with death or sexuality)?
 What does the work say about the psychology of its author? Its readers?
2. Marxist Criticism
Major Beliefs
A Marxist Critic grounds his theory and practice on the economic and cultural theory of Karl Marx
and Friedrich Engels. Those critics claim that human consciousness in any era is constituted by an
ideology—that is a set of concepts, beliefs, values, and ways of thinking and feeling through
which human beings perceive, and by which they explain what they take to be reality. A Marxist
Critic typically undertakes to “explain” the literature in any era by revealing the economic, class,
and ideological determinants of the way an author writes, and to examine the relation of the text to
the social reality of that time and place. Thus, the Marxist critic focuses on power and money in
works of lit. to determine who has the power/money, who does not, and what happens as a result.
Critical Questions
 Does the work reinforce (intentionally or not) capitalist, imperialist, or class values?
 Does the work critique capitalism, imperialism, classism, or other oppressive socioeconomic
forces?
 How does the work (intentionally or not) reflect the socioeconomic conditions of the time in
which it was written and/or the time in which it is set?
3. Feminist Criticism
Major Beliefs
A Feminist Critic sees cultural and economic disabilities in a “patriarchal” society which have
hindered or prevented women from realizing their creative possibilities, and women’s cultural
identification is as a merely negative object, or “Other” to man as the defining and dominating
“Subject.” There are several assumptions and concepts held in common by most feminist critics:
(1.) Our civilization is pervasively patriarchal. (2.) The concepts of “gender” are largely, if not
entirely, cultural constructs, effected by the omnipresent patriarchal biases of our civilization. (3.)
This patriarchal ideology also pervades those writings which have been considered great literature.
Such works lack autonomous female role models, are implicitly addressed to male readers, and
leave the woman reader an alien outsider or else solicit her to identify against herself by assuming
male values and ways of perceiving, feeling and acting.
This is somewhat like Marxist criticism, but instead of focusing on the relationships between the
classes it focuses on relationships between genders. Under this theory you would examine the
patterns of thought, behavior, values, enfranchisement, and power in relations between the sexes.
Critical Questions
 What does the work reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or
psychologically) of patriarchy?
 How are women and men portrayed? And how do these portrayals relate to the gender issues
of the period in which he work is set?
4. Reader Response Criticism
Major Beliefs
Reader-response critics focus on what readers bring to the act of reading a text. Features of the
work itself—including narrator, plot, characters, style, and structure—are less important than the
connection between a reader’s experience and the text. It is through this interaction that meaning is
made.
Proponents believe that literature has no objective meaning or existence. People bring their own
thoughts, moods, and experiences to whatever text they are reading and get out of it whatever they
happen to, based upon their own expectations and ideas.
Critical Questions
 How does the interaction of the text and reader create meaning?
 How does the text guide the reader in his or her reading? How does the unexplained or vague
allow readers to develop their own ideas?
 How does the text reflect reader experience? How do characters interpret characters and
events, movies, books, etc.?
5. Archetypal Criticism
Major Beliefs
This theory suggests that everything in the visible world is made up of surface phenomena that
mask underlying, basic structures. Moreover, when broken down to the basic level, literature—
and all other human experiences—reflect only a handful of patterns. It is by identifying and
examining these underlying patterns, these structures, that we can make sense of a text or the
world around us. In criticism, “archetype” signifies narrative designs, character types, or images
which are said to be identifiable in a wide variety of works of literature, as well as in myths,
dreams, and even ritualized modes of social behavior. The archetypal similarities within these
diverse phenomena are held to reflect a set of universal, primitive, and elemental patterns, whose
effective embodiment in a literary work evokes a profound response from the reader. The deathrebirth theme is often said to be the archetype of archetypes. Other archetypal themes are the
journey underground, the heavenly ascent, the search for the father, the paradise-Hades image, the
Promethean rebel-hero, the scapegoat, the earth goddess, and the fatal woman.
Critical Questions
 On what structuralist framework(s) is the text built?
 How does the identification of a structural framework help the reader to make connections
between texts and/or to draw conclusions about the culture(s) from which texts emerged?
 Does the work align with or depart from archetypal patterns?
6. Deconstructive Criticism
Major Beliefs
Deconstructionists believe that literature means nothing because language means nothing. They
believe that language only ever hints at what it is supposed to be signifying. When the word
“house” is said, it is typical to envision a house. However, Deconstructionists believe that the
picture in one‘s mind may change at any moment when the attached meaning to the word is
revised, therefore the meaning of the word “house“ may never be complete and total, as language
is always shifting.
Example: You must attempt to do your homework or face removal.
Possible meaning 1 – Either do your homework or be removed from this
environment.
Possible meaning 2 – Either attempt to do your homework or attempt to remove
your face.
A typical Deconstructionist essay, therefore, seeks to address many possible meanings to a text
and demonstrate how the conflicting messages nullify any meaning the author may have intended.
Critical Questions
 How can the various conflicting interpretations a text produces demonstrate the instability of
language and the undesirability of meaning?
 How does the text fail to answer the questions it seems to answer?
 What ideology does the text seem to promote and how does conflicting evidence show the
limitations of that ideology?
7. Formalist Perspective
The word formal has two related meanings, both of which apply within this perspective. The first
relates to its root word, form, a structure’s shape that we can recognize and use to make
associations. The second relates to a set of conventions or accepted practices. Formal poetry, for
example, has meter, rhyme, stanzas, and other predictable features that it shares with poems of the
same type. The formalist perspective, then, pays particular attention to these issues of form and
convention. Instead of looking at the world in which a poem exists, for example, the formalist
perspective says that a poem should be treated as an independent and self-sufficient object. The
methods used in this perspective are those pertaining to close reading, that is, detailed and subtle
analysis of the formal components that make up the literary work, such as the meanings and
interactions of words, figures of speech, and symbols
8. Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Criticism (GLBT)
Major Beliefs
Like feminist theory focuses on how issues of gender impact a text and an African American
theorist investigates questions of experience based on ethnicity, a GLBT critic is interested in the
matter of sexual orientation. Specifically, the GLBT lens can be used to illuminate societal
homophobia, heterosexism, and heterocentrism (all are oppressive, but homophobia indicates the
most virulent antigay sentiment, while heterocentrism the least). The goal is to learn what
literature teaches about the gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender experience.
Critical Questions
 What are the politics (ideological agendas) of specific gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender
works, and how are those politics revealed in, for example, the work’s thematic content or
portrayal’s of its characters?
 What does the work contribute to our knowledge of gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender
experience or history, including literary history?
 What does the work say about the operations (socially, politically, psychologically) of
heterosexism and/or homophobia?
 How does the text illustrate the problematics of sexuality and sexual “identity,” that is, the
ways in which human sexuality does notfall neatly into the separate categories defined by the
words homosexual and heterosexual?
 How is GLBT experience coded in texts that are apparently heterosexual? (This analysis is
often necessary for works by writers who lived at a time when their GLBT texts would have
been considered unacceptable, or is done to help reformulate the sexual orientation of a writer
formerly presumed heterosexual.)
9. Critical Race Theory
Major Beliefs
Generally speaking, this theory is concerned with correcting stereotypes of people of color in
America; correcting the misrepresentation and/or omission of people of color from American
history; celebrating African American culture, experience, and achievement; and exploring racial
issues, including institutionalized racism, internalized racism, and intra-racial racism. Thus, the
Critical Race Lens helps readers to see how texts are shaped by their (intentional or unintentional)
representations of race and racial difference—and how those representations support or undermine
racist ideologies.
Critical Questions
 What can a work teach us about the specifics of, for example, African heritage, African
American culture and experience, and/or African American history?

