AP English Language and Composition
Courses
Abstract Topics for the Research Paper:
Assignment: The following list of abstract
topics have been implied or expressed
in the questions on various AP
English Language and Composition Examinations
since the middle 1980's. Students should
read enough literature from each of the
categories to be familiar with the topics
and the authors who address these topics.
This list can be used as a basis for practicing
the analysis or argument timed writing
essay, for completing drafted writing, for
pairing reading assignments, or for writing a
complete research paper. Each Topic
is followed by a specifically stated AP
English
Language and Composition Prompt
to guide each specific assignment.
Students will get practice forming an individual
stance using evidence from a list of
Short Stories/ Essays/ Speeches/ Non-Fiction/
and Novels grouped by theme.
This page is a work in progress. It was last updated on December 22, 2000.
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Accepting Death:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful.
It's the transition that's troublesome."
Isaac Asimov
"Men fear death as children fear to go in
the dark; and as that natural fear in
children is increased with tales; so
is the other." Francis
Bacon
"What is there to do when people dieópeople
so dear and rareóbut bring them
back by remembering."
May Sarton
"It is possible to provide security against
other ills, but as far as death is
concerned, we men live in a city without walls."
Epicurus
"Life is a preparation for the future;
and the best preparation for the future
is to live life as if there were none."
Elbert Hubbard
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: Choose works
from a list of works of literary merit
that explore death in their writing.
Then write a carefully nuanced research
paper that examines the attitudes
or traditions that affect how we view death
and analyze the effectiveness
of the techniques used by the author to influence
the reader
or audience's view.
Bacon, Francis. "Of Death." The Essays of Francis
Bacon. Ed. Clark
Sutherland Northrup, Ph. D. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton
Mifflin Company, 1936. Pages 7-10.
Bly, Carol. "The Dignity of Life." The Best American
Short Stories 1983.
Ed. Anne Tyler. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992.
Pages .
Carver, Raymond. "Errand." The Best American Short
Stories 1988.
Ed. Mark Helprin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1988.
Pages 132-144.
_ _ _ "A Small Good Thing." Short Cuts.
New York: NY Simon and Schuster, 1997. Pages 1-26.
Gillespie, Alfred. "Tonight at 9:36." The Best American
Short Stories 1971.
Ed. Stanley Ellie. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1971.
Pages .
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Lopez, Barry H. Of Wolves and Men. New York:
Charles Scribner
and Sons, 1978.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
Mukherjeez, Bharati. "The Management of Grief." The
Best American Short
Stories 1989. Ed. Stanley Elkin. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin
Company, 1989. Pages 150-166.
Oates, Joyce Carol. "Nairobi." The Best American
Short Stories 1984. Ed.
John Updike. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1984.
Pages 177-185.
Ozick, Cynthia. "Rosa." The Best American Short Stories
1984. Ed.
John Updike. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1984.
Pages 184-223.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Sartre, Jean Paul. "The Wall." World Literature.
New York: Doubleday,
1993. Pages 206-229.
Stevenson, Adlai. "Farewell to a Friend." American
Short Speeches.
Ed. Bowen Aly. New York, NY: MacMillan Company, 1968.
Pages 122-123.
Shaw, G. B. "A Letter by George Bernard Shaw on the Death
of his Mother."
The
College Board Advanced Placement Examination. 1981.
Singer, Isaac Bashevis. "The Safe Deposit." The Best
American Short
Stories 1980. Ed. Stanley Elkin. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin
Company, 1980. Pages 312-324.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
_ _ _ "Letter From the Recording Angel." The
Complete Essays of Mark
Twain. Ed. Charles Neider. Garden City, NY:
Doubleday and Company,
Inc., 1963. Pages 685-689.
Updike, John. "Deaths of Distant Friends." The Best
American Short Stories 1983. Ed.
Anne Tyler. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980.
Pages 27-43.
Wiesel, Eli. Night. New York: Bantam Books, 1960.
Adapting to Change:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"If you don't like something, change it.
If you can't change it, change your attitude.
Don't Complain." Maya Angelou
"If we don't change, we don't grow.
If we don't grow, we aren't really living."
Gail Sheehy
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt:
Some writers seem to advocate changes
in social or political attitudes or in traditions.
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit that advocate some kind of change.
Then write a carefully nuanced research paper that
examines the attitudes or traditions that
the writer wishes to modify and analyze the
effectiveness of the techniques used by the
author to influence the reader
or audience's view.
Abbey, Edward. Cactus Country.
New York: Time-Life Books, 1973.
Baldwin, James. Collected Essays.
Berry, Wendall. "Irish Journal." Home
Economics. San Francisco, CA:
North Point press, 1987. Pages 21-28.
Bush, Barbara. "Choices and Change."
Representative
American
Speeches 1990-1991. Vol. 66. Ed. Owen Peterson.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1991. Pages 151-160.
Chopin, Kate. The Awakening.
Deloria, Vine. American Indians,
American Justice.
Austin: University of Texas Press, 1983.
Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Souls of Black
Folk. New York, NY: Dodd
Mead Company, Inc., 1961.
Downs, Hugh. "The Post, It's Past and
Future." Perspectives. Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 267-271.
Ellison, Ralph. The Invisible Man.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Man the Reformer."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 133-150.
_ _ _ "The Method of Nature."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 115-132.
_ _ _ . "History." Essays and
Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 237-256.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Hamlin, Garland. A Son of a Middle
Border. New York, NY: The MacMillan
Company, 1968.
King, Martin Luther. Why We Can't
Wait.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Lopez, Barry H. Of Wolves and Men. New York:
Charles Scribner
and Sons, 1978.
