Summer Reading Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Summer Reading Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition"

Caroline Hampton
5 years ago
Views:

1 Summer Reading Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition Mr. M. Wisniewski THIS ASSIGNMENT IS DUE THE FRIDAY Tremper High School WE GET BACK TO SCHOOL. This year s AP English Literature and Composition summer reading is The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Students may purchase this novel at Purchasing a different edition of the book might result in difficulty during assessment and discussion as page numbers will likely vary. This is an individual assignment; do not work with a partner or group. Please read the background information and complete the following assignment prior to beginning class in fall. If you have any questions, please me during the summer. Please understand that I have familiarized myself with summaries from various online help sites, and I am not interested in you paraphrasing from them; doing so cheats you, who should desire to sharpen your literary analysis skills in order to perform well in this rigorous class as well as the challenging AP test in May, as much as it is academically dishonest. Additionally, although many of the questions remain similar to those utilized on past summer reading assignments, I have made key changes so that copying from a previously submitted journal will result in obvious shortcomings in your responses in addition to the obvious consequences of academic dishonesty. PLEASE read all of the directions before commencing your assignment: some elements from the end of this assignment must be addressed throughout your reading. Biography Kate Chopin, ( ) the author of The Awakening, was a bit of a 19 th century rebel. Happily married and the mother of six, her husband allowed her independence and supported both her unconventional dress and actions. Widowed at the age of thirty-one, Kate took over her late husband s business responsibilities and assumed his debts. Although she had lived in both New Orleans and Natchitoches, Louisiana, she returned to St. Louis with her family after her husband s death. There, she lived with her mother and devoted herself to writing. Her unconventional heroines and daring subject matter raised eyebrows, but her editors continued to print her work. When The Awakening was published in 1899, she was denounced and shunned by friends; the result was that no one would publish her next book. Her work was virtually ignored until feminists rediscovered it in the late 1950s after discovering that it international teachers employed it at the collegiate level. She finally achieved the renown she deserved in the 1980s, and her work took its place in the American canon. The College Board continues to recommend The Awakening as a text of literary merit and cultural significance.

2 19 th Century New Orleans Society In the 19 th century, the Creole was the aristocrat of New Orleans and of south Louisiana. They are defined as whites descended from the original French and Spanish settlers, and many of their ancestors held titles of nobility. The Creoles were proud, exclusive people who lived in their own private circles, accepted only the genteel and cultured into their homes, and took great care to maintain the purity of their blood. According to M.H. Herrin, their civilization was distinguished by the courage and honorable bearing of the men, the beauty and refinement of the women, and the genteel manners of both sexes (Herrin, The Creole Aristocracy New York: Exposition Press, 1952). **As you read the novel, annotate the author s comments on Creoles and their various characteristics in your journal. The protagonist, Edna, is NOT a Creole** Possible annotations include inferences about the speaker s or author s attitude toward Creoles and the Creole way of life; how Edna s or the author s comments add direct or indirect characterization, or how they show a development in Edna s character. **French terms from The Awakening: If you speak some French, The Awakening will be easier for you. However, here is a list of French and archaic nineteenth century terms to familiarize yourself with: TERM DEFINITION/TRANSLATION Parterre flower bed Vingt-et-un game of 21 Tignon chignon (hair in a bun) Piroque small bayou boat Banquette sidewalk Bourgeois ordinary man Peignoir dressing gown Coup d etat overthrow of a government Accouchement childbirth Ménage household Patois sub-literate dialect Coupe Quartier Francais the French Quarter in New Orleans Porte cochere covered entrance Marron glace glazed chestnut Atelier studio Cot cottage Lugger Mules heelless slippers Tabouret low stool Drag

3 The Awakening s Men: Husbands, Seducers, Romantics, Philosophers **Use a composition book to respond to the following questions in your journal. Both the annotations on Creole characteristics and journal questions are due by the end of our first week back to school. Please support all your interpretations with quotations from the text. The Husband Figure 1. Describe qualities that make Leonce a good husband. Describe actions and dialogue in chapters 1 and 3 that suggest he may not always be an ideal husband. Please note whether your descriptions result from direct or indirect characterization. 2. Ch. 11 takes place after Edna s successful swim and her silent moments with Robert. Reread the chapter (three pages) and comment on what it reveals about Leonce, focusing on how revelations from this chapter might connect to your answers from question number one. 3. In Ch. 17, Leonce reacts both to Edna s leaving their residence on her at-home day and to the cook s food. In the first six paragraphs of chapter 18, comment on what he expects of Edna as his wife. Be clear as you answer: what does he state, and what do you infer? The Seducer Figure Alcee Arobin can be visualized as the figurative serpent of temptation that lured Edna into adultery. His attributes are almost stereotypical since they portray a certain type of male featured in countless books and movies: rich, handsome, charming, suave, debonair, personable, and available. Chopin writes: He possessed a good figure, a pleasing face, not overburdened with depth of thought or feeling It was no labor to become intimate with Arobin. His manner invited easy confidence. The preliminary stage of becoming acquainted was one he always endeavored to ignore when a pretty and engaging woman was concerned. Alcee Arobin s manner was so genuine that it often deceived even himself. 4. Comment on what these details suggest about his character. Focus on the connotations of the diction (why does Chopin choose the words she does) and Chopin s resulting intentional irony. 5. Does Edna love Arobin? Support your answer with evidence from the text. Speculate on why she gets involved with Arobin instead of Robert. 6. Edna s epiphany continues as she revels in her new-found freedom. Comment on the significance about the scene in the little pigeon house after dinner.