What are the racial politics (ideological agendas related to racial oppression or liberation) of
specific African American works?
10. Postcolonial Criticism
Major Beliefs
Postcolonial criticism defines formerly colonized peoples as any population that has been
subjected to the political domination of another population, i.e. African Americans, aboriginal
Australians, or the formerly colonized population of India. Postcolonial critics seek to understand
the operations—politically, socially, culturally, and psychologically—of colonialist and anticolonialist ideologies. For example, a good deal of postcolonial criticism analyzes the ideological
forces that, on the one hand, pressed the colonized to internalize the colonizers’ values and, on the
other hand, promoted the resistance of colonized peoples against their oppressors.
Critical Questions
 How does the text, explicitly or allegorically, represent various aspects of colonial oppression?
 What does the text reveal about the politics and/or psychology of anticolonialist resistance?
For example, what does the text suggest about the ideological, political, social, economic, or
psychological forces that promote of inhibit resistance?
 What does the text reveal about the problematics of postcolonial identity, including the
relationship between personal and cultural identity? Similarly, what is revealed about the
operations of cultural difference—the ways in which race, religion, class, gender, sexual
orientation, cultural beliefs, and customs combine to form identity—in shaping our perceptions
of ourselves, others, and the world in which we live?
The preceding summary borrows heavily from two invaluable sources:
Appleman, Deborah. Critical Encounters in High School English. New York: Teacher’s
College Press, 2000. Print.
Tyson, Lois. Critical Theory Today: A User-Friendly Guide. New York: Routledge,
2006. Print.
Part 8: Writing about Literature: Audience,
Topics, Thesis Statements, Tense, and
Quotations
1. Consider your Audience
Of course, your primary audience for high school and college papers is your instructor. No doubt, he/she will expect a well-crafted
essay, including a clear statement of thesis, logical and coherent organization, convincingly supported claims, and fluent, correct
prose style. However, there are several advantages that will result from writing for a broader, more general audience (one of which
is that you will meet the requirements of your instructor!). The reason is that you won’t take for granted—that is, leave out—the
facts and reasoning that both a general audience and your instructor need to understand and be convinced by your argument.
It is a reasonable practice to assume that your audience consists of people who have read the work you will discuss; more
importantly, assume that they want to understand it better. Include yourself in “they.” Writing essays is one way of satisfying your
own intellectual needs and desires—writing is not simply the end product of thinking; it is a way of thinking.
2. Topic Selection
a.
Raise a key question about the work.
Before getting into specifics, it is useful to recall that essays about literature are usually arguments. The necessity for
argument emerges from the relationship between the work and its reader. Good literature is complex; it communicates on
many levels of meaning, and none of those meanings are realized until the work is read. Thus, there is a requisite
collaboration between a text and its reader. As a result, perceptions vary from reader to reader and even reading to
reading. Consequently, no single view of a work can be the all-encompassing or final view, though some interpretations
are more compelling than others. Since you are writing about your interpretation of a work, your “creation” of it, you must
write in such a way as to help your audience understand and accept your reading. You do that by calling attention to the
facts you both share, by using these facts to reach logical conclusions, and, if helpful, by recounting the ideas of others
who share your beliefs—in short, by writing an argument.
Obviously, since you can’t explain your understanding of every aspect of the text, you will need to limit yourself to a
specific part of the work. But which part? The answer: Write about any aspect of the work that presents a problem of
interpretation to your reader. The topic of your paper, then, is a “problem”; your essay should explain the problem and
offer a solution to it. Put another way, your topic is based on a question; you will identify the question and provide an
answer to it. You might phrase your topic without stating a question, but good topics always imply questions of
interpretation. For instance, instead of asking “Why does Hamlet hesitate to act?” you might simply assert that “Hamlet
has many reasons to be indecisive.”
b. What makes a “good” topic, good?
What makes a topic good? One way to judge the quality of an essay topic is to ask yourself how easily an average reader
could answer the question that lies behind it. A topic is “good” if most readers could not answer the question after
reading the work once. In other words, the topic must be genuinely thought-provoking; there is no need to provide
information that your audience already knows. A second way to assess a quality topic is to be sure that it is focused
narrowly enough for the confines of your paper. For instance, “Comedy in Romeo and Juliet” would likely be too broad (as
one could write hundreds of pages), whereas “the effects of the nurse as a comic figure in Act I” would be more specific
and manageable.
You might focus on:
 an element of plot—How do setting, conflict, climax, etc. affect the work?
 a character—Is he/she static or dynamic? What does he/she learn? What does the character represent? How
do characters interact or compare with one another?
 a theme—What does the work say about its subject? How does the work communicate its theme? What does
the work say about life? About people?

Or—point of view, tone, irony, symbolism, dialogue, description, etc.
3. Thesis Statements
a.
What is a thesis?
A good thesis statement makes the difference between a thoughtful essay and a simple retelling of facts. The strongest
thesis statements make clear, compelling assertions in answer to debatable questions about literary works. They declare a
provable position in response to an argument. Since repetition is one key to education, consider the following:

Your thesis is the basic stand you take, the opinion you express, and the central point you wish to make.

It’s your controlling idea, tying together and giving direction to all of the separate elements in your paper.

Your primary purpose is to persuade the reader that your thesis is valid.

A thesis statement must contain two parts, a subject (or topic) and an opinion or assertion about that subject.
The thesis statement is typically located at the end of an opening paragraph/introduction. (The opening paragraph serves
to set the context for the thesis.) Thus, the thesis statement is the “engine” which drives the entire essay.
The thesis for an AP Lit essay must acknowledge all parts of the question and assert a debatable position that you will
prove in the essay that follows. Remember, your reader will be looking for your thesis. Make it complete, clear, strong,
and easy to find.
b. Attributes of a good thesis:

It should be contestable, proposing an arguable point with which people could reasonably disagree. A strong
thesis takes a stand and justifies the discussion you will present.

