English 10 EOC Review

1. English 10 EOC Review Ruppel-Lee 2013

2. “Harrison Bergeron”by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Main characters: Harrison Bergeron (14 yr old boy who is not happy with being heavily handicapped), George (HB’s father), Hazel (HB’s mother), Handicapper General (Diana Moon Glampers) Setting: 2081, George and Hazel Bergeron seem very subdued as they watch TV Conflict: everyone must be handicapped to be the same, Harrison hates being held back by his numerous handicaps Risingaction: Harrison breaks out of jail and gets on TV, he wants to be emperor and release everyone from their handicaps Climax: As Harrison and the ballet dancer are truly dancing w/o handicaps, the H-G Diana Moon Glampers storms in, shoots and kills them. Resolution: Harrison is dead, everyone must put on their handicaps, and life resumes as “normal” with George and Hazel forgetting what they saw

3. “Harrison Bergeron” continued Theme: what if everyone were the same? (are people happy being “made” “equal”?) Literaryterms: conflict—a struggle between two opposing forces (the “problem”) Howtheyapply: Harrison vs. the government/Handicapper General (he wants to be himself, an individual who can enjoy and maximize his abilities, not have to compensate for them) Harrison vs. his handicaps (tremendous pair of earphones, spectacles with thick wavy lenses, scrap metal hanging from him totaling 300 pounds, red rubber ball nose, shaved eyebrows, white even teeth covered with black caps at snaggle-tooth random)

4. “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker Maincharacters: Mama: not very educated, “man hands”, very strong, okay with being poor and is comfortable in her own skin Maggie: sister to Dee, was burned in the old house fire and is shy and slow, uncertain of herself when around the more forceful Dee Dee: sister to Maggie, is more educated and better looking, ashamed of poor home, believes her mother and sister could do better Setting: at Mama’s home in the South Conflict: Dee wants the family quilts, but they’re already promised to Maggie Risingaction: Dee takes the quilts and tries to leave with them, Maggie says Dee can have them Climax: Mama took the quilts from Dee and gave them to Maggie Resolution: Dee leaves, mad, without the quilts, and Maggie is happy that Mama chose Maggie over Dee (first time ever) Theme: what makes something valuable—Dee thinks old things from her family are pretty, and therefore valuable artifacts that should be displayed. Maggie and Mama believe family artifacts should be treasured and used. Every day.

5. “Everyday Use” continued Literaryterms: conflict—struggle between opposing forces resolution—wrapping up the story after the climax Howtheyapply: conflict—Dee vs. poor home (ashamed of coming from such poverty, she NEVER brought friends over) Dee vs. Maggie, Momma (wants quilts already promised to Maggie; not used to being told no; thinks her looks and formal education make her better than her family members; disagrees on what is important in life)

6. “The Race to Save Apollo 13”by Michael Useem Maincharacters: Eugene Kranz (NASA flight director), James Lovell (astronaut) Setting: April 13, 1970, Apollo 13 space flight, Mission Control in Houston, TX Conflict: “Houston, we’ve had a problem.” An oxygen tank explosion on Apollo 13 has wrecked vital equipment, limiting the astronauts’ oxygen and compromising their mission (which was to land on the moon) Risingaction: Mission Control needs to figure out how to 1) keep the astronauts alive w/ enough oxygen, 2) how to bring the astronauts back home. Climax: They made it around the moon, how to land on earth? Resolution: With a lot of teamwork and great leadership decisions from Kranz, the astronauts safely returned to earth unharmed.

7. “The Race to Save Apollo 13” continued Theme: achieving the impossible (how can we achieve the impossible) Literaryterms: suspense—a feeling of excitement or tension about what will happen next Howtheyapply: suspense was built with constant updates of problems/steps needed to solve problems “By now, more bad news from Odyssey.” piloting a lunar module to Earth—something never done before and extremely difficult to do with the damaged and powered down spaceship)

8. “Shoofly Pie”by Naomi Shihab Nye Maincharacters: Mattie (recently lost her mother to brain cancer), Johnny (chef at the restaurant, just lost his grandfather), Riyad (understanding Arab American who owns the restaurant, just lost his father) Setting: Good for You Restaurant, Conflict: Mattie needs help getting over her mother’s death Risingaction: She gets a job at the restaurant, figuring it will occupy her and it’s the perfect place because so many people are bereaved. Climax: Johnny (who’s rude to Mattie in the beginning), learns that she has recently lost her mother. He’s much nicer. Punk. Resolution: Mattie is busy now once she’s learned all the ropes of the restaurant and is doing better. So she leaves. Johnny’s bummed. Too bad. 

