English Exam Study Guide Colin Basco Biographical Information: John Steinbeck (1902 1968) Born and lived

d in Californiaworked as a fruit-picker and became very sympathetic toward workers affected by agricultural exploitation (Grapes of Wrath sum-up) Of Mice and Men (1937) Grapes of Wrath (Pulitzer Prize in 1940) East of Eden (1952) Nobel Prize winner Dust Bowl1930-1936ish Dickinson (1830-1886) She lived in Amherst, Massachusetts. She was a scholar isolated from the world. She knew a lot of things from books instead of actual experiences Yeats. (1865-1939) He spent his time in London, where there was a lot of pollution. This inspired his work. He won the Nobel Prize of Literature. Wordsworth Literary movement he was associated with-Romantic Period Romantic Period: scientific discovery, nature provides self-fulfillment, (age of Enlightenment), new ways of expressing imaginations and feeling, didnt rely on the head and reason, but rather the radical idea of Individual Freedom The World is too much with us talked about how the world was primitive and too much with us which was like the morals of this era. Tennyson (1809-1892) Langston Hughes (1902-1967) Literary movement he was associated with-Harlem Renaissance Harlem Renaissance-Black writers and artist flourished in Harlem like they never had before. Themes and Devices to have a working comprehension on: Women In Of Mice and Men, women are thought of as useless troublemakers. Throughout the book Curleys wife causes widespread controversy. Ex. Lennie vs. Curley Grotesque (what society deems inappropriate) Many people in the book are flawed in some way or have unnatural capabilities. Ex. Lennies strength American Dream The utopian dream that all people wish for.

Ex. Lennies dream, freedom, strength, power, peace Silencing The idea of who should be killed Ex. Lennies death at the end of the book, mercy killing (Candys dog) Racial issues Who is racially superior to others Ex. Crooks is black and is looked down on. (Threatened to be lynched for saying a few words) Complex characterizations Some characters in the book are well-developed and have both good and bad traits Ex. George Flaws inherent in human nature All humans have flaws it just depends on what they are. Ex. Lying, Cheating, Stealing, etc. What devices does Steinbeck use to communicate these themes? (Allusions, symbolism (specifically color symbolism), diction, naming choices) Allusions Steinbeck uses language to allude to the many uneducated people during the early 1900s and to slavery. Symbolism The mouse in Of Mice and Men symbolizes that humans are like animals in the way that they are all weak and helpless. Storms and diseases leave towns filled with carcasses and we cant do anything about it. Color Symbolism Steinbeck uses the color black to show that blacks are looked down on because of color and racial differences. He also uses the color gray to symbolize old and ready to be silenced like Candys dog. Diction Steinbeck uses dialog to show how uneducated the world was in the 1900s and how little people cared about speaking correct English. He also uses profanity to show the corruption that went on in those days. Naming Choices Steinbeck names Crooks, Crooks, because his back is broken. It is another way of expressing the grotesque characteristics of a person. He is elaborating on how Crooks has a crooked back which makes him grotesque. Poetry techniques Onomatopoeia- words that are what they sound like (buzz, boom, crackle) Hyperbole-an exaggeration (I ate one million tacos) Simile-comparing by using like and as (I am as strong as an ox) Metaphor-comparing by using is (He is a pancake) Personification-giving an inanimate human-like characteristics (the clock moved its hands) Assonance-rhyme in the vowel sounds (breech and beach) Consonance-repetition of consonants for rhyming uses (dark deep dread) Alliteration-the repetition of the same sounds (stem and stern) Meter (iambic, trochaic, anapestic, dactylic): Iambic- u/ Trochaic- /u Anapestic- uu/ Dactylic- /uu Rhyme-same terminal sounds (man and fan) Repetition-repeating the same words (all he can do is eat and eat and eat) Poetry The Fish Elizabeth Bishop Singapore Mary Oliver The Highwayman Alfred Noyes Oranges Gary Soto

