You are on page 1of 4

My Personal Study Guide for the AP Literature Exam

E. In some novels and plays certain parallel or recurring events prove to be significant. In an
essay, describe the major similarities and differences in a sequence of parallel or recurring events in
a novel or a play and discuss the significance of such events. Do not merely summarize the plot.
The Things They Carried
In The Things They Carried, by Tim OBrien, the focal point rests on the things carried by
soldiers in Vietnam, and these things are constantly mentioned throughout the novel. As the

story progresses, however, the reader is made aware of a different kind of burden that these men
carry, their memories and emotions. This is the under-the-surface meaning relayed in every
chapter, and ultimately, it creates the tone of the war.

F. Choose a novel or play that depicts a conflict between a parent (or parental figure) and a son or
daughter. Write an essay in which you analyze the sources of the conflict and explain how the
conflict contributes to the meaning of the work. Avoid plot summary.
The Road
The post-apocalyptic world of The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, introduces a father and son
traveling on a lonely road, wading through ash. While the father constantly teaches the boy the ins and
outs of surviving with the occasional tale of yesterday, the two participate in a rather odd conflict. This
conflict lies not in violence or aggression but in knowledge and attitude. The man is a product of the
worst moments in human history, and the boy is merely a product of his fathers teaching and the
environment he has grown up in. Throughout the novel, the boy and father clash in a very subtle manner
in terms of outlook. The boy presents hope while the father rests on pure survival. Until the end, this
conflict will tear the father apart in mind and body, nearly killing the boy as well.

G. In some works of literature, a character who appears briefly, or does not appear at all, is a
significant presence. Choose a novel or play of literary merit and write an essay in which you show
how such a character functions in the work. You may wish to discuss how the character affects
action, theme, or the development of other characters. Avoid plot summary.
Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad, focuses on the journey of one man, Charles Marlow,
traversing the Belgian Congo to find another who goes by the name of Kurtz. Although the book is
centered around the mysterious Kurtz character, he is not seen or heard from until the later half of the
novel, and in the end, he dies. This absence from such a vital character adds to the story by ultimately
bolstering the shade of the man. Without such mystery, the climax and conclusion of the story would
have little or no significance whatsoever.

I. The British novelist Fay Weldon offers this observation about happy endings: The writers, I do
believe, who get the best and most lasting response from readers are the writers who offer a happy
ending through moral development. Be a happy ending, I do not mean mere fortunate events a
marriage or a last-minute rescue from death but some kind of spiritual reassessment or moral
reconciliation, even with the self, even at death.
Choose a novel or play that has the kind of ending Weldon describes. In a well-written essay,
identify the spiritual reassessment or moral reconciliation evident in the ending and explain its
significance in the work as a whole.

Their Eyes Were Watching God


The conclusion of Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston, offers little happiness
in the sense that Tea Cake, Janies husband, had to be put down like a dog. It does, however, provide
some closure in terms of Janies state of mind and happiness. She ultimately believes she found love, and
for her, that is all she desired. No longer does she care of what others say or think, she is content, and this

leaves the reader oddly content. While her husband rests in the ground and all she worked for washed
away, both character and reader end the novel on the same high note.

J. In retrospect, the reader often discovers that the first chapter of a novel or the opening scene of
a drama introduces some of the major themes of the work. Write an essay about the opening scene
of a drama or the first chapter of a novel in which you explain how it functions in this way.
The Things They Carried
If there ever was a first chapter that best encompasses the essence of a novel, it would be that of
The Things They Carried, by Tim OBrien. Nearly all of the first chapter of the book describes the items
that each individual soldier carried with them in Vietnam. Not only is this essentially the title of the book,
but it is reiterated throughout the pages. This message of what they carried on them and in their bags,
however, transforms as the story progresses. The new message relays that the things they actually carried
were the stories, emotions, and memories of their brutal and vicious time in Vietnam. This theme first
presented in the chapter one continues to the last page, defining what it means to walk in a soldiers shoes.

Ballad of Birmingham
by Dudley Randall

Dudley Randall, in Ballad of Birmingham, uses-alongside the dialogue of a boy and his motherdramatic pathos to evoke a kind of emotion that brings a reader to tears. The loving tone of the mother
highlights the love she has for her son and his well being. This emphasizes the sorrow felt as the poem
concludes at the death of her beloved son. With this use of pathos follows lines of juxtapositions where
the racial issues of that time are exposed through language of light and dark.

Heaven

by Rupert Brooke
Heaven, by Rupert Brooke, uniquely presents commentary on the human race through the use of
satire. In this scenario, painted by Brooke, humans are no longer human but fish, and our world is the
pond that we live in. In a way, this poem is a parody of the play we call life. It merely pokes fun at the
story and idea of Heaven and what resides there, criticizing the way we view that realm beyond realms
that we speak of.

The End of the World


by Erica Mann Jong
The apocalyptic poem The End of the World, by Erica Jong, paints a picture of the end of days
and most noticeably uses metaphors accompanied with similes to illustrate the scene. By doing so, Jong
tells the reader more than any fact truth of the end of the world could. By comparing events in such a
way, Jong relays an emotion that would otherwise not be felt and would ultimately take away from the
end of days.

You might also like