It is specific and focused. A strong thesis proves a point without discussing “everything about the topic.”

It clearly asserts your own conclusion based on evidence.

It provides the reader with a map to guide him/her through your work.

It avoids vague language (like “it seems”).

It avoids general phrasing/sweeping words such as “all” or “none” or “every”?

It avoids the first person. (“I believe,” “In my opinion”)

A thesis should not state the obvious. It should pass the So what? or Who cares? test, which demands that we
write about substantive aspects of literary texts (see section on topic selection above).
4. Tense: Write about Works and Writers’ Ideas in the Present Tense
Literary works spring to life with each and every reading. You may thus assume that everything happening takes place in the
present, and when writing about literature you should use the present tense of verbs. For instance, the following sentence might
appear in a paper that considers Hamlet’s predicament: “Hamlet trusts no one, not even himself, so he must seek additional
information before he can pursue justice.”
When you consider an author’s ideas, the present tense is also proper, on the principle that the words of an author are just as alive
and current today (and tomorrow) as they were at the moment of writing, even if this same author has been dead for hundreds or
even thousands of years.
Because it is incorrect to shift tenses inappropriately, you may encounter a challenge when you refer to events that happened before
a story’s principal action. To overcome this problem, you must keep details straight, so you can use past tenses as long as you make
the connection clear between past and present, as in this example: “The Union soldiers execute [present tense] Farquhar by hanging
because he tried [past tense] to burn the Owl Creek Bridge.” This mixing of tenses in the same sentence is correct because it traces
the cause-and-effect relationship portrayed in the story.
5. Why, How, and When to use Quotations
a. Rationale:
The bulk of any essay you write should consist of your own ideas expressed in your own words. Yet you can develop your
ideas and persuade readers to accept them only if you present and analyze evidence. In essays about literature, quotations are an
especially privileged kind of evidence. If your essay also makes use of secondary sources, you will need to quote (selectively)
from some of these as well. In either case, your clarity and credibility will depend on how responsibly, effectively, and
gracefully you move between others’ words and your own. Clarity and credibility will also depend on letting your readers
know—through precise citation and documentation—exactly where they can find each quotation and each fact or idea that you
paraphrase.
b. Integrating quoted material and keeping ideas straight:
It is hard for a student to distinguish her thoughts from those of the author about whom she is writing. How can the reader
determine where the student’s ideas have stopped and the author’s have begun? You must, therefore, arrange your sentences
to make distinctions clear, but you must also blend your materials so that your reader can follow you easily. In the following
example, the writer being discussed is the Victorian poet Matthew Arnold, and the passage moves from reference to Arnold’s
ideas to the essay writer’s independent application of those ideas.
[1] In his poem, “Dover Beach,” Arnold states that in past times religious faith was accepted as absolute truth.
[2] To symbolize this idea he refers to the ocean, which surrounds all land, and the surf, which constantly rushes
onto the earth’s shores. [3] According to this symbolism, religious ideas are as vast as the ocean and as regular as
the surf, and these ideas at one time constantly and irresistibly replenished people’s lives. [4] Arnold’s symbol of
the flowing ocean changes, however, to a symbol of the ebbing ocean, thus illustrating his idea that belief and
religious certainty were falling away. [5] It is this personal sense of spiritual emptiness that Arnold is associating
with his own times because what he describes, in keeping with the symbolism, is that in the present time the
“drear” shoreline has been left vacant by the “melancholy long withdrawing roar” of retreat and reduction (lines
25-27).
This specimen paragraph combines but also separates paraphrase, interpretation, and quotation, and it thereby eliminates any
possible confusion about the origin of the ideas and also about who is saying what. In the first three sentences the writer uses the
phrases “Arnold states,” “To symbolize this idea,” and “According to this symbolism,” to show clearly that interpretation is to
follow. Although the fourth sentence marks a new direction of Arnold’s ideas, it continues to separate restatement from
interpretation. The fifth sentence indicates, through the phrase “in keeping with the symbolism,” to explain what seems to the
writer to be the major idea of “Dover Beach.”
c. When and How to use quotations:
1. Use Quotations Sparingly: When you quote, keep each quotation short and select only phrases or sentences that
support your analysis through their especially distinctive wording. There is no reason to quote the full text of an incident
or a long speech when you can paraphrase it or just mention it. Too many quotations can make reading awkward and
confusing; they will distract the readers, rather than impressing them.
2. Quote Accurately. If you are quoting indirectly (i.e., the author's exact words are not used), quotation marks are not
necessary, but you must be sure to convey the author's ideas accurately, without distortion. If you use a phrase, sentence,
or more in the author's own words, copy the quotation accurately, word for word, with punctuation and quotations marks
placed properly. Consult a handbook, if necessary, for conventions involving placement of punctuation in relation to
quotation marks, use of ellipsis dots (. . .) to indicate words omitted in direct quotations, and use of square brackets [ ] to
insert something in your own words into a direct quotation. Quotations more than several lines long (which should be
used rarely in short papers) must be indented and single-spaced, with no quotation marks.
3. Introduce Quotations Smoothly. In short papers, try to keep each direct quotation to a phrase you can include in a
sentence of your own. A quotation of any length must be introduced smoothly; don't just plunk it down in the middle of
your discussion. You usually need to introduce it with a transitional phrase guiding the reader from your thoughts to
those of your source. Repeat the title or author's name only when necessary to make the introduction clear and smooth.
Example: As Melville indicates in "Bartleby the Scrivener," "Nothing so aggravates an earnest person as a passive
resistance" (358).
d. Quotation errors to avoid:
1. Do not place a quotation in a sentence all by itself.

Weak: His father probably worked as a construction man because of the scar on his hand. "The hand that held my wrist
was battered on one knuckle."

Better: The hand that was "battered on one knuckle" probably belonged to a construction man.
2. Do not use a quotation as the grammatical subject of a verb.

Weak: "One calm summer night went home and put a bullet through his head" is ironic because we associate this time
of year with life and inner peace.

Better: Richard Cory's suicide occurs at an ironic time since we associate a "calm summer night" with life and inner
peace.
3. Do not call deliberate attention to the quotation by using words such as "line" or
"sentence" or "quote."

Weak: The line "We people on the pavement looked at him" demonstrates how people look up to mentors to achieve
their goals in life.

Better: The "people on the pavement" looked up to Richard Cory as a mentor who could help them achieve their goals
in life.
4. Do not tack a quotation onto the end of a phrase or clause. You may likely write a
better sentence if you paraphrase.
 Weak: Roethke allows the reader to feel the boy's fear by "I hung on like death" and emotional need to be loved by
"Still clinging to your shirt."

