Precourse Reading Assignment AP English Literature & Composition Mrs. Monn

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1 Precourse Reading Assignment AP English Literature & Composition Mrs. Monn This summer AP English Literature will read a selection of novels. There will be one required novel, and one self-selected novels from a selected list. It is suggested that you read one novel and complete the entailed work before moving on to the next novel and completing the required work. Set aside time regularly and read two chapters at a time, as you write remember to provide the page numbers, in parenthesis ( ), where you located the sources of your information. Citation is critical for this class. Begin the novels early in the summer. Do not wait until school starts to begin this assignment. All assignments must be completed in blue or black ink no pencil. There is one copy of the literary data packet included in this packet. I suggest you make a copy of it for your second novel choice before you write on it, or this entire packet will be available online on the school website for you to print off an additional copy. All students make sure you have /internet access of the summer, preferably your student account, but have another account for communicating in case technical issues become a problem. me during the summer if you have questions about the assignment or would like to comment/questions on the novels. Use this address to contact me through Bay District School system: monnlm@bay.k1fl.us. Please put AP Question in the subject line and your full name in the . You may also request digital copies of any part of the packet if you would like it is Word format so you may edit the document if you chose to type your information as opposed to writing it. Remember, if you have any questions about the work over the summer, me at the above address, or go on the class Facebook page and post your questions. Mrs. Monn

2 2 Pre-course Reading Assignments: Literary Vocabulary: You will need to KNOW these words. Some of these words are words you are already familiar with from previous English classes, some of these may be new words you are unfamiliar with as you have not used them before. Use techniques that work for you to learn the words. There will be summative assessments to make sure you know the definitions (and later application) of these words. Required Reading: Frankenstein by Mary Shelly. Read the novel and complete the questions over the novel along with the literary data packet. You will be required to submit an electronic response on CANVAS when you return to school. Submission for the posting must be well written responses of at least 200 words and should include cited information from your selected reading and incorporated 2 terms from the literary list. Student Selected Reading: Choose one of the following selections from the list below. Complete a Literary Data Packet for your reading. You will be required to submit an electronic response on CANVAS when you return to school. Submission for the posting must be well written responses of at least 200 words and should include cited information from your selected reading and incorporated 2 terms from the literary list. Novel Choices: Emma by Jane Austin Hamlet by William Shakespeare Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare Huck Finn by Mark Twain One Flew Over the Cuckoo s Nest by Ken Kesey The Hitchhiker s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne On the first day of school you will be required to turn in the following: SGQ for Frankenstein & 2 Reading Selection Data Assignments During the first week of school, you will be required to answer one question for each novel that you read over the summer.

3 3 *Literary Data Packet: Thematic Statements To create a thematic statement you can use this three-step process: Step One: Chose a one-word thematic idea o Starting with one world allows you to focus your theme on a singular, focused idea o Knowledge Step Two: Write a simplistic three-word thematic statement o This step helps your thematic statement more specific by honing your thinking into more precise terms. To help with this step, try to answer the question, What is this work of literature saying about my chosen thematic idea? o Knowledge is dangerous Step Three: Expand upon your three-word statement by answering the questions How? or When? o This is the most difficult step in the process. As stated above, answer the questions How? or When? in order to help you complete your full thematic statement. It is important to note that your thematic statement needs to be universal in nature, and not tied to a specific work of literature. It often helps to simple add the word when to the end of the three-word thematic statement as a means of expanding your thinking o Don t make the mistake of including information about the novel in this Step (we will do that later). Remember, truly effective thematic statements are applicable to multiple works of literature and art, and speak to what it means to be a human. o Knowledge is dangerous when entangled in its blind pursuit. Use this chart to help you as you develop your own thematic statements for your Literary Data Packet. Alienation Forgiveness Loyalty Ambition Freedom Man s Relationship with Nature Appearance/reality Friendship Materialism Coming of Age Greed Perseverance Courage/Cowardice Greif Power Defeat/Victory Honor Prejudice Discontent Hope Pride Duty/Desire Identity/Search for Identity Rebellion Education Illusion Relationships Evil/Good Individuality Revenge Faith/Loss of Faith Initiation Time Family Innocence/Loss of Innocence War Fate Knowledge Youth Fear Love

