Since the beginning of the AP Literature and Composition course, we have been acquainted with multiple different aspects of literature. In my mind’s perception, all the things we have encountered can be neatly divided into four sections: basic vocabulary and allusions, application of those terms in the form of poetry, viewing those terms in use by reading and analyzing novels of recognized literary merit, and finally applying all that we have learned in essay format, whether it be through open prompts of closed prompts.
In this post, the topic of concern is basic vocabulary and allusions. Even before the start of the school year, by becoming aware of the importance of the Bible and the Greek Mythologies was the first step to recognizing the essence, the bare bones so to speak, of reputed novels across the board. By being able to see through the layout of words and reading deeper into the text, a reader may be able to grasp the inherent meaning of the author and connect it directly to his background and the eventual meaning of his work. The Allusions test that was taken by everyone at the beginning of the school year was unlike any other we had encountered before, where we were required to have truly understood the allusions in classic Biblical and Greek stories and also have the ability to apply them.
Beyond the allusions, the introduction to the basic literary terms regularly used by authors provided us with yet another group of tools to more discretely dissect the true motive behind a particular author’s work and see it in a nuanced light. Furthermore, seeing this terms in two different forms was novel in our experience. By first getting to know them in a purely memorization format helped us engrave those words in our memories and applying them on the final exam truly strengthened their hold in our minds. In other words, we were now prepared to view them in their “natural setting” in novels and dissect their role specific to each novel.
I agree that reading those stories in the bible was very essential to our learning in the rest of the year. The literary terms have helped me too, it was surprising how much they were used, and how I didn't notice them before.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that studying the bible was useful, because already we've encountered several references to the stories we read over the summer, and I know I wouldn't have recognized their meaning before. The terms were also useful, especially if they come into play in the AP exam.
ReplyDeleteYou have divided the material up in an intelligent way, and the breadth of coverage is reasonably good in this assignment. I would, however, have liked to see a bit more depth of detail regarding actual course material.
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