Sarah Kells: Class Notes November 15-26

Tips for the multiple choice section of the APE test

1. Read slowly
2. Read excerpt BEFORE reading over the questions
3. Read all of the questions before answering any – sometimes questions help eliminate answers to previous questions.

Types of questions:

1. Rhetorical Function:

            Explain a specific part of the text.  Often these are comparisons.

2. Context:

Vocab questions, but these more specifically test to see if the reader knows all of the meanings of the word/words.  The answer should NOT change the meaning of the text ask a whole.

3. Antecedent:

            Antecedents go before or pave the way for something that is coming.

            The water was cold, so I jumped out of it.

            OR

            Because the water

            Which was in a small

Town in Minnesota and

            I had traveled far to

            Reach was cold

            I quickly

            Jumped out of the

            Pool to escape

            The chill of

It.

Both of these are saying the same thing – in the second one, the reader has to ignore the line breaks and the distracters.

4. Style:

Consider the choices made by the author.  These questions often have more than one correct answer, so pick the more correct answer.  Save these style questions for last!

5. Tone:

These often have two choices – make sure that both answers are correct, because if one of the answers is wrong, the whole question is wrong.

Remember that the APE test is really a vocabulary test!  Continue to practice at http://quizlet.com/1296918/ape-cumulative-vocab-test-flash-cards/

For more help on the APE test, visit http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/english_lit/samp.html?englit

HAMLET:

Themes: insanity, usurper, loyalty, death

Play starts with a question…so?: Mystery, secrecy, not trusting, where do loyalties lie?

Ghost: Real or a figment of Hamlet’s imagination?  The ghost is possibly after revenge –

            is he there for himself or for Denmark?

Always be checking for who everybody’s loyalties seem to be with, and for all reasons behind anything that they do.

Discussion will continue in class…

Sarah Kells: Outside Reading Editorial #2

**EDITED**

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/13/opinion/13lighthizer.html?_r=2&ref=opinion
"Throwing Free Trade Overboard" by Robert E Lighthizer

This editorial has a very professional tone to the entire paper, from the diction to the different techniques used.  These techniques include links and facts that clearly required much research.  For example, when Lighthizer is writing about the state of the US, he mentions specifics such as a $4.3 trillion deficit and 5.6 million jobs that have been lost.
Although the tone is very mature and advanced, it does not have a very strong voice for an editorial.  Generally editorials have a unique and interesting writing style, but this one does not.  The focus is clearly more upon giving the facts rather than having a unique way of giving an opinion.
Another unusual part of this editorial is the bias - it is not as obvious to the reader as it is in most editorials.  Lighthizer is clearly biased towards the democratic party, but he does not make this very clear.  This is a good technique in convinced the audience because it leads the reader into agreeing with the author without even realizing it.  He merely throws in some slightly negative sentences such as "the Republican establishment will have to deal with..." and some insulting terms, such as when he puts "elites" in quotation marks, as though he is mocking the republican party.  Lighthizer also includes some statistics that point in the way that he wants them to be, and it suddenly seems that he has the reader.
The main strength of this article is certainly the strong diction.  This adds an authorative feel to the paper which many editorials lack.  It makes the reader feel as through it is reading a professionally writen article, and makes the author seem much more confident about the subject.
Although the diction is strong, the weakness is that the tone is rather weak.  There is no interesting technique used in it, nor is there a unique style or opinion given.  The mere fact-giving tone is boring and does not draw a reader in.
Even though I do not agree with this editorial, it was doubtlessly very well written.  The author led the reader on a trail by giving little bits of information that they must agree with, and then grabbing the audience at the very end.  He almost makes it very difficult to find anything specific that is wrong with the editorial because he uses nothing that is not true - everything he says is a fact, and he covers all of the problems with his own political party.  The opinion part of this editorial is how he takes the facts and applies them to politics.
If this paper were written on an AP test, I believe that it would be a high rated essay.  It displays a large vocabulary and an impressive writing style.