Better: Roethke conveys the boy's fear as he hangs on "like death" and his simultaneous need to be loved as he clings to
his father's shirt.
Part 9: A Few Words about
Diction, Tone, Syntax, and Style
Diction:
The term diction simply means a writer’s choice of words, but to understand the significance of diction, we need to know
more than just the definition. In order to explain the reasons why diction is important in communication, we first need to
think about the most basic factor of diction—the fact that words have two different types of meanings:
denotation is the term used to mean the dictionary meaning or meanings of a word—the direct, specific meaning
of a word or phrase: the literal meaning. Thus, when we read the word “dog,” we mentally picture a four-legged,
furry creature that barks.
connotation is the term used to capture the fact that words also have implied meanings—meanings and
associations that are suggested indirectly by a word which greatly affect our understanding of an author’s
message. Connotation suggests that there is a “personal side” to words in that they carry emotional force and
shades of suggestion. The words we use indicate not only what we mean but how we feel, and we choose words
that we hope will engage others emotionally and persuasively, in conversation and daily usage as well as in
essays, novels, and poems.
However, deciphering the denotation and connotation in a text isn’t always easy. Many words have more than one (or even
two) meanings listed in the dictionary. And discovering what an author wants to imply beyond the dictionary definition(s)
of a word is much more complex than just trying to figure out what that word means to us personally.
Let’s take this concept of denotation and connotation a step farther by considering four broad “levels of formality” of
diction.
1.
Formal diction – a dignified, impersonal, and elevated use of language. It is exacting in its adherence to
the rules of grammar and uses complex vocabulary.
2.
Middle diction – still follows the rules of correct language usage, but is less “elevated.” It reflects the way
most educated people speak.
3.
Informal diction – the plain language of everyday use. This often involves idiomatic expressions, slang,
contractions, and simple or common words.
4.
Poetic diction – Poets sometimes use an elevated diction that is significantly different from the common
speech and writing of their time. These can be words that are chosen (or sometimes created) by the poet
because they have a special “poetic” quality—an ability to communicate a complex thought in a word or
phrase.
Note that words have both denotative and connotative meanings at all four levels of diction. The level used by an author
to communicate his/her message will depend a great deal on the message to be communicated, the intended audience, and
the form of communication (i.e., formal speech/address, story with characters and dialogue, or poetry).
Now let’s return to the issue of why we need to understand diction. The communication of a message is the primary
concern of a writer or speaker. Because words have both specific and ambiguous meanings, the particular words an
author uses affect not only the message the audience (reader) receives, but the way in which we interpret that idea. If you
are giving someone directions to get to your house, you will use words that can be interpreted only one way—turn right on
Broadway, then look for a Kwik Trip on the left. The same is true of a recipe or instructions about how to change a tire.
In these situations, you want to have as little connotation as possible to be sure the message is communicated precisely.
But in literature a wide variety of meanings—both denotative and connotative—are often desired. Writers take advantage
of the fact that words have more than one meaning by using them to mean more than one thing at the same time. When a
bird’s color is described as scarlet, instead of just red, or when a word that normally conveys a sight image evokes a taste
image, the author is doing more than simply communicating information. As a reader, you need to examine how the
author communicates his/her point, and word choice is the writer’s basic tool.
Look again at the four levels of diction, and notice that poetry has been singled out as being a distinct type of diction.
Prose writers may use any of the levels, depending on their style and purpose. In fact, diction can be an effective way to
establish characterization as the stuffy college professor speaks with formal diction and the youthful athlete mangles
language as he tries to appear sophisticated but instead comes across as uneducated. But “poetic diction” is capable of
communicating complex ideas using a minimum number of words; it is economical.
Many people approach poetry as if it is quicksand and automatically assume they will never comprehend it because it’s
“impossible to understand.” They fear it primarily because they are reluctant to invest the mental energy necessary to
figure out the denotations and connotations of the words in the poem. The problem isn’t that poems lack meaning, it’s
that their density of meaning often requires some unpacking. Before we consider an example, we need to another term to
our discussion: tone.
Tone:
Think of tone as the writer’s or speaker’s attitude toward her/his subject, her/his audience, or her/himself. When you are
speaking with your mother, and she is berating you for not taking out the garbage as you had promised, you know she is
unhappy by the sound of her voice, along with the words she is using. But we don’t have the benefit of a person’s voice to
clue us in to the emotions when we read. Instead, we must recognize it by examining the various devices the author has
used in the text. As Perrine says, “almost all the elements of literature go into indicating its tone: connotation, imagery,
and metaphor; irony and understatement; rhythm, sentence construction, and formal pattern. There is therefore no
simple formula for recognizing tone. It is an end product of all the elements in a text.”
Here are a few words which could be used to describe an author’s tone: hopeful, compassionate, disgusted, scornful,
playful, urgent, nervous, proud, dignified, lively. These are not the actual words used by the author to communicate how
s/he feels or thinks about his/her subject. They are rather the words we use to describe what we perceive as the author’s
attitude. Tone does not describe feelings, but it does express emotions. For example, I used to know a man who, in the
middle of a heavy rain storm, would say, “Lovely weather, if you’re a duck.” On the surface, that sentence seems to be
cheerful about the rain, expressing that the speaker really enjoys the rain. But the attitude conveyed by the word “duck”
tells us that the speaker is actually unhappy about the downpour by sarcastically saying that only a duck could enjoy this
weather. Thus, “sarcastic” does not describe the speaker’s emotions, but it does describe the way in which my friend
communicated his displeasure.
Tone reflects writers’ relationships with readers that result from writers making two decisions: (1) how they will express
their feeling about the subject, and (2) how they will place themselves socially, intellectually, or morally with regard to
their implied readers—as their superiors, looking down; as their inferiors, looking up; or as their equals, addressing them
eye-to-eye. It’s not necessary for the writer to state directly what s/he is feeling; the attitude can be expressed indirectly
and yet be clearly communicated to the reader. However, if we are to fully understand the author’s message, then we
must comprehend both the words and the feelings involved in the communication. That means that the connotations of
words will be a big factor in determining the author’s attitude toward his/her subject.
In order to recognize tonal shift and to interpret complexities of tone, the reader must be able to make inferences
based on an active reading of the work. As a start, familiarize yourself with the denotations and connotations of the
following tone words. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but it is a good start:
simple, straightforward, direct, unambiguous,

