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ACHS SUMMER READING ASSIGNMENT

2021-2022

AP Literature

Name: ____________________________________

Class Period: ________________________

Text: How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster

Chapter 1: Every Trip is a Quest (Except When It’s Not)

Remember the five elements of a quest

a) A quester

b) A place to go

c) A stated reason to go there

d) Challenges and trials en route

e) A real reason to go there

Pick a novel, play, or even a movie and explain how that story is a quest. Write

several sentences to justify your point, if necessary.

Title: _____________________________________________

a) Quester(s):

b) Place to go:

c) Stated reason to go there:

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d) Challenges and trials en route:

e) A real reason to go there:

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Chapter 2: Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion

1. Explain Foster’s justification for saying all acts of characters having meals

together are communion.

2. Furthering the Act of Communion rule, what would a writer do when a

meal is prepared but an unwelcome or unpleasant “interloper” arrives?

3. According to Foster, why would a writer include a detailed description of

a meal, such as the one included from James Joyce’s “The Dead”?

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Chapter 3: Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires

1. Essentially, in literature what does a “vampire” figure do to other

characters?

2. Many of Foster’s examples of vampire characters came from what literary

time period?

3. Name one title from the last 20-30 years that is part of the “teen vampire

era.”

4. Other than vampires, what other supernatural character does Foster

discuss as frequently symbolized in literature?

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Chapter 4: Now, Where have I seen her before?

1. In Going After Cacciato, what literary work is mimicked in part of the

novel?

2. In the same book, which historical figure is the character Sarkin Aung

Wan, Paul Berlin’s guide through Vietnam, based on?

3. Foster makes a claim that is slightly controversial about stories in general.

What is it?

4. Explain the meaning behind these sentences, in reference to the central

point of the chapter. (2 points)

I used to go mushroom hunting with my father. I would never see them, but he’d

say, “There’s a yellow sponge,” or “There are a couple of black spikes.” And

because I knew they were there, my looking would become more focused and

less vague. In a few moments I would begin seeing them myself, not all of them,

but some. And once you begin seeing morels*, you can’t stop. What a literature

professor does is very similar: he tells you when you get near mushrooms. Once

you know that, though (and you generally are near them), you can hunt for

mushrooms on your own. (31)

*a morel is a type of mushroom

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Chapter 5: When In Doubt, It’s From Shakespeare…

1. By what title does Foster, and many other writers, refer to Shakespeare?

2. Provide at least three adaptations, parodies, or references to a

Shakespearean play present in another work, literary or otherwise (these

do not all have to be examples from Foster’s chapter) (3 pts.)

3. This chapter, like chapter 4, discusses the technique of writers borrowing or

referencing from earlier works. This technique is called

_______________________________.

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Chapter 6: …Or the Bible

1. The scene from Beloved, where the white men come to take Sethe back

to slavery, is a direct allusion to what event from the Bible?

2. Provide at least two texts based on or named after something from the

Bible. (these do not all have to be examples from Foster’s chapter).

3. Explain the biblical naming method described in Toni Morrison’s Song of

Solomon.

4. What happened when Salmon Rushdie used a sacred text and its

characters ironically in The Satanic Verses?

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Chapter 7: Hanseldee and Greteldum

Explain how the storyline of Cinderella is mirrored in a novel, play, or movie.

Here’s the general storyline to think of: unfortunate but likeable character under

the power of an evil stepmother but disguises herself and attends the prince’s

ball. Despite the stepmother’s efforts, Cinderella is discovered by her prince and

marries him, living happily ever after. This can be broadly applied and not every

element will match. Be creative!

Cinderella Character(s):

Evil Stepmother character(s):

How does the stepmother character hold power over the Cinderella character?

How does the “Cinderella” character get the attention of the “prince”?

What is the end result?

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Chapter 8: It’s Greek to Me

1. Foster describes several works of literature based on one Greek myth,

including “Musee des Beaux Arts” and “Landscape with the Fall of

_____________.” Who is this myth about (aka, fill in the blank!)

2. Foster also says that modern writers often borrow from one particular

Greek author. Who is it?

3. Name one modern adaptation listed in Foster’s chapter that is based on a

Greek or Roman myth.