9. “Shoofly Pie” Theme: grief (is there a cure for grief?) Literaryterms: character traits—qualities of a character Howtheyapply: Mattie—grieving, but very level-headed and capable, hard worker Johnny—rude at first, but mellows once he learns about Mattie’s mom Riyad—very understanding boss and owner of the restaurant

10. “The Possibility of Evil”by Shirley Jackson Maincharacters: Miss Strangeworth (meddling old lady, last “Strangeworth” in the small town), Mr. Lewis (grocer), Helen Crane (new mom who worries her new baby isn’t moving around enough), Dave Harris (teen who finds Miss Strangeworth’s dropped note at the post office box) Setting: in a small town Conflict: Miss Strangeworth feels compelled to keep the town “clean,” so she writes anonymous letters to neighbors to warn them of the possibility of evil. Risingaction: She writes letters to Helen Crane (you’re spoiling your baby), Climax: She drops a letter at the post office when dropping three off after hours. It’s picked up and delivered by Dave Harris. Resolution: People in the town destroyed her roses once they realized she was behind all the letters that were making everyone upset. She loved those roses, so it was a real blow to her.

11. “The Possibility of Evil” Theme: judging (How good are you at judging people?) Literaryterms: motivation—what makes a character do what he/she does Howtheyapply: motivation—Miss Strangeworth is motivated to keep the town “clean”, since her ancestors were important to the town. The townspeople affected by her anonymous letters are motivated by hatred because she’s caused them such unnecessary worry and strain.

12. “Like the Sun”by R. K. Narayan Main characters:Sekhar (a procrastinator who thinks telling the absolute truth is like staring at the sun—blinding and hard to look at, is also a well- known music critic), the headmaster (Sekhar’s boss who wonders about his true musical abilities) Setting: India Conflict: Sekhar decides to tell the absolute truth all day, no matter the consequences Risingaction: He tells his wife her cooking is bad, he tells his co-worker a dead guy was a brute, then his headmaster asks him to give his opinion of his musical talent Climax: Sekhar tells the truth—that the headmaster has no musical talent and should quit (Sekhar risks being fired) Resolution: the headmaster thanks Sekhar for his honesty, but the next day makes him grade 100 papers overnight.

13. “Like the Sun” continued Theme: honesty (how important is it to tell the truth?) Literaryterms: moral dilemma—character must choose between two questionable options Howtheyapply: Sekhar risks his wife’s happiness, alienating a colleague, and possibly losing his job just to stick to a self-imposed and secret personal challenge to tell the whole truth all day

14. “The Teacher Who Changed My Life”by Nicholas Gage Maincharacters: Nicholas Gage, Miss Hurd, Gage’s father Setting: 1953 when Gage entered Miss Hurd’s classroom; 1949 when Gage arrived in NY from Greece Conflict: Gage’s mother was imprisoned, tortured, and shot by Communist guerrillas in Greece in the spring of 1948 for arranging for her children to be sent to the United States to live with their father. Gage initially resented his father for not getting the entire family to America. Risingaction: Gage meets Miss Marjorie Hurd in a newspaper class and later takes as many classes with her as possible. She’s a good influence on him and gets him to share his mother’s story with the school and community. She’s tough and persistent. Climax: Gage continues to succeed in his journalistic endeavors and Miss Hurd continues to support him and be present for his life’s major milestones (graduations, marriage, children’s baptisms). His father is very proud of his son and carried a laminated photo of Gage and President Kennedy on his person for 20 years) Resolution: Miss Hurd requested Gage write and deliver her eulogy when the time came, he hopes his remembrance will honor her and suffice instead.

15. “The Teacher Who Changed My Life” continued Theme: teachers (Who has made you a better person?) Literaryterms: characterization—the way a writer creates and develops characters’ personalities (i.e. direct comments, physical appearance, what the character thinks or says or does, or what others think or say or do around that character) Howtheyapply: Miss Hurd is characterized by: what Gage says (“a salty-tongued, no-nonsense schoolteacher” who “nearly dragged me” to be a successful writer) physical appearance (“formidable, solidly built woman with salt-and- pepper hair, a steely eye and a flat Boston accent”) what Hurd says (“What are all you goof-offs doing here?” she bellowed... “…you’re going to work your tails off here!”) Gage’s father is initially described as a “portly, bald, well-dressed man who…seemed a foreign, authoritarian figure” but the reader sees how proud the father is of the son’s success when he buys a new suit to greet the congratulatory Greek community after Gage’s picture receiving an award from President Kennedy runs in the local paper.

16. “A Marriage Proposal”by Anton Chekov Maincharacters: Ivan Lomov (neighbor to Tschubukov, wants to marry Natalia, bit of a nervous hypochondriac), StepanTschubukov (neighbor to Lomov, father of Natalia, seemingly overjoyed at the thought of his daughter marrying Lomov), Natalia Stepanovna (25 year old daughter to Tschubukov, wants to get out of the house, VERY argumentative and stubborn) Setting: a country estate in late 19th century Russia, characters are members of the gentry (wealthy land owners) Conflict: Lomov tries to work up the nerve to ask Natalia to marry him. Risingaction: Lomov doesn’t even get to the proposal because he and Natalia argue over who owns the meadows. Lomov leaves, insulted and agitated. Climax: Natalia learns he meant to propose and is in hysterics to have Lomov return, but they argue again (dogs, this time). Lomov faints and Tschubukov is over the drama. Resolution: Tschubukov joins their hands, says they’re engaged, then tries to give them the boot so they don’t start another argument. He’s eager to have them both out of his house.