sharp, biting
candid

bitter, grim, cynical

indirect, understated, evasive, elusive

interested, sympathetic, pitiful

complicated, complex, difficult

hollow, detached, cold, obdurate

admiring, worshipping, approving

tired, boring, uninterested

complimentary, proud, effusive

indifferent, unconcerned, disinterested,

disliking, abhorring, contemptuous

strident, harsh, acerbic, angry, outraged,

impartial, objective
violent

humorous, playful, joking, frivolous

forceful, powerful, confident

flippant, irreverent, facetious

energetic, vibrant

impish, silly, sophomoric, childish

ironic, sardonic, sarcastic mocking, sly, wry

resigned, clam, tranquil, quiet, peaceful,

satirical, critical

apathetic
reticent

subdued, restrained

insistent, urgent, pressing

sad, upset, depressed, melancholy, despairing

pertinent, pointed, incisive, poignant

afraid, fearful, horrific, terrified, panicked

commanding, demanding

wistful, nostalgic, sentimental

exhortatory, admonishing, censorious, damning

solemn, serious, somber

condescending, arrogant, haughty, dogmatic

apologetic, penitent, ignominious

elevated, grand, lofty, bombastic, pretentious

recalcitrant, stubborn, rebellious

oratorical, dramatic, melodramatic

apprehensive, anxious, pensive

scornful, disdainful, supercilious

thoughtful, dreamy, fanciful

audacious, bold, impudent, insolent

vexed, uncertain, confused, ambivalent

alluring, provocative, seductive

excited, exhilarated, exuberant

shocking, offensive, reprehensible, lurid

ardent, fervent, zealous

didactic, instructive, pedantic, teachy

happy, contented, ecstatic, joyful, giddy

incredulous, questioning, skeptical, dubious
Since we’re making lists, here is another of Words That Describe Language. Different from tone, the words
below describe the force or quality of the diction, images, and details. These words describe how the work is
written, not necessarily the attitude/tone.
Jargon
Vulgar
Scholarly
Insipid
Precise
Esoteric
Connotative
Plain
Literal
Colloquial
Artificial
Detached
Emotional
Pedantic
Euphemistic
Pretentious
Sensuous
Exact
Learned
Symbolic
Simple
Figurative
Bombastic
Abstract
Grotesque
Concrete
Poetic
Moralistic
Slang
Idiomatic
Concrete
Cultured
Picturesque
Homespun
Provincial
Trite
Obscure
Precise
Exact
Evaluating Diction to Determine Tone
In one sense, analyzing an author’s use of diction is quite simple: just note unusual word choices or words that
seem to mean more than just what is on the page. In another sense, however, diction is quite complicated:
sorting out all the clues that reveal the author’s attitude and comprehending the emotional message underlying
the words requires a large vocabulary and a willingness to allow the feelings of the text to have an impact on
you. But being aware of all the facets of diction is not the same as using them as tools to put the entire piece
together. Let’s use a short poem as an example of the process of evaluating diction.
Slim Cunning Hands
Walter de la Mare
Slim cunning hands at rest, and cozening eyes—
Under this stone one loved too wildly lies;
How false she was, no granite could declare;
Nor all earth’s flowers, how fair.
Begin by making a list of all the “diction words”—all the words that catch your attention. This task is easiest if
you draw a line from top to bottom of a piece of paper, dividing the page in half. On the left side, write the words
you have chosen and their denotations. (If you are not absolutely sure you know the meaning of a word, you
need to look it up in a dictionary.) Use the right column for your thoughts about the connotations of those words.
At the bottom of the page, leave spaces for “tone” and “purpose.” As you get ideas that suggest de la Mare’s tone,
write words that describe what you perceive as the tone of the poem. When you have a glimpse of the poet’s
purpose—what he wanted to communicate to you—make a note of your thoughts. You may also find it helpful to
add a “comments” line to show the progression of your thoughts as you work through the meanings of the words.
This task is not really a linear process; you can’t do step one, then move on to step two, and so on. As you
understand one connotation, it will affect what you see as the tone of the poem, and grasping de la Mare’s tone
will allow you to comprehend more of the connotations of the words he has used. Similarly, understanding the
words and the tone will help you get the idea behind the whole poem, and looking at the overall picture will lead
you to additional insights into the individual words.
Generally, there is no definite right or wrong in an interpretation of a text. But you cannot simply make up an
idea and then claim that’s what the author was saying. Your understanding must be clearly supported by
what’s in the text. Compare your analysis of diction in “Slim Cunning Hands” with mine:
WORD/DENOTATION
CONNOTATION(S)
slim: slender, thin
thin, long fingers
cunning: shrewd, crafty, deceptive
could do many things
capable of doing tricks or magic; hands that
cozening: deceiving by trickery;
persuading by cajoling, begging
pleading, lying; eyes that lied
wildly: untamed; uncivilized;
intensely; disorderly
loved too much, out of control; exciting
false: not true
unfaithful
granite: a hard stone that is often
used for grave markers
stone; the finality of death
declare: state with authority
tell; announce to the world
fair: visually pleasing; not dark;
impartial; more or less good.
beautiful, loving, sweet
TONE: bitter, cynical, regretful, sad, ironic
PURPOSE: The speaker expresses his frustration at feeling love and devotion for a woman who
obviously did not deserve it.
COMMENTS: Stone, granite, and flowers all refer to things that accompany the death of a person.
Using these images clearly communicates the idea that the woman is dead. The images that refer to
the man’s love for the woman reveal complex feelings—loving deeply but not wisely. The word “wildly”
shows that he cared a great deal for her. “Fair” indicates the warmth of the relationship and that she
made the man feel loved in return. But the negative words—“cunning”, “cozening”, “false”—suggest
that she was not trustworthy and that perhaps she only gave the illusion of loving him, rather than
truly being in love with the speaker. But this negative feeling then could mean that “fair” also means
“impartial,” that she treated the man the same way she treated everyone else in her life.
Syntax:
As we’ve seen, astute readers look at an author’s word choices (diction) and how they contribute to projecting the
writer’s or speaker’s attitude (tone). Both are essential to unlocking meaning. Another related approach is to
examine a writer’s syntax, the ways in which s/he structures sentences. Consider the following:
A.
Examine the sentence length. Are the sentences telegraphic (shorter than 5 words in length), medium
(approximately eighteen words in length), or long and involved (thirty words or more in length)? Does
the sentence length fit the subject matter, what variety of lengths is present? Why is the sentence
length effective?
B.
Examine sentence patterns. Some elements to consider are listed below:
1.
A declarative sentence (assertive) makes a statement, e.g., The king is sick. An imperative sentence
gives a command, e.g., Stand up. An interrogative sentence asks a question, e.g., Is the king sick?
An exclamatory sentence makes an exclamation, e.g., The king is dead!
2.
A simple sentence contains one subject and one verb, e.g., The singer bowed to her adoring
audience. A compound sentence contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinate
conjunction (and, but, or) or by a semicolon, e.g., The singer bowed to the audience, but she sang no
encores. A complex sentence contains an independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses,
e.g., You said that you would tell the truth. A compound-complex sentence contains two or more
principal clauses and one or more subordinate clause, e.g., The singer bowed while the audience
applauded, but she sang no encores.
3.
