Honors World Literature and Composition: Summer Reading
(Choices and Active Reading Requirements)
ASSIGNMENT: In addition to your all-school summer read, you must also choose one
of the following texts below and complete the active reading requirements. When you
return to school in the fall, you will write an essay that reflects your active reading
criteria.
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These texts are NOT available at the Z-B bookstore; you’ll need to purchase your
book from a local bookstore or order it from an online bookseller.
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Do NOT use a previously owned book. Write your name clearly on all sides of the
pages. You will not receive credit if it appears as if your notes and comments are
not original.
Active Reading Requirements:
 All highlighted text should include a marginal note. Please include a key if you
color coordinate your active reading elements.
 All notes should connect back to the author’s purpose (i.e. your generated central
idea that you’ve written at the end of the novel).
o For example, if you are highlighting setting details, you should explain
how choosing such a setting or describing it in such a way helps the author
achieve his or her purpose.
 All notes are NOT created equal. We are looking for analysis, not summary.
A Note about a Central Idea:
 The central idea is the author’s purpose. Consider this: what would the author’s
main idea be if he or she had written a persuasive essay? Be sure to consider his
or her critique on societal norms or human behavior for each text.
 The central idea should be at least one complete sentence, and again, it should be
persuasive in nature.
Key Vocabulary:
 Symbols: objects, characters, figures, and colors that are used to represent
abstract ideas or concepts
 Motifs: recurring structures or items that help enforce a theme or central idea
 Repetition: the repetition of words or phrases to achieve a purpose and enhance
meaning
 Themes: universal ideas explored throughout the text
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Honors World Literature and Composition: Summer Reading
(Choices and Active Reading Requirements)
BOOK CHOICES:
Book 1: Brighton Rock by Graham Greene
Description: A masterpiece of psycho-realism, this thriller is a study of evil, sin, and the
"appalling strangeness of the mercy of God.” It is the story of gangster life in 1930s England,
taking us through the moral question of what is simultaneously fascinating and repellent.
Active Reading Requirements:
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Create a central idea for the novel (the author’s purpose)
Repetition (Track words or phrases that are repeated throughout
the text. What’s the intended effect? How does such repetition
enhance meaning?)
Symbols (Brighton Rock, main characters [Rose, Ida, Pinkie])
Motifs (sea/water, violence)
Themes (revolving around sin, redemption, good vs. evil,
heaven and hell)
Setting Details (Brighton)
Book 2: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Description: Unattractive and poor, Jane Eyre finds a position as a governess at Thornfield and
soon becomes embroiled in a dangerous relationship with her fearsome but enigmatically
charming employer, Mr. Rochester. In this haunting tale of restraint and desire, Bronte
dramatizes extraordinarily the dangers for an unprotected working woman and for the repressed
"mad woman in the attic."
Active Reading Requirements:
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Create a central idea for the novel (the author’s purpose)
Repetition (Track words or phrases that are repeated throughout
the text. What’s the intended effect? How does such repetition
enhance meaning?)
Symbols (e.g. the Red Room, Bertha Mason)
Motifs (e.g. mother figures and fire and ice)
Themes (revolving around social class, religion, love, and
independence)
Document1 (2 of 4)
Honors World Literature and Composition: Summer Reading
(Choices and Active Reading Requirements)
Book 3: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Description: As a bold response to 19th century social norms, Austen challenges societal
norms through the heroine, Elizabeth Bennett, a character of modest social upbringing
who defies both social and gender expectations of the time period, seeking truth and love.
Active Reading Requirements:
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Create a central idea for the novel (the author’s purpose)
Repetition (Track words or phrases that are repeated throughout
the text. What’s the intended effect? How does such repetition
enhance meaning?)
Symbols (Pemberley, main characters [Mr. Collins, Elizabeth,
Mr. Darcy, Mrs. Bennet])
Motifs (Courtships)
Themes (revolving around love, class, and reputation)
Book 4: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Description: This is the classic coming-of-age story of a young boy who runs away from
his dysfunctional family to find a new life floating down the Mississippi River on a raft
with a runaway slave. Humorous, satirical, and moving, this is a sharp criticism of
societal and racial attitudes of the time.
Active Reading Requirements:
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Create a central idea for the novel (the author’s purpose)
Repetition (Track words or phrases that are repeated throughout
the text. What’s the intended effect? How does such repetition
enhance meaning?)
Symbols (e.g. the Mississippi River)
Themes (revolving around slavery, racism, and hypocrisy)
Motifs (childhood)
Document1 (3 of 4)
Honors World Literature and Composition: Summer Reading
(Choices and Active Reading Requirements)
Book 5: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Description: Set during the time of maniacal religious persecution and witch hunts, this
novel traces the story of Hester Prynne, a young woman who has committed adultery and
is punished by having to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her clothing at all times. However,
the story is complicated by the fact that the father of Hester’s child cannot identify
himself to the hypercritical and small-minded townspeople. A compelling look at guilt,
forgiveness, and personal responsibility.
Active Reading Requirements:






Create a central idea for the novel (the author’s purpose)
Repetition (Track words or phrases that are repeated throughout
the text. What’s the intended effect? How does such repetition
enhance meaning?)
Symbols (e.g. the Scarlet Letter, Pearl, the rosebush next to the
prison door, the meteor)
Setting (e.g. civilization vs. the wilderness and night vs. day)
Motifs (names)
Themes (revolving around sin, identity, and guilt)
Document1 (4 of 4)