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Ideas in Literature
First Edition©2023 John R. Williamson; Mary Jo Zell; Elizabeth A. Davis
Ideas in Literature matches the current AP® Literature course, providing all the important reading and writing prep you need to ace the AP® Literature Exam.
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Table of Contents
UNIT 1
Reading Literally and Figuratively
BIG IDEA: Character
Workshop Focus: Characterization
GUIDED READING Shirley Jackson, Charles Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Stephen King, Here There Be Tygers Short Story
BIG IDEA: Setting
Workshop Focus: Time and Place
GUIDED READING Alice Walker, The Flowers Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Jesse Stuart, Another April Short Story
BIG IDEA: Structure
Workshop Focus: Plot
GUIDED READING Roald Dahl, The Landlady Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT King James Bible, Parable of the Prodigal Son Parable
BIG IDEA: Narration
Workshop Focus: Point of View
GUIDED READING Gary Soto, The Pie Memoir
PRACTICE TEXT Toni Morrison, Sweetness Short Story
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Courage and Fate
Anonymous, The Seafarer Narrative Poem
Alfred Lord Tennyson, Ulysses Poem
Frank Stockton, The Lady or the Tiger Short Story
Faith and Doubt
Geoffrey Chaucer, The Pardoner’s Tale Poem
Washington Irving, The Devil and Tom Walker Short Story
Charles Johnson, Exchange Value Short Story
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP: Writing About a Theme
Workshop Focus: Establishing a Unifying Idea Through a Defensible Thesis Statement
STUDENT MODEL Preston Davis , Impulse, Ignorance, and Imminent Consequence Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Prose Fiction Analysis
Focus: Establishing a Unifying Idea through a Defensible Thesis Statement
MODELED TEXT Hillary Jordan, from Mudbound Excerpt
PRACTICE TEXT Charlotte Bronte, from Jane Eyre Excerpt
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE Della Owens, from Where the Crawdads Sing Excerpt
POETRY Martin Espada, Of the Threads That Connect the Stars Poem
UNIT 2
Analyzing Shifts and Contrasts
BIG IDEA Character
Workshop Focus: Character Perspective and Bias
GUIDED READING Aimee Nezhukumatathil, On Listening Your Teacher Take Attendance Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Anne Bradstreet, Verses Upon the Burning of Our House Poem
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Shifts and Contrasts
GUIDED READING Lisa Parker, Snapping Beans Poem
PRACTICE TEXT John Crowe Ransom, Janet Waking Poem
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Word Choice, Imagery, and Symbols
Workshop Focus: Association and Emphasis
GUIDED READING Frank X. Walker, Death by Basketball Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Arisa White, It was easier to manage Poem
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Comparison
Workshop Focus: Similes and Metaphors
GUIDED READING Amanda Gorman, In This Place (An American Lyric) Poem
PRACTICE TEXT e. e. cummings, she being Brand Poem
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Thought and Feeling
John Donne, A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning Poem
John Loomis, Deer Hit Poem
Hafissa Thompson-Spires, Fatima, the Biloquist: A Transformation Story from The Heads of Colored People Chapter
Opportunity and Loss
Andrew Marvell, To His Coy Mistress Poem
Natasha Trethewey, Pilgrimage Poem
Sofia T. Romero, Cloud Nine Short Story
WRITING WORKSHOP Writing about Tone
Workshop Focus: Justifying a Thesis through a Line of Reasoning
STUDENT MODEL Sophia Amstalden, Escaping Expectations Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Poetry Analysis
Focus: Justifying a Thesis Through a Line of Reasoning
MODELED TEXT William Shakespeare, Sonnet 73 Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Joy Harjo, Perhaps the World Ends Here Poem
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE W. E. B. Du Bois, from The Comet Excerpt
POETRY Walt Whitman, A Noiseless Patient Spider Poem
UNIT 3
Analyzing Tensions
BIG IDEA Character
Workshop Focus: Static and Dynamic Characters
PRACTICE TEXT Sharon Cooper, Mistaken Identity One-Act Play
BIG IDEA Setting
Workshop Focus: Social, Historical, and Cultural Contexts
PRACTICE TEXT Luis Valdez, Los Vendidos One-Act Play
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Conflict
PRACTICE TEXT Michael Hollinger, Naked Lunch One-Act Play
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Power and Control
William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice Drama
Henrik Ibsen, A Doll’s House Drama
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP Writing about Character
Workshop Focus: Explaining Interpretation through Commentary
STUDENT MODEL Jilliam Skaggs, Character Analysis of Tom Jones Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Literary Argument
Focus: Explaining Interpretation through Commentary
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE Oscar Wilde, from A Picture of Dorian Gray Excerpt