Matthiessen, Peter. The Snow Leopard. New York:
The Viking Press, 1978.
_ _ _ The Eastern Slope. New York: The
Viking Press, 1959.
_ _ _ Blue Meridian. New York: Random House,
Inc., 1970.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
Oates, Joyce Carol. "The Seasons." Prize Stories
1985. Ed. Williams Abrahams.
Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company, Inc. 1985. Pages.
Orwell, George. Nineteen Eighty-four.
Parkman, Francis. The Oregon Trail.
Philadelphia: The John C. Winston
Company, 1931.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Reno, Janet. "You Can Make a Difference."
Representative
American
Speeches 1996-1997. Eds. Calvin M. Logue and Jean DeHart.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1997. Pages 1-7.
Steinbeck, John. Travels With Charly.
_ _ _ Grapes of Wrath.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Toqueville, Alexis de. Democracy in America.
New York, NY: Doubleday
and Company, 1969.
Voltaire. Candide.
Wharton, Edith. Ethan Frome.
Wills, Garry. Certain Trumpets: The Call of Leaders.
New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1994.
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Alienation
(Problems of Assimilation)because of
Gender, Race, Class, or Creed:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
""
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: Select works from a
list of literary works in which a conflict
exists because the will of the majority
opposes the will of an individual. Then
write a carefully reasoned research paper
that analyzes these conflicts and their moral
and ethical implications for both the
individual and society.
Andrews, Charles M. The Colonial
Background of the American Revolution.
South Braintree, MA: Alpine Press, 1977.
Baldwin, James. "Stranger in the Village."
The Oxford Book of Essays. Ed. John Gross.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Pages 621-638.
Brown, John. "To Free the Slaves." American Short
Speeches.
Ed. Bowen Aly. New York, NY: MacMillan Company, 1968.
Pages 22-27.
Cather, Wila. My Antonia.
Chopin, Kate. The Awakening.
Cleaver, Eldridge. "The Flashlight." The Best American
Short Stories 1983.
Ed. Anne Tyler. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1983.
Pages
_ _ _ "The Grave by the Handpost" (short story)
_ _ _ "The Oxen" . . ."The Man He Killed".
. . "Ah, Are You
Digging on My Grave" . . ."Hap" (Poems)
De Crevecoeur, J. Hector St John. Letters
from an American Farmer.
Downs, Hugh. "Left-Handedness." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 219-237.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Souls of Black
Folk. New York, NY: Dodd
Mead Company, Inc., 1961.
Ellison, Ralph. The Invisible Man.
Fraser, Antonia. The Warrior Queens. New York:
Random
House, Inc., 1988.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Gingrich, Newt. "Lessons on Race." Representative
American
Speeches 1997-1998. Eds. Calvin M. Logue and Jean DeHart.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1991. Pages 85-94.
Gore, Albert, Jr. "Remembering the Holocaust."
Representative
American
Speeches 1993-1994. Vol. 66. Ed. Owen Peterson.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1991. Pages 82-87.
_ _ _ "Understanding and Empathy."
Representative
American
Speeches 1997-1998. Eds. Calvin M. Logue and Jean DeHart.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1991. Pages 95-102.
Greene, Graham. The Power and the Glory.
Hamilton, Alexander . The Federalist
Papers.
Hamlin, Garland. A Son of a Middle
Border. New York, NY: The MacMillan
Company, 1968.
Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were
Watching God.
Ibsen, Henrik. A Doll's House.
Kennedy, Edward. "The Issue of Prejudice."
Representative
American
Speeches 1997-1998. Eds. Calvin M. Logue and Jean DeHart.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1998. Pages 47-55.
Kennedy, Robert. "A Tiny Ripple of Hope."
Twentieth Century Speeches.
Ed. Brian McArthur. New York, NY: Penguin Book Company, 1992.
Pages 366-373.
King, Martin Luther. Why We Can't Wait.
_ _ _ "There Comes a Time
When the People Get Tired."
Twentieth Century Speeches. Ed. Brian McArthur. New York, NY:
Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages 341-347.
Kogawa, Joy. Obasan.
Laurence, Margaret. The Diviners.
Lerner, Gerda. The Majority Finds Its Past: Placing
Women in History.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1979.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Mandela, Nelson. "An Ideal For Which
I am Prepared to Die."
Twentieth Century Speeches. Ed. Brian McArthur. New York, NY:
Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages 341-347.
Mailer, Noran. Armies of the Night.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Bethlehem.
Momaday, N. Scott. House Made of Dawn.
Morrison, Toni. The Bluest Eye.
Oates, Joyce Carol. "First Views of
the Enemy." The Best American
Short
Stories 1973. Ed. Martha Foley. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin Company, 1973. Pages 259-270.
Okada, John. No-No Boy.
O'Connor, Flannery. Wise Blood.
Ozick, Cynthia. "The Dock Witch." The Best American
Short Stories 1972.
Ed. Martha Foley. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1972.
Pages .
Parkman, Francis. The Oregon Trail.
Philadelphia: The John C. Winston
Company, 1931.
Reno, Janet. "Combating Discrimination."
Representative
American
Speeches 1997-1998. Eds. Calvin M. Logue and Jean DeHart.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1998. Pages 71-84.
Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Toqueville, Alexis de. Democracy in America.
New York, NY: Doubleday
and Company, 1969.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn.
_ _ _ "Disgraceful Perscution of a Boy." The
Complete Essays of Mark
Twain. Ed. Charles Neider. Garden City, NY:
Doubleday and Company,
Inc., 1963. Pages 7-10.
Valdez, Luis. Zoot Suit.
Welch, James. Winter in the Blood.
Woolf, Virginia. A Room of One's
Own. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, 1929.
Wright, Richard. Native Son.
