2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
AP Literature and Composition Syllabus and Course Outline
Approved by The College Board #1249303v1
Introduction (from The College Board’s Course Description)
An AP English Literature and Composition course engages students in careful reading and critical
analysis of literature. Through the close reading of selected texts, students deepen their understanding of
the ways writers use language to provide both meaning and pleasure for their readers. As they read,
students consider a work’s structure, style and themes, as well as such smaller-scale elements as the use
of figurative language, imagery, symbolism, and tone.
Course Summary
The AP English Literature and Composition course includes intensive study of representative works from
various genres and periods, concentrating on works of recognized literary merit. The majority of texts and
reading material are based on the representative authors’ list found within the AP® English Literature and
Composition Course Description published by The College Board. One of the goals of the course is to
teach students to derive meaning from a text’s structure and style, in addition to analyzing figurative
language, theme, diction, and other literary devices. This course engages students in a thorough,
intensive study of several genres and literary criticism such as psychoanalytic theory, feminist theory,
formalism, and reader-response theory.
Class Expectations
AP English Literature students are expected to be mature and have the motivation level equivalent to
those in collegiate classrooms. Students are expected to work hard, and the hope is that the reward
received in preparing for future coursework will make the expended effort well worth the prize.
• Preparedness: Students are expected to read and complete all assignments before coming to class.
There will be interaction, discussion, and/or group work every day.
• In-class writing, discussions, and workshops: AP English Literature is not a lecture course.
Students are expected to be prepared for discussion, group activities, and writing each day. In-class
group work cannot be recovered if it is missed. Because of the workshop atmosphere of the AP
English Literature classroom, student interaction is required. Talking that disrupts or hampers the
learning of the class will not be tolerated.
• Class Participation: Student participation is required. Students are expected to bring individual
thoughts, considerations, and opinions to a discussion. There is no wrong answer or thought.
Diversity of thought offers perspectives that can inform conversation, offer insightful dialogue, and
present potentially new avenues of discourse.
• Format for Papers: All papers must be formatted using 12-point Times New Roman font only and
must be double-spaced with 1” margins on all sides. Always follow the style guidelines of the Modern
Language Association (MLA), particularly with regard to parenthetical and reference citations.
• Late Work: Present all work in class, in person, and on time. Assignments are due at the beginning
of class.
• Absences: It is the student’s responsibility to request make-up work. If students attend school at any
time during the day an assignment is due, students are required to submit their assignments.
• Fieldtrips: School sports, events, activities, and/or excursions are not valid reasons for not
submitting work on time.
• Make-up Exams: Any student that is absent on the day of a test is expected to make up the test
during tutorials upon their return to campus. If the student does not report to make up the exam within
the stated time frame, no credit (0%, zero) will be given for that exam. Tests may not be made up
during class or another class period. Be advised that make-up exams are more rigorous as students
have more time to prepare. It is in the student’s best interest to be present on all exam days.
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
Course Goals and Objectives
This course provides students with the intellectual challenges and workload consistent with a typical
undergraduate college English literature/humanities course, at the completion of which, the student
should be able to:
• critically read and analyze both American and British literatures in several genres from the 16th
century to contemporary times (SC1)
• write, revise, and edit an interpretation of a piece of literature that is based on a careful observation of
textual details, considering the work’s structure, style, and themes; the social and historical values it
reflects and embodies; and such elements as the use of figurative language, imagery, symbolism,
and tone (SC2, SC3, SC4)
• write, revise, and edit formal, extended analyses and timed, in-class responses (SC5)
• write, revise, and edit formal, extended analyses outside of class (SC6)
• write to understand through informal, exploratory writing activities that enable the student to reflect
upon their reading and their thinking, within the process of writing (SC7)
• write to explain through expository or analytical essays in which the student draws upon textual
details to develop an extended explanation/interpretation of the meanings of a literary text (SC8)
• write to evaluate through analytical or argumentative essays in which the student draws upon textual
details to make and explain judgments about a work’s artistry and quality and its social and cultural
values (SC9, SC10)
• draft, revise, and edit essays reflecting a wide-ranging vocabulary used appropriately and effectively
(SC11)
• draft, revise, and edit essays employing a variety of sentence structures, including appropriate use of
subordination and coordination (SC12)
• draft, revise, and edit essays using a logical organization scheme, enhanced by specific techniques to
increase coherence, such as repetition, transitions, and emphasis (SC13)
• draft, revise, and edit essays which balance between generalization and specific, illustrative detail
(SC14)
• draft, revise, and edit essays that effectively utilize rhetoric, including controlling tone, establishing
and maintaining voice, and achieving appropriate emphasis through diction and sentence structure in
essay construction (SC15)
The Exam
The exam takes three and one-half hours to complete and is divided into two sections: multiple-choice
questions and free-response questions. The multiple-choice section consists of four to five short literary
passages and approximately 50 multiple-choice questions assessing student analysis of those passages.
