Summer Reading Assignments 11th Honors English
For each reading you are to complete the following activities by the end of the first week of school. It is
suggested that you complete these items as you read. If you are not prepared, you will receive zeros for each item not
completed.
For ALL responses using a quote, be sure to document the page number using MLA citations! Also,
be sure that you focus on information from the text to support your answers. This assignment is an easy way
to start the year off on a good note as each reading is worth 120 points, being sure that directions are
followed as to items and number of items requested. No test will be given; however, these works will be
incorporated into the first outside reading of the year.
Plagiarism of any type with these assignments will result in an automatic 0 and possibly the following:
honors infraction, probation or removal from IB, denial from Beta Club or National Honors Society. So please
think twice before referencing an outside source!
COMPLETED ITEMS MUST BE TYPED!
Additional instructions, examples, and templates for certain projects are available on my
webpage: rebeccaerinlowe.weebly.com. Click on “More,” then select “Honors.”
You are to select 2 of the following works:
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O'Connor
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morison
For the books you select, complete the following assignments (TYPED):
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild is a non-fiction text recounting the journey of Christopher McCandless, a
young man who seeks to find the road on which he is meant to walk. As you read the book, annotate for
important themes and comparisons to Dante Alighieri’s decent into Hell. Important note: There is a film
version of Into the Wild, but the adaptation is very different from the book. The book must be read in order to
complete the project.
1)
Dialogic Journal Prompt: Track the choices McCandless makes throughout his life. According to
Dante Alighieri, (the author of The Inferno) how might these choices be considered “sinful?” Consider
Dante’s Upper Hell. Argue which level (or levels) of Dante’s Upper Hell McCandless should be
condemned. Be sure each choice you track offers analysis of McCandless’s “sins” and how Dante would
deem these “sins” punished in his Hell. (Please see my webpage for an example of the dialogic journal
format if you are unfamiliar with this strategy.)
2)
As you read, record quotes from the text that exemplify the following themes:
The Allure of the Wilderness
The Allure of Danger
Valuing Principles over People
The Elusiveness of Identity
Discovery of Self
You must record ten (10) quotes that exemplify the themes. Write down the exact quote (3 or more words) using
the allusion and cite the page number for each one (using MLA Format for citations, NOT Works Cited!). I would mark
these AS you read (it does save a lot of time!).
3) List 3 lessons that can be learned from the book. Write down one quote from the book for each lesson (be sure to
cite it!) and briefly explain how the quote relates back to the lesson.
Everything That Rises Must Converge by Flannery O’Connor
1) Complete an MWDS (Major Works Data Sheet) for this collection of short stories. Instructions and examples are
available on my webpage.
2) Select 3 characters to whom you had a strong reaction. You should identify three character traits that contributed to
your reaction per character. Each trait must be supported with two direct quotations (cited) from the selection and a
brief analysis of how the quote exemplifies the character trait.
3) Write a one page combined response to the following questions:
1) How does O’Connor distinguish between morality and religion?
2) What is the connection between religion and violence in these stories?
You must have one cited quote to support your response to each question. You must connect the two questions and
offer an analysis of O’Connor’s use of this triad of elements (morality, religion, and violence).
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
1) Provide a character analysis of two major characters Identify at least 1 way each is characterized by the following
aspects: physical characteristics, own words, own actions, other people’s words, thoughts/feelings. Use direct quotes
from the text to support EACH aspect and EACH character. (Easiest is to put in column form!)
2) Select 3 direct quotes from the novel. For each, discuss how it relates to the novel and how it applies to today.
(minimum- 1 paragraph per quote)
3) Write a one page combined response to the following questions:
a. What does Steinbeck make between economics and morality?
b. How is this connection relevant to the time when the novel was written and how is it relevant to
American readers today?
You must have one cited quote to support your response to each question. You must connect the two questions and
offer an analysis of Steinbeck’s unique treatment of an ordinary connection?
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
1) Complete a Major Works Data Sheet. Template and instructions are available on my webpage.
2) Create a Critical Response Journal. Template and instructions are available on my webpage.
3) Write a one page response to the following prompt: Inman remembers a conversation he had with a boy he
met after the battle of Fredericksburg, when he pointed out Orion's principal star. The boy replied, "That's just
a name we give it. . . . It ain't God's name." We can never know God's name for things, the boy continues; "It's
a lesson that sometimes we're meant to settle for ignorance" (117). How does this statement correspond with
the lessons learned by Ada and Ruby? What point does Cold Mountain make about the nature and limitations
of human knowledge?
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
**This novel contains mature themes and language.**
1) Each character is searching for something. You will create a “Quest Chart” where you will record for what
each character is on a quest, cited quotes that support your claim, as well as commentary on that character’s
progress and ultimate resolution with his or her quest.
2) Toni Morrison is famous for many things, but one of her most profound artistic strategies is her engagement
with linguistic experimentation (“language play”). Quote and cite 10 examples of linguistic experimentation
and comment on their significance in that place in the text and to the novel as a whole. Each commentary
should be written in complete sentences and should be a minimum of three sentences.
3) Behavior analysis: Choose three characters in the novel for an analysis of what causes them to
behave the way they do? For each character, you will provide two cited quotes that exemplify their behavior
and a one-paragraph analysis of the social causes that contribute to their behavior. Consider the pivotal role of
racism and the notion of white superiority as you examine these characters' psyches and actions. You may
include causes other than racism. For example, Pauline's worldview is certainly affected by the romantic
movies she loves to watch. However, please focus on the ever- present effects of racism on the attitudes and
actions of the characters.