A loose sentence makes complete sense if brought to a close before the actual ending, e.g. We
reached Minneapolis that morning after a turbulent fight and some exciting experiences. A periodic
sentence makes sense only when the end of the sentence is reached, e.g., That morning, after a
turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, we reached Mineapolis.
4.
In a balanced sentence, the phrases or clauses balance each other by virtue of their likeness or
structure, meaning, and/or length, e.g., He makes me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me
beside the still waters.
5.
Natural order of a sentence involves constructing sentences so the subject comes before the
predicate, e.g., Oranges grow in California. Inverted order of a sentence (sentence inversion)
involves constructing sentences so the predicate comes before the subject, e.g., In California grow
oranges. This is a device in which normal sentence patterns are reversed to create an emphatic or
rhythmic effect. Split order of sentences divides the predicate into two parts with the subject
coming in the middle, e.g., In California oranges grow.
6.
Juxtaposition is a poetic and rhetorical device in which normally unassociated ideas, words, or
phrases are placed next to one another, creating an effect of surprise and wit, e.g., “The apparition
of these faces in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough.” (from “In a Station of the Metro” by Ezra
Pound).
7.
Parallel structure (parallelism) refers to a grammatical or structural similarity between sentences
or parts of sentence. It involves an arrangement of words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs so
that elements of equal importance are equally developed and similarly phrased, e.g., He was
walking, running, and jumping for joy.
8.
Repetition is a device in which words, sounds, and ides are used more than once for the purpose of
enhancing rhythm and creating emphasis, e.g. “…government of the people, by the people, for the
people, shall not perish from the earth.”
9.
A rhetorical question is a question which expects no answer. It is used to draw attention to a point
and is generally stronger than a direct statement, e.g., If Mr. Ferhoff is always fair, as you have
said, why did he refuse to listen to Mrs. Baldwin’s argument?
C.
Examine sentence beginnings. Is there variety? Do patterns emerge?
D.
Examine the arrangement of ideas in a sentence. Are they set out in a special way for a purpose?
E.
Examine the arrangement of ideas in a paragraph to see if there is any evidence of any patterns or
structure.
A Cursory Explanation of Style:
Style, is the habitual, repeated patterns that differentiate one writer from another. Hemingway is noted for his sparse, objective style indicative
of the isolation of people in the twentieth century; Hawthorne for his flamboyant exaggerated word pictures that create a mood of horror or
fearful introspection. It is also about the deviation from the expected pattern. This is called Expectation (the pattern) and Surprise (deviation
from the pattern). A discussion of style also is a discussion of the well-chosen word or phrase.
The most important thing about discussing style is to show its relationship to the theme or main idea of the passage. You must interpret the
link between theme and language. For example if the theme is about fertility and success, does the author use images of spring, blossoming,
growth, or fruition? Does the word choice have connotations of positive, safe, or loving feelings?
Colloquial word choice is not standard grammatical usage and employs slang expressions; this word usage develops a casual tone. Scientific,
Latinate (words with Latin roots or origins), or scholarly language would be formal and employ standard rules of usage. Concrete words form
vivid images in the reader’s mind, while abstract language is more appropriate for discussion of philosophy. Allusive style uses many references
to history, literature, or other shared cultural knowledge to provoke or enlighten the reader. Appeals to the senses make the writing more
concrete and vivid. Since prose does not have a natural rhythm, an obvious metrical pattern in a passage signals an important idea.
Any time an author uses similes or metaphors, or any other poetic devices, it is because the author wants to draw attention to that particular
characteristic and perhaps suggest a more complex relationship to the implied or stated theme.
If the author suddenly or obviously varies sentence structure or length of a sentence, this signals important ideas. Most certainly, a detail or
action will appear in these sentences that the author considers crucial.
Most sentences in English are loose sentences (subject, predicate, modifiers – He went to the store.). Any time an author wishes to call attention
to an important idea a different sentence structure can be used. These different structures are called emphatic because they emphasize the
ideas contained in them.
In analyzing an author’s style, then, seek out patterns, and spot variations from the norm. Suppose an author employs many lengthy, balanced
sentences with the frequent use of parallelism and anaphora, and the word choice is formal and Latinate. You can say that his style is formal
and balanced. If this same author then includes one or two short sentences, a metaphor, and an inverted word order, you can point out these
constructions and discuss the importance of the ideas contained in and signaled by these constructions. In addition, you should be on the lookout
for the well-chosen word, and/or the compelling turn of phrase. Don’t forget: all discussion of style should show the relation to the tone or theme
of the selection.
Part 10: The Exam –
Information and Tools
The Exam
Yearly, the AP English Literature Development Committee prepares a three-hour exam
that gives students the opportunity to demonstrate their mastery of reading and writing skills.
The AP English Literature and Composition Exam employs multiple-choice questions that test
the student’s critical reading of selected passages. But the exam also requires writing as a direct
measure of the student’s ability to read and interpret literature and to use other forms of discourse
effectively. Although the skills tested in the exam remain essentially the same from year to year,
each year’s exam is composed of new questions. The essay is scored by college and AP English
teachers using standardized procedures.
Ordinarily, the exam consists of 60 minutes for approximately 55 multiple-choice
questions followed by 120 minutes for three essay questions. There are five answers for each
multiple choice questions, and may include five or six pieces of literature that will be printed
inside the exam. Selections include poems, dramatic scenes, memoirs, or excerpts from novels.
The first two essay questions are based on a piece of literature (a poem, a passage from a play, a
novel, etc) that’s provided on the exam; the third is an open-ended essay based on a work of
literary quality that student’s choose. Performance on the essay section of the exam counts for 55
percent of the total grade; performance on the multiple-choice section, 45 percent. Examples of
multiple-choice and essay questions from previous exams may be found on the AP Central
website (apcentral.collegeboard.com) and are intended to represent the scope and difficulty of the
exam.
Guidelines for Timed Essay Writing

Read the prompt carefully and ANSWER THE QUESTION!

FOCUS ON MEANING! Essay should be controlled by ideas and analysis, NOT just
the plot, story or details.

STATE THESIS & PROVE YOUR POINT. Establish clear direction and thesis in
introduction. ANALYZE & DEVELOP main ideas in depth. SUPPORT your ideas with
carefully selected concrete details and evidence. AVOID formulaic writing/forced five
paragraph essay.

BE SPECIFIC. Provide clear, on-the-mark, to-the-point examples and analyisis.

BALANCE analysis and concrete details. ALWAYS provide more interpretation and
analysis than supporting details, plot.