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Conflict/ Adversity/ Courage:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"Whatever course you decide upon, there is
always someone there to tell you
that you are wrong. There are always
difficulties arising, which tempt you to
believe that your critics are right.
To map out a course of action and follow it
to an end requires courage."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Death and sorrow will be true companions
of our journey; hardship our
garment; constancy and valor our only
shield. We must be united, we must
be undaunted, we must be inflexible."
Winston Churchill
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: "The harder the
conflict, the more glorious the triumph.
I love the man who can smile in trouble,
that can gather strength from distress and
grow brave by reflection. Tis the
business of little minds to shrink, but he
whose heart is firm, and whose
conscience approves his conduct, will pursue
his principles unto death."
Thomas Paine
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit in which the
characters are forced to act courageously
in times of adversity. Then write a
carefully nuanced research paper that analyzes
the way these characters
"can gather strength from distress and grow
brave by reflection" even
in cases where their actions may not be perceived
by the public to be
courageous at all.
Arendt, Hannah. On Violence.
San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1970.
Bertrand, Russell. "Religion and Science."
Writing
About the World.
Vol. 1. Ed. Susan McCleod. Orlando, FL: Harcourt,
Brace,
Jovanovich, 1991. Pages 96-104.
Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Autobiography
of W. E. B. DuBois. International
Publisher's Company, Inc., 1968.
_ _ _ The Souls of Black
Folk. New York, NY: Dodd
Mead Company, Inc., 1961.
Churchill, Winston. The Second World
War. Vol. 5. Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979.
_ _ _ Triumph and Tragedy:
The Second World War. Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1981.
Einstein, Albert. "Religion and Science."
Writing
About the World.
Vol. 1. Ed. Susan McCleod. Orlando, FL: Harcourt,
Brace,
Jovanovich, 1991. Pages 88-96.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Heroism." Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 369-382.
Fraser, Antonia. The Warrior Queens. New York:
Random
House, Inc., 1988.
Galbraith, John Kenneth. Ambassador's Journal.
Boston: Houghton
Mifflin Company, 1969.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Goodwin, Doris Kearns. No Ordinary Time.
New York, NY:
Simon and Schuster, 1994.
Hamlin, Garland. A Son of a Middle
Border. New York, NY: The MacMillan
Company, 1968.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Matthiessen, Peter. Blue Meridian. New
York: Random House, Inc., 1970.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Mead, Margaret. "The Energy Crisis." Representative
American
Speeches 1973-1974. Ed. Waldo W. Braden. NY:
The HW Wilson
Company, 1974. Pages 97-118.
_ _ _ "Warfare: An Invention,
Not a Biological Necessity." Writing About the World.
Vol. 1. Ed. Susan McCleod. Orlando, FL: Harcourt,
Brace,
Jovanovich, 1991. Pages 126-138.
Queen Elizabeth I of England. "Speech to her Troops at Tilbury
(1588)"
The
College Board Advanced Placement Examination. 1992.
Rather, Dan. "Leadership in the Nineties." Representative
American
Speeches. Vol. 62. Ed. Owen Peterson. NY:
The HW Wilson
Company, 1991. Pages 56-64.
Reagan, Ronald. "The Future Doesn't Belong to the Faint-Hearted."
Twentieth Century Speeches. Ed. Brian McArthur. New York, NY:
Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages 448-456.
Roosevelt, Franklin. "Message to Congress." Representative
American
Speeches 1942-1943. Ed. Owen Peterson. NY: The
HW Wilson
Company, 1991. Pages 56-64.
Stalin, Joseph. "Either We Don't or They Crush Us."
Twentieth Century Speeches. Ed. Brian McArthur. New York, NY:
Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages 109-113.
Stratchey, Lytton. "Florence Nightingale." The College
Board Advanced
Placement
Examination. 1993.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Tuchman, Barbara. The Guns of August. New York, NY:
MacMillan
Company, 1962.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Wills, Garry. Certain Trumpets: The Call of Leaders.
New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1994.
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Dreams/Ambition/
Worry/ Regret:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
""
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: Select works from
a
list of literary works in which the characters'
dreams/ambitions cause an attempt
to recapture or reject the past. Then
write a carefully reasoned research paper
which analyzes how the feelings of reverence,
bitterness, or longing affect the
characters' ability to achieve these dreams.
Abbey, Edward. Cactus Country.
New York: Time-Life Books, 1973.
Anderson, Sherwood. "The Egg." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren
and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 15-30.
Baldwin, James. Collected Essays : Notes of a Native Son /
Nobody Knows My
Name / The Fire Next Time / No Name in the Street / The Devil Finds Work
/
Other Essays.
Chekhov, Anton. Selected Short Stories.
Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Souls of Black
Folk. New York, NY: Dodd
Mead Company, Inc., 1961.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby.
_ _ _ "Winter Dreams." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren
and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 180-205.
Fraser, Antonia. The Warrior Queens. New York:
Random
House, Inc., 1988.
Hamlin, Garland. A Son of a Middle
Border. New York, NY: The MacMillan
Company, 1968.
Hemingway, Ernest. "Soldier's Home." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren
and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 207-217.
Kennedy, Edward. "Now is the Time." Twentieth
Century Speeches. Ed. Brian
McArthur. New York, NY: Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages
459-464.
Kennedy, John F. "The Torch has Been
Passed to a New Generation of Americans."
Twentieth Century Speeches. Ed. Brian McArthur. New York, NY:
Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages 300-304.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Mason, Bobbi Ann. "Shilou." The Best American Short
Stories 1981.
Ed. Hortense Calisher. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1981.
Pages 171-184.
Matthiessen, Peter. Blue Meridian. New
York: Random House, Inc., 1970.
