English 11 Literature Review

1. English 11 Literature Review Period 9

2. In the Path of Falling Objects by Andrew Smith • Characters: Jonah (Dalton), Simon (Walker), Mitch, Lily (Matthew) • Plot summary: Jonah and Simon are abandoned by mom (dad is in jail); they are hungry and desperate when Mitch and Lily drive by (Lincoln with Don Quixote in the backseat)—Simon thumbs for a ride and Lily forces Mitch to stop; Jonah feels uneasy about Mitch, but Simon thinks Mitch is cool; everyone loves Lily, but she chooses Jonah; Jonah and Simon fight and Mitch makes Simon push Jonah off the bridge; Mitch starts to really behave erratically (Mitch ties up Simon); Simon and Lily run away—Mitch becomes Black Simon; final shootout (Walker and the dog; Lily dies because of ectopic pregnancy; Mitch is killed by Simon; Matthew killed himself) • Setting: desert (New Mexico/Arizona); 70s (Vietnam era) • Point of view: 1st (Jonah, Simon and Mitch) • Theme: • The choices we make affect not only our lives but the lives of the people around us. • Symbolism: • Black Simon (Mitch is evil, but capable of making mistakes) • Jonah’s map (their journey; growing up) • Meteorite (there are some things you can’t stop or control) • Matthew’s letters (hope; despair)

3. All My Sons, by Arthur Miller • Plot summary: Ann is coming to visit—she used to date Larry, but Chris asks her to marry him; Mom thinks Larry is still alive, while George thinks Joe is a liar; Steve is in prison for selling cracked engine cylinder heads (21 pilots were killed); Joe also got in trouble, but said it was all Steve (he didn’t go in to work that day); Ann gives them the letter from Larry that says that he killed himself because of his father’s negligence; Joe reveals that he has been lying and that it was his fault; he kills himself (he had a responsibility to those young men who were killed and his friend) • Setting: after WWII, anytown USA • Theme: • We should own up to our mistakes. • Symbol: • The tree: Larry • Characters • The Keller Family: Joe, Kate, Chris (living), Larry (MIA) • The Deever Family: Ann, George (dad is Steve)

4. ‘Night, Mother by Marsha Norman • Characters: Mama and Jessie • Plot summary: Mama tries to talk Jessie out of killing herself. • Theme • We should live honestly and openly—we should not wait until the end to make connections with the people we love. • Symbolism • Candy (overindulgence, lack of attention, Mama lives in a “sugar-coated world”)

5. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee • Characters: Scout, Tom Robinson, Atticus Finch, Jem, Dill, Boo Radley • Plot summary: Tom Robinson is accused of raping MayellaEwell; Atticus is his lawyer (the townspeople take issue with this decision); Tom is innocent (he only has one working arm) but he is convicted anyway; he is shot when trying to escape jail; Bob Ewell is the guilty party and he attacks the Finch children (they are saved by Boo Radley) • Setting: Alabama in the Great Depression (1931-1932) • Theme • Justice works in weird ways. • Children often see the world innocently; that changes as we grow up. • (responsibility and honesty)

6. Lord of the Flies by William Golding • Characters: Jack (bad) and Ralph (good); Piggy (he dies); Simon (he dies) • Setting: deserted island during WWII (they were being evacuated from England) • Plot summary: they form two groups (one focused on hunting; the other is focused on rescue and survival); they end up fighting—civilization is not maintained; they are rescued because of the fire they set • Symbolism: • Pig’s head—beastie, “the lord of the flies” • Conch—sanity, civilization • Piggy’s glasses—intelligence, society • Simon—innocence • Signal fire—hope

7. Animal Farm by George Orwell • Allegory: the ideas and events in a story stand in for other ideas and events (social and political commentary) • Plot summary: Pigs want to overthrow the farmers because they feel oppressed (they do not feel like they are treated equally); eventually they become what they originally overthrew • Theme: Human beings are easily corruptible.

8. A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry • Characters: Mama, Walter, Beneatha, Ruth • Setting: Chicago, 1950s • Plot summary: Mama’s husband dies and they collect his life insurance; Walter wants to open a liquor store; Beneatha wants to go to college to become a doctor; they plan to buy a house in a better neighborhood; Walter takes the money and his buddy runs off with the cash • Title: the plant (symbol of hope)

9. Othello by William Shakespeare • Characters: Othello (general, Moor); Desdemona is his wife; Iago is the bad guy • Plot summary: Iago wants more power within the military (jealous of Cassio and Othello); Iago makes Othello jealous of Cassio by using the handkerchief as a prop; long story short, Othello kills Desdemona, Iago kills Emilia, Othello kills Iago and then himself • Tragic flaw: jealousy • Conflict

10. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson • Characters: Melinda, Andy Evans, Mr. Freeman • Plot summary: the summer before her freshman year of high school, she was at a party and was raped; she calls the cops (her friends think she was trying to get them in trouble); she struggles through freshman year; her art class helps her survive (tree); Melinda tells the truth; Andy attacks Melinda in the supply room, when the field hockey team attacks him • Symbolism: tree (symbolizes her) • Conflict • Point of view: 1st person

11. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck • Characters: George (serious, short, smart) and Lennie (mentally challenged, large, strong) • Setting: the Great Depression, on a ranch in California • Plot summary: Lennie touches a girl’s dress and they are run out of Weed; Curley’s ranch is where they end up (overcompensating for his size); Curley’s wife lets Lennie touch her hair but he kills her accidentally; George shoots him to protect him from a crueler death • Theme: The American dream can go terribly wrong. • Conflict

12. Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain • Characters: Huck, Jim • Plot summary: Huck’s dad is the town drunk and he lives with the Widow who is trying to civilize him; his father returns suddenly and often keeps him locked up in the house; to escape, Huck fakes his own death; he floats on the Mississippi River and encounters Jim, an escaped slave who is trying to make his way to freedom; the two have a series of adventures before Jim is recaptured and Huck is returned home (his father is now dead). Huck still plans to go “out west” • Symbolism: Huck/Jim (Huck’s father captures and “enslaves” him, when Huck escapes, the reader thinks this is the right thing to do; however, Twain was highlighting the hypocrisy of slavery, because Jim’s escape is “illegal”) • Theme: All human beings deserve to be treated equally and fairly.

13. Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare • Brutus is convinced by Cassius to join a conspiracy against Caesar; Caesar does not “beware the ides of March” and is assassinated by a group of the conspirators, including Brutus; Marc Antony immediately turns the common people against the assassins and drives them from Rome; Antony’s army fights against the conspirators—Brutus, Cassius, and Titinius (Cassius’ best friend) all commit suicide • Conflicts • Theme: Listen to your own conscience and morals, not those of the people around you.