4. What universal themes or conflicts are present in stories like The Odyssey,

Oedipus the King, and other ancient myths and stories? Provide

references to Foster’s text and/or specific textual references to stories that

you know from prior reading. (2 pts.)

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Chapter 9: It’s More Than Just Rain or Snow

1. According to Foster, our universal fear of drowning relates back to what

ancient event?

2. Explain how rain is a “democratic element.”

3. Explain how rain is clean or cleansing.

4. What is the universally symbolic meaning of the rainbow?

5. What natural element would be used to establish a state of confusion in a

text?

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Chapter 10: Never Stand Next to the Hero

1. Provide one example, either from Foster’s text or of a book or movie you

know, of a secondary character must be “sacrificed” in order to advance

the plot. Explain what “sacrifice” the secondary character makes and

how it advances the plot. (2 points)

Title: ______________________________________

Secondary character’s demise:

How does it advance the plot?

2. What does Foster say about the unfairness of killing off secondary

characters? (Hint: It is a bolded phrase)

3. Why can’t all literary characters be round and dynamic? Why must some

be flat or static? Provide at least two reasons from Foster’s text. (2 points)

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Chapter 11: …More Than It’s Gonna Hurt You: Concerning Violence

1. The title of Robert Frost’s poem, “Out, Out—” is a reference to what older

violent work?

2. Explain the two categories of violence in literature:

a. Narrative violence

b. Authorial violence

3. Provide an example from literature or film where violence is both literal

and metaphorical. You may use examples from Foster’s text, if you wish.

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Chapter 12: Is That a Symbol?

1. Explain the difference between symbol and allegory.

2. Read the following poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, wherein a traveler

encounters an old and damaged statue of Ramses II (also known as

Ozymandias). Then, write a detailed paragraph to the question below it.

I met a traveller from an antique land

Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,

Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, 5

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,

The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;

And on the pedestal these words appear:

"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: 10

Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away. 14

In this poem, what would the statue be a symbol for? Explain your answer using

references to the text. Try to connect the symbol’s meaning to theme. (4 points)

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Chapter 13: It’s All Political Reading Quiz

1. Foster says, “Writing that engages the realities of its world—that thinks

about human problems…can be not only interesting but hugely

compelling” (117). Explain what he means by “human problems.”

2. Explain, using Foster’s examples, how one of the following stories was

really a political commentary.

a. A Christmas Carol

b. “The Masque of the Red Death”

c. “The Fall of the House of Usher”

d. “Rip Van Winkle”

e. Mrs. Dalloway

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Chapter 14: Yes, She’s a Christ Figure, Too

1. What Hemingway text does Foster use to demonstrate a Christ figure?

2. Why are there Christ figures in general?

3. Name at least three characteristics of a Christ figure. (3 points)

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Chapter 15: Flights of Fancy

1. In this chapter, Foster says “flight is ____________________________.” (hint: It’s

bolded text)

2. Ironically, while we are thrilled by the idea of flying, what does Foster say is

something related to flying that frightens us?

3. Explain what the reader can learn from the act of flying in one of the

following titles used in Foster’s chapter (3 points):

a. “The Very Old Man with Enormous Wings”

b. The Myth of Icarus and Dedalus

c. E.T.

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Chapter 16: It’s All About Sex

1. Who does Foster blame for causing literary theorists, and by extension

literature teachers and professors, to find sex in so many stories that are

not obviously sexual?

2. What does Foster say about sex in literature, in general?

3. What was the Hayes Code?

4. In Ann Beatty’s story “Janus,” Foster provides an example of a sexual

symbol present in a very nonsexual object. What is that object?

5. Foster conjectures some reasons why overt scenes of sexuality are not

shown in novels. Why would someone like Charles Dickens avoid any

sensual material?

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Chapter 17: …Except Sex

1. What does Foster say about the actual process of writing a sexual scene,

particularly when it comes to the author’s comfort level?

2. In chapter 16, Foster said, “Sex doesn’t have to look like sex.” What is the

converse principle of that, which is the foundation of chapter 17?

3. Foster says, “If they write about sex and mean strictly sex, we have a word

for that.” What is that word?

4. Which novel has become so associated with sex that it often gets

substituted in the titles of pornographic films?

