Tuesday, December 3, 2013

December 4, 2013: What's Happening in A.P. Literature?

Focus: How can we apply our brilliance to the daunting multiple choice questions on the AP test?

1. Warm-up: Discussing how to read a prose passage for an AP Literature multiple choice section

What Ms. Leclaire does:

I pretend that I'm sitting on my couch at home, sipping coffee from my Keurig and reading this passage for pleasure.  I ignore the multiple choice questions until I'm done reading the passage.

a. I read the first inch and the last inch very carefully as I attempt to decipher the tone.  If there is hyperbole (exaggeration) or understatement, or if it just kind of sounds Victorian, I strongly suspect irony.

b. I try to figure out what makes the characters complex.  If the characters are overly simplified and not particularly believable as humans, once again, I suspect irony. I also examine the characters' relationships with each other.

c. I take a good look at the setting and how it connects to the characters.

d. I seek tension and resolution (or lack of resolution). In other words, what central problem is established, and what happens with that problem?


2. Reading Prose Passage #3 (1987) together and discussing the first inch, the last inch, the characters, the setting, the tension, and the resolution

3. Finding the "key" to each question

4. Talking through the answers to questions 1-15

HW:
1. Bring your paper/project/Invisible Man to class tomorrow for work time and conferences.

2. Read Chapters 18 and 19 for Friday's Socratic.

3. Papers and projects are due Monday.

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