AVOID SIMPLE SUMMARY! Do NOT retell the story or article or simply repeat the
prompt. Do NOT just list details and evidence. Analyze, analyze, analyze.

AVOID ALL ENCOMPASSING STATEMENTS, such as using the words “all,”
“every,” “no one,” etc.

INTRODUCE and “weave” quotes smoothly into your essay. ALWAYS provide context
for quotes (situation, speaker, etc.). EXPLAIN & ANALYZE quotes in depth. NEVER
just throw quotes in and make the reader guess why you included them in your essay.

SELECT quotes carefully. AVOID long quotes and quotes that give simple plot
information; example: “Then, she answered the door.” Do NOT start or end paragraphs
with a quote. Do NOT over quote! The purpose of using quotes is to support your ideas.
Quotes should not make up more than 10-15% of the essay.

USE your own, Genuine VOICE. English vocabulary usage and syntax are complex. Do
NOT extend too far beyond your level of English mastery. Too many SAT-type words
used incorrectly may amuse the reader, but they will not help your score.

HOW LONG SHOULD A TIMED ESSAY BE? There is no set length; however, you will
need to get words onto the page to develop ideas sufficiently. Usual length of higher
scoring essays: 20-25 min. essays = One and a half to two plus pages; 40-45 min. essays =
Two to five pages.
Generic Scoring Guide for AP Essay Questions
9-8
The writers of these well-constructed essays completely answer the question using
evidence and explaining the relevance of the evidence. With a convincing thesis, the writer
demonstrates a clear understanding of the task and the piece. Although not without flaws, these
essays reflect the writer’s ability to control a wide range of the elements of effective writing to
provide a keen analysis of the literary text.
7-6
Developing a sound thesis, these writers answer all parts of the question. These
essays may not be entirely responsive to the underlying meanings, but they provide specific
examples and meaningful evidence. The analysis is less persuasive and somewhat less
sophisticated than 8-9 essays. They seem less insightful, or discussion is more limited.
Nonetheless, they confirm the writer’s ability to read literary texts with comprehension and to
write with organization and control.
5
These essays construct a reasonable thesis. They discuss the work without serious errors but
the analysis is often superficial. The writer may be vague and demonstrate insufficient
development. Typically, these essays reveal simplistic thinking. May include misinterpretations
of particular references or illustrations which distract from the overall effect. The writer also
exhibits some lack of control over the elements of composition.
4-3
These essays attempt to discuss the part of the question. The discussion, however, is
undeveloped or inaccurate. These writers may misread the passage in an essential way or rely on
paraphrase. Illustrations and examples tend to be misconstrued, inexact, or omitted altogether.
The writing may be sufficient to convey ideas, but typically characterized by weak diction,
syntax, grammar, or organization. Essays scored a 3 are even less able, may not refer to technique
at all, and will exhibit even more misinterpretation, inadequate development, or serious
omissions.
2-1
These essays fail to respond adequately to the question. They may demonstrate confused
thinking and/or weaknesses in grammar or other basic elements of composition. Mechanical
errors may be distracting. They are often unacceptably brief. Although the writer may have made
some attempt to answer the question, the views presented have little clarity or coherence, and
significant problems with reading comprehension are evident. Essays that are scored 1 are
especially inexact or mechanically unsound, and do less to address the topic.
0
This score is reserved for essays that make no more than a reference to the task, those that
are off-topic, and for a blank sheet.
The 12-Sentence Paragraph
The 12-sentence paragraph goes about the business of examining a single topic in a clear,
orderly, no-nonsense way. Here’s how to compose it:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Topic sentence
Further explanation, clarification, or elaboration on topic
Claim #1
Quotation with context proving Claim #1
Commentary on Claim #1 (called analysis)
Transition and Claim #2
Quotation with context proving Claim #2
Commentary on Claim #2 (called analysis)
Transition and Claim #3
Quotation with context proving Claim #3
Commentary on Claim #3 (called analysis)
Clincher sentence summarizing and re-stating thesis
(TS)
(ET)
(C#1)
(Q#1)
(A#1)
(C#2)
(Q#2)
(A#2)
(C#3)
(Q#3)
(A#3)
(CLS)
Here is an example of the 12-sentence paragraph:
In Act I, Juliet is compliant around adults but flirtatious and willful behind their backs.
She might seem modest initially, but in fact, she has a will of her own and a playful spirit besides.
In the first scene as she talks with her mother and the nurse, Juliet does little to suggest that she
is anything but a very modest, “good” girl. When Lady Capulet asks her if she can like the familysponsored suitor, Paris, Juliet replies nicely, “I’ll look to like, if looking liking move” (1.3.98). No
Elizabethan parent could ask for more of a young daughter that that she be pure of heart and
willing to be led. When she meets Romeo, though, Juliet flirts with him with a wholeheartedness
that belies her seemingly compliant nature. All he has to do us is suggest that he would like to
kiss her (holily, of course, like a pilgrim before a shrine), and she flirts right back with him,
playing coy and suggesting that “palm to palm is holy palmer’s kiss” (1.5.98). Between Romeo’s
first line to Juliet and their first kiss is a mere 15 lines, showing unequivocally that when she’s
with a boy her own age, she is spirited and playful. Furthermore, afterwards, alone with her
Nurse, Juliet is devious. She tricks the Nurse into revealing that “His name is Romeo” (1.5.156),
and she lies directly to the Nurse when she is caught bemoaning her fate, saying that she
learned a little rhyme from a dancing partner. In deceiving her beloved Nurse, Juliet shows how
determined and willful she can be. Out of earshot of the adults, Juliet is a bolder, more selfconfident, more independent girl than her first scene with her mother reveals.
TPCASTT
Point of Analysis
Title: Consider the title and
what it might mean.
Paraphrase: In your own
words, summarize what
happens in the poem.
Connotation: Examine the
poem for meaning beyond its
literal sense by considering
diction, imagery, and figurative
language (metaphor, simile,
personification, symbols).
Attitude (Tone): What is the
speaker’s attitude toward her
or his subject? What is the
poet’s?
Shifts: Note any changes in
tone, perspectives, language,
etc.
Title: Re-examine the title, this
time on an interpretive level.
Theme: Determine what the
poet is saying.
Evidence from Poem
AP Style Analysis Notes
Domain
Imagery






Diction









Sensory details
Symbols
Allusions
Words/phrases
Effect/intent
Connection to:
º Mood/tone
º Theme
º Plot
º Character
Types
Slang
Colloquial
Jargon
Dialect
Concrete
Abstract
Denotation
Connotation
Syntax

Sentence structure

Sentence patterns

Declarative

Imperative

Interrogative

Exclamatory

Simple

Compound

Complex

Comp-Complex

Loose/Cumulative

Periodic

Balanced

Inversion

Interruption

Juxtaposition

Parallelism

Repetition
Attitude (Tone)

Word choice

Details

Imagery
Literary Elements

Setting

Characterization

Plot

Theme

Point of View

Tone/Attitude
Organization

Compare/Contrast

Importance

Chronology

Cause-Effect
Questions to Ask

What sensory information do I find in the language: color, scents, sounds, tastes, or textures?