4 4 Frankenstein Prologue The novel begins with a series of letters in which the narrator of the novel is writing his thoughts and plans to his sister. Where is the narrator going? Why has he chosen to make this voyage? Of what does the narrator dream? What is his goal? Walton says he is a Romantic. What is a Romantic person like? What evidence does Walton provide of his Romantic leanings? 4. Aside from personal glory, what two benefits to mankind does Walton hope to achieve? 5. Identify one example of foreshadowing. 6. How do Walton s letters illustrate the tension between eighteenth-century rationalism and nineteenthcentury Romanticism? 7. What is Walton s impression of Frankenstein? 8. How does Frankenstein react to Walton s dream/goal? 9. Why does Frankenstein decide to tell Walton his story? Chapters I and II What plot exposition does Shelley offer the reader in these chapters? What are Frankenstein s parents like? How do they feel about each other and about their child? How are Victor and Elizabeth different? What kind of person is Victor? 4. What quality in young Frankenstein proves to be his tragic flaw later in life? 5. Who is Henry Clerval? What is he like? How is he different from Victor? 6. What does Victor want to accomplish in life? Why does he turn to the study of mathematics? What prevents him from continuing his study? 7. How is Elizabeth a typical Romantic female character? 8. How did Cornelius Agrippa and other early scientists affect young Victor? 9. How does Victor view his switch to mathematics? What does he compare it to? 10. What is foreshadowed at the end of Chapter 2? Chapters III and IV How is the story of Victor s mother s death ironic? What does Victor contemplate in the first hours of his departure? How do these thoughts indicate his future? Why does Victor not want to study the contemporary scientists suggested by M. Krempe? 4. What ultimately changes Victor s mind about new chemists? 5. Compare the physiognomy of Krempe and Waldman. 6. What is the literary term for M. Waldman and the effect that his lecture and guidance have on Victor? 7. Why does Victor favor science above all other disciplines? 8. How is Victor s practice of science different from the modern practice of science? 9. Why does Victor hesitate to make a creature like man? Why does he go through with it? 10. What traditional tragic flaw is Victor demonstrating? 1 What is the central flaw in Victor s decision what to create? 1 What internal conflict does Victor deal with as he finishes his creation? 1 List some gothic details from the end of Chapter IV. 14. What is Romantic in the moral Victor shares with Walton?

5 5 Chapters V and VI How is the night that the creature is born an example of Gothic prose? What is ironic about the creature s physical appearance? What is Romantic about the creature s physical appearance? 4. How does Dr. Frankenstein feel about his creation? What does he do after the creature comes to life? 5. What event is foreshadowed in the beginning of Chapter V? 6. What does Frankenstein feel when the creature reaches out to him? What do you think is the creature s reason for reaching out for Dr. Frankenstein? 7. What is most likely the cause of Victor s reaction to his success? 8. In Elizabeth s letter to Victor there is one example of Shelley s support for the revolution in France and republican society. Identify the passage. 9. What do you learn about in Elizabeth s letter through plot exposition? 10. What sparks Victor s fever? 1 How is Victor s recovery an example of Romanticism? 1 How does Shelley create suspense toward the end of these chapters? Chapters VII and VIII What function do letters serve in this and previous chapters? What briefly lifts Victor s spirit on his journey home? Why is this significant? Why does Elizabeth believe that she is responsible for William s death? 4. What is gothic about Frankenstein s encounter with the creature? 5. What is depicted in the picture above the Frankensteins mantelpiece? 6. Why doesn t Frankenstein take the blame from Justine? 7. Why does Elizabeth s speech in court hurt Justine? 8. What is revealed about Justine s character in these chapters? 9. Do you think Frankenstein is as guilty as he feels he is? Of what do you think he is guilty, if anything? 10. How do the reactions of Victor and his family to William s murder illustrate Romantic principles? Chapters IX and X What keeps Victor from killing himself at the beginning of this chapter? How does Victor become a disenfranchised member of society himself? As Victor climbs the mountains, what effect do they have on him? 4. Why does Victor climb Montanvent in spite of the rain? How does that identify this as a romantic novel? 5. What are Victor s feelings as his creature approaches him. What is the first thing he says to his creature? 6. How does the creature respond to Victor? 7. What biblical character does the creature compare himself to? What character does he think he ought to be? 8. What do you think the creature will ask of Victor? Why? 9. What does the creature say made him a fiend? What is Romantic about this? 10. What does the creature claim is the basis of Victor s debt to him? 1 What does the creature promise to Victor if Victor will fulfill his duties as creator? Chapters XI and XII What technique does Shelley employ to provide the reader with the creature s story? Trace the levels of narration Shelley has established to tell this story. How does the creature describe his first days of life? 4. How does the creature respond to fire?