Sarah Kells: Outside Reading Reflective Essay #2

**EDITED**

http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2010/11/5schang.html
Nov 14
"Circumstances Under Which I Would Enjoy Whale Watching" by Sloan Schang

This essay almost has a whimsical feel to it, with four completely seperated sections about when and where the author would enjoy watching whales.  There is no purpose for this essay and there is not really a reason for it to be read, but it still leaves the reader feeling satisfied, perhaps because it reminds the reader of a child in a moment of pure joy.
Schang chose to write this essay in first person, which allows the reader to put themselves in the authors shoes and imagine what it would be like to be in Antartica, or to be a child watching a show in an aquarium.  The descriptions and details used also bring the feelings to life, such as in the fourth section where Schang describes Brett as a "sandy blonde man" with a "pouch of fish at his side."
Another intriguing style choice used in this essay is the change in the author from an old man in the first section to a young child in the last.  Although the different sections are detached and completely seperated, it is still intriguing to see the difference in tone between all four of them, changing gradually from the formal and mature diction of the first to the less advanced and slightly repetative word choice of the final section.  In the first paragraph, the author describes himself as "seasoned," and alludes to David and Goliath.  The mature diction used is shown when Schang writes " my shock-white beard has been growing for a full ten months and is now at the ideal length to command the respect and loyalty of my dedicated six-person crew."  The fourth paragraph uses the word "Shamu" over and over again, and the punctuation includes question marks and exclamation marks, which often make a paper seem much more child-like.  Also, when Schang writes "DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN TOUCH REAL LIVING STING RAYS AS MUCH AS YOU WANT HERE?" in all capitals, it emphasizes the child's point of view.  The second and third paragraphs are very similar, as they both seem to be written by men in their early twenties, and the paragraphs are very focused upon the idea of women and fame.
Although the style changes, all four of the paragraphs are very written.  Even so, this paper would not work for an AP essay because it is written in first person and there is no specific tone throughout.  It also is written much too casually for an AP essay, as if this were a note written from one friend to another, rather than an actual essay to be read by somebody searching for an opinion on a matter.

Sarah Kells: Outside Reading Book Review #2

**EDITED**

http://contemporarylit.about.com/cs/currentreviews/fr/inkheart.htm
Inkheart book review

This book review by Scholastic brings up the question of whether or not the review is about Inkheart, or Cornelia Funke's previous book The Thief Lord.  It is not until the last paragraph of the five paragraph introduction that Inkheart is actually mentioned.  This makes the reader uninterested and distracted, but once they reach the sections about the book, it becomes informative and interesting.
The diction chosen in this piece is mature and intriguing, and there are some interesting phrases used to get the author's point across, such as "Inkheart is ever so slightly undercooked and over mixed."  Although the writing style tends to be rather advanced, there are several grammatical issues, and a few spelling and word choice errors (instead of 'equally,' 'equality' was written at one point).  These are few and far between though, so it does not detract very much from the actual article.
Another style decision chosen by the author was how the different sections of the review are distinguished.  All that Scholastic did was include different titles for each part, such as "Where the Story Goes," and "Where the Story Goes Wrong."  I found this style to be very distracting and it resulted in breaking up what could have been a very smooth and flowing article.
There were many points throughout this piece where it was clear the the formality of the piece was not constant, and it was difficult to identify whether it was written in a formal or informal tone.  Through the review there are sections that were written with advanced diction and very clear writing, but then there were parts where the author seemed to attempting to communicate with the reader.  This is seen when the author adds "(Get it ink heart—Inkheart. Just making sure you are still with me.)."  The changing tones confused me and made it difficult to concentrate on what was being written.
The biggest weakness in this piece was the lack of structure and consistency.  If the essay stayed on topic more and had one tone throughout the entire piece, it would be much easier to read and much more focused.  As it is, it if incredibly difficult to stay interested in the essay.
Strengths in this essay are the phrases used by the author and the points were the piece included very mature and intriguing diction.  These strengths are outweighed by the weaknesses though because the diction is not consistant enough and the phrases are not a large enough part to make up for the inconsistency and lack of focus.
The author uses the critical approach of feminism throughout this article by showing Maggie as a young girl who manages to save her father and the rest of the world from these criminals.  This is really the only critical approach used, however, which detracts from the overall tone and feel of the article.
Overall, the book review had some very strong diction at points, but it also was very weak in tone and grammar, and the style was very immature as it seemed to be merely following a guide.  I found the weaknesses to outway the strengths, and I would not chose to read or not to read the book based upon this article.

Sarah Kells: Class Notes Nov 8-12

Writing a Thesis:
T hesis
A nswers
P rompt

But also make sure that your answer adds value:
What time is it?  A time... <-- this adds no extra value because the answer was implied by the question.

Remember the magic question: How does the author use technique to create meaning?

For example:
In Oedipus, a theme is to not judge others too harshly.
A good topic sentence might be "In Sophocles's Oediups Rex, the opening scene establishes the important theme of not judging others too harshly.

