Test Keys

Advanced Placement English Literature
Examination Key Points

Part I:
* 4, 5 or 6 literary passages
Some poetry and some prose
Do not pre-judge difficulty of pieces of literature
Answer as many questions as you can
(If you can eliminate any answer – you should answer the question)

Types of Multiple Choice Questions:
Allusion Question
Very specific question
Hard to answer correctly if you do not recognize the allusion
Easy if you know the allusion
Context Definition
Testing vocabulary
Replace the word in the passage with the answer and judge
Dominant Device
Dominant lit device of technique
What does the author do the most: use participles, use imagery
Trick: could use all answers, but which is most dominant
Effect Question: the sentence or line in these questions usually-
Introduce an idea
Set the tone
Solidify something
Serve as a thesis
Infer/Suggest
Look for deeper meaning
Do not be afraid to pick the obvious answer
Literary Devices
Eliminate the ones you know are wrong
Pick from remaining
Except Questions
X-out all of the correct answers
What is left is the except answer
Passage as a Whole
Idea present throughout the work
All or many answers my be present, but pick most predominate
If answer fits for only part – it is wrong
Most abstract usually wrong
Answers with exact words from text are usually wrong
Pronoun/Antecedent
What noun is the pronoun referring to
Usually not the most obvious choice
Replace pronoun with the noun to test possibilities
Quotes
Look for answer that represents main point in the quote
Do not be distracted by the main idea of the passage
Structure of a Poem
You must know types of poem
Look for clues in rhyme scheme
Stanza construction
Lyric types
Narrative types
Tone
Check combinations
If one word does not apply – it is wrong
“According to the speaker”
(Trick) only what the speaker means at that point
Usually specific to the subject matter
Testing context relevance

Part II:

Essays 1 and 2 (poetry / prose interpretation):
The intro is key:
Grab the readers attention
Know your audience: AP teachers and college professors
Include titles and authors
Use a quote or smart turn of phrase to show style
Use frequent quotes
Do not plot-tell
If lit device is identified in the question you must use it in essay
If no lit element is mention is mention you must insert the appropriate some that you select
Essay must show how the author’s technique supported the author’s purpose
Use powerful verbs and vary sentence structure
Vary sentence beginnings

Essay 3 (novel or play read during class):

You must select an APPROPRIATE work
Note the phrase: “Then write”
Identify the specific points
Plan response based on these points
Use powerful verbs and vary sentence structure
Vary sentence beginnings