6 6 5. How are the creature s early days different from Victor s early days? 6. What effect does the creature s speech (vocabulary and grammar) have on the reader? Why did Shelley write it for that purpose? 7. Why is the creature confused to see his cottagers crying? 8. Why does the creature work so hard to learn their language? What does that reveal about his character? 9. What does the creature say he discovers about himself? What feelings does this discovery cause? 10. Why is the creature s appearance relevant? What science is Shelley discrediting? 1 What evidence does Shelley provide of the creature s innate goodness? 1 What is typically Romantic in the final paragraph of Chapter XII? 1 How are the creature s first words similar to the typical first words of human babies? 14. Based on what you ve read so far, do you anticipate the cottagers will accept the creature? Why or why not? 15. Why does Shelley end Chapter XII on an apparently optimistic note? Chapters XIII and XIV Explain the second sentence of this chapter: I shall relate events that impressed me with feelings which have made me what I am. What practical purpose does the beautiful stranger serve? Why does the creature calls the cottagers his protectors? 4. What paradox does the creature see in humankind through his study of human history? 5. In what way does his study of human society make him what he eventually becomes? 6. What is the primary disadvantage of the creature s education? 7. In view of the trial of Safie s father in Chapter XIV, and Justine s trial earlier, what is Shelley s opinion of the courts in that era? 8. How is Safie a feminist character? 9. What plot exposition is revealed in Chapter XIV? 10. What is the character of Safie s father? How is he a foil to Safie, and to Victor s own father? Chapters XV and XVI What is revealed about the creature s character very early in Chapter XV? How does the creature feel about the Sorrows of Werter? In what ways is he different from the characters in the book? What is the creature s reaction to Paradise Lost? According to the creature, how is he both similar to and dissimilar from Adam? 4. Why couldn t the creature fully sympathize with the characters in Milton s book? 5. What does the creature find in his pocket? How does it make him feel? 6. What happens when the creature introduces himself to the cottagers? 7. Why doesn t the creature kill itself after this incident? 8. What evidence is there that the creature is still essentially good despite this momentous disappointment? 9. What does the creature decide to do? What is his new plan? 10. What happens that makes the creature finally despair? 1 Why does the creature decide to go to Geneva? How have these horrible circumstances changed him? 1 Why does the creature ask for a mate?

7 7 Chapters XVII and XVIII What, according to the creature, is the cause of his wickedness and what will be the remedy? What does Victor suggest is a creator s obligation to his creation? Follow Victor s and the creature s lines of reasoning in their debate over the creation of the companion. Whose reasoning is most sound? 4. Why does Victor refuse to make a female monster? Do you feel he is justified in his refusal? 5. What is the sympathy that the creature long for? 6. What is different about his solitude at the beginning of Chapter XVIII from his solitude while first creating the monster? 7. What does Victor s father think is the cause of Victor s present anxiety? 8. What are some of the reasons Victor feels he must go to England to complete his task? Chapters XIX and XX Describe Victor s feelings as he journeys through England. What does Victor say about his childhood in Chapter XIX? What is Victor s big fear in delaying his trip? 4. Why would the Romantic Mary Shelley call the English Civil War the most animating epoch of English history? 5. What style of literature describes the place where Victor begins to work in Scotland? Why? 6. How is his creation of this monster different from the first? 7. Give four reasons why Victor changes his mind about making the second creature. Use evidence from the book to refute each of Victor s reasons. 8. What opinion does Victor have of his creation? Do you agree with his assessment of it? 9. What is your reaction to the creature s speech? Do you agree with him at all? Do you think Victor has treated him fairly? 10. What does the creature threaten when Victor destroys the mate? 1 What is the calmness Victor finds after the monster storms away? Chapters XXI and XXII What is familiar about the method of the murder discovered in this chapter? Who has been murdered, and why is Victor accused of the murder? Why does Victor think he survived all that he had been through? How is the fact that he lives ironic? 4. Victor makes several references to his destiny in this chapter. What does he believes his destiny to be? 5. What does the word torpor mean in the following context?: But my general state of being was a torpor, in which a prison was as welcome a residence as the divinest scene in nature? 6. Why does Victor feel he can t be with people? What opinion does Victor express about his creation? 7. What is ironic about the desires of Victor and the creature? 8. Why does Victor decide to marry Elizabeth immediately? 9. In what way does Elizabeth restore the Romantic Victor? 10. What do you think will happen on Victor and Elizabeth s wedding night? 1 How does Shelley build suspense in these chapters? 1 What evidence is there to suggest what the creature really means by his threat to be with Frankenstein on his wedding night?