What is the author trying to convey or achieve by using this imagery?

Are these images part of a larger pattern or structure within the text (e.g., does it connect to one
of the major themes)?

What figures of speech––metaphors, similes, analogies, personification––does the writer use?
How
do they affect the meaning of the text? What is the
author trying to accomplish by using them?
o
o
o
o

Which of the following categories best describes the diction in the passage or text?
Low or informal (e.g., dialect, slang, or jargon)
Elevated or formal language
Abstract and concrete diction
Denotation and connotation

What effect is the author trying to achieve through the use of a specific type of diction?

What does the author’s use of diction suggest about his or her attitude toward the subject, event,
or
character?

What are the connotations of a given word used in a particular context? (To begin, you might
ask if
the word(s) have a positive or negative connotation,
then consider them in the specific context.

What words would best describe the diction in a specific passage or the text in general?

Punctuation: How does the author punctuate the sentence and to what extent does the
punctuation affect the meaning?

Structure: How are words and phrases arranged within the sentence? What is the author trying
to accomplish through this arrangement?

How would you characterize the author’s syntax in this text?

Changes: Are there places where the syntax clearly changes? If so, where, how, and why?

Sentence length: How many words are in the different sentences? Do you notice any pattern
(e.g., a cluster of short sentences of a particular type)?

Devices: How would you describe the author’s use of the following:
º Independent and dependent clauses
º Coordinating, subordinating, or correlative conjunctions
º Repetition
º Parallelism
º Fragments
º Comparisons

Sentence beginnings: How does the author begin his or her sentences? (Does the author, for
example, consistently begin with introductory phrases or clauses?

Language: What use does the author make of figurative language or colloquial expressions?






How does the author’s use of words, imagery, or details such as gesture or allusions reveal the
author’s attitude toward a character or event in the story?
What words best describe the author’s attitude toward this subject, character, or event?
How does the author’s use of these different elements contribute to the text’s meaning?
Do the different elements interact with or otherwise affect the meaning of the others?
Do you notice any significant shifts in any of the elements at any point? If so, what changes,
how, and why? What is the importance and meaning of this change?
What words best describe the different use of these elements? For example, how would you
describe the point of view and the effect it has on the meaning of the text?
• Which organizational pattern does the author use?
• Why does the author choose to use that particular organizational strategy?
• Are there places where the author blends or alternates between different organizational patterns? If so,
what is the author trying to accomplish by mixing them in these ways?
• To what extent and in what ways do you think the author’s organizational strategy is effective? Why?

Order of degree

Classification

Spatial
Types of Writing

Narrative

Persuasive

Expository

Descriptive



Exposition: Is the author defining, comparing, classifying, analyzing (a process), describing, or
narrating?
Persuasion: Is the author arguing about what something means, whether something is true,
which alternative is the best (or most important), or what course of action someone should take?
General: What is the author trying to accomplish? How is the writer using e.g., narrative to
solve that problem?
© 2004 Jim Burke. For more information, visit www.englishcompanion.com.
Major Works Data Sheet
Biographical information about the author:
Title:___________________________
Author:_________________________
Date of Publication:_______________
Genre: __________________________
Historical information about the period of publication:
Characteristics of the genre:
Plot summary:
Major Works Data Sheet
Describe the author’s style:
An example that demonstrates the style:
Memorable Quotes
Quote
Significance
Major Works Data Sheet
Name
Role in the story
Major Critical Lenses for this text:
Characters
Significance
Adjectives
Setting
Significance of the opening scene
Significance of the ending/closing scene
Symbols
Allusions
Possible Themes
Silly Statements Students Have Actually Made on AP Essays . . . OMGoodness!
1. Huck Finn gives great insight into life – especially human life.
2. Madame Bovary’s suicide caused her own death.
3. Without Huck Finn there would never have been The Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn.
4. Because the language is so grammatical and excellent with language, this
passage is really difficult for me to understand.
5. In case the checker is interested, I did read the book to the end; I just did not
want to reveal the ending to the reader of my essay.
6. Tom had no more conflicts with his mistress after she died.
7. Violence breaks up the monotonous routine of daily existence.
8. In many books, a violent scene occurs, Good-bye. [A complete essay…]
9. The sheriff is said to resemble Pancho Pilate because he washed his hand of the
whole matter.
10. I have fallen asleep and am now pressed for time. There are only five minutes
remaining. Thus, I don’t have enough time to write an essay. However, I can
write an outline to let you know I could write a good essay if I had time.
The Reading Journal
Within this journal, you are to develop critical thinking, reading, and response skills in order
to develop and articulate a well thought out reading of a text. Using reading journals, we hope,
will make your reading and learning personal and will help you gain confidence in your own
analyses.
It is essential that you complete all reading before class in which it will be discussed and that you
write in your journal as you read. After discussion and/or class, you can add to your journal.
Things you might want to include:
(This list is only a suggestion of what you may include in your journal.)
 Your first impression of the reading
 Times when your reading changes
 You see something you didn’t before
 You recognize a pattern—the images start to overlap, gestures or phrases recur, some
details seem associated with each other.
 The story suddenly seems to be about something different than you thought intially
 The writer introduces a new context or perspective
 Times when you are surprised or puzzled
 Something just doesn’t fit
 Things don’t make sense. Record your questions—why doesn’t it make sense?
 Details that seem important and make you look again
 Ways in which the story makes you speculate about real life, a connection to another text, or
academic discipline
 Rhetorical devices that you notice—how do they contribute to your reading of the text?
 Responses to questions
In addition to writing, you are encouraged to draw, make graphic organizers, add color and
captions, etc. to fully capture your thoughts and experiences with the text.
Expectations
 Reading journal notes are up-to-date with current class progress
 Notes include text evidence (including page numbers, if applicable)
 If the text is provided to you (for example, a short story or non-fiction article), you may
annotate the text (if there is space!) in lieu of writing separately in the reading journal
 You will participate in small group reading journal conferences approximately once a
month.
In addition to your conversations with peers in those meetings, you will follow a
reflective process in which you will respond to the following questions:
o Name two concrete reading/note taking ideas you learned from your peers that can
replace one of your weaker strategies OR that can enhance what you are already
doing.
o Identify a turning point in your own reading, analysis, discussion with peers, etc. that
will impact how you read.
o One goal you have for your own reading/analysis to improve by your next peer
reading journal conference.