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What is the purpose of using transition words and phrases in essays?
They improve coherence and show how ideas are related.
How did women writers in the late 1800s and early 1900s draw attention to the constraints placed on women by society?
They wrote short stories and serialized novels for magazines.
Why were many people weary of war during the Vietnam War era?
America had fought in three wars since the beginning of the 20th century, and many people did not see the rationale for getting involved in Vietnam.
During the 1920s, how did life in the United States differ from life in Europe?
Americans focused on prosperity and celebration while Europe struggled to rebuild.
Which scientist most influenced the literary movement or style known as naturalism?
Charles Darwin
Why were his college years so important to the development of Langston Hughes as an artist?
College provided his first access to the neighborhood of Harlem.
Which quote from "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" supports the idea that Mark Twain is portraying the narrator as a fool?
I did not think that a continuation of the history of the enterprising vagabond Jim Smiley would be likely to afford me much information concerning the Rev. Leonidas W. Smiley, and so I started away.
Which of these more short-lived literary movements was absorbed and refined by the larger Modernist movement in literature?
Imagism
Which statement best expresses one of the themes of "The Black Ball"?
In an unjust society, the game is rigged against some people.
Which quote from "The Open Boat" explicitly expresses a theme of naturalism?
In the meantime the oiler rowed, and then the correspondent rowed, and then the oiler rowed. Grey-faced and bowed forward, they mechanically, turn by turn, plied the leaden oars.
What does this quote say about Mrs. Sommers' future and what she would prefer it to be?
She doesn't want to return to her life of responsibility and hardship.
What aspects of Vonnegut's life during the latter half of the 20th century might have shaped how he wrote "Harrison Bergeron"?
multiple wars and disillusionment with government as a source of authority
Which literary movement was most compatible with (and visible in) early feminist fiction writing?
naturalism
Read this passage from "Chicago," and identify its primary approach to conveying meaning. Come and show me another city with lifted head singing so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning. What literary device does Carl Sandburg use to express his ideas about his hometown?
personification
What is the BEST close reading question to ask about Vonnegut's short story "Harrison Bergeron"?
Why does Vonnegut begin the story after Harrison has been imprisoned?
Read the following quote from Wharton's short story "April Showers": Theodora found herself in the wood beyond the schoolhouse. She was kneeling on the ground, brushing aside the dead leaves and pressing her lips to the little bursting green things that pushed up eager tips through last year's decay. It was spring--spring! Everything was crowding toward the light, and in her own heart hundreds of germinating hopes had burst into sudden leaf. She wondered if the thrust of those little green fingers hurt the surface of the earth as her springing raptures hurt--yes, actually hurt!--her hot, constricted breast! What aspect of feminism is Wharton pointing out in this passage?
Women have dreams and ambitions that are just as strong as men's.
What view expressed in this quote is one that writers of feminism rebelled against?
Women were expected to submit to authority figures, especially men.
In Edith Wharton's short story "April Showers," what theme is suggested by the outcome of Theodora's belief in her own novel?
Writing is a difficult, frustrating task, and it often has few monetary rewards.
What was unique about William Carlos Williams' literary career?
Writing was not his primary career.
Which phrase describes an outcome of Prohibition in America?
a growth in violent crime organizations
Review your copy of the poem "Harvest Song," and think about the speaker's reason for speaking. Which phrase best describes the speaker's desire?
a stronger connection with other people who share his trials
What did Imagism contribute to Modernism?
an insistence on concise, precise expression
Which phrase describes a feature of postmodern fiction?
an unconventional narrative
When did the Harlem Renaissance begin?
around 1918
Review the first four lines of Jean Toomer's poem "Seventh Street." How does Jean Toomer portray city life in these lines?
as a bustling and impersonal space
When did the Harlem Renaissance occur?
between 1918 and the early 1930s
What element of Robert Frost's poetry separated him from other Modernists?
his preference for traditional structure and rules
What was Imagistic about William Carlos Williams' later poetry?
his use of precise language to suggest meaning
Which of these phrases does describes a characteristic of postmodern literature?
representations of confusion or chaos
Which conflict was most relevant to American authors writing during the late 1950s and early 1960s?
the Cold War
What part of American history do most people associate with Jean Toomer?
the Harlem Renaissance
Which event was the main reason behind America's population shift from rural areas to cities?
the Industrial Revolution
What region of the United States is Robert Frost associated with?
the Northeast
What subject did Robert Frost explore in "Mending Wall"?
the boundaries between people
Which theme is expressed most often Langston Hughes' poetry?
the difficulty of forging an identity in the modern world
What does "the black ball" symbolize in the story?
the disadvantages faced by African Americans
Which phrase describes one of the reasons that Americans were opposed to U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War?
the reinstatement of a military draft to provide troops for the war
What was meant by the "closing" of the Western frontier?
the settlement of most of the land between the East and West Coasts
What is "Whitman-esque" about the imagery of "Smoke and Steel"?
the vivid energy and focus on the physicality of human bodies
How did William Carlos Williams support his literary career?
through work as a doctor
Review your copy of "Let America Be America Again"--particularly the lines that begin with the phrase "I am the . . . ." What is the purpose and effect of this repetition?
to create a rhythm that unifies several different perspectives
What was the purpose of the proposed anti-lynching legislation that President Wilson refused to sign?
to criminalize mob executions
Why does Twain use idioms, dialect, and slang?
to represent the local color of a region in the West
Why did Twain write "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" as a frame story?
to satirize educated, but often prejudiced, men from the East
Why did Langston Hughes use rural dialects in his poetry?
to share the language of working class African Americans and give it literary value
What did members of the Lost Generation share?
direct experience with World War I
Which two factors contributed most to the movement of 1.5 million African Americans from the South to the North and West of the United States?
discrimination and lack of job opportunities
Which word best describes the tone of "After Apple-Picking"?
dreamlike
What conditions did Civil Rights activists organize to publicize and ultimately to end?
educational and political discrimination
Read this passage from the short poem "Hats" by Carl Sandburg. On the rim of a skyscraper's forehead I looked down and saw: hats: fifty thousand hats: Swarming with a noise of bees and sheep, cattle and waterfalls, Stopping with a silence of sea grass, a silence of prairie corn. Hats: tell me your high hopes. How does Sandburg develop the symbolic significance of hats in this passage?
He first sees them as an unthinking mass but wants to humanize them.
Read this excerpt from Jack London's "The Law of Life," in which Koskoosh and his son converse: "Is it well with you?" he asked. And the old man answered, "It is well." "There be wood beside you," the younger man continued, "and the fire burns bright. The morning is gray, and the cold has broken. It will snow presently. Even now is it snowing." What is the implicit meaning behind the son's questions?
He is asking if his father is ready to die.
Read this passage from "Mending Wall," and think about who is "speaking" in the poem. And some are loaves and some so nearly balls We have to use a spell to make them balance: 'Stay where you are until our backs are turned!' We wear our fingers rough with handling them. Oh, just another kind of outdoor game, One on a side. It comes to little more. . . What does the passage reveal about the speaker of "Mending Wall"?
He isn't taking the task seriously.
How did Jean Toomer become involved in the Harlem Renaissance?
He lived in Harlem and spent time with other writers and artists there.
In Vonnegut's story "Harrison Bergeron," George thinks about his son being in jail (before the sound of a 21-gun salute distracts him). What label has he clearly accepted as a description of his son, and why does he think of his son in this way?
He thinks of his son as abnormal because Harrison doesn't follow the rules like everyone else.
What was complex about Jean Toomer's identity?
He was able to "pass" as white if he chose to.
What did William Carlos Williams mean when he called himself a "local" poet?
He wrote about what he knew and observed.
Why would some people describe Carl Sandburg as a "regional" poet?
He wrote mostly about the Midwest and its people.
How does Mrs. Mallard's health in "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin affect the entire story?
Her health causes her to make irrational decisions, to become overexcited, and eventually to die.
Why was Langston Hughes the most prominent writer of the Harlem Renaissance?
His poems about race and class appealed to a broad audience.
Which sentence accurately describes the claim or thesis statement in an analytical essay?
It must be both logical and debatable, or able to be proved both right and wrong
In "April Showers," how does the father's story about his own experience as a failed writer help Theodora?
It shows her that she can be successful at something else, as her father is.
Why is "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" a good example of Regionalism?
Its story is told mostly in dialect, and it focuses on local people and topics.
How is the first line of this poem unique?
Its tone is much more objective and "cold" than the poem's title.
Re-read your copy of the poem "Harvest Song," and note which words and phrases are repeated.How does the use of the cry "Eoho" change throughout the poem?
Its tone shifts from hesitant doubt to exhilaration
Review the poem "Dream Variations" by Langston Hughes. Which thought is implied by the poem's first four lines? To fling my arms wide In some place of the sun, To whirl and to dance Till the white day is done.
Living under racial oppression restricts a person's opportunities for joy.
how is this excerpt an example of the Western genre?
Longley independently enforces law and order on his misguided friend.
Which American philosophy most contributed to the "closing" of the Western frontier?
Manifest Destiny
What role did media bias play in Vietnam War literature?
Media often presented soldiers in a bad light, or it "sanitized" or left out much of what was happening in Vietnam. Vietnam War literature set this record straight
How did the plots of Modernist stories differ from the plots typical of Regionalism and Naturalism?
Modernist plots were more often driven by a character's choices.
In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's short story "The Yellow Wallpaper," why is the narrator obsessed with the designs in the wallpaper?
As she slowly goes insane from isolation, she begins to imagine all kinds of things about the wallpaper.
How are the endings to "A Call Loan" and "A Retrieved Reformation" by O. Henry similar?
Both stories use a coincidence to resolve the conflict.
Which set of scientific theories most informed the literary movement of naturalism?
Darwinism
To determine how an author conveys his or her message, what question should you ask yourself?
What does the author want me to understand, think, or feel about the characters and/or the events?
As you read George and Hazel's discussion about breaking the laws, what is the best question to ask yourself?
What does this conversation reveal about the narrator's and the author's points of view?
How does the narrator's thinking change by the end of "The Black Ball"?
He begins to consider attending a union meeting.
The narrator makes this statement about Simon Wheeler, the storyteller, in Twain's "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County": All through the interminable narrative there ran a vein of impressive earnestness and sincerity, which showed me plainly that, so far from his imagining that there was anything ridiculous or funny about his story, he regarded it as a really important matter, and admired its two heroes as men of transcendent genius in finesse. To me, the spectacle of a man drifting serenely along through such a queer yarn without ever smiling, was exquisitely absurd. What does this excerpt tell you about the narrator?
He does not understand Wheeler at all.
Besides the ability to express feminist views, what other benefit did women find in writing for literary magazines?
It allowed them to work at home and care for their families.
How can reading a manual about combat and operational stress reactions help you better understand a short story such as O'Brien's "Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy?"
It can help you spot symptoms of this problem and better understand what is happening in this story.
In what way is the Bill of Rights a seminal document?
It established a purpose and form on which other similar documents are based.
Why does Twain use a frame story in "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"?
It helps him satirize an educated Easterner's point of view.
What is Koskoosh's view of death in London's story "The Law of Life"?
It is inevitable, so why fight it.
How did American exceptionalism help establish Regionalism as a literary movement?
It motivated authors to celebrate the mix of cultures that made up the country.
Which work was the result of a collaboration between Langston Hughes and another Harlem Renaissance writer?
Mule Bone
What part of the United States was the subject of most of Robert Frost's poetry?
New England
Which direct quote from "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" best represents Regionalism?
So he set there a good while thinking and thinking to his self, and then he got the frog out and prized his mouth open and took a tea-spoon and filled him full of quail shot. . .
Which statement was a common theme in works of Regionalism?
The United States consists of many diverse and intriguing local cultures.
How does William Carlos Williams' use of line breaks affect how you read the following lines? glazed with rain water beside the white chickens.
The abrupt line breaks slow the reader down.
How are the ideas of fire and night related in "Smoke and Steel"?
The cool, distant night is contrasted with the vivid fires of work and creation.
Review your copy of the poem "Becky," paying close attention to how the piece starts and ends. What effect is created by the repetition of very similar images in "Becky"?
The mood and tone of the poem changes as the images take on more meaning.
How does the point of view in Jack London's story "The Law of Life" reflect a characteristic of Naturalism?
The narrator is a man pitted against nature, and he knows he will lose.
Which theme of "Spring and All" reflects a Modernist concern about the 20th century?
The resilience of a society after a brutal war is not guaranteed.
How does the structure of "The Open Boat" hint at a theme of Naturalism?
The rise and fall of suspenseful moments suggests how fate seems to toy with people's hopes.
How does Crane use the setting in "The Open Boat" to communicate ideas about Naturalism?
The setting is a natural environment and is the primary cause of their struggle.
What principle of Naturalism is found in this excerpt?
The universe is an uncaring, unfeeling force.
Which poet did Carl Sandburg most admire and imitate?
Walt Whitman
What contemporary social movement had a strong influence on Ralph Ellison's work?
civil rights
How would you describe Robert Frost's use of language?
colloquial
Which characteristic of "The Black Ball" is Modernist?
its authentic, honest narrator
What was Modernist about the poetry written as part of the Harlem Renaissance?
its focus on questions of identity
Which issues did Carl Sandburg address repeatedly in his short poems?
labor and income inequality
