Introduction
Important things I've learned the last two semesters:
- Death is everywhere, and in everything, this class reinforces that with almost every piece of literature.
- Nothing is as simple as just words on a page. The author did what they did for a multitude of reasons.
- This class will stick with you FOREVER.
Death is literally the MOST COMMON theme in every book.
If there's one thing I learned this year, it's that we can't escape death even in the world of literature. There were very few books that we read that had no death in them, and even then it's referenced and can either be subtle, or in your face. It's a common theme in literature because authors explore the responses from their characters in order to bring them to life, because it's a real world issue.
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Analysis is key, for EVERYTHING.
A key part of this class is learning to analyze every nook and cranny of a piece of literature. What I mean is, understanding why the author did what they did. They didn't just write what they did for no reason, and every detail often has a purpose. Shakespeare's a good example, as he's often critiquing society, whether it be social classes, gender roles, arranged marriages, etc., while all keeping it low key.
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This class teaches you more than Literature and Composition, but it also does teach you Literature and Composition.
AP Lit applies to almost everything. Not only did we learn how to look beyond surface points, but we also improved our writing techniques, vocabulary, and our capability to read more difficult literature. It's easy to look at an older writing from English IV, and when compared to my writing towards the end of this class, it looks like garbage. My book taste has also expanded exponentially.
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Here's a before and after. On the left, an English IV paper titled "This I Believe" in which the title is kind of self explanitory. On the Right, a paper I wrote for AP Lit about connections that can be made by Sophocles' Antigone, and George Lucas' 1977 film, Star Wars.
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And my favorite books from this year:
What's next?
Want more dumb drawings? Check out my Othello blog posts!
Image Citations
All pictures were drawn by myself using Photoshop, or were covers of books found on the internet:
https://vulpeslibris.wordpress.com/2014/06/02/the-book-thief-by-markus-zusak/
http://www.pluggedin.com/book-reviews/kite-runner/
https://www.behance.net/gallery/3542235/Dantes-inferno-Book-Cover
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&ved=0ahUKEwjg5bv8y_bMAhVF4SYKHdmNDrQQjhwIBQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcollider.com%2Felisabeth-moss-hulu-the-handmaids-tale%2F&psig=AFQjCNHt54HG2NvugU-Zg-QIP3nHLHqPpQ&ust=1464312682021960
All pictures were drawn by myself using Photoshop, or were covers of books found on the internet:
https://vulpeslibris.wordpress.com/2014/06/02/the-book-thief-by-markus-zusak/
http://www.pluggedin.com/book-reviews/kite-runner/
https://www.behance.net/gallery/3542235/Dantes-inferno-Book-Cover
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&ved=0ahUKEwjg5bv8y_bMAhVF4SYKHdmNDrQQjhwIBQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcollider.com%2Felisabeth-moss-hulu-the-handmaids-tale%2F&psig=AFQjCNHt54HG2NvugU-Zg-QIP3nHLHqPpQ&ust=1464312682021960