Monday, April 30, 2012
AP Literature Exam Free Response Question
Throughout the course of the year we have read novels and plays that share common literary themes: love & hate, good & evil, the question of truth, fate & freewill, the meaning of greatness, the nature of justice, the clashing of cultures, tradition vs. modernity, and man vs. nature. These common themes are also present in the AP Literature Exam's Free Response Questions. Choose one novel or play that we have read and explain why you think it is the most relevant novel to study in AP Literature. In what ways does it meet multiple themes and how does its universality apply to a multitude of possible response questions?
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Of all the books and plays this year I believe that "The Great Gatsby" is the most relevant book that contains many common literary themes for such a small reading. One such theme is love; the entire book centers around Gatsby's undeniable love for Daisy while there is much fake love around him. Another theme is quite obviously, "the search of greatness" when Gatsby takes a hold of the old American dream and attempts to seek out his prize, Daisy. One other common theme is "tradition vs. modernity" where Gatsby is still trying to keep that old American dream alive, but unfortunately falls victim to the new, more modern American dream. All of these themes are very applicable to the AP test. It is also a very fun book to read and can make an audience draw a lot of different conclusions for such a short reading.
ReplyDelete"Heart of Darkness" was by far one of the most difficult novels I've ever read.However, it was also one of my favorites and one that would be extremely relevant to the AP exam."Heart of Darkness" is very vivid and the diction is foreign to the standard senior. It has multiple themes and means something different to almost every reader. The novel takes twists,turns,and is bluntly political. It forces the reader to look deeper than surface level and challenges them. That's why it is of great importance to keep it in the curriculum. It also fits many of the typical questions asked on the AP exam and can be taken various ways. The reader could discuss Conrad's use of endless adjectives, the politics of the era, society as a whole, man's dark intentions,etc. This makes it an optimal choice for the test taker.
ReplyDeleteWe read through many books during the course of the year but I feel that "Frankenstein" was one of the more important novels. It exhibited various themes such as secrecy, nature and beauty, human vs the questionable, strong love&hate, and a few others. However, overall the novel allotted a strong acknowledgment/possible appreciation for the unknown. Its narration was set up in an interesting way that kept readers attentive and curious and it concluded on an intense note. An essay under the topic of "Frankenstein" could head multiple directions with various analyzable themes and character comparisons. All of this subject/theme variety under a single book truly makes "Frankenstein" a must read for AP Literature.
ReplyDeleteThough there are so many wonderful books we've read that are relevant to the AP exam, I would have to say I really thought that "Lord of the Flies" would have been an excellent choice as one of the best, had you not said it was infrequently listed on the exam. Not only did I truly enjoy the book, I felt it included a lot of material for analysis and especially fit many of the questions I imagine would be included on the free-response section. There was a phenomenal amount of symbolism in the book to analyze and explain, and much of it was not obvious, it took quite a bit of deep thought. Questions we have encountered in the past through practice essays, including good versus evil, foils, setting and its effect on characters, symbolism, corruption of society, law versus anarchy, etc. are all present in "Lord of the Flies." The book covers many of these subjects in enough detail for a student to create a successful essay. That is why I am surprised that "Lord of the Flies" is not a more common AP exam choice, as I believe that it is very relevant to what questions I have encountered so far in practice essays.
ReplyDeleteHeart of Darkness is able to contrast the differences between light and dark and the inner struggle of each character to balance good deeds, it has plenty of themes in the text with diction that would be able to be depicted. Marlow enocunters slavery on his journey as well as torture and cruelty. Darkness plays a big part in the novel, both physically as well as Kurtz falling into darkness on the River with his desire for complete control. The novel could be involved in almost every AP Lit question.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe that "Frankenstein" was the most relevant novel to the AP Exam. There are a combination of themes which include love and hate, good and evil/light and dark, fate and freewill, clashing of cultures, and finally, man vs nature. The monster in the novel was not given the best of lives to be lived and also did not have a great role model. He showed love toward Doctor Frankenstein at the end, but showed rage and hatred in the heart of the book. Frankenstein's fate was that he would end up not finding his creation because he practically forced the monster to leave and live on his own, even while being ignorant of his surroundings. To relate to the AP exam, there was great detail and diction to describe what was happening. There was enough information in the story to give the chance for a student to write a well detailed essay about the story. No matter what the essay question is/was, "Frankenstein" can more than fulfill the essay. The themes that are listed above are a multitude of bases to write upon. I really enjoyed this book and saw it as pretty easy to write a thorough essay.
ReplyDeleteThe Lord of the Flies is very relevant to the AP Exam. The main reason I believe this is because the book is full of symbolism. Also the novel features items that are relative to many AP free response questions we have practiced including foils, the downfall of societies, and good vs. evil. I think this novel has such a broad list of literary qualities that it could be tied to most AP questions.
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ReplyDeleteThe Awakening would be a great example of a novel to read for the use of the AP Exam. This novel is full of symbolism; as well as uses the common literary themes of fate versus freewill, and tradition versus modernity. The novel was a great read, and easy to understand; however, had many underlying meanings that contributed to the work as a whole. The Awakening would be a great choice to study.
ReplyDeleteI agree with a lot of the others in that Heart of Darkness is one of the better books for the free response questions. It has the aspects of good & evil with the Kurt succumbing to the tribal people. The question of truth, Marlow trying to figure out what Kurt is up to. The clashing of cultures, with Kurts so invloved with the tribe.
ReplyDeleteA novel that I believe should be implemented into the AP literature curriculum is “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair. It represents a time period that is not at the time discussed in the class, which is the Industrial Age. The book also provides many archetypes that can be used in several free response questions, such as “Good vs. Evil” and “Light vs. Dark”. The archetypes within the book are the politicians, industrial leaders, and capitalism that represent the “Evil” or “Darkness”. While the people or things that represent “Good” and “Light” within the book are Jurgis, Immigrants, and Socialism. Also within the book there are political undertones that can be delved into and contain a secondary message within the novel. All in all it is a very good read and has a lot of qualities that are applicable to a free response question.
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I'd have to say that if I were taking the AP Lit exam, the n the book I would think would be the best for the test, would be "Lord of The Flies." "Lord of The Flies" is a great reference when it comes to the archetypes of good vs. evil and societal struggles. It is also a great novel when it comes to the subject matter of foils, and the study of human behavior when forced in a situation of survival. If it came to the AP Lit exam "Lord of The Flies" would be my top choice.
ReplyDeleteI pick Frankenstein as the most deadly weapon to use against the AP Literature exam. It has a wide variety of themes to choose from that can answer many different kinds of questions. It the issue of duality, a sense of homesickness, the issue of loneliness and isolation, and a monster with daddy issues. It also has religious implications and can bring up a modern debate over the creation of live and prevention of death. Overall, Frankenstein touches on many different issues that can be debated and is the most effective novel that we read in class to use on the AP exam.
ReplyDeleteI believe that "Lord of the Flies" is one of the most interesting books that I have read. I believe that it is the best to use on the AP Literature exam because of its complexity. There are so many symbols with in this book. It also talks about good vs evil, setting, and archetypes. Most importantly of all this book gives the reader an interesting look into society and how it was viewed at this time. I believe that "Lord of the Flies" is the most important book for this test because of the variety of topics that you could write about.
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