Summer 2015 Reading Assignments for IB Language A DP
(Grades 11 and 12, DP 1 and DP 2)
Texts:
DP 1: The Complete Short Stories – Edgar Allen Poe
 The specific story titles are listed at the end of this document.
 There will be different assignments for HL and SL DP 1 classes next year.
DP 2: Midaq Alley – Naguib Mahfouz
 DP 2 students should purchase a copy of Midaq Alley before returning to school. You must read the
entire novel and complete your research into the novel before returning.
 We will analyze and discuss the novel as a group once school resumes.
Students are responsible for their own copies of Midaq Alley and Poe’s short stories. Both are widely available
as used paperbacks. Copies are available in most libraries. However, students will need a copy in class for the
duration of our study, so it is best to have one’s own copy. Poe’s stories can be downloaded free from the
internet at poestories.com/read
DP 1 and DP 2: After reading the assigned texts, do all of the following:
1. Select three topics or ideas which you can trace throughout the novels or stories you have read this
summer. Your topics should focus on language. Remember, language is the substance of literature.
When we discuss or write about literature, we are considering how the writer uses language. Your topics
should be technically and texturally oriented, describing how the writer conveys a particular idea.
However, as stated above, they will deal with the writer’s techniques and use of language.
 The following are samples for consideration; they could be applied reasonably to just about any piece of
literature.
 “Positive vs. Negative characterization”, “Setting as a Means of Developing Character”,
“Hostile Urban Imagery vs. Peaceful Rural Imagery”, “Male vs. Female Character
Descriptions”, “Love as Conveyed Through Adjectives”, “The Use of Aggressive Verbs and
Adverbs to Convey a Negative Mood”, and “The Use of Adjectives in Establishing an
Appealing Setting”.
 If one of the topics mentioned above appeals to you, please use it. Do not, however, simply copy three
of these topics and use as your own. Make up your own topics based on the aspects of the stories or
novel you enjoy. These mentioned topics are generic suggestions. Create your own topics because the
topics that you considered and created will normally be more interesting to you than a critic’s.
2. List a minimum of 10 examples of clear textual evidence for each topic. Cite the page where you found
the evidence. (Worth 100 points)
3. Write a thesis for each of your three topics. A thesis is an observed opinion which can be argued. It
looks deeper than a simple topic. A thesis shows not only what will be presented, it shows how the
material will be presented. (Worth 100 points)
 (Example) Topic: Friendship in the novel Wise Blood. Thesis: In Wise Blood the characters
demonstrate increasing degrees of friendship through the depth of their acts of kindness to others.

Does this make sense? You will tell what you plan to prove and how you plan on proving it. Have fun
with this part of the summer assignment. Doing a thorough job means that you already have three
possible theses and evidence for your first major essay.
4. Spend some time reading in an academic (university or archival) library or at academic websites. As an
IB/RPS student, you have been given the opportunity to apply for and receive full undergraduate
privileges in the VCU library. Even if you did not apply for a VCU library access card, you should still
visit a college or university library and do your reading there. There are dozens of books of literary
criticism at every university library which deal with the two writers assigned for summer DP reading.
Ask at a circulation desk for a guest pass when you visit Virginia Union, VCU, U of R, or UTS. You
will need a photo ID.
 Find three library sources for criticism about the novel or stories. Remember, any websites you select
must be academic ones. You should check the hosts of the websites to make sure they are academic
sites. Most but not all will be marked “.org" or ".edu." You may not use Wikipedia or Sparknotes or
enotes.com or echeat.com as sources. These are general reading, non-academic sites. You may use them
as a general guide in getting started, but remember neither the lBO nor any accredited college/university
in the English-speaking world recognizes Wikipedia or Sparknotes or enotes.com as an academic
source. Thus, you will not receive credit for any work involving those sites. You may not include them
in any bibliographies which accompany IB papers, whether internally or externally assessed. Find a
minimum of two websites for your critical sources and one print source. The print source will be a book,
a collection of essays, or an academic periodical (a scholarly magazine with articles about literature).
Try to find additional print sources, since publishers tend to include the very best essays from academic
websites in their essay collections. Thus, the academic publisher has done much of the searching for
you.
 For example, if you are searching websites for information on the Egyptian novelist Naguib
Mahfouz, you may have to read through several websites before finding the ones which have
serious academic merit. However, essays from an anthology dealing with Mahfouz's novels and
stories will all be worthy of your consideration and study.
 So, let's restate the basis of your research. Any print source you find in an academic library will
be acceptable. Many on-line sources you find will not be acceptable. Be a critical reader of
websites and pick only interesting, meaningful ones which have an academic basis. The VCU
library is loaded with criticism of Mahfouz's and Poe's works. Mahfouz is one of the 20th
century's most famous (maybe the most famous) Arabic-language novelist. Poe is one of the
most famous short story writers in the entire world. Be sure to find critics who deal with his
fiction rather than his poetry.

After finding academic sites with on-line articles or print sources with articles you must read three of
them. You must print the articles so that they can be brought to class and shared with other students.
You will then write a brief summary of each article, a minimum of ten sentences for each summary.
Your summary will explain the main ideas in the essay and how they relate to your writer. (Worth 150
points)
5. As you read, write a process journal of at least 10 entries of one page each (roughly 10 sentences each)
describing your reactions to the novel or short story. Your process journal should not include plot
summaries. You are to reflect on and react to what you have read, not simply summarize what you have
read. For the Poe stories, you do not have to write a reflection for each story, (directions for the process
journal format are on the TeeJay IB home website), under summer reading and supplies,
http://web.richmond.k12.va.us/tjhs/Learning/IBProgramme/SummerReadingandSupplies.aspx.
 You may have a favorite which you will write two reflections for. When completed, you will have 10
reflections (100 points), three topics with three theses (100 points), 10 examples of clear textual
evidence for each topic with the appropriate citation (100 points) and three critics (plus your
comments/summaries on the critics – worth 100 points) for the novel or short stories.
6. Be prepared to turn in this work on the first day of your Language A class. Be prepared for a test on
Midaq Alley (seniors) or the Poe short stories (juniors) the second day of class.
DP 1 Only: Poe story titles: The Tell-tale Heart, Hop-frog, The Cask Amontillado, The Fall of the House
of Usher, The Black Cat, The Angel of the Odd, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Purloined Letter,
Ms. found in Bottle, The Masque of the Red Death. All DP 1 students should read the first six stories before
returning to school. We will read and study the other four as a group after we return to school.
Have a great vacation! Contact me at [email protected] during the summer for any questions or
problems. You can also call any time you like, though I will be away the last two weeks of July. If you want to
meet at VCU or U of R during the summer, please give me several days’ notice. It would be more beneficial if
you formed a group with several of your peers for a study group and then we could meet all together instead of
individual meetings.
My cell number: 385-7126 (leave a voicemail or a text with your name), if I don't answer, keep trying.
Please return the lower signed portion of this sheet during the summer, confirming that you and a parent
have read and understand your summer 2015 assignments for DP 1 and 2 Language.
**We have read the Summer 2015 DP assignment together.
_____________________________________________
Parent signature and date
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Student signature and date