1. Discuss The Man Who Spilled Light 2. Essay question #3 The Open Ended Question: an overview & tips 3. Timed Writing #1 4. Time to write Socratic

Transcription

1 1. Discuss The Man Who Spilled Light 2. Essay question #3 The Open Ended Question: an overview & tips 3. Timed Writing #1 4. Time to write Socratic seminar questions, LRJ#4, etc.

2 DEATH to the one word theme From this moment forward, never refer to a theme in a one word (or strictly subject) form, such as: revenge, love, war, technology These are subjects, not themes. A theme is a universal truth that speaks to some aspect of the human condition. It cannot be encapsulated in one word. It needs to be a short phrase instead. Example: The perils of unchecked technology will lead to the end of intelligent human existence. So even though Spark Notes and Schmoop, etc. will often list themes as subjects or in one word form, realize this is wrong. A theme needs more substance than one word can provide.

3 AP Essays AP Test = There are three essay responses. Essay number 3 is referred to as the Open Ended Question. It allows you to choose any piece of literature (with literary merit) to use as the piece you reference throughout the essay response. Essay #3 (OEQ) is ALL about THEME. While the prompts will vary and will ask you to look at different literary devices and techniques, the ultimate crux of the question wants you to talk about the meaning of the work as a whole and HOW the author uses said literary devices to construct that meaning. Meaning of the work as a whole is CODE for theme. I call it the MOTWAW Memorize this. Don t forget. You MUST address theme in question #3.

4 FREE RESPONSE QUESTION 2013 (Suggested time 40 minutes. This question counts as one-third of the total essay section score.) A bildungsroman, or coming-of-age novel, recounts the psychological or moral development of its protagonist from youth to maturity, when this character recognizes his or her place in the world. Select a single pivotal moment in the psychological or moral development of the protagonist of a bildungsroman. Then write a well-organized essay that analyzes how that single moment shapes the meaning of the work as a whole. You may choose a work from the list below or one of comparable literary merit. Do not merely summarize the plot

5 CHOICES PROVIDED The Adventures of Augie March Adventures of Huckleberry Finn To Kill a Mockingbird All the Pretty Horses Atonement A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Black Boy Breath, Eyes, Memory The Woman Warrior Brown Girl, Brownstones The Catcher in the Rye Cat s Eye The Chosen The Cider House Rules The Color Purple David Copperfield The God of Small Things Great Expectations The Grapes of Wrath The House on Mango Street Invisible Man Jane Eyre Jasmine The Joy Luck Club The Joys of Motherhood The Namesake A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Purple Hibiscus The Secret Life of Bees A Separate Peace Siddhartha Song of Solomon The Sorrows of Young Werther The Sound and the Fury The Story of Edgar Sawtelle Their Eyes Were Watching God A Thousand Splendid Suns

6 For any of the timed writings You MUST address all parts of the prompt. Stay focused on the prompt. Do not get sidetracked with other points. Only write what will strengthen your response to some part of the prompt. Remember that the Open Ended Question (Essay #3) will ALWAYS ask you to address the theme of the work as a whole. You cannot get more than a 5, if you neglect to do this. Begin by doing this right away (somewhere in your intro paragraph). You ve got to identify the theme and talk about it, if it s going to be part of the bigger point you re proving (which it has to be).

7 Timed Writings continued Whenever possible, mention the important characters by name. Chances are good that pivotal characters are involved in delivering the book s theme and thus warrant mentioning. While you don t want a lot of plot summary, you should give enough details to bring your reader up to speed on what s happening in the book. So, if you re mentioning Bernard, you could identify that he s the novel s initial protagonist who doesn t quite fit into London s society. This would be preferable to just dropping his name with no explanation. You can assume the reader has read the book, but it s also likely that he/she will appreciate a quick reminder of the basic plot and/or characters. If you have written anything less than 2 pages, you need to write more. Organize your writing. A safe bet would be one paragraph for each part of the prompt.

8 Socratic Circle on Monday Topics of discussion from A Brave New World (especially big picture ideas that pertain to theme) (write at least 3) Look at the LRJ readings Forced Smiles, The Myth of Overpopulation, and Is Google Making Us Stupid? and use those to create thought-provoking questions. (write at least 3) Go back through the poetry and short stories we ve read in this unit and use any of those to create questions. (write at least 2 questions) Read through this unit s essential questions and use those to craft (at least 2 questions, which can be connected to any of the texts) You need to create 10 solid questions for discussion before next class. Write them down and include thorough answers. You will turn this in.

9 For Monday: On Monday, be prepared for Socratic seminar. This will be a discussion grade worth about 50 points. Check out the discussion rubric on our website. Part of your grade will come from your preparation for the circle, so take care to write and answer thoughtful questions. Try to refer to text specifically as much as possible. Mere participation does not equal an A. As we progress through the year, I will try to grade discussions more stringently, only awarding top points to those who demonstrate strong insight and/or exceptional discussion abilities.

10 For later next week: LRJ s for Brave New World will be due on Thursday. Have your college admissions essay draft here and ready to be workshopped on Weds 9/30. The Wizard Day schedule should work well for writer s workshop. We will take a test over BNW next Thursday 10/1 (I will give you a study guide on Monday.) Please read Letters 1-4 of Frankenstein by class time on Monday 10/5.