AP Literature & Composition

A college-level course, AP English Literature & Composition fosters deep analysis and precise critical thinking that culminate in a clear expression of thought through writing and speech. Students explore various texts from various time periods that reflect English Literature, although texts from other cultures are welcomed and encouraged. Among the reading skills that students are expected to master — plot and character development, setting, conflict — students are also expected to decode symbolisms, metaphors, and other rhetorical devices and evaluate how these further develop and enrich the writing. 

Moreover, students practice applying what they learn until they can utilize new writing strategies with fluency. Because the AP English Literature & Composition examination consists of three timed essays, students spend the year focusing on building up a repertoire of writing skills, techniques, and voice through formal essays and creative writing, such as poetry. 

Aside from equipping students of AP English Literature & Composition with effective analytical and writing skills, one end goal is to spark and engender a growing appreciation for storytelling, language use, and writing as a tool for social criticism. 

Anchor Texts: 

• “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates
• Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
• English and American Poems, ranging from works by William Shakespeare to Robert Frost