The Lake Isle of Innisfree W.B. Yeats The World is Too Much With Us William Wordsworth Tell the Truth but tell it Slant Emily Dickinson I Never Saw a Moor Emily Dickinson To a Mouse Robert Burns The Lady of Shalott Lord Tennyson Harlem Langston Hughes Of Mice and Men Mottled marked with blotches and spots of different colors or shades The sycamores had mottled, white, recumbent limbs and branches that arched over the pool. Recumbent leaning The sycamores had mottled, white, recumbent limbs and branches that arched over the pool. Pantomime an act of showing something without using words Lennie made an elaborate pantomime of innocence. Morosely gloomily George stared morosely at the water. The rims of his eyes were red with sun glare. Gingerly carefully, softly Her touched his wounds gingerly, as if he was afraid to rebruise himself. Pugnacious Eager and ready to fight; quarrelsome; combative The man was so pugnacious that he began a fight over absolutely nothing, just so he could let off a little violent energy. Raptly absorbed with great attention Lennie watched every move George made raptly, fascinated with the idea of becoming more like him. Wryly cunningly, mockingly He spoke wryly, as if he didn't quite believe the words he was saying. The whole tone gave him a bit of a worn-out, intellectual quality. Contemptuously sarcastic, disagreeing, disliking Curly watched the two new workers contemptuously, thinking them far below him in status. Periscope submarine seeing glass A water snake slipped along the pool, its head held up like a little periscope. Our Town Poignancy- keenly distressing to the mind The poignancy of the newsboy's fate is felt perhaps even more exquisitely today, in light of all the death and destruction the world has endured since. Audacious- unrestrained, lively, too bold Note the audacious and surprising ways in which Wilder has structured his acts. Posthumous- continuing after death Emily's posthumous visit to the past in the middle of Act III provides the emotional climax of the play. Plaintively- begging, pleading Emily, the bride with cold feet, plaintively asks her father, "Why can't I stay for while just as I am?" Prosaic- dull, unimaginative The prosaic turns suddenly wrenching when the Stage Manager casually fills us in on young Joe's future. Quotidian- daily, everyday

With the specter of mortality hovering, the quotidian business of the people of Grover's Corners attains a kind of grandeur.[note: here, the author is saying that it is odd for something quotidian to achieve this Microcosm- anything that is viewed as a world in miniature Grover's Corners belongs to all of us; it is indeed our town, a microcosm of the human family. Vicariously- felt or enjoyed through imagined participation in the experience of others Through the discoveries your students make, you can recapture, vicariously, some of the exhilaration that accompanied your own discovery of the work long ago. Subversive- ability to subvert I was so mesmerized by its subversive power, so warmed by its wisdom. Relegated- delegated to You relegated the play to the kitsch bin along with Norman Rockwell and Frank Capra. Palatable- delicious, delectable It was lumped in a tasting portion of slim, palatable volumes of American literature. Capricious- fanciful or witty In just a few eloquent sentences he captures both the capriciousness of life and the futility of war. compelled: You were compelled to read it, like nasty medicine force-fed for your own good. amateur: Or perhaps you saw one too many amateur productions that, to put it kindly, failed to persuade you of the play's greatness. relic: You dismissed the play as a corny relic of Americana. skepticism: You remain steadfast in your skepticism of his importance to American literature. dissect: My students read, and together we dissect, a variety of contemporary plays. Sentimental: Mitt is full of genuine sentiment, which is not the same as its being sentimental. radical: Thornton Wilder was challenging the potential of theater. An old-fashioned writer? Thornton Wilder was a radical! futility: In just a few eloquent sentences he captures booth the capriciousness of life and the futility of war. reminiscent: Editor Webb offers sidebars about the geography and sociology of Grover's Corners, a device reminiscent of the collagist technique of newsreel and newspaper snippets employed by his contemporary, the novelist John Dos Passos. King Arthur prophesied: Seers prophesied that Brutus would cause the death of both of his parents. formidable: The Trojans, who were formidable, fought their way through Gaul acquiring wealth. miraculously: When Arthur is fifteen, a sword in the stone miraculously appears. archbishop: He advised the Archbishop of Canterbury to summon all the nobles. anvil: None could budge it, so securely lodged was it within the stone and anvil. tournament: No one was here. They must have gone to the tournament. enchanter: The great enchanter Merlin arrived at our home one night bearing you in his arms. reign: We will kill anyone who tries to prevent Arthur's reign! derisively: some laughed derisively, and other called him a witch. submission Dukes and barons will retreat into submission. Essays

