A Life Beyond Its Moments

                I believe in perseverance, the will to keep going, to see the future, push not pull and run without turning back. As a student it is hard to comprehend the future beyond the individual moments of my life, but with experience I know there is a future, and if I can just get through my immediate hardships I can realize that future in its full glory.

                Yet I do not believe the future is some distant dream where all my goals become reality- in fact, I have already experienced many futures, many realities. Each one required perseverance, in one form or another. When I injured my hip in the winter of 2010, then tore my ACL the next spring, I certainly encountered daunting hardships. To this day I walk around with the scars of those injuries, both physical and mental, daily reminders of the adversities I had to transcend. But persevere I did, even in the face of grueling pain, incessant recovery and even a questioning of my own faith. And when it was all over, I finally achieved my goal and made the high school junior varsity soccer team in the spring of 2011.

                The next year I failed to make the school’s varsity squad, and so I face yet another hardship. But persevere I must, for I know that my prior achievements will be joined by my future accomplishments, and with that belief and a belief in my all-loving God I can embrace the near occasion of hardship.

How My Writing Has Evolved Over the Year

Over the year my writing has become more specific and to the point. In the beginning of the year my biggest problem was being to general; now, at the end of the year, I can narrow down my topic and write a focused essay. I am more capable of avoiding “extra” thesis’ and arguments.

Also, I have learned many terms for rhetorical analysis and I can now further understand both the writings of others and myself. Having a more in-depth understanding of the effects certain writing styles and devices can have has enabled me to write papers more effective at achieving their purpose.

My MLA skills have also improved extremely, including being able to create a works cited and knowing how to use in-text citations.

Argument- Final Exam Timed Writing

How great would a world without people, without anyone else, be to the most avid of readers? He would have all the books and libraries in the world to himself, his own never-ending supply of enjoyment. All day he would spend in his chair, reading book after book day after day, all to his own pleasure. But what if this man had imperfect vision, and required glasses; God-forbid he should break his only pair of them. An episode of The Twilight Zone explored this man’s predicament as they portrayed him unable to continue on in a world of all he ever wanted. The man knew not of how to fix his glasses; he was supremely unknowledgeable on everything except for reading books. And when he faced a problem which prevented him from doing his favorite activity, there was nothing he could to fix it. He had no knowledge of how to fix his glasses, and he lacked the innovative ability to figure out how. This man, as most avid readers are, was inhibited by the narrow views and knowledge impressed upon him by the many books he read, while truly great thinkers are uninfringed upon by books and able to be innovative through their use of real-life experience and wisdom.

Textbooks are used in high school classes worldwide to provide instruction to students, and multiple books are assigned each year just for English classes in order to teach proper writing. However, a good teacher will hold multiple discussions with students in between chapters of Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, hoping to yield all-important analysis from even the shyest student. A good teacher will strive to get students to form opinions of their own, to form their own understanding of mercy and attachment and comprehend the applicability of these motifs in the real world. This analysis is often times quite varied among the students, yet it is all commended- the mere recognition of an individual opinion is the first goal. Teachers recognize the importance of teaching historical facts and writing styles through books, but they also know that the ability to understand and form an individual opinion is even more important. Mere reliance on the text itself is not sufficient.

This is why the world’s greatest thinker are not the ones who spend their times in libraries all day, but rather those who go out and do on their own. Books impede this process by making the reader reliant on the information in the text and therefore unable to themselves “further the race of man”-the narrow “teachings” of written out books offer little room for creative originality. Without books, man is free do make whatever decision he wants without constant reliance on a source foreign to himself, much like a man who feels no complement to rely on another man. Where would half of our country be if it were not for the Louisiana Purchase under Thomas Jefferson’s presidency? Literally, we wouldn’t have it. However, most people don’t know that the actual purchase was made by Robert Livingston, in France, far from Jefferson’s explicit instruction. Napoleon made the initial offer to Livingston for an area that would double the U.S. Livingston had only come for New Orleans. However, being the innovative thinker he was, Livingston was able to seal the deal himself, without having to go home to Jefferson and ask.

            Livingston was able to think for himself, without the necessary instruction of Jefferson. In the same way, great thinkers of our world are able to innovate, themselves, without the influence of books. Truly, how can one enlighten the world and “further the race of man” through books? The only knowledge in those books has already been discovered! In contrast, the world offers continuously-fresh ideas, knowledge and beliefs, all with which only the open-mind of a great thinker can put to use.

            Books, like an overbearing boss, inhibit innovation. The narrow beliefs they offer restrict progress, while those who refrain from avid reading are open to abundant paths toward enlightenment.

Statement: This writing is “excellent” because it is well structured. The essay begins with an interesting example from a modern-ish television program that most people have heard of- this attracts the audience’s attention while helping to establish my argument. After finishing the intro with a unique thesis, I use the play Merchant of Venice as concrete evidence to support my claim, while at the same time appealing to the values and insight of my audience, being a teacher. I also analyze a certain practice- being Socratic Seminars- for a higher purpose. I then use an analogy to compare the effect of books to a piece of history most people are at least familiar with- the Louisiana Purchase. Through this analogy I appeal to the audience’s logos as I make the connection between being free from the reliance of books and being free from the reliance of a boss. This helps the audience to further comprehend my argument. Finally I insert a final bit of quick, syllogistic reason before I restate my argument in my short conclusion. Overall the essay explains to the reader my argument and reinforces it with both examples and logic.