5. Which author wrote many sexual stories, but disapproved of strong

language and was “almost prudish in some ways on the subject of

promiscuity?”

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Chapter 18: If She Comes Up, It’s Baptism

1. What is necessary in a scene involving a character and water to make it a

symbol for baptism?

2. What does Foster say about the meaning behind a character that is

submerged in water that does not come out?

3. Provide an example from literature or a movie where baptism can be

seen symbolically. Explain yourself in a paragraph. (3 points)

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Chapter 19: Geography Matters…

1. According to Foster, whenever a person proposes that we take a trip

somewhere, what is the first question that will always be the reply?

2. Explain what Foster means when he says that geography goes beyond

setting. (2 points)

3. Read the following excerpt from Wuthering Heights, describing the

landscape of Wuthering Heights, an estate on the moors of Northern

England. Based on this description, what kind of character could survive,

and even thrive, in this kind of atmosphere? What qualities must he or she

have? (2 points)

“…the atmospheric tumult to which its station is exposed in stormy

weather. Pure, bracing ventilation they must have up there at all

times, indeed: one may guess the power of the north wind blowing

over the edge, by the excessive slant of a few stunted firs at the end

of the house; and by a range of gaunt thorns all stretching their limbs

one way, as if craving alms of the sun.”

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Chapter 20: …So Does Season

1. According to this chapter, what do the following seasons typically

associate with on a symbolic level?

a. Spring

b. Summer

c. Autumn

d. Winter

2. Explain what Foster means when he says that it makes more sense for

Christmas to be in mid-winter, rather than in the summer when it

actually happened.

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Chapter 21: Marked for Greatness

1. What does the name Oedipus mean and how does it relate to his physical

mark?

2. In the case of Frankenstein’s monster, his physical ugliness reflects our own

ugliness and capability for evil. How is this the opposite of characters like

Quasimodo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame and the Beast from

“Beauty and the Beast?”

3. Provide an example from literature of a major character with some kind of

physical marking. How does that mark set him or her apart from others,

and how does it function to advance the plot or establish themes? (3

points)

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Chapter 22: He’s Blind for a Reason, You Know

1. In the story Oedipus Rex, what is Tiresias’ role or occupation? (Hint: he is

the blind character)

2. How does Oedipus react when he learns the truth of his parents? Explain

its significance. (2 points)

3. Explain the significance of a blind character in literature. (2 points)

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Chapter 23: It’s Never Just Heart Disease…And Rarely Just Illness

1. Explain why Foster says a character suffering from heart disease is the

perfect metaphorical device?

2. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “The Man of Adamant,” what

happens to the judgmental curmudgeon who takes refuge in the cave?

How is the story’s ending metaphorical?

3. What illness has been popular with many Romantic and Victorian authors

because of its mysterious origins and its physical effects on those who

suffer?

4. What illness is best when a communicable disease is needed, in order to

bring widespread destruction and present a strong conflict that must be

overcome?

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Chapter 24: Don’t Read with Your Eyes

1. Explain what Foster means when he says, “Don’t read with your eyes.”

2. What example from “Sonny’s Blues” does Foster present to explain the

concept of reading with different eyes?

3. In the mind of an ancient Greek, what does the character Achilles teach

the reader or audience?

4. As a modern American, what characteristics of Achilles could become

unnecessary distractions?

5. Why does Foster criticize Ezra Pound? What kinds of views are engrained in

his writing?

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Chapter 25: It’s My Symbol and I’ll Cry If I Want To

1. Explain the metaphor present in John Donne’s “The Flea,” as presented in

this chapter. (2 points)

2. What is a “private symbol,” as Foster defines it?

3. How can a reader discover the meaning of a private symbol?

4. What is Foster’s advice to students who don’t think they have read

enough to understand literature?

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Chapter 26: Is He Serious? And Other Ironies

1. What is Foster’s bolded catchphrase from this chapter?

2. Foster says, “irony works because the audience understands something

that eludes one or more of the characters.” Explain how this meaning

works for all three types of irony:

a. Verbal Irony

b. Dramatic Irony

c. Situational Irony

3. Foster says that “mysteries, like irony, make great use of deflection.”

Explain the irony found “The Arrow of Heaven” by G. K. Chesterton, seen

through the use of deflection.