1. How does the Golden Age archetype play out in the King Arthur stories, Our Town,
The World is too much with us, and The Lake Isle of Innisfree? Is there also a fall from Eden in all of them? Towards the beginning of Arthurs reign there was relative peace and they were in a Golden Age. But, then the fall from Eden occurred. Lancelots love for Guinevere and vice-versa

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and caused the death of King Arthur and it led to the destruction of a kingdom. In Our Town, the town starts out without any fear of burglars and thieves and there is peace. This is their Golden Age. Then people start to lock their doors as thieves start to emerge, until finally everyone locks their doors at night. They have fallen from Eden. The Golden Age of The World is too much with us is when the world wasnt being robbed of its resources, and when nature wasnt being abused. The fall from Eden was when all of this was happening to the Earth. The Lake Isle of Innisfree doesnt have a fall from Eden, but is in its Golden Age the whole time. The Lake Isle of Innisfree is filled with harmony, and there is no corruption like in The World is too much with us. Take a look at the God-Teacher figures in Our Town, Of Mice and Men, and the King Arthur stories. Compare and Contrast them. In Our Town, the god-teacher is the stage manager. Though he is not the typical sort of stage manager, he still possesses some of the qualities of a stage manager. He teaches us, the audience instead of teaching anyone who is in the plot. He is all-knowing which another character of a god teacher is also. The god-teacher in Of Mice and Men is Slim. Slim is powerful, and is looked up to. This is the main attribute which makes him a god-teacher. In the King Arthur series, Merlin is acknowledged as the god-teacher. Like Slim he is powerful, and like the Stage Manager he is knowledgeable. But, one thing sets him apart from everyone else: he raised 3 heroes. The 3 heroes: King Arthur, Uther Pendragon, and Ambrosias Aurelius, each ruled a long and illustrious reign. What is the relationship between To a Mouse and the title of Steinbecks novel? These two are related because the concept of humans is the same. In the novel Steinbeck shows how humans are flawed by having a big conflict which reveals the true fallibility of normal humans. The poem backs up the actions of mice by plausible arguments. Burns argues that a mouse is not at fault for stealing food when its hungry. This is relating humans to mice, because both creatures do the same actions and for the same reason. This impresses upon the point of how humans are quick to point out the faults in others but not in themselves. What does a narrative poem do and which of the poems on your list are narratives? A narrative poem is a poem that tells a story. It has a conflict and a resolution. Of the poems we read there were only two narrative poems: The Lady of Shalott and The Highwayman. Compare the real life of Emily Dickinson and the fictional Lady of Shalott. How are they the same? How are they different? Both Emily and the Lady of Shalott have many similarities and differences. Emilys occupation was being a scholar and a poet, while the Lady of Shalott was a weaver. They both share a similarity of isolation, yet it is almost physically impossible for a person to live their whole life without coming into contact with someone so Emily hasnt lived in complete seclusion while the Lady of Shalott has. If the Lady of Shalott had read Ive never seen a Moor, would she identify with the speaker or would she have a different opinion of the value of experience? I believe that the Lady of Shalott would think that the value of experience is much more important than it is made seem in Ive never seen a Moor. I believe this because, why would a person risk their life for an experience it they didnt think that it was important? Emily Dickinson just states it as a fact as if she doesnt care about not experiencing it. But then again, it isnt very important to have not experienced seeing a moor. Explore the theme of romantic love in The Highwayman, They Lady of Shalott, Oranges, the King Arthur stories and Our Town. In the Highwayman the theme of romantic love is based on how cool the person is. The girl in the coach is the daughter of a rich family and she is attracted to the highwayman because of his looks and actions. This love developed into something deeper in the end because she