Points are not deducted for incorrect or unanswered multiple-choice questions; credit is earned solely for
correct answers. This section accounts for 45% of the complete score. The free-response section
consists of three prompts: prose, poetry, and an open question. Each prompt requires the student
understand and analyze the techniques and devices the author uses to achieve his or her purpose. This
section accounts for 55% of the complete score.
Plagiarism, Collusion, and Cheating
Plagiarized papers or projects will receive a grade of “0” (zero)–no exceptions. Cheating or collusion—
defined as unauthorized collaboration—will also result in a grade of “0” (zero) on that paper, project or
test. Plagiarism or collusion on a second major assignment will result in a zero for the course. This
includes assigned, in-class or discussion questions.
The instructor will utilize plagiarism software and internet sources to check student work for potential
plagiarism. This will be discussed in more detail during class the class introduction.
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
Course Grading Scale
Essays/Tests/Projects
Quizzes/Classwork
Homework/Participation
50%
30%
20%
Course Outline
Skills introduced in each cycle should be reinforced throughout the school year with AP practice. Reading
and writing are integral parts of every lesson.
Continuous Class Writing and On-Going Activities:
• Multiple-choice practice based upon readings (SC1)
• Poetry explication and analysis (SC2)
• Timed writings from released AP Literature free-response questions (SC5, SC8)
• Independent-reading book projects (SC6)
• Socratic seminars with reflective writing (SC7)
• Literary criticism (using rhetorical précis) (SC9), (SC10)
• Individual conferences with students to identify areas needing improvement (SC11)
• Vocabulary practice (SC11)
• Grammar, syntax, mechanics (SC12)
1st Cycle: Impact of the Hero’s Journey
Students delve into the archetypal journey and the hero through this unit. Through an examination of their
own journeys thus far in life, students reflect upon the knowledge they have gained from the experience
and how that new knowledge impacts the choices and decisions they make in the future.
Guiding Questions:
• Why do characters complete journeys?
• How does the journey affect the characters and the setting?
• What valuable lesson does the protagonist garner through the journey and how does he apply his
new found knowledge in his life?
• How can students develop as individuals and be an integral part of society?
• What is the relationship between author and place?
• What are the implicit problems associated with colonialism?
• What role has power historically played in shaping identity and culture?
• How does the journey shape the characters?
• How do political and spiritual beliefs affect a journey?
Focus:
• Review characteristics of an epic (SC1)
• Analyze how an author’s use of tone, syntax, details, diction, imagery, organization, figurative
language, point of view, etc. contributes to the purpose of, and creates meaning for the
piece/selection (SC2)
• Identify and discuss various archetypal patterns (SC4)
• Practice timed writings (SC5)
• Revise and edit essays (SC5, SC14)
• Complete independent-reading book project (SC6)
• Confer with teacher to identify areas in writing needing improvement, with an emphasis on
organization and coherence (SC13)
• Write and review diagnostic assessment (SC11, SC12, SC13, SC14, SC15)
• Practice multiple-choice strategies
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
Novel(s)/Fiction
Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
The Secret Sharer, Joseph Conrad
The Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
Short Stories
“A Worn Path,” Eudora Welty
“A Good Man is Hard to Find,” Flannery O’Connor
Poetry/Poets
“The Black Man’s Burden,” Edward Morel
“The White Man’s Burden,” Rudyard Kipling
excerpts from “The Divine Comedy,” Dante Alighieri
“Paradise Lost,” John Milton
Media
Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, dir. George Lucas
Stand By Me, dir. Rob Reiner
Rabbit-Proof Fence, dir. Phillip Noyce
Apocalypse Now, dir. Francis Ford Coppola
Heart of Darkness, dir, Nicholas Roeg
2nd Cycle: The Poetic Nature of Tragedy
Within the context of tragedy, the analytical focus for this unit is dramatic structure and contrasting sonnet
forms. Through concepts of rivalry, tragic flaws, and decisions; dramatic representation of an “everyman”
through characters; and common themes, symbols, and structure in varying sonnets, students explore the
nature of the tragic experience.
