AF: Write this up in your notebook

Novel Review and Study Guide for The Awakening, by Kate Chopin

A novel can be used as evidence in an argument.  Anything you know, and can remember, might be useful.  The trick is remembering.  

For example, the fact that Kate Chopin's novel was ill-received, badly reviewed, generally hated and banned is interesting and sad.  She died when The Awakening was a failure and now it is read and discussed in high schools and universities across the country.  That little snippet of information is a good illustration of how ideas and social mores change over time.

Think about the argument you wrote about the value of the unknown.  Could you use anything from the Awakening to show how this assertion might be true?

But before you write about The Awakening in an AP essay under timed conditions without access to notes, you have to remember some basic information.  This information will be a part of your test review process this coming May.

In your notebooks, please write the following. Please do this without looking at Sparks Notes.  Do not cheat yourself.  Use your own good brain.

• Title, author, year published
• Significance of title
• Major themes, comments on life and society
• Major symbols and their meanings, significance to story
• Significant character #1:  name, significance to story
• Significant character #2:  name, significance to story
• Significant character #3:  name, significance to story
• Minor character #1:  name, significance to story
• Minor character #2:  name, significance to story
• Choose three important passages and write them out, and make a note about their significance.  You can use the ones we discussed this week, or use one that you choose on your own.

This is a notebook assignment.  Notebook check on Tuesday, during vocab quiz.

"How long does this have to be?"  Our advice: using complete and correct academic sentences and bullet lists when appropriate, use as few words as possible.  While you don't want to sound like, "Me Tarzan. You Jane,"  you do want to be concise, young writers.  Get it down, clear and tight.

“The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings. It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted, fluttering back to earth.”