AP ENGLISH LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION (AP English IV)
Summer Reading Assignment for the 2012-2013 School Year
Part I: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Instructions:
• Read The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
• As you read, complete the following assignment.
• DO NOT plagiarize information from Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, or any other such source.
• DO NOT COPY another student’s work or share your own work with another student.
• Responses are to be e-mailed to [email protected] by JULY 9th, 2012. You will get a reply
email within two-three days acknowledging receipt. If you do not receive a reply, assume I do not
have your assignment and take the necessary steps to get it to me.
 There will also be a reading check exam on The Hobbit the first week of school
Assignment:
As you read The Hobbit, trace Bilbo Baggins growth throughout the story.
Complete the attached assignment below.
Name:
Date:
Period:
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien Summer Reading Assignment
1)
As you begin reading, consider your impressions of Bilbo Baggins at the beginning of the story.
Provide a physical and mental/emotional description of Bilbo in the space provided. (Bullet
points are fine.)
2)
Next, list the struggles/conflicts that Bilbo faces on his journey. Include the chapter from which
the struggle/conflict occurs. Then, give a brief description of the effect that the struggle/conflict
has on Bilbo. (What does Bilbo learn about himself? Does he grow in any way after experiencing
the struggle/conflict?). Complete the chart below.
Struggle/Conflict
Example
Bilbo is coerced into going on a
journey that tears him from his
comfort zone. He forgets his
wallet, handkerchief, and hat.
His world is uprooted.
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
Chapter # from which the
struggle/conflict came
Effect the struggle/ conflict
has on Bilbo. How does Bilbo
grow or what does Bilbo
learn about himself as a
result?
Example
Example
Bilbo is a creature of habit. He is
unsure of himself at this point.
He is scared about the journey
and does not feel like an
adequate “burglar.”
Chapter 2
8)
9)
3)
Finally, describe Bilbo mentally/emotionally at the end of the novel.
Part II: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Instructions:
• Read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
• As you read, complete the following assignment.
• DO NOT plagiarize information from Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, or any other such source.
• DO NOT COPY another student’s work or share your own work with another student.
• Responses are to be e-mailed to [email protected] by JULY 30, 2012. You will get a reply
email within two-three days acknowledging receipt. If you do not receive a reply, assume I do not
have your assignment and take the necessary steps to get it to me.
 There will also be a reading check exam on The Hobbit the first week of school
Assignment:
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain takes place in the pre-Civil War south. It is a coming
of age story about a thirteen year old white boy, Huckleberry Finn, who embarks on a journey down the
Mississippi River with a runaway slave named, Jim. The novel contains several examples of humor,
irony, conflict, adventure, and more.
Your assignment is to note Huck’s growing conscience as you read the novel. Huck will tell the reader
that he was not brought up “right”, that he isn’t courageous, and that he doesn’t really know the
difference between right and wrong. He perceives that he does not have morals or values and he
usually feels like he has done the “wrong” thing.
However, evidence of Huck’s conscience is obvious. He does act courageously throughout the novel,
and, more often than not, does the correct thing.
Identify seven instances in the novel where Huck’s conscience is evident—times where he struggles
between doing right and doing wrong, times where he feels bad about something he is doing, times
when he feels bad about what other people are doing, or times when he feels compassion or sympathy
for something he has witnessed.
Next, write a sentence summarizing the instance of conscience.
Then, cite a passage/quote that represents the instance. Include the number of the chapter from
which it came at the end of your quote.
An example has been done for you. You may not use this example yourself, even if it is a thought that
occurred to you. Set up your papers so it looks like the example below.
Example:
1)
Example of Conscience: Huck is worried about the robbers aboard the sinking Walter Scott. Even though
he knows they are not good people, it makes him feel bad to think that they might drown and die.
Passage/Quote: “Now was the first time I begun to worry about the men—I reckon I hadn’t had time to
before. I begun to think how dreadful it was, even for murderers, to be in such a fix. I says to myself,
there ain’t no telling but I might come to be a murderer myself, yet, and then how would I like it?”
(Chapter 13)
Again, do not copy work from another student or claim that work that is not yours is yours!
There will also be an exam on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn the first week of school.
Please use the following study guide to help you prepare for this exam. The study guide is for
your benefit only; it will not be collected for a grade.
Study Guide: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
I.
Character Identification: Be able to identify description of the following people.
Huckleberry Finn
Tom Sawyer
Judge Thatcher
Buck Grangerford
The duke
Boggs
Joanna Wilks
Sally Phelps
Widow Douglass
Jim
Judith Loftus
Sophia Grangerford
The king/dauphin
Mary Jane Wilks
Dr. Robinson
Aunt Polly
Miss Watson
Pap
Colonel Grangerford
Harney Shepherdson
Colonel Sherburn
Susan Wilks
Silas Phelps
II.
True/False
Huck is conflicted over helping Jim, a runaway slave, to escape because he considers it
stealing from Miss Watson to help Jim, but a betrayal of Jim’s trust not to.
III.
Identification of Locations
 Where Huck spends a month without Jim enjoying life, until his friend is murdered.
 Where the “duke” and the “king” perform “The Royal Nonesuch” for the first time.
IV.
Multiple Choice
Shooting a cannon over water:
a. warns people on the opposite shore of danger.
b. is done in an effort to make a dead body float to the surface of the water.
c. announces the arrival of a ferry boat.
d. is done in celebration of a slave obtaining his freedom.
Part III: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Instructions:
• Read Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
• As you read, complete the following assignment.
• DO NOT plagiarize information from Cliff Notes, Spark Notes, or any other such source.
• DO NOT COPY another student’s work or share your own work with another student.
• Responses are due the first day of school in August. You must have a hard copy of the assignment.
E-mailing the assignment will not be acceptable.
 There will also be a reading check exam on Brave New World the first week of school
Assignment:
Compare life as Huxley describes it in the World State with life in the United States today by
completing the chart below. The first one has been done for you.
Aspect of Culture
Human Life
Death
Love and Marriage
In the World State
In the world state, human life is
created through the Bokanovsky
and Podsnap Processes that
allow the Hatchery to produce
thousands of nearly identical
human embryos. During the
gestation period the embryos
travel in bottles along a
conveyor belt through a factorylike building. Social status and
looks are determined in this
conditioning. Life is not created
through an act of love. It is very
biological and unemotional.
Children are then brainwashed
into believing the values of the
World State through the process
of “hypnopaedic” methods or
“sleep-teaching.”
In the United States Today
In the United States today,
human life is hopefully created
when a man and a woman are in
love with each other and decide
to procreate together. The
number of children they hope to
have is decided by them. Social
status and looks are left to
chance. Values, etc. are instilled
in children by their
parents/guardians.
Literature
Film
Consumption of goods/services
Use of drugs (alcohol and
tobacco)
Pleasure/Self-Indulgence
Religion
Part IV: College Entrance Letter
Instructions:
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Develop a college entrance letter.
You may use a prompt from one of the colleges you are planning to apply to or one from the
list below.
Include a copy of the prompt with your letter.
E-mail a copy of your letter to [email protected] by August 15, 2012. You will get a
reply email within two-three days acknowledging receipt. If you do not receive a reply,
assume I do not have your letter and take the necessary steps to get it to me.
Respond to your prompt, using no less than 250 words.
Check out the college board website (www.collegeboard.com) for entrance letter writing tips.
Common Application Prompts
#1
Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced
and its impact on you.
#2
Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.
#3
Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.
#4
Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that
has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.