Guiding Questions:
• How do playwrights use the conventions of drama to convey universal themes?
• How does culture influence drama?
• How does drama reflect culture?
• How and why do poets use poetic conventions and poetic forms?
• How does Shakespeare’s language and style impact how his writings are read in the modern
world?
• What instances are there of Shakespeare borrowing themes from earlier writers?
Focus:
• Explore Aristotelian concepts of tragedy (SC1)
• Identify dramatic devices such as: soliloquy, aside, foil, tragic hero, comic relief, dramatic irony,
play-within-a-play (SC2)
• Analyze how an author’s use of tone, syntax, details, diction, imagery, organization, figurative
language, point of view, etc. contributes to the purpose of, and creates meaning for the
piece/selection (SC2)
• Compare and contrast sonnet forms (SC3)
• Investigate the use of drama to criticize society (SC4)
• Explore the evolution of tragedy (SC4)
• Revise and edit essays (SC5, SC14)
• Discuss outside readings, complete writing assignments, tests, project, etc. (SC6)
• Participate in Socratic seminars based on outside readings (SC7)
• Compare, contrast, and analyze cross-textual and media sources connections (SC10)
• Confer with teacher to identify areas in writing needing improvement (SC12)
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
Poetry/Poets
“How Do I Love Thee,” Elizabeth Barrett Browning
“She Walks In Beauty,” Lord Byron
“On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer,” John Keats
“Death be not Proud,” John Donne
“Batter my Heart, Three Person’d God,” John Donne
“Leda and the Swan,” W.B. Yeats
“Let Me Not to the Marriage of True Minds,” William Shakespeare
“My Mistress’ Eyes Are Nothing Like the Sun,” William Shakespeare
“Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day,” William Shakespeare
“Ozymandias,” Percy Shelley
“The World Is Too Much with Us,” William Wordsworth
Drama
Medea, Euripides
Hamlet, William Shakespeare
King Lear, William Shakespeare
Agamemnon, Aeschylus
Macbeth, William Shakespeare
Othello, William Shakespeare
Media
PBS Great Performances: Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear
3rd Cycle: Adversity Builds Character
Students explore the significance of war in literature through the study of novels, short fiction, poetry, and
drama, analyzing the author’s use of literary devices in the setting of war to remove characters from the
patterns of everyday life and place them into a world of survival thereby revealing the characters’
authentic selves.
Guiding Questions:
• How does a writer use war to move characters from the patterns of an everyday world into a stark
setting? For what purpose?
• How is the search for peace (or truth) an important element throughout this unit?
• Why does war figure so prominently in literature?
• How are our own lives shaped and influenced by modern warfare?
• What is the moral or social responsibility in arms development and deployment?
Focus:
• Review mythology (SC1)
• Analyze how an author’s use of tone, syntax, details, diction, imagery, organization, figurative
language, point of view, etc. contributes to the purpose of, and creates meaning for the
piece/selection (SC2)
• Compose an in-class literary analysis timed writing (SC5)
• Revise and edit essays (SC5, SC14)
• Analyze characteristics of epic poetry and the epic hero (SC10)
• Confer with teacher to identify areas in writing needing improvement (SC12)
• Participate in AP essay calibration process (SC15)
• Research parenthetical and reference citation formats according to MLA Style Guide
Novel(s)/Fiction
The Quiet American, Grahame Greene
Cold Mountain, Charles Frazier
Johnny Got His Gun, Dalton Trumbo
A Farewell to Arms, Ernest Hemingway
War of the Worlds, H.G. Wells
Short Stories
selections from The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
Poetry/Poets
“Shield of Achilles,” W.H. Auden
The Iliad, Homer
“Facing It,” Yusef Komunyakaa
“Shiloh: A Requiem (April, 1862),” Herman Melville
“Arms and the Boy,” Wilfred Owens
“Dulce et Decorum Est,” Wilfred Owens
“The Parable of the Old Man and the Young,” Wilfred Owens
“Aftermath,” Siegfried Sassoon
“Charge of the Light Brigade,” Alfred Lord Tennyson
The Aeneid, Virgil
“Vigil Strange I Kept on the Field One Night,” Walt Whitman
Drama
Lysistrata, Aristophanes
Cromwell, Alfred Bate Richards
“Battle on St. Crispian’s Day” from Henry V, William Shakespeare
Media
Kite Runner, dir. Mark Forster
The Book Thief, dir. Brian Percival
Saving Private Ryan, dir. Steven Spielberg
Dances with Wolves, dir. Kevin Costner
War of the Worlds read by Orson Wells
4th Cycle: Gender in the Social Construct
Students study the role of gender within society and how man and woman coexist in the world.
