Reflection On Ap Literature

As the semester comes to a close, it is always interesting to look back and reflect on the events and opportunities my English class has given me throughout my first semester as a whole. At the beginning of this semester it was evident that I was feeling uncomfortable due to the adjustment that I was going through as a student moving to college. It was very difficult expressing myself through my writing since I was nervous about good impressions and my good grade. While this class was one of the most difficult courses that I have taken this far, it has become quite evident to me that I have grown a substantial amount as a writer and as a person; Especially, when it came to explaining my ideas, writing academic essays, and making arguments.

My English Literature major has helped me to achieve an outstanding level of appreciation, enjoyment, and knowledge of both American and British Literature. As a high school AP English student, I struggled through great works like Hamlet and To the Lighthouse. My teacher’s daily lectures (there was no such thing as class discussion) taught me merely to interpret the works as critics had in the past. I did not enjoy the reading or writing process. As a freshman at Loras, I was enrolled in the Critical Writing: Poetry class. For the first time since grade school, my writing ability was praised and the sharing of my ideas was encouraged by an enthusiastic and nurturing professor. Despite the difficulty of poetry, I enjoyed reading it.

2011: In a novel by William Styron, a father tells his son that life “is a search for justice.” Choose a character from a novel or play who responds in some significant way to justice or injustice. Then write a well-developed essay in which you analyze the character’s understanding of justice, the degree to which the character’s search for justice is successful, and the significance of this search for the work as a whole. 2010: Palestinian American literary theorist and cultural critic Edward Said has written that “Exile is strangely compelling to think about but terrible to experience. It is the unhealable rift forced between a human being and a native place, between the self and its true home: its

After taking honors English for the past three school years, I now want the challenge of taking a higher level course: AP literature and composition. At this point in my high-school career, I’ve been able to take three advanced classes, and I want this class on my belt as well.

Thomas C. Foster, in his novel, How to Read Literature Like a Professor, gives many examples of sex being shown symbolically in literature. He imparts in the reader an idea that sex is everywhere in a typical novel, and that many details in a work-- most details, even-- are representative of sex: “Tall buildings? Male sexuality. Rolling landscapes? Female sexuality. Stairs? Sexual intercourse. Falling down stairs? Oh my” (Foster 136). And, yes-- sex is truly everywhere in The Handmaid’s Tale. The importance of sex in the dystopian society known as “Gilead” is huge; sex is what the entire Gileadian regime is based around-- reproduction, more specifically. Symbols of fertility

One day I was taking a hike in the Himalayan mountains and came upon a big wall of stone blocking the path. In the middle of the stone wall was a round little door with a key hanging on a hook beside it. Being cautious I crept up to the door and knocked. I don’t know who would have answered the door if someone had answered. I was puzzled and stuck to the spot thinking of what to do. I decided to walk back to my village way down below and come back tomorrow to see if the wall was still there. When I got home I ran straight to the town square to go to my father’s workshop. I told Papa all about my journey in the mountains. He warned me of animals that would take me away to the darkest corners and eat me up. Just then Tijana came running into the store. “There is a tiger in the rice fields!” he shouted. Every once in awhile the wild beasts from the jungle would come into the valley in which the village sat. Our bravest men would shoot arrows and protect us. When the creature went away or was dead we would celebrate, but that never

The past two semesters were great experiences. Within this past school year my knowledge as a reader and writer has improved. It felt like it was just yesterday, when I had a lot of difficulty writing and poor reading strategies. Now, as I said before, I am an improved writer and reader. The assignments and class activities over the two semesters were great benefits to me, and helped me make progress towards the first year learning goals.

It's funny how we have been in the same schools from elementary to high school, but it wasn't until high school when we first started talking to each other and really became friends... Or in my case became "fake friends" during our first two years of high school, that is. Crossly were hesitant to be friends in the begging but manage to continue our friendship through out high school. Anyhow, crazy how things came to be in the end, as close we have gotten and how helpful you been on bringing the best of me in school, especially when we had english class together back in freshman year in high school, believe me, if I wouldn't have chosen english nine and ten honors with you I wouldn't been as proud on my improvement in better developing my english

What search terms did you use to locate this research study to analyze? What database did you use? What was your rationale for selecting this particular study to analyze over the others identified in the search results? What is the full reference for the study in APA format?

The author describes the purpose for masking sex scenes in literature is to make it a more symbolic event. Simply describing two people taking part in intercourse does not reveal as much as “hidden” intercourse. The author states that coded sex scenes are “more intense than literal depictions.” This may be due to the fact that the words needed to describe the event taking place would be the most intense words. The scene needs to have the same air and effect that intercourse does. Writers take ordinary everyday events and intensifies them in order to get to the intimate level of intercourse. Literal intercourse in literature does not have the same effect as coded intercourse because everyone expects the intercourse as it already is describing.

To start off, I would like to say that I am interesting in taking AP English Literature and Composition for a variety of reasons. I believe it would be a great class to get me ready for collage, which would be the main reason. I love to read and I want to become better at analyzing my reading and learn strategies to get better at that skill. I want to continue to grow in the areas of analyzing literature and to transcend in that area of expertise. Also, not to mention, it would look good on collage applications. Lastly, I know that there is a lot of reading in the class and I want to explore more novels and read more of the olden classics.

The beginning of my junior year seems like it was such a long time ago. This may be because of how much I have grown since the start of the year. When I began AP English, my writing skills needed improvement. For instance, I often used incorrect grammar and struggled with staying on topic. In just one semester, my writing has improved immensely. The more than I write, the more I learn about how to craft a good paper. I have worked on improving my grammar, using rhetoric, addressing my subject, and many more elements of writing. In addition to improving my writing, I have gained many skills to become a better student. I have learned about effective study techniques and time-management skills that allow me to be the most successful. Since I always try my best, I know that over time I will continue to grow in my studies. This year I have gained countless skills that will help me succeed in English in the future.

Throughout the history of English literature there has been a distinguished group of outcasts known as the other. The characters who are typically labeled the others are individuals that are perceived by a larger group as not belonging and are flawed in an essential way. The larger group sets the standards for what is normal and what is not. If a character is not up to par with such set forth standards they are labeled the other. The novels presented in AP English IV have contained multiple characters who became known as the others.

I want to take AP English Literature and Composition because I enjoy searching for a deeper meaning behind things. Although I may not be very good at it, my love for reading inspires me to dig deeper into my brain and search for an answer. My will to learn about expanding ideas convinced me to choose AP Literature. I love the thrill I get when I actually understand a metaphor or simile. When I interpret a poem or a line different from the class, I enjoy seeing other the perspectives. I feel that taking literature will allow me to understand books better and increase my love for reading.

It is my belief that through this class and the tools provided, that my growth as a writer has grown through leaps and bounds I would never have assumed possible. It is not so much the skill I refer to, although I would think skill has gone up in some levels as well, but more so the appreciation for the craft of writing itself. Intially, at the start of this class my sole goal was to further my understanding and appreciation of the writer's and books that I so love to read. Through further evaluation within the first week, a few other goals came to mind, of which were, making writing a habit, finishing what I start, stop second guess my writing skills and making effective use of detail and description. Through the use of the many articles, various reading materials, whether poems or short stories, and especially through the workshop, I feel I was able to really push myself to accomplishing these goals. I have thus far learned how important it is not to be skilled at writing per say, but to have the will to write, that poetry is as much about it's sound as it is about it's subject, just how important character development is, how the narration and point of view of a story is essential to the way the story is told, and just how much of a difference peer's critiques can make to your writing.