1. What gives a novel literary merit?

2. A Definition of Literary Merit according to the College Board The work of literature:
1. Entertains the reader and is interesting to read. 2. Does not merely conform to the expectations of a single genre or formula. 3. Has been judged to have artistic quality by the literary community (teachers, students, librarians, critics, other writers, the reading public).

3. The work of literature:
4. Has stood the test of time in some way, regardless of the date of publication.
5. Shows thematic depth: The themes merit revisiting and study because they are complex and nuanced.
6. Demonstrates innovation in style, voice, structure, characterization, plot and/or description.

4. The work of literature:
7. May have a social, political or ideological impact on society during the lifetime of the author or afterward.
8. Does not fall into the traps of “pulp” fiction such as clichéd or derivative descriptions and plot devices, or sentimentality rather than “earned” emotion.
9. Is intended by the author to communicate in an artistic manner.
10. Is universal in its appeal (i.e., the themes and insights are not only accessible to one culture or time period).

5. The Literary Canon
A list of literary works considered to be permanently established as being of the highest quality (Oxford).
Originated in the late 1800’s as a collection to be used in college entrance exams to make a list that all would know.
About 2/3 of the works listed on most AP Lit exams, come from the canon.

6. AP Literature Exam
The nature of the beast

7. What manner of Beast? Length: 3 hours Structure: Two Sections
Section I: Multiple Choice (55 questions), 1 hour
Generally alternating prose and poetry passages, questions each
Section II: Three Essays, 2 hours
One question on fiction passage and literary techniques
One question on a poem and poetic techniques
One question (free response) where students use a novel or drama to respond
Percentage: Multiple Choice, 45%; Essays, 55%

8. Section :Multiple Choice
The multiple choice questions are designed to assess your understanding of
The meaning of the selection
Your ability to draw inferences
Your ability to see implications
How a writer develops ideas
Therefore, the questions will be factual, technical, analytical, and inferential.

9. Section II: essays I – Prose, Fiction, Literary techniques
II – Poetry, poetic techniques
III – Free Response choose a novel or play to respond

10. Prose Essay Some typical prose passage essays ask students to:
Analyze narrative and literary techniques which reveal character (diction, syntax, point of view, imagery)
Explain the effect of the passage on the reader
Compare/contrast two passages for diction and details and their effect on the reader
Analyze the attitude of the speaker or the author, using tone and style

11. Poetry Essay
Some typical poetry essays ask students to:
Analyze how the language of the poem reflects the speaker’s perceptions, and how, in turn that language determines the reader’s perceptions.
Analyze how the poet reveals character (diction, sound devices, imagery, allusion)
Discussion similarities and differences between two poems, considering style and theme

12. Cont.
Contrast the speaker’s views toward a subject in two poems, referring to tone, form, and imagery.
Discuss how poetic elements, such as language, structure, imagery, and point of view convey meaning
Relate imagery, form, or theme of a particular section of a poem to another part of the same poem
Analyze extended metaphor and how it reveals the poet’s or speaker’s attitude
Discuss how form affects meaning

13. Free Response
In this type of essay, you are free to choose the literary work you will use to respond to the prompt. (ONLY ONE and a full work, No movies!!!!!)
This is not the time to promote a work that you believe is of literary merit.
Your task is to convince the readers that you know how to read closely and critically, a work of literary merit. Stick with the classics or the canon or those works that you have been exposed to in your high school career.

14. Some typical free response essays will ask students to:
Respond to a provocative question based on specific insights
Demonstrate your insights, critical thinking, and writing ability
Show awareness of character and comprehension of theme
Transfer specific ideas and details to a universal concept

15. Cont.
Reveal the relationships among form, content, style, structure, and their effects on the meaning of the work
Reflect the writer’s ability to choose appropriate illustrations and connect them in a thoughtful way
Compose a well-organized essay written in a mature voice and sophisticated style

16. Some Free Response Topics:
How an opening scene or chapter establishes the character, conflict, or theme
How minor characters are used to develop a major character
How violence relates to character or theme
How time is a major factor
The use of contrasting settings

17. Cont.
Parent/child or sibling relationships and their significance
The analysis of a villain w/regard to meaning of work
The use of an unrealistic character or element and its effect on work
The conflict between passion and responsibility
The conflict between character and society

18. Lets look at a few:
2014 Prose Prompt
The following passage is from Charlotte Brontë’s novel Shirley (1849). In the passage, the narrator describes the age of eighteen as an important threshold. In a well-organized essay, analyze how Brontë uses literary techniques to characterize the phases of life her protagonist is leaving and entering.

19. 2014 Poetry Prompt
Carefully read the following poem by the poet and novelist John Updike. Then, using specific references to the poem’s language and techniques, write a well-organized essay analyzing how Updike conveys the complex relationship between the novelist and the characters in the novel.

20. 2014 Free Response Prompt
In many works of literature, relationships between siblings (brothers or sisters) create, clarify, or complicate central themes of the work. Choose a novel or play in which a sibling relationship—positive or negative—functions to deepen a central theme. Write a well-organized essay in which you analyze how the sibling relationship contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. You may select a work from the list below or choose another novel or play of comparable literary merit.

21. 2014 list for FR Essay Absalom, Absalom! East of Eden
Pride and Prejudice
All the King’s Men
Fences
A Raisin in the Sun
Antigone
The Glass Menagerie
Sister of My Heart
Arcadia
The Grapes of Wrath
Song of Solomon
Beloved
The Homecoming
The Sound and the Fury
The Blind Assassin
Housekeeping
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
The Bonesetter’s Daughter
The Importance of Being Earnest
A Thousand Acres
Brideshead Revisited
Just Above My Head
Three Sisters
The Brothers Karamazov
King Lear
Tom Jones
The Catcher in the Rye
The Kite Runner
The Turn of the Screw
The Comedy of Errors
The Mill on the Floss
Wuthering Heights
Crime and Punishment
The Piano Lesson
A Yellow Raft in Blue Water
Death of a Salesman
The Poisonwood Bible