_ _ _ The Snow Leopard. New York:
The Viking Press, 1978.
_ _ _ The Eastern Slope. New York: The
Viking Press, 1959
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Orwell, George. 1984.
Plato. "The Republic." Writing
About the World.
Vol. 1. Ed. Susan McCleod. Orlando, FL: Harcourt,
Brace,
Jovanovich, 1991. Pages 260-268.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Reagan, Ronald. "A Time for Choosing." Twentieth
Century Speeches. Ed. Brian
McArthur. New York, NY: Penguin Book Company, 1992. Pages
352-356.
Thomas, Dylan. Selected Essays.
Thomas, Lewis. "The Unforgetable Fire." Late Night Thoughts.
Ed. Thomas Lear.
Canada: The Viking Press, 1983.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Thucydides. "The Funeral Oration of Pericles." The Book
of Virtues. Ed.
William J. Bennett. Neew York, NY: Simon and Schuster, 1993.
Pages 243-248.
Washington, Booker T. Up From Slavery.
Walker, Alice. "Nobody Was Suppose to Survive." Living
By the Word. Ed.
Vaughn Andrews. New York: Hartcourt Brace Jovanovich,
1988. Pages 153-163.
_ _ _ "Trying to See My Sister." Living By
the Word. Ed. Vaughn Andrews. New York:
Hartcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988. Pages 18-28.
_ _ _ "The Universe Responds." Living By the
Word. Ed. Vaughn Andrews. New York:
Hartcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988. Pages 185-185.
Wills, Garry. Certain Trumpets: The Call of Leaders.
New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1994.
Woolf, Virginia. A Room of One's Own.
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Family Relationships:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
""
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: Some works depict a conflict
between a parent and a child. Choose
works from a list of works of literary merit that
explore this conflict. Then write a
carefully nuanced research paper that examines the
sources of the conflict and their thematic
implications.
Clinton, Hillary. "Our Global Family."
Representative
American
Speeches 1997-1998. Eds. Calvin M. Logue and Jean DeHart.
NY: The HW Wilson Company, 1998. Pages 71-84.
Galbraith, John K. "In Pursuit of the Simple Truth."
Representative American Speeches.
Vol. 62. Ed. Owen Peterson. NY: The HW Wilson Company,
1991. Pages 56-64.
Hamlin, Garland. A Son of a Middle
Border. New York, NY: The MacMillan
Company, 1968.
Lopez, Barry H. Of Wolves and Men. New York:
Charles Scribner
and Sons, 1978.
Mason, Bobbi Ann. "Shilou." The Best American Short
Stories 1981.
Ed. Hortense Calisher. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1981.
Pages 171-184.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
McPhee, John. "Silk Parachute." The Best American Essays
1998. Ed. Robert Atwan.
New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998. Pages 176-178.
Olsen, Tillie. "I Stand Here Ironing." The College Board
Advanced Placement Examination.
1992.
Rodriguez, Richard. "My Mother is nor surprised . . ."
The
College Board Advanced Placement Examination. 1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Walker, Alice. "Father." Living By the Word.
Ed. Vaughn Andrews. New York:
Hartcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988. Pages 9-19.
Wolff, Tobias. "In the Garden of the North American Martyrs."
Prize
Stories 1981. Ed. William Abrahams. New York: Double
Day
Dell Publishing Group, 1981. Pages.
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Hopefulness:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
""
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: An effective literary
work
does not merely stop or cease; it concludes.
According to British novelist, Fay Weldon,
"The writers . . . who get the best and most
lasting response from readers are those who
offer a happy ending through moral development--some
kind of spiritual reassessment
or moral reconciliation, even with self, even
at death."
Choose works from a list of works of
literary merit that have this element of hope.
Then write a research paper which analyses
how some kind of "spirtual reassessment
or moral reconciliation"--even though it may
mean adjusting to or abiding with ambiguity
and uncertainty--can imply hopefulness.
Abbey, Edward. Cactus Country.
New York: Time-Life Books, 1973.
Carver, Raymond. "A Small, Good Thing." Prize
Stories 1983. Ed. William
Abrahams. New York: Double Day Dell Publishing Group, 1983.
Pages 1-25.
Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Souls of Black
Folk. New York, NY: Dodd
Mead Company, Inc., 1961.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "The Transcendentaltist."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 191-209.
Faulkner, William. "I Decline to Accept
the Decline of Man." The Book of Virtues.
Ed. William J. Bennett. New York" Simon and Schuster,
1993. Pages.
Kennedy, Robert. "A Tiny Ripple of Hope."
Twentieth Century Speeches.
Ed. Brian McArthur. New York: NY: Penguin Book Company,
1992.
Pages 366-373.
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Updike, John. "The City." Prize Stories 1983.
Ed. William
Abrahams. New York: Double Day Dell Publishing Group, 1983.
Pages 141-156.
Wills, Garry. Certain Trumpets: The Call of Leaders.
New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1994.
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Illusion/ Woodenheadedness:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"We must select the illusion which appeals
to our temperament and embrace
it with passion if we want to be happy."
Cyril Connolly
"Woodenheadedness, the source of self-deception,
is a factor that plays a remarkably large role in
government. It consists of assessing
a situation in terms of preconceived fixed notions while
ignoring or rejecting any contrary signs.
It is acting according to wish while not allowing oneself
to be deflected by the facts." Tuchman,
Barbara. from March of Folly.
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: In many works a character
has a misconception of himself or his world.
Destroying or perpetuating this illusion
contributes to a central theme. Choose
works from a list of works of literary merit with
characters to whom this statement applies.