sacrificed herself for the highwayman. The romantic love in The Lady of Shalott is about looks too. She sees Lancelot walking and is very attracted to him. She sacrifices her own life for him to see her, and so she too can gaze upon him, yet it is useless. The romantic love in Oranges is the kind of love which is developed during a persons school year. It is their first love. In Oranges it is obvious that he is trying very hard to please the girl because he buys her candy and trades the cashier oranges to get the candy. In the King Arthur stories, almost all of the love is based on lust. Uther Pendragon wants Igraine and tricks her and kills her husband. Somehow she ends up loving Uther and they are married. King Arthur also loves a woman on first sight and marries her without paying heed to the prophecy. Sir Lancelot however, bases his love of Guinevere on both her character and her looks. In Our Town, George and Emilys love has to do with the many years they have gone to school together. They are bonded at a young age and are married very early. 8. Explore the idea of dreams of Lennie, George, Crooks, Curleys wife and Candy in Of Mice and Men; the narrator of The Lake Isle of Innisfree, the narrator of Harlem; Tim the Osler, the Highwayman, and Bess in The Highwayman; Lancelot in the King Arthur stories; the lady in The Lady of Shalott; and the narrator of The World is too Much With Us. Lennie and Georges dream is too own land and tend rabbits on that land. Later in Of Mice and Men, Candy too shares the dream. Crookss dream was for it to be like it was when he was young when he lived with more blacks and where there was no segregation. W.B. Yeats dreams of going somewhere like The Lake Isle of Innisfree. He lived in England for most of his life and he had gotten tired of the polluted air. He wished of going somewhere with fresh, clean air. Langston Hughes wished for segregation to disappear. He hated his college because everyone treated him badly. For this reason, he went to Harlem again. He loved Harlem because there was no segregation, and the people there were all blacks. Tim the Osler in the Highwayman dreams of having Bess as his wife. He hates the highwayman because his dream is to be with Bess too. Besss dream is to be with the highwayman, but not Tim the Osler. Lancelots dream is to be with Queen Guinevere because he honors her more than all other women, while The Lady of Shalott wishes to be with Lancelot. William Wordsworth wishes the world to be more sophisticated with nature flourishing instead of decaying. He also wishes that humans didnt have to be so complicated and selfish all the time. Hed rather have simplicity that works than complicity doesnt work. 9. Write a definition of the grotesque (because it is such a rich and complex idea, you will need a full paragraph to describe the various aspects of it). Use examples from at least two texts to illustrate your ideas. The word grotesque is basically human fallibility. Grotesqueness can be categorized into two main categories: physical grotesqueness and internal grotesqueness. Lennie and Cousin Lymon are physically grotesque. Lennie has a deformed head and his strength is unnatural, while Cousin Lymon has a hunched back. Another character who is significantly grotesque is Candy (Of Mice and Men). He doesnt have a hand. The second category of internal grotesqueness is about a persons feelings and thoughts. From the Ballad of the Sad Caf we have Miss Amelia who is internally grotesque. She thinks only of herself and she never shares anything and until she met Lymon, she rejected the company of almost everyone. 10. We look at The Ballad of the Sad Caf in order to understand the grotesque and how it functions in Steinbeck and in Elizabeth Bishops The Fish. There are many grotesque things in Steinbeck, The Fish, and the novella-the town, the house, Miss Amelia, Cousin Lymon, and their relationship. Pick at least two of these topics and write about how they are physically grotesque and how that is representative of a metaphorical or inner grotesque. How are the inward and outer grotesque connected? The Fish is physically grotesque; its skin hangs in strips, 5 hooks hang out of its mouth, its infested with lice and it was battered and venerable. Miss Amelia is internally grotesque. She