17. “A Marriage Proposal” continued Theme: absurdity (why do people argue over silly things?) Literaryterms: farce—a humorous play that includes ridiculous situations and dialogue. Characters are usually comical stereotypes who conform to a fixed pattern/single trait. stage directions—describe the scenery and props, the actions of characters, or the tone in which dialogue should be delivered aside—a short speech directed to the audience or a character but not heard by the other characters onstage. monologue– a long speech that is usually delivered by a character who is alone onstage Howtheyapply: farce—the characters have one primary trait about each of them (nervous, joyous, stubborn) stage directions—(mimicking him) aside—“He’s come to borrow money…What is it then, dear Lomov?”monologue—[Lomov]

18. “By the Waters of Babylon”by Stephen Vincent Benet Maincharacters: John (young man in training to become a priest—loves learning, is imaginative, and has a strong desire for knowledge—no matter how forbidden), John’s father (also a priest) Setting: future, long after a cataclysmic event that destroyed New York City Conflict: John is consumed with the desire to travel into the forbidden east to see what the Place of the Gods really looks like. He must get permission from his father, a priest, before traveling out on his journey to become a man. Risingaction: Permission granted, he nervously heads east after seeing signs of animals heading east. He must overcome his fears as he crosses the river. Climax: John has visions, or an out of body experience, of how the Place of the Gods looked before the Great Burning. He realizes the “gods” were just humans like him. Resolution: He returns home, eager to share his knowledge with everyone. His father cautions him to reveal the truth slowly. He wants to rebuild New York.

19. “By the Waters of Babylon” continued Theme: knowledge (does knowledge come at a price?) Literaryterms: first person point of view—the narrator is a character who speaks directly to the reader and uses the pronoun I. naïve narrator—a narrator who does not fully understand what he sees or experiences tone—the author’s attitude toward the story’s subject allusion—reference to something else Howtheyapply: John is the narrator. He is certainly naïve. He did not know how to paddle across the Great River, so he called upon the gods. He also didn’t understand the sink / stove / light fixtures in the “god’s” house. “The magic was gone.” Benet is “By the waters of Babylon” is an allusion to Psalms 137 in the Bible, when the Jews, newly enslaved in Babylon, cry out for their destroyed homeland of Zion.

20. “Mending Wall”by Robert Frost Maincharacters: narrator (seems playful, wonders about things instead of just accepting them, questions) and his neighbor (does not question things, likes to repeat what he’s been told, “He will not go behind his father’s saying, / And he likes having thought of it so well / He says again, “Good fences make good neighbors.”) Setting: Two neighbors get together once a year to mend a stone wall between their properties. Conflict: What causes the wall to require repair? And why repair it at all? It is suggested nature and hunters work to tear a wall down (“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall”). The wall divides pine trees from apple trees, not animals. Why repair it at all? Risingaction: The narrator suggests the wall is not needed, but the other neighbor will not think to question the purpose, just accept the presence of the wall and the perceived need to keep it set between them.

21. “Mending Wall” continued Theme: nature (how can nature inspire you?) Literaryterms: tone—author’s overall attitude toward the story Howtheyapply: What tone is used in lines 5-9 of “Mending Wall”? “The work of hunters is another thing: I have come after them and made repair Where they have left not one stone on a stone, But they would have the rabbit out of hiding, To please the yelping dogs.” Do you think Frost approves or disapproves of walls between neighbors after reading this poem? What is his overall tone toward the repairing the wall?

22. from Farewell to Manzanarby Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston Main characters: the Wakatsuki family—Papa, Mama, brothers, Jeanne Wakatsuki (narrator, seven at the time Setting: Boyle Heights, a minority ghetto in downtown Los Angeles, CA 1941/1942 [post-Pearl Harbor bombing by the Japanese) Conflict: America was newly embroiled in war against Japan after the surprise bombing of Pearl Harbor. Prejudice and limited rights already existed in the west coast against Japanese, the Pearl Harbor made everything worse for those of Japanese descent living in America. The Wakatsuki family moved twice after Papa was “arrested” and sent to an all male internment camp. Rising action: The Wakatsukis were ordered to report to Manzanar, an internment camp in CA and assigned a number. The government was ill-prepared for so many people and the camps were hastily put together (cracks in walls letting in desert sand during wind), and not culturally sensitive.

23. from Farewell to Manzanar Climax: Living conditions were cramped, dusty, and stressful. The Wakatsukis worried about keeping the family together, but were relieved to finally be away from the prejudice and hatred outside the internment camps. Resolution: The Japanese internees worked together for the good of the community to make the best of an unpleasant situation. Theme: enemy (What if your government declared you the enemy? How does one define “enemy”?) Literary terms: cultural details learned from this memoir— “Shihataganai” It cannot be helped. It must be done. Issei—people born in Japan who moved to the USA value of personal privacy rice with salty/savory foods, NOT sweets importance of the family unit and staying together