CPW - Comparison of Poetic Works: AP Double Poetry Prompts Overview
Comparison of Poetic Works: AP Double Poetry Prompts Overview
Introduction
What percentage of the AP Exam is Based on Poetry?
At least two multiple-choice prompts (often three) out of five will be poetry, and one essay question will be in direct response to poetry that you more than likely have not read.
What percentage of the AP English Exam will be based on prose?
At least two multiple-choice prompts (rarely three) out of five will be prose, and one essay question will be in direct response to a prose passage that you more than likely have not read.
There is the open-ended response that will be based upon a work of literary merit, which can be either prose based (i.e. a novel) or poetry based (i.e. drama such as Shakespeare or Moliere).
The above break down of the exam reminds us that poetry will constitute at least 40 to 60 percent of your AP English Literature Exam; therefore, its importance cannot be understated for your success on the AP Exam.
In previous modules we have looked at various poetry and even drama based upon poetry from the early sixteenth century to the present day, and you should have an understanding of how to read the genre. There is just one type of poetry question that we have not explored yet—paired poetry.
Pair poetry reflects the placement of two poems together and asks the student to analyze the relationship between the two. Although this might initially appear more daunting than only writing upon one poem, often students prefer the paired prompts because one poem can offer insight into the other. Also with a couple of reminders there are patterns that emerge with the paired prompts that can help with your overall success upon the exam. The microlessons in this module will help you learn how to approach this task.
Module Lessons Preview
In this module, we will study the following topics:
Building Upon What you Already Know about Poetry Analysis: This lesson contains a brief reminder about what you already know about poetry analysis and how to apply what you already understand about single poem analysis to pairs of poems.
Comparison of Two Poems on the AP English Literature Exam: This lesson will have you answer questions over two paired on both the MC and essay portions of the AP English Exam.
Quad Sets and Comparison of Four Poems Assignment: This lesson contains a student generated quad set that will ask you to compare four poems from four different time periods.
The Great Conversation: This lesson will conclude with a discussion of the “Great Conversation” and how pairing of poetry is one small part of one of the highest levels of reading. And how reading at this level can afford true understanding of literature and in the long run serve as the best preparation for the AP English Exam.
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