Then write a research paper which explains
(1) how illusions are different from reality
as presented in the works studied, and
(2) how the destruction or perpetuation of
the illusion develops the theme.
Arendt, Hannah. On Violence.
San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1970.
_ _ _ The Life of the Mind. New
York: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1978.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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Independence:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
How happy is he born and taught,
That serveth not another's will;
Whose armour is his honest thought,
And simple truth his utmost skill."
from The Character of a Happy Life by Sir Henry Wotton
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: Based on the First
Amendment to the Constitution of the United
States of America, "Congress
shall make no law respecting an establishment
of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof;
or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the
press; or the right of the people peaceably
to assemble,nd to petition the government
for a redress of grievances."
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit that address these concepts of
independence. Then write a research
paper which developes a stance on freedom
vs. responsibility.
Dillard, Annie. Pilgrim at Tinker
Creek. New York, NY: Harper and Row, 1974.
_ _ _ Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Souls of Black
Folk. New York, NY: Dodd
Mead Company, Inc., 1961.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Self-Reliance."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 257-282.
"First Amendment Agree or Disagree Question."
The
College Board English Language
Advanced Placement Examination. 1990.
Fraser, Antonia. The Warrior Queens. New York:
Random
House, Inc., 1988.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Jefferson, Thomas. "The Declaration
of Independence." Writing About the World.
Vol. 1. Ed. Susan McCleod. Orlando, FL: Harcourt,
Brace,
Jovanovich, 1991. Pages 96-104.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Paine, Thomas. Common Sense.
New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1994.
Parkman, Francis. The Oregon Trail.
Philadelphia: The John C. Winston
Company, 1931.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Wills, Garry. Certain Trumpets: The Call of Leaders.
New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1994.
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Knowledge/Wisdom:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
""
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: "For in much wisdom is
much
grief, and increase of knowledge is increase
of sorrow." The first chapter of Ecclesiastics,
a book in the Bible.
Bacon, Francis. "Of Truth."
Berry, Wendall. The Loss of the University." Irish Place.
Churchill, Winston. The Second World
War. Vol. 5. Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979.
Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "The Intellect."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 415-430.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Machiavelli Nicolo. The Prince.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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Language as a Key to Identity:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
""
It goes without saying, then, that language
is also a political instrument, means, and proof of
power. It is the most vivid and crucial
key to identity: It reveals the private identity, and connects
one with, or divorces one from, the larger,
public, or communal identity. There have been, and are,
times, and places, when to speak a certain
language could be dangerous, even fatal. Or, one may
speak the same language, but in such a way
that one's antecedents are revealed, or (one hopes)
hidden. This is true in France, and
is absolutely true in England: The range (and reign) of accents
on that damp little island make England coherent
for the English and totally incomprehensible for
everyone else. To open your mouth in
England is (if I may use Black English) to "Put your business
in the street": You have confessed your
parents, your youth, your school, your salary, your
self-esteem, and also, your future."
James Baldwin (1979)
Downs, Hugh. "Kid Lit." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 94-99.
DuBois, W. E. B. The Autobiography
of W. E. B. DuBois. International
Publisher's Company, Inc., 1968.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Literature."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 415-430.
Gates, Henry Louis. "Cultural Pluralism." Representative
American Speeches.
Vol. 62. Ed. Owen Peterson. NY: The HW Wilson Company,
1991. Pages 56-64.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Lopez, Barry H. Of Wolves and Men. New York:
Charles Scribner
and Sons, 1978.
Momaday, N. Scott. Way to Rainy Mountain.
Orwell, George. "Politics and the English Language."
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Rodriguez, Richard. A Hunger of Memory.
Rosenblatt, Roger. "I am Writing Blindly." TIME Magazine.
November 6, 2000.
Vol. 156 No. 19.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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Love/ Infidelity/
Friendship/ Distrust
Jealousy/Loneliness:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"Love does not begin and end the way we think
it does. Love is a battle, love
is war, love is growing."
James Baldwin
"The course of love never did run smooth."
William Shakespeare
"The supreme happiness in life is the conviction
that we are loved."
Victor Hugo
"Trust men and they will be true to you:
treat them greatly and they will show
themselves great."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Jealousy, that dragon which slays love under
the pretense of keeping it alive."
Havelock Ellis
"Loneliness seems to have become the Great
American Disease." John Corry
AP English Language and Composition
Prompt: Love and infidelity,
friendship and distrust, jealous and loneliness--these
are the oxymorons that
define the ambiguity of human experience.
The eighteenth century British
novelist Laurence Sterne wrote, "No body,
but he who has felt it, can conceive
what a plaguing thing it is to have a . .
. mind torn asunder by two projects of
equal strength, both obstinately pulling in
a contrary direction at the same time."
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit with characters who
struggle with two conflicting desires, ambitions,
obligations, or influences.
Then write a well-organizes research paper
that developes a stance on how
happiness or unhappiness is created by the
choices made as a result of
life's dilemmas.
Arendt, Hannah. On Violence.
San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1970.
Barthelme, Donald. "The Emerald." The Best American
Short Stories 1980.
Ed. Stanley Elkin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980.
Pages 1-26.
Carver, Raymond. "So Much Water, So Close to Home."
Short Cuts.
New York: NY Simon and Schuster, 1997. Pages 1-26.
_ _ _ "Where I'm Calling From." The Best American
Short Stories 1983.
Ed. Anne Tyler. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1983.
Pages .
_ _ _ "Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?" Short Cuts.
New York: NY Simon and Schuster, 1997. Pages 27-53.
Cheever, John. "Torch Song." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren
and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 65-90.
Dickens, Charles. "City of Churches." The Oxford Book
of Essays. Ed. John Gross.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Pages 196-208.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Friendship."
Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 339-354.
_ _ _ . "Love." Essays and
Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 325-338.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Hardwick, Elizabeth, "The Bookseller." The Best
American Short Stories 1981.
Ed. Hortense Calisher. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1981.
Pages 129-149.
_ _ _ "The Faithful." The Best American Short Stories
1980.
Ed. Stanley Elkin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1980. Pages 196-209.
Joyce, James. "The Boarding House." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert
Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 230-245.
Lawrence, D. H. "The Horse Dealer's Daughter." Short
Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing,
1980. Pages 245-265.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
Lewis, Sinclair. "Virga Vay and Alan Cedar." Short Story
Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing,
1980. Pages 265-275.
Mansfield, Katherine. "Marriage a la Mode." Short Story
Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing,
1980. Pages 275-285.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
Munroe, Alice. "Carried Away." The Best American Short
Stories 1992.
Ed. Robert Stone. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992.
Pages 179-218.
_ _ _ "Meneseteuing." The Best American Short
Stories 1989.
Ed. Margaret Atwood. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1989.
Pages 200-221.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Thurber, James. "My Own Ten Rules for a Happy Marriage."
The Oxford Book
of Essays. Ed. John Gross. Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 1991.
Pages 462-470.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Updike, John. "Still of Some Use." The Best American
Short Stories 1981.
Ed. Hortense Calisher. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1981.
Pages 312-316.
_ _ _ "Gesturing." The Best American Short Stories 1980.
Ed. Stanley Elkin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980.
Pages 409-420.
_ _ _ "Playing With Dynamite." The Best American Short
Stories 1993.
Ed. Louise Erdich. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1993.
Pages 1-15.
Wolff, Tobias. "Smorgasbord." The Best American Short
Stories 1988.
Ed. Mark Helprin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1988.
Pages 312-316.
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Money and Class in America/
The Nobleness of Work/
Owning Property:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"I think it is fair to say that the current
ardor of the American faith in money so easily surpasses
the degrees of intensity achieved by other
societies in other times and places. Money means so
many things to usóspiritual as well as temporalóthat
we are at a loss to know how to hold its
majesty at bay . . . .
Henry Adams in his autobiography remarks that
although the Americans weren't much good as
materialists they had been so "deflected by
the pursuit of money" that they could turn "in no
other direction." The national distrust
of the contemplative temperament arises less from an
innate Philistinism than from a suspicion
of anything that can not be counted, stuffed, framed,
or mounted over the fireplace in the den.
Men remain free to rise of fall in the world.
"Autobiographical excerpt from a Woman Pilot." The College
Board English Language
and Composition Advanced Placement Examination. 1990.
Bacon, Francis. "Of Riches." The Essays of Francis
Bacon. Ed. Clark
Sutherland Northrup, Ph. D. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton
Mifflin Company, 1936. Pages 70-75.
Bly, Carol. "The Dignity of Life." The Best American
Short Stories 1983.
Ed. Anne Tyler. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1980. Pages 25-48.
Bradley, Bill. "An Economic Security Platform." Representative
American Speeches 1994-1995.
Ed. Owen Peterson. NY: H.W. Wilson Company, 1994. Pages
18-31.
Carlyle, Thomas. "For There is a Perrenial Nobleness, even
Sacredness, in Work."
From Past and Present (1843). The College Board Advanced
Placement Examination. 1983.
Downs, Hugh. "A Pocket Full of Money." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 257-261.
Gingrich, Newt. "What's With America?" Representative
American Speeches 1994-1995.
Ed. Owen Peterson. NY: Dublin, 1995. Pages.
Lewis, David. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of a Race.
New York: Henry, Holt,
and Co., 1993.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
McPhee, John. "Heirs of General Practice." Table
of Contents. Ed. Fred Morcellino. New York:
Farrah, Straus and Giroux, 1985. Pages 76-176.
_ _ _ "Minihydro." Table of Contents.
Ed. Fred Morcellino. New York:
Farrah, Straus and Giroux, 1985. Pages 203-249.
_ _ _ "Riding the Boom Extension." Table of
Contents. Ed. Fred Morcellino. New York:
Farrah, Straus and Giroux, 1985. Pages 57-76.
Rooney, Andrew. "Chairs." A Few Minutes With Andy Rooney.
Ed. Andrew Rooney.
New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc., 1981. Pages 1-14.
_ _ _ "On the House." A Few Minutes With Andy Rooney.
Ed. Andrew Rooney.
New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc., 1981. Pages 83-105.
_ _ _ "Who Owns What in America?." A Few Minutes With
Andy Rooney. Ed. Andrew Rooney.
New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc., 1981. Pages 17-35.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. "The $1,000 Bank Note." East of the Web
U-Books. Online.
Avaliable http://www.eastoftheweb.com
_ _ _ The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Updike, John. "A Sandstone Farmhouse." The Best American
Short Stories 1991.
Ed. William Abrahams. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1991. 1-30.
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Manners:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"A bad manner spoils everything, even reason
and justice; a good one supplies
everything, gilds a no, sweetens truth, and
adds a touch of beauty to old age itself."
Balthazar Gracian in The Art of Worldly wisdom
Chesterton, G.K. "On Sandals of Simplicity." The Oxford
Book of Essays. Ed. John Gross.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Pages 377-387.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Manners." Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 822-829.
Rooney, Andrew "Mr. Rooney Goes to Dinner." A Few Minutes
With Andy Rooney.
Ed. Andrew Rooney. New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc.,
1981. Pages 53-85.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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Nature:
Abbey, Edward. Cactus Country.
New York: Time-Life Books, 1973.
Carson, Rachel. "The Obligation to Endure."
Writing
About the World.