POETRY John Murrillo, Enter the Dragons Poem
UNIT 4
Analyzing Perspectives
BIG IDEA Character
Workshop Focus: Characters in Conflict
GUIDED READING Juan A. Sedillo, Gentleman of Rio En Medio Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Flannery O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find Short Story
BIG IDEA Setting
Workshop Focus: Mood and Atmosphere
GUIDED READING Jack London, Law of Life Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT William Faulkner, A Rose for Emily Short Story
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Archetypal Patterns
GUIDED READING Sarah Orne Jewett, A White Heron Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Malinda Lo, Red Short Story
BIG IDEA Narration
Workshop Focus: Narrative Perspective
GUIDED READING Jamaica Kincaid, Girl Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Jhumpa Lahiri, Interpreter of Maladies Short Story
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Irony and Incongruity
Jonathan Swift, A Modest Proposal Satirical Essay
Kurt Vonnegut, Harrison Bergeron Short Story
Clint Smith, Counterfactual Poem
Reason and Order
Alexander Pope, from An Essay on Criticism Poem
Colson Whitehead, Chapter 7 from The Nickel Boys Chapter
Anton Chekhov, The Bet Short Story
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP Writing about Point of View
Workshop Focus: Creating Unity through Commentary
STUDENT MODEL Julia Luxon, Analysis of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Prose Fiction Analysis
Focus: Creating Unity through Commentary
MODELED TEXT Emily Brontë, from Wuthering Heights Excerpt
PRACTICE TEXT N. Scott Momaday, from A House Made of Dawn Excerpt
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE Ann Petry, from The Street Excerpt
POETRY Claude McKay, Harlem Shadows Poem
UNIT 5
Analyzing Comparisons
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Form, Sound, Rhythm, and Rhyme
GUIDED READING Erick Didriksen, Sonnet XVIII Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Dorothy Chan, Ode to Chinese Superstitions Poem
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Word Choice, Imagery, And Symbols
Workshop Focus: Words and Images
GUIDED READING John Ciardi, Suburban Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Billy Collins, The Lanyard Poem
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Comparison
Workshop Focus: Metaphor, Personification, and Allusion
GUIDED READING Robert Frost, Mending Wall Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Seamus Heaney, Digging Poem
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Individual and Nature
Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner Poem
Mary Oliver, Singapore Poem
Herman Melville, nBartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street Novella
Imagination and Intuition
John Keats, Ode on a Grecian Urn Poem
Countee Cullen, To John Keats, At Springtime Poem
Italo Calvino, The Enchanted Garden Short Story
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP: Writing about Extended Metaphor
Workshop Focus: Creating Coherence through Transitional Elements
STUDENT MODEL Teagen Ankerson, Analysis of "Thou Blind Man’s Mark" Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Poetry Analysis
Focus: Creating Coherence through Transitional Elements
MODELED TEXT George Herbert, The Collar Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Billy Collins, The Lanyard Poem
Multiple-Choice Questions
POETRY Toi Derricotte, Black Boys Play the Classics Poem
PROSE Barbara Kingsolver, from The Poisonwood Bible Excerpt
UNIT 6
Analyzing Representations
BIG IDEA Character
Workshop Focus: Contrasting Characters
PRACTICE TEXT Zora Neale Hurston, Spunk Short Story
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Non-Linear Plots
PRACTICE TEXT Jesmyn Ward , Richie from Sing Unburied Sing Chapter
BIG IDEA: NARRATION
Workshop Focus: Narrative Tone and Bias
PRACTICE TEXT Viet Thanh Nguyen, Chapter 1 from The Sympathizer Chapter
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Word Choice, Imagery, and Symbols
Workshop Focus: Symbols
PRACTICE TEXT John Irving, The Foul Ball from A Prayer for Owen Meany Chapter
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Repression and Conformity
Robert Louis Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Novel
Mary Shelley, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus Novel
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP Writing about Symbol
Workshop Focus: Creating Purposeful Syntax
STUDENT MODEL Robert Dohrman, Darkness in a Changing Life Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Literary Argument
Focus: Creating Purposeful Syntax
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE Khaled Hosseini, from A Thousand Splendid Suns Excerpt
POETRY Naomi Nye, Hugging the Jukebox Poem
UNIT 7
Analyzing Associations
BIG IDEA Character
Workshop Focus: Character Change and Epiphany