8 Chapters XXIII and XXIV When does it finally occur to Victor that he has foolishly misinterpreted the creature s threat? How does the monster react to his murdering Elizabeth? What does the word acme mean in the following context: Mine has been a tale of horrors; I have reached their acme, and what I must now relate can but be tedious to you? 4. What is different about Victor s reaction to Elizabeth s (and his father s) death from the rest? 5. Victor, in his anger, says to the magistrate, How ignorant art thou in thy pride of wisdom. What is the irony in this? 6. In Chapter XX, Victor says his calmness is brought by despair. At the beginning of Chapter XXIV, he says his calculating revenge brings him calm. What does this change say about his character after the deaths of his wife and father? 7. What does the creature want Victor to do now? How does that show a difference in the creature s character from the point when he wanted a companion? 8. Consider Victor s statement: When I reflected on the work I had completed, no less a one than the creation of a sensitive and rational animal, I could not rank myself with the herd or common projectors...all my speculations and hopes are as nothing; and, like the archangel who aspired to omnipotence, I am chained to eternal hell How does this establish Victor as a tragic hero? 9. On his deathbed, Victor admits that he had an obligation to make sure his creature had a happy life. What is ironic about the excuse he offers for not doing so? 10. How does the end of the novel justify the concentric levels of narration introduced at the beginning? 1 How does the inclusion of Captain Walton affect the overall meaning of the book? 1 Explain how Victor is similar to a tragic hero. 1 Explain how Victor is similar to a romantic hero. 14. How does Victor depart from the typical tragic hero? 8

9 Literature Terms you NEED to know for AP Literature and Composition 9 abstract catharsis euphemism hubris adage allegory alliteration allusion ambiguity anachronism analogy annotation antagonist antithesis aphorism apostrophe archetype 1 assonance ballad bard bibliography blank verse burlesque caesura canon caricature carpe diem classical/ classicism climax coming-of-agestory/novel conceit connotation consonance couplet denotation denouement diction dramatic irony elegy ellipsis elliptical construction empathy end-stopped enjambment epic epigram euphony epithet expose exposition explication extended metaphor fable falling action fallacy 2 fantasy farce figure of speech/figurative language first-person narrative flashback foil foot foreshadowing frame free verse genre Gothic novel harangue heroic couplet humanism hyperbole idyll image indirect quotation irony kenning lampoon light verse litotes loose sentence lyric poetry maxim melodrama metaphor metaphysical poetry meter metonymy Middle English mock epic mode montage mood 1 Know the different types of archetypes 2 Know the different types of fallacy

10 Literature Terms you NEED to know for AP Literature and Composition 10 moral motif muse myth narrative naturalism novella ode Old English omniscient narrator onomatopoeia oxymoron parable paradox parody paraphrase pastoral pathos pentameter periodic sentence persona personification plot picaresque novel point of view protagonist pseudonym pulp fiction pun quatrain realism rhetoric rhetorical stance rhyme rhyme scheme rhythm roman a clef romance sarcasm satire scan sentiment sentimental setting simile sonnet stanza stream of consciousness style subplot subtext symbolism synecdoche syntax theme title character tone tragedy trope verbal irony verse verisimilitude versification villanelle voice wit Use different resources to find definitions to these words. Use vocabulary strategies to learn the words. Be prepared to be assessed over the words, and to use these terms in your reading and writing.

11 Ms. Monn AP Literature Data Sheet 1 Name: Period: Date: Title: Author: Date of Publication: Provide significant details about the author. Provide information about the period (literary, historical, philosophical, etc.) Identify the genre & specify how this work fits its characteristics Provide plot points (use bullets or graphic organizer). Draw an image or write your impressions.

12 AP Literature Data Sheet 2 Identify and explain the use and effect of three literary techniques Cite and quote one example of each Cite and quote three significant passages (use ellipses to abbreviate) Explain the significance of each passage or explain how it relates to the work as a whole.

13 AP Literature Data Sheet 3 Use additional paper as needed. Name of each significant character Relationship to other characters Three adjectives that describe the character Purpose/function in story (specify round or flat, and archetype if applicable)

14 AP Literature Data Sheet 4 Describe the setting(s) and explain its significance. Write and explain the theme(s) of the work. Identify and explain key metaphors (M), symbols (S), or motifs (F) in the work. Write a thematic statement specific for this novel, and a thesis statement for this novel. Write a brief outline for a paper for this novel based on your thematic statement. Include a complete thesis statement.

Frankenstein. Study Guide. ardent emaciated wretched paroxysms

Frankenstein. Study Guide. ardent emaciated wretched paroxysms Frankenstein Study Guide Volume I Letters Vocabulary ardent emaciated wretched paroxysms 1. The novel begins with a series of letters in which the narrator of the novel is writing his thoughts and plans