Vol. 1. Ed. Susan McCleod. Orlando, FL: Harcourt,
Brace,
Jovanovich, 1991. Pages 86-96.
Darwin,
Charles. Galapagos
Archipelago. The College Board English Language
Advanced Placement Examination. 1990.
Dillard, Annie. Teaching a Stone to
Talk: Expeditions and Encounters.
New York: Harper and Row, 1982.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Nature." Essays
and Lectures. Ed.Joel Porte.
New York, NY: Literary Classics of the United States of America,
Inc., 1983.
Pages 539-556.
Gluck, Louise. "For Jane Meyers." The House on Marshland.
The
Echo Press, 1975.
Lopez, Barry H. Of Wolves and Men. New York:
Charles Scribner
and Sons, 1978.
Matthiessen, Peter. Blue Meridian. New
York: Random House, Inc., 1970.
_ _ _ The Snow Leopard. New York:
The Viking Press, 1978.
_ _ _ The Eastern Slope. New York: The
Viking Press, 1959.
McPhee, John. The Control of Nature. New York:
Collins Publishers, 1989.
Melville, Herman. The
Encantadas (Enchanted Isles). The College Board
English
Language Advanced Placement Examination. 1990.
McPhee, John. "Ice Pond." Table of Contents.
Ed. Fred Morcellino. New York:
Farrah, Straus and Giroux, 1985. Pages 192-203.
_ _ _ "A Textbook for Bears." Table of Contents.
Ed. Fred Morcellino. New York:
Farrah, Straus and Giroux, 1985. Pages 13-56.
_ _ _ "Under the Snow." Table of Contents.
Ed. Fred Morcellino. New York:
Farrah, Straus and Giroux, 1985. Pages 1-12.
Rooney, Andrew. "In Praise of New York City." A Few Minutes
With Andy Rooney.
Ed. Andrew Rooney. New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc., 1981.
Pages 135-149.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Williams, Carlos William. "Spring and All." Collected
Earlier Poems.
New Directions Publishing Corporation, 1938
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Passion versus Responsibility:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
Barthelme, Donald. "The Emerald." The Best American
Short Stories 1980.
Ed. Stanley Elkin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980.
Pages 1-26.
A recurring theme in literature is the
classic war between passion and
responsibility. For instance a personal
cause, a love, a desire for revenge, a
determination to redress a wrong, or some
other emotions may conflict with moral duty.
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit in which the characters confront the
demands of a private passion that conflicts
with his or her responsibilities. Then write a
carefully reasoned research paper which explores
the nature of this conflict, its effect on
the characters, and its application to the
universal human experience.
Como, Mario. "A Farewell to Public Office." Representative
American Speeches 1994-1995.
Ed. Owen Peterson. NY: Dublin, 1995. Pages.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventuresof Huckleberry Finn.
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Pleasure and Disquietude:
Assignment: A critic has said that one
important measure of a superior work of literature is its
ability to produce in the reader a healthy
confusion of pleasure and disquietude. Choose works
from a list of works of literary merit that
have this effect. Then write a carefully nuanced research
paper that examines the sources of the pleasure
and disquietude and their thematic implications.
Arendt, Hannah. On Violence.
San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1970.
Downs, Hugh. "Practical Jokes." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 186-190.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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Self Confidence/Ego Disease/Pride
Appreciation (Recognition of Worth)
Perfection/ Self Delusion:
The
following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"This above all to thine own self be true."
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
"We never know the worth of water 'til the
well is dry." English Proverb
Assignment: Some works examine the universal
problem encountered in a
decision that many times has to be made between
two ways of living. Choose
works from a list of works of literary merit
that emphasize how getting to know
yourself and living true to that perception
is a theme for those works.
Then write a carefully nuanced research paper
that analyzes how self-knowledge
leads to some kind of happiness or how the
lack of self-knowledge leads to some
kind of unhappiness.
Bacon, Francis. "Of Nobility." The Essays of Francis
Bacon. Ed. Clark
Sutherland Northrup, Ph. D. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton
Mifflin Company, 1936. Pages 32-34.
Barthelme, Donald. "A City of Churches." The Best American
Short Stories 1973.
Ed. Martha Foley. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1973.
Pages 1-5.
Didion, Joan. "Phi Beta Kappa Essay." The College Board
English Literature
Advanced Placement Examination. 1991.
Downs, Hugh. "Fifty Years of Broadcasting." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 15-20.
Eisenhower, Dwight D. "Quality of America's Fighting Men."
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Goodman, Ellen. "The Company Man." The College Board Advanced
Placement Examination.
1992.
Mairs, Nancy. "I am a cripple. . . ." The College Board
Advanced Placement Examination.
1992.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Munro, Alice. "Friend of My Youth." The Best American
Short Stories 1991.
Ed. Alice Adams. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1991.
Pages .
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Reagan, Ronald. "Farewell Address." Representative
American Speeches 1988-89.
Ed. Owen Peterson. New York, NY: H.W. Wilson Company,
1989. Pages 8-18.
Stravinsky, Igor. "Conducting." The College Board Advanced
Placement Examination.
1991.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Wills, Garry. Certain Trumpets: The Call of Leaders.
New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1994.
Wolff, Tobias. "Sister." Prize Stories 1985. Ed.
William
Abrahams. New York: Double Day Dell Publishing Group, 1985.
Pages.
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Sin/Temptation/Evil:
Aiken, Conrad. "Impulse." Short Story Masterpieces. Ed.
Robert Warren
and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 15-30.
Algren, Nelson. "A Bottle of Milk for Mother." Short
Story Masterpieces. Ed.
Robert Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell
Publishing,
1980. Pages 30-50.
Collier, John. "Witch's Money." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed. Robert Warren
and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell Publishing, 1980.