Always Remember:
- Include techniques only if it makes sense with your writing style, and your panic level is high.
- Clarity (sometimes a complicated thesis requires a series of thesis statements)
- Include meaning - so what? - even if the question does not explicitly state it.
- Cover ALL goals stated in the prompt, or you will get an automatic 3!

For more info, check out http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/thesis_statement.shtml

Continue studying literary terms:
http://quizlet.com/2593050/ap-lit-critical-50-flash-cards/   

Sarah Kells: Class Notes Oct 25-29

**EDITED**

Poetry Terms:
Realistic: Attempts to preserve the illusion of everyday life.
Non-realistic: Opposite of realistic, departs from the outward appearances of life using things such as props, diction, and stage effects.
Hamlet is non-realistic because it uses things such as ghosts, which are not part of everyday life.
Tragedy: downfall or suffering of the protagonist.
'Macbeth' and 'Oedipus' are tragedies.
Melodrama: Similar to a tragedy but with a happy ending where good conquers evil.  The plot tends to be very crude or blunt. 'A Tale Of Mystery' by Thomas Holcroft is said to be the first English melodramatic play.
In "Hamlet," although the evil character is killed, the good character is killed as well (there is not even one specific good character).  Therefore, this is not a mleodrama.
Comedy: Opposite of a tragedy.  Happy ending, emphasizes human limitations, often by making fun of them. William Shakespeare's 'The Taming Of The Shrew' is a comedy.
Farce: Similar to a comedy.  Uses improbably situationces to make something comedic, often includes violence, action and wit. 'The Second Shepard's Play' is an example of a farcical play.
Satiric: This ridicules human folly or vices.
Comedies often make fun of human vices.
Protagonist: The central character.
The protagonist in many plays, such as "Hamlet," is debatable.
Antagonist: The character in conflict with the protagonist.
If the protagonist in "Hamlet" is young Hamlet, then the antagonist is Claudius.
Foil Characters: Minor characters, parallel to the major character to emphasize what the major character is doing.
The foil character of Hamlet is Laertes when he is trying to avenge his father.
Suspense: Makes the reader eager to continue reading/watching.
Themes: The central idea(s) or generalization(s) to a piece of literature.
A couple of themes in "Hamlet" are light vs dark and death.
Didactive: A piece of literature with the primary purpose to teach a lesson.
Dramatic exposition: Presents events from before a play or off stage through dialogue.
In "Hamlet," he explains things to his mother that she would often know so that the audience knows.
For more theatre terms, see http://www.tctwebstage.com/glossary.htm

Four assumptions must be made while reading/watching/analyzing a play:
1. There are no such things as perfect definitions or classifications.
2. Not every play should even be attempted to analyze, because they are simply for enjoyment.
3. In order to fully enjoy a play, perception and familiarity are important.
4. Tragedy and comedy are the two most prevelent, and useful classifications of plays.

Tragedies:
1. The tragic hero is a man of noble stature. -Oedipus
2. The tragic hero is good but is not perfect.  The fall is an injustice. -Accidently killing his father/murduring his mother
3. The hero is fully responsible for his fall. -He really did kill his father and marry his mother
4. The heros' death is not, however, deserved. -But...he didn't know
5. The fall is not pure loss, because before dying he gains self-awareness. -He blinded himself, thus allowing himself to see
6. Tragedies should not leave the audience depressed, they should leave the audience having learned a
lesson. -Don't kill your dad or marry your mom!

Comedies:
Smile WITH someone, but laugh AT someone.  Are the smiling masks supposed to be smiling with you or laughing at you?
Deus exmachina: Discovery of lost will by divine intervention.

Drama:
Drama is an auditory AND visual medium.
Ask WHY there is a narrator.
Consider multiple functions of each line.
Verisimilitude: an illusion of reality
Must be willing to suspend your disbelief.
Antirealistic dramas use absurdity, surrealism and experssionalism to keep the audience from believing too much.
A play is meant to be begun and completed in one reading.

Types of Drama:
Tragedy: See above ("Oedipus")
Comedy: See above
Melodrama: See above
Tragi-Comedy: Serious action, happy ending, complex with more thoughtful treatment of more serious topics.
Problem Play: Discusses and criticises social, economic and politial issues.
Farce: See above
Comedy of Manners: Portrays fashionable life, often negatively.
Domestic/Bourgeois Drama: A serious play dealing with everyday life for average people.
See the following website for more info: http://drb.lifestreamcenter.net/Lessons/Drama.htm

And above all:
DO NOT PLAGIARIZE!!!!!!!!!!