thinks of herself and she never shares a drink or anything else with anyone. She rejects anyone who calls them kin to her. When she married it ended so quickly that it shocked everyone in town. She is like the caricature of a human being. Until she met Lymon, all of that was true. The physical grotesque is usually what causes the inner grotesque because if someone is ugly, people usually ignore, or ridicule that person. This leads to depression and isolation which leads to the process of becoming grotesque both physically and characteristically. Grammar Commas: Used to separate items in a series Used to separate sentences joined by a conjunction Used for direct address Used after an introductory dependent clause Used to set of an appositive Semicolons: Use it between two independent clauses that aren't separated with a FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). Don't use a semi-colon unless the two clauses are closely related. Confusing: I wrote to Anne, Beth, and Meg, and Jean notified Terry and Sue. The way the above sentence is written, it seems as if the writer wrote to four people rather than three. Then, as you finish the sentence, you figure out that Jean is the subject of a new clause. How do you clear up the confusion? Correct version: I wrote to Anne, Beth, and Meg; and Jean notified Terry and Sue. Use a semi-colon with two independent clauses joined by a conjunctive adverb. That sandwich is the best one on the menu; therefore, I will eat it often. Colons: Use to introduce a list or formally introduce a statement Use a colon before a statement that explains or clarifies a preceding statement. You can also use a colon before a long, formal statement. Use a colon also for time, an address in a letter, between titles and subtitles, and in Biblical references. Verb Tenses Base Form-walk Present Participle-walking Present Perfect-I have walked. Past-I walked. Past Participle-walked Past Progressive-I am walking. Future perfect-I will have walked. Future-I will walk. Future progressive-I will be walking.
Present Perfect

Timeline
Past
Present Perfect

Past Progressive

Future Present Future Perfect Present

Present I walk. Past perfect I had walked. Principle Parts Base Form Lie lay rise Raise sit set hold become

Present progressiveProgressive Present perfect

Present

I am walking. Future I will walk.

I have walked.

Past I walked

Future Past progressive Progressive

I was walking.

Future progressive

I will be walking. Past Lay laid rose raised sat set held became

Future perfect I will have walked. Past Participle (have) lain (have) laid (have) risen (have) raised (have) sat (have) set (have) held (have) become

Present Participle (is) lying (is) laying (is) rising (is) raising (is) sitting (is) setting (is) holding (is) becoming

Participial Phrases A verbal ending in -ing or -ed used to describe. A verbal is a verb that also works like another part of speech. Participles show action, so they act like verbs, but they also describe, so they act like adjectives. Present participles always end in -ing. Unlike main verbs, which cannot be removed from a sentence, participles are removable. Examples: Verb (not removable): Harry was feeling slightly more cheerful. Present participle (verbal, removable): Feeling slightly more cheerful, Harry helped himself to sausages and fried tomatoes. Past participles usually end in -ed. Unlike main verbs, which cannot be removed from a sentence, past participles are removable. If a participial phrase, put comma to separate from sentence. Ex.: The boy, eating candy, scored a goal. Ex.: Noted for his intelligence, Jack received the most outstanding scholar award. Clause: a word group that contains a verb and its subject and that is used as a sentence or as part of a sentence. Independent Clause: a clause that expresses a complete thought and can stand by itself as a complete sentence Dependent Clause: a clause that doesnt express a complete thought and cannot stand by itself as a complete sentence. Subject: Tells whom or what the sentence is about. Predicate: tells something about the subject Prepositional Phrases: The object of the preposition, and any modifiers of the object Ex.: The librarian took from her desk a new edition of one of the classics. Ex.: The tired tourists climbed onto the crowded bus.

Appositive Phrase Appositive: a noun or pronoun placed beside another noun or pronoun to identify or describe it. Appositive phrase: consists of an appositive and its modifiers Ex. Leo, a much accomplished writer, received a perfect score on his English exam. Ex. Fred, a much loved musician, was invited to the NMFP. Hint: appositive phrases usually start with a, an, and the In text citations: I aint done nothing wrong. Lenny said this. This is in Steinbecks novel. It is on page 34. Better: I aint done nothing wrong. (Steinbeck 34) Lennie said. Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Transitive: a verb that expresses an action directed toward a person, place, thing, or idea. Ex.: The audience attentively watched the latest production of The Trojan Women. Intransitive: a verb that expresses action (or tells something about the subject) without the action passing to a receiver, or object. Ex.: The crowd moves across the field in an attempt to see the rock star get into her helicopter. Active and Passive Voice Active Voice: the subject does the verb Passive Voice: the subject doesnt do the verb