GUIDED READING James Joyce, Araby Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Elizabeth Bowen, The Demon Lover Short Story
BIG IDEA Setting
Workshop Focus: Contrasting and Changing Settings
GUIDED READING Doris Lessing, A Mild Attack of Locusts Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Chimamanda Adichie, Cell One Short Story
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Narrative Pacing
GUIDED READING Saki, The Storyteller Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Sinclair Lewis, The Hack Driver Short Story
BIG IDEA Narration
Workshop Focus: Reliable and Unreliable Narrators
GUIDED READING Truman Capote, Miriam Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Minister’s Black Veil Short Story
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Word Choice, Imagery, and Symbols
Workshop Focus: Symbolic Settings and Motifs
GUIDED READING Kate Chopin, The Story of an Hour Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Charlotte Perkins Gilman, The Yellow Wallpaper Short Story
BIG IDEA FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE: Comparison
Workshop Focus: Similes and Personification
GUIDED READING Edgar Allan Poe, Masque of the Red Death Short Story
PRACTICE TEXT Ken Liu, Paper Menagerie Short Story
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Appearance and Reality
Virginia Woolf, The New Dress Short Story
Robert Browning, My Last Duchess Poem
Octavia Butler, Bloodchild Short Story
Loss and Disillusionment
D.H. Lawrence, The Rocking Horse Winner Short Story
Li Young Lee, Hymn to Childhood Poem
Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis Novella
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP: Writing about Setting
Workshop Focus: Writing Introductions
STUDENT MODEL Hannah Richards, Culture as Setting in The Handmaid’s Tale Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Prose Fiction Analysis
Focus: Contextualizing Your Argument
MODELED TEXT Yaa Gysai, from Homegoing Excerpt
PRACTICE TEXT Richard Wright, from Native Son Excerpt
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE Charles Dickens, from A Tale of Two Cities Excerpt
POETRY Percy B. Shelley, Ozymandias Poem
UNIT 8
Analyzing Incongruities
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Irony and Paradox
GUIDED READING Anne Sexton, Cinderella Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Elaine Magarrell, The Joy of Cooking Poem
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Word Choice, Imagery, And Symbols
Workshop Focus: Ambiguity
GUIDED READING W.H. Auden, The Unknown Citizen Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Wallace Stevens, Anecdote of the Jar Poem
BIG IDEA Figurative Language: Comparison
Workshop Focus: Conceit and Allusion
GUIDED READING Edward Taylor, Upon a Spider Catching a Fly Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Paul Laurence Dunbar, The Haunted Oak Poem
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Alienation and Fragmentation
T.S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock Poem
Chen Chen, I Invite My Parents to a Dinner Party Poem
Neil Gaiman, How to Talk to Girls and Parties Short Story
Identity and Identities
Teri Foltz, Manhunt One-Act Play
Janine Solursh, Forgotten Portraits Poem
Teresa Acosta, My Mother Pieced Quilts Poem
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP Writing about Irony
Workshop Focus: Writing Conclusions
STUDENT MODEL Tim Mollette, Kafka’s Implausible Reality Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Poetry Analysis
Focus: Making Connections
MODELED TEXT Jericho Brown, Prayer for the Backhanded Poem
PRACTICE TEXT Langston Hughes, The Weary Blues Poem
Multiple-Choice Questions
POETRY Crystal Wilkinson, O Tobacco Poem
PROSE Alex Haley, from Roots Excerpt
UNIT 9
Analyzing Complexities
BIG IDEA Character
Workshop Focus: Character Complexities
PRACTICE TEXT Katherine Dunn, Chapter 1 from Geek Love Chapter
BIG IDEA Structure
Workshop Focus: Significant Moments
PRACTICE TEXT Ralph Ellison, Chapter 10 from Invisible Man Chapter
BIG IDEA Narration
Workshop Focus: Narrative Complexities
PRACTICE TEXT Anthony Doerr, Chapter 3 from All The Light We Cannot See Chapter
IDEAS IN LITERATURE
Power and Perception
Caryl Churchill, Top Girls Drama
Tennessee Williams, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Drama
COMPOSITION WORKSHOP Writing a Source-Based Literary Argument
Workshop Focus: Using and Citing Sources
STUDENT MODEL Katrina Ruiz, How Characterization Sparked the Women’s Movement Literary Argument
PREPARING FOR THE AP® EXAM
Free-Response Question: Literary Argument
Focus: Considering Alternate Interpretations
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROSE Joyce Carol Oates, Where Are You? Short Story
POETRY William Cullen Bryant, Thanatopsis Poem
Glossary/Glosario
Appendix A: Writing Workshop: Writing a College Application Essay
Appendix B: MLA Guide to Style and Documentation
Appendix C: Critical Approaches to Literature
Index
John R. Williamson
Mary Jo Zell
Elizabeth A. Davis
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