Pages 79-89.
Erdich, Louise. "Saint Marie." Prize Stories 1985.
Ed. Williams Abrahams.
Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company, Inc. 1985. Pages.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
McCourt, Frank. Angela's Ashes. New York:
Scribner, 1996.
Soto, Gary. "Guilty Six-Year-Old Self" The College Board
Advanced Placement Examination.
1992.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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The Limitations of Society
Ridicule/Satire:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"If the talent of ridicule were employed to
laugh men out of vice and folly, it might be of
some use to the world; but instead of
this, we find that it is generally made use of to
laugh men out of virtue and good sense, by
attacking everything that is solemn and
serious, decent and praiseworthy in life."
Joseph Addison 1711
Assignment: Some works are written to criticize
some limitation implicit in today's society.
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit that are critical of a similar American
value. Briefly define the common limitation
implicit in the works chosen; analyze how the
characters in the works respond to or are
affected by this similar standard; then write a
carefully reasoned research paper that argues
for or against the validity of the implied
criticisms.
Arendt, Hannah. On Violence.
San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1970.
Bellow, Saul. "Graven Images." The Best American Essays
1998. Ed. Robert Atwan.
New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998. Pages 33-38.
Conrad, Joseph. "An Outpost of Progress." Short Story Masterpieces.
Ed.
Robert Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell
Publishing,
1980. Pages 89-119.
Crane, Stephen. "The Bridge Comes to Yellow Sky." Short
Story Masterpieces. Ed.
Robert Warren and Albert Erskine. New York, NY: Dell
Publishing,
1980. Pages 119-136.
Downs, Hugh. "Mona Lisa and Leonardo DaVinci." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 121-125.
_ _ _ "Smell." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 129-133.
_ _ _ "Tipping." Perspectives.
Atlanta, GA:
Turner Publishing, 1995. Pages 181-188.
Ellison, Ralph. The Invisible Man.
Fitzgerald. F. Scott. The Great
Gatsby.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
James, Henry.
Jonson, Ben.
King, Martin Luther. "Why We Can't Wait."
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Nabokov, Vladimir.
Thomas, Lewis. "On the Need for Asylums." Late Night
Thoughts. Ed. Thomas Lear.
Canada: The Viking Press, 1983.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
_ _ _ "Queen Victoria's Jubilee." The
Complete Essays of Mark
Twain. Ed. Charles Neider. Garden City, NY:
Doubleday and Company,
Inc., 1963. Pages 685-689.
E. B. White. "A Member of a Party of One." Letter. The
New York Herald.
29 November 1947.
Wharton, Edith. The Age of Innocence.
Wright, Richard.
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Violence/
Cruelty/ Fear/ Revenge/ Punishment/
Hatred/ Evil:
The following quotes illustrate the topic's ambiguity:
"Whatever our creed, we feel that no good
deed can by any possibilities
go by unrewarded; no evil deed unpunished."
Orison Swett Marden
"A murderer is regarded by the conventional
world as something almost monstrous,
but a murderer to himself is only an ordinary
man." The Ministry of Fear (1943)
by Graham Greene
"Evil is wrought by want of thought, as well
as want of heart."
Thomas Hood in "The Lady's Dream"
"Human nature causes hatred toward others.
To not act out on these feelings is the
challenge in life."
Anonymous
Assignment: Violence is a predominant
thread in the setting of many works of literary merit.
Choose works from a list of works of literary
merit in which the the reader is confronted
with a scene or scenes of violence. Then write
a carefully nuanced research paper which
explores the nature of this violence, its
effect on the characters or the reader, and its
application to the universal human experience.
Arendt, Hannah. On Violence.
San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, 1970.
Carver, Raymond. "Where I'm Calling From." The Best
American Short
Stories
1983. Ed. Anne Tyler. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1983. Pages 68-84.
Churchill, Winston. The Second World
War. Vol. 5. Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979.
Erdich, Louise. "Snares." The Best American Short Stories
1988.
Ed. Mark Helprin. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1988.
Pages 121-151.
Ellison, Ralph. The Invisible Man.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby.
Golding, William. Lord of the Flies.
Greene, Graham. Brighton Rock.
Heller, Joseph. Catch-22.
Malamud, Bernard. "God's Wrath." The Best American Short
Stories 1973.
Ed. Martha Foley. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1973.
Pages
221-227.
McPhearson, James M. Marching Towards
Freedom.
Munro, Alice. "Save the Reaper." The Best American Short
Stories 1999.
Ed. Amy Tan. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1999.
Pages 273-294.
O'Connor, Flannery. Wise Blood.
Oates, Joyce Carol. "The Swimmers." Prize Stories 1991.
Ed. William
Abrahams. New York: Double Day Dell Publishing Group, 1992.
Pages.
_ _ _ "Why Don't You Come Live With Me? It's Time."
Prize Stories 1991.
Ed. William Abrahams. New York: Double Day Dell Publishing
Group, 1992. Pages 60-74.
Ozick, Cynthia. "The Shawl." The Best American Short
Stories 1981.
Ed. Hortense Calisher. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company,
1981.
Pages 271-275.
Puller, Lewis B. Fortunate Son. New York:
Grove Weidenfeld, 1991.
Reno, Janet. "Combating Crime." Representative American
Speeches 1993-1994.
Vol. 66. Ed. Owen Peterson. New York, NY: H. W.
Wilson Company,
1994. Pages 31-41.
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Civil Disobedience.
New York:
New American Library, 1980.
Tuchman, Barbara. The Guns of August. New York, NY:
MacMillan
Company, 1962.
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
Wright, Richard. Native Son.
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