College Prep. English 12

Course Objectives:

Upon completion of this course, the student will have met the following expectations:
    1.  Become familiar with the distinctive features of English literature from the Anglo-Saxon period to the twentieth century;
    2.  Understands the distinctive features of the works of individual writers from the Anglo-Saxon period to the twentieth century;
    3.  Is able to identify and analyze many of the major themes in literature;
    4.  Understands the historical and cultural background that influenced the development of English literature;
    5.  Become familiar with the first great masterpiece of English literature, The Canterbury Tales, and appreciates its humor and satire;
    6.  Is able to trace the development of the Arthurian legends;
    7.  Is able to read and appreciate Shakespeare's works and identify his themes'
    8.  Is able to compare and contrast the Italian and English sonnet forms;
    9.  Has gained an understanding of political and literary satire;
    10.  Has learned to identify the tone and themes of metaphysical, pastoral, and lyric poetry;
    11.  Identifies and understands the authors' use of irony, personification, allusion, conceit, paradox, onomatopoeia, apostrophe, hyperbole, synecdoche, and metonymy;
    12.  Notes the purposes and uses of repetition and rhythm in poetry and is able to thoroughly scan a poem;
    13.  Is able to identify and describe mood and tone in literary works;
    14.  Has learned to recognize and evaluate an author's purpose;
    15.  Appreciates biography and autobiography as forms of literature;
    16.  Has increased vocabulary through knowledge of synonyms, etymologies, root words, word analogies, and antonyms;
    17.  Uses thinking skills to classify, generalize, synthesize, and evaluate;
    18.  Has developed research, critical thinking, and writing skills through the research paper;
    19.  Has refined writing skills through the formal and informal essay and the analytical book report.
    20.  Has developed a lifelong enjoyment of reading and an appreciation for all genre of literature.

Course Description:

            Two Semesters
            Texts:  England in Literature
                      Literary Cavalcade

    The major focus of this course is the study of English literature from Beowulf through the early twentieth century.  Major works studied include (but are not limited to) the following: Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales, Hamlet, Macbeth, Paradise Lost, The Secret Sharer, and Pygmalion.  Also covered are poetic works in a wide variety of forms and styles from the early Medieval ballad through the Renaissance and Victorian eras to poetry of the twentieth century.  The Literary Cavalcade magazine is used as a secondary source of material.  This covers a wide variety of both classic and contemporary works from the different genre.

    Students are assigned many papers, most of an analytical and interpretive nature.  They also research a relevant topic and write a twelve to fifteen page paper.  Ongoing vocabulary development and independent reading are also requirements of the course.

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