4 The Romantic Figure 7. Every summer, Robert becomes attached to a married woman at his mother s Grand Isle resort. Everyone knows he isn t serious. Edna s awakening makes her consider Robert as more than a flirtatious summer friend. Does Robert ever become serious about her at Grand Isle? Support your answer with proof from the text. Direct quotations are expected. 8. Describe the characteristics that make Robert a romantic rather than a realist. Look up the terms as they relate to philosophical outlooks if you are unfamiliar with them. Note actions that make him seem to be a perpetual adolescent. Also, list specific suggestions in the text (quote excerpts are fine) that indicate he has been involved with other women. 9. After they again meet accidentally at the coffee house, Robert confesses his feeling and says that he dreamed of marriage if Leonce would set her free. At the end of Ch. 36, Edna responds to this in a short speech that baffles Robert. Reread the speech and determine why it confuses him. What, in your mind, is Edna trying to convey? The Philosopher-Sage Figure Dr. Mandelet appears three times in the latter half of the novel: when he gives advice to Leonce, when he observed Edna at dinner, and when he gives Edna advice after the birth of Adele s baby. On each occasion, he serves as a neutral observer who offers advice without the interference of passion or possessiveness. 10. What is the advice Mandelet gives Leonce when he asks him about Edna s muchchanged behavior? What question does he not ask? Why don t you believe he asks it? 11. During dinner, Mandelet notices the change in Edna. Comment on the metaphor used to describe her. Why would Chopin use this metaphor? 12. After the birth of Adele s baby, note the warning and the advice Mandelet gives Edna. Comment on what it foreshadows. The Awakening s Other Women: The Mother, the Artist 13. Compare and contrast Adele, the mother, with Mlle. Reisz, the artist. Both represent two extremes even as Edna struggles to find a position between the two. Does she succeed? Hint: It is useful to construct a Venn diagram to contrast the two women and determine where Edna falls between them, if she finds any middle ground at all.

5 Final Ideas: 14. The Awakening: A part to the whole concept Authors often employ titles to suggest a recurring theme that might persist throughout the entire text, and The Awakening is among these texts. Throughout the text, various instances begin to awaken Edna figuratively. It is as if Chopin suggests that her protagonist has multiple, small awakenings. List (using brief descriptions) at least four events or conversations that contribute to Edna s full awakening. 15. The Death Scene There is no single, simple view or opinion of Edna s death scene. Your view of her death depends on your values. Read these comments by various critics about Edna s death. Select one of them to comment on and support it with quotations from the novel. This should be your longest journal entry. Edna s suicide represents her final attempt to escape---to escape her children, her lovers, and most important, time and change. For only by complete isolation of self can Edna be truthful to her inner life. ~Susan Rosowski Unfortunately, she fails to see that her passion is for herself, and this error perhaps destroys her. ~Harold Bloom Prizing her freedom above all else, disdaining to trample on the little lives she loves, Edna gives back her life to the waters that had awakened it. ~Barbara H. Solomon Edna has driven the blood until it will drive no further; they have played their nerves up to the point where any relaxation short of absolute annihilation is impossible And in the end, the nerves get even. Nobody ever cheats them, really. Then the awakening comes. ~Willa Cather (1899). **A complete journal will answer the previous 15 questions in detail with support from the text and will also include the annotations on Creole characteristics. You will be assessed on the level of effort, thought, detail, originality, and thoroughness you put into each journal entry. Best of luck and have a great summer! -Mr. Wisniewski

WELCOME TO 11 th GRADE HONORS ENGLISH! Summer Reading Assignment Honors American Literature 11 th Grade

WELCOME TO 11 th GRADE HONORS ENGLISH! Summer Reading Assignment Honors American Literature 11 th Grade Ms. CALDWELL The Old Man and the Sea- Ernest Hemingway READ IT!! 1. As you read this book, pay special