"Deep" Annotations with Analysis of Women's Rights are Human Rights by Hillary Clinton

Statement: This analysis of the speech given by Hillary Clinton on Women’s Rights is “excellent” because it efficiently defines the two devices used by Clinton in the second quote while displaying how she uses them in her speech. The QEJ also correctly analyzes the purpose of Clinton’s use of chiasmus, and uses higher-level vocabulary to do so. Finally this paper also displays “excellent” rhetorical analysis skills by determining the effect of Clinton’s rhetorical devices, what the main idea of the passage was, and tying all the analysis together into a “who cares” which states the true intent and audience of Clinton’s speech.

Impulse We Trust: The True American Motto

Andrew Seastream

Mrs. Blankenship

AP Language and Composition

5/20/12

Impulse We Trust: The True American Motto

            He has been called Lin-credible, Lin-tastic and Lin-vincible. He rose from the lowly level of bench-warming Harvard-man to team-carrying, high-scoring star of the New York Knicks. Jeremy Lin’s recent moment in the spotlight may be over, but in his prime Lin was the center of the American sports-world. He was talked about daily, not only on sports networks like ESPN, but in “every bar, every grocery line, you would hear it,” (Lopresti). Yet the mediocre statistics put up in the final games played by Lin before his season-ending injury, and the inevitable decline in public interest that followed reveal not only an inclination of American sports fans to quickly jump on popular athlete’s “bandwagons”, but their truly impulsive nature which drives their everyday lives.

            Americans have always been an impulsive people, and a comprehensive understanding of this could allow us to assess decisions we have made in the past, and decisions we have yet to make. An American can often trace the position they are in, be it economical, sociological or political, back through a roadmap of hasty decisions they have made without truly thorough consideration. However, the typical American fails to learn from a reflection of this sort and instead thrusts onward in life until they experience success; in this way the American Experience reasserts itself day after day, week after week, one impulsive decision at a time.

            Yet there are those who would deny that impulse is the true American Experience at all, including the modern retail industry. Many of us can admit to the occasional “impulse buy” while we are shopping: one has a set list of items when they walk in the store, but when they leave they have those set items and more, usually goods strategically placed to get customers to make wanton purchases. However, recent studies have shown that products typically bought on impulse, such as sunglasses and tights, have been experiencing sharply declining sales, indicating that American shoppers are becoming more frugal with their money (Edgecliffe-Johnson). Some believe this may be a result of lower incomes caused by the recent Recession, and that customers are simply holding a tighter grip on their money.  This decline of impulse purchases then indicates that Americans are becoming more rational as money becomes harder to come by.

            Members and analysts of the American political system may also find fault in the claim that impulse is the American Experience. Congressional hearings and decisions have historically been slow and long-awaited, as the Senators and Representatives from different parties take their time deliberating over the political issues of our country. At the end of 2011, a Congressional “Supercommittee” consisting of 12 Republicans and Democrats revealed that they had failed to make any decision on how to alleviate our national debt, the task for which they had been convened (Fitzgerald). This failure by the Supercommittee is indicative of the recent and indeed historical process of the American Congress, being that it is slow and unable to settle on certain policies. The Supercommittee carefully considered the situation presented before them, and, even though it was a dire one, did not exhibit any impulsive nature; in fact, they were so non-impulsive that they didn’t make any decisions at all.

            Even our educational system would have a shot at any claim of an American Experience of impulsiveness. College admission processes are known to be extremely competitive and admittance to top-tier colleges is very difficult. There is perhaps no more selective college in America than Harvard University, which requires near-perfect grades in high school along with a stellar extracurricular resume from its applicants. Harvard’s Admission Office claims in its site’s “Frequently Asked Questions” section that their students are chosen through a series of committee meetings which “very carefully” consider the information for each applicant in a process that can take several months (Harvard). Harvard, like many other universities, believes that their application process carefully considers each applicant in an unbiased manor, that if anything what they do is not impulsive. Their admittance offices deliberate to a large extent over selecting future students from their thousands of applicants, and because many other colleges are faced with the same task of picking the best students for their school, this may indicate that most colleges go through a non-impulsive process similar to the one Harvard claims to use.

            Yet while the recent decline in impulsive consumer decisions, inability of Congress to make decisions, and claim by college admissions offices that they make carefully-considered decisions may lead one to believe that the American Experience is one of caution and prudence, a wider view of American history and culture reveals that Americans are in fact driven by their impulses. Impulsiveness can be found in the idiosyncratic American lifestyle and while it can sometimes lead to regret over the lack of consideration given to certain choices during Americans’ lives, it hardly ever leads to change.

            The Gold Rush of 1849 caused many people to leave their homes for California in order to have a chance at the large supply of gold there (United States). So many people left that labor in other areas of the country became hard to come by. The trip to California was dangerous, as the drinking water along the way was of poor condition (“Gold Rush”). However, many chose to impulsively leave their family and friends for the trip anyways. The decisions by many to go to California for gold were often ill-conceived and not thoroughly thought out, as they were derived mainly from the hype spreading throughout the country, and even through the President himself (United States). The migrants had their minds on the riches they could get, and not on the dangers involved; they made an impulsive decision to go to California and try to get rich, which may lead some to believe that they may have been greedy in some ways.

            Yet perhaps it is not a