Furthermore, students begin to apply theory and criticism to their readings and look at authorial context
and background. Students define gender roles in society and how society views gender in a literary
aspect.
Guiding Questions:
• What are the rules of engagement between the genders?
• How is gender defined in different cultures and time periods?
• How is gender defined by artists, authors, and directors? To what extent do we accept their
definition?
• How do generations with differing values concerning gender clash?
• What is the conflict between religious tradition and modern life?
• How has the conservative culture of the past been challenged by the more permissive culture of
the present?
Focus:
• Explore the author’s use of tone, syntax, details, diction, imagery, organization, figurative
language, point of view, etc. as it contributes to the purpose of the piece/selection (SC2)
• Discussion and analysis of poetic devices (SC2)
Practice the use of TP-CASTT to critically examine a poem (SC2)
• Compose an analysis essay examining theme, conflicts, point of view, characterization, symbol,
plot, and setting from summer reading (SC3)
• Revise and edit essays (SC5, SC14)
• Complete independent-reading project (SC6)
• Practice writing for the open response question (SC7, SC8, SC9, SC10)
• Explore and analyze the expository essay structure and organization (SC8)
• Analyze AP scoring guidelines (essay and multiple-choice) (SC13)
• Research and practice multiple-choice reading and response strategies
• Complete diagnostic writing assessment and review (SC11, SC12, SC13, SC14, SC15)
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
Novel(s)/Fiction
Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe
The Awakening Kate Chopin
Daisy Miller, Henry James
Short Stories
“A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner
“Story of an Hour,” Kate Chopin
Poetry/Poets
“My Last Duchess,” Robert Browning
“Siren Song,” Margaret Atwood
“Daddy,” Sylvia Plath
“A Bird, came down the Walk,” Emily Dickinson
“Porphyria’s Lover,” Robert Browning
“The Laboratory,” Robert Browning
Drama
Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare
Pygmalion, George Bernard Shaw
Oedipus Rex, Sophocles
Antigone, Sophocles
A Doll’s House, Henrik Ibsen
Media
10 Things I Hate About You, dir. Gil Junger
Mona Lisa Smile, dir. Mike Newell
A Doll’s House, dir. Patrick Garland
Daisy Miller, dir. Peter Bogdanovich
5th Cycle: Ridiculing Societal Norms through Satire and Humor
Students discuss societal expectations and codes of behavior in order to question how, when, and where
the rules of humor and social criticism are learned. Students analyze the purpose and expected outcomes
of the satirists in ridiculing societal norms.
Guiding Questions:
• How do authors use humor to explore sensitive subjects?
• What devices does the satirist use to ridicule, expose, and/or denounce some form of vice, folly,
indecorum, abuse, or evils of any kind in society?
• How effective is satire in shifting and shaping societal views?
• In what ways do love and relationships currently define America’s culture?
• What are modern rules for dating and courtship? Where do we learn these rules?
Focus:
• Examine devices of satire and humor (i.e. parody, hyperbole, sarcasm, and irony) (SC2)
• Analyze how an author’s use of tone, syntax, details, diction, imagery, organization, figurative
language, point of view, etc. contributes to the purpose of, and creates meaning for the
piece/selection (SC2)
• Explore narrative perspective and point of view (SC3)
• Revise and edit essays (SC5, SC14)
• Write and review diagnostic assessment (SC11, SC12, SC13, SC14, SC15)
• Confer with teacher to identify areas in writing needing improvement, with an emphasis on
organization and coherence (SC13)
• Take Mock AP exam
Novel(s)/Fiction
The Death of Ivan Ilych, Leo Tolstoy
Short Stories
“A Modest Proposal,” Jonathan Swift
“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras Country,” Mark Twain
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
excerpts from The Onion – America’s Finest News Source
Poetry/Poets
“The Rape of the Lock,” Alexander Pope
Drama
The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde
Media
Clips from:
• The Daily Show
• Saturday Night Live
• The Simpsons
• Family Guy
6th Cycle: Evaluating the Implications of a Dystopia Society
Students examine how the literature they have studied thus far reflect utopian ideas and how dystopias
differ greatly in comparison. By analyzing factors in which societies are destroyed and what leads them to
their futuristic downfall, students critically evaluate how authors portray societies, convey warnings about
social issues, and make predictions regarding society’s future.
Guiding Questions:
• How do students, as citizens of the world, face the upheaval of social forces? What is the result?
• Why is the pursuit of truth and peace an important element in literature?
• How does literature reveal inherent truths about society?
• What are the ethical implications of universal/absolute truths?
• Why/How do dystopian regimes claim moral and religious truths as their doctrine?
• What are the dangers of total equality?
Focus:
• Take the AP Exam
• Examine characteristics and make comparisons of dystopian/utopian literature (SC1)
• Analyze how an author’s use of tone, syntax, details, diction, imagery, organization, figurative
language, point of view, etc. contributes to the purpose of, and creates meaning for the
piece/selection (SC2)
Novel(s)/Fiction
Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
The Island, Aldous Huxley
1984, George Orwell
On the Beach, Nevil Shute
The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood
Short Stories
“Harrison Bergeron,” Kurt Vonnegut
“The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson
“The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” Ursula Le Guin
Media
V for Vendetta, dir. James McTeigue
Minority Report, dir. Steven Spielberg
Twelve Monkeys, dir. Terry Gilliam
Total Recall, dir. Len Wiseman
The Wall dir. Alan Parker
Hunger Games, dir. Gary Ross
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2015-2016 HISD SYLLABUS
AP English Literature and Composition
AP Literature and Composition: Scoring Components
Page(s)
SC1
The course includes an intensive study of representative works such as those by authors cited in
the AP English Course Description. By the time the student completes English Literature and
Composition, he or she will have studied during high school literature from both British and
American writers, as well as works written in several genres from the sixteenth century to
contemporary times.
2-5, 8
SC2
The course teaches students to write an interpretation of a piece of literature that is based on a
careful observation of textual details, considering such elements as the use of figurative
language, imagery, symbolism and tone.
2-8
SC3
The course teaches students to write an interpretation of a piece of literature that is based on a
careful observation of textual details, considering the work’s structure, style and themes.
2, 4, 6,
7
SC4
The course teaches students to write an interpretation of a piece of literature that is based on a
careful observation of textual details, considering the work’s social, cultural and/or historical
values.
2-4
SC5
The course includes frequent opportunities for students to write and rewrite timed, in-class
responses.
2-5, 7
SC6
The course includes frequent opportunities for students to write and rewrite formal, extended
analyses outside of class.
2-4, 6
SC7
The course requires writing to understand: Informal/exploratory writing activities that enable
students to discover what they think in the process of writing about their reading (such
assignments could include annotation, free writing, keeping a reading journal, reaction/response
papers, and/or dialectical notebooks).
2-4, 6
SC8
The course requires writing to explain: Expository, analytical essays in which students draw upon
textual details to develop an extended interpretation of a literary text.
2, 3, 6
SC9
The course requires writing to evaluate: Analytical, argumentative essays in which students draw
upon textual details to make and explain judgments about a work’s artistry and quality.
2, 3, 6
SC10
The course requires writing to evaluate: Analytical, argumentative essays in which students draw
upon textual details to make and explain judgments about a work’s social, historical and/or
cultural values.
2-6
SC11
The AP teacher provides instruction and feedback on students’ writing assignments, both before
and after the students revise their work that help the students develop a wide-ranging vocabulary
used appropriately.
2, 3, 6,
7
SC12
The AP teacher provides instruction and feedback on students’ writing assignments, both before
and after the students revise their work that help the students develop a variety of sentence
structures.
2-7
SC13
The AP teacher provides instruction and feedback on students’ writing assignments, both before
and after the students revise their work that help the students develop logical organization,
enhanced by specific techniques to increase coherence. Such techniques may include traditional
rhetorical structures, graphic organizers, and work on repetition, transitions, and emphasis.
2, 3, 6,
7
SC14
The AP teacher provides instruction and feedback on students’ writing assignments both before
and after they revise their work that help the students develop a balance of generalization and
specific, illustrative detail.
2-7
SC15
The AP teacher provides instruction and feedback on students’ writing assignments both before
and after they revise their work that help the students establish an effective use of rhetoric
including controlling tone and a voice appropriate to the writer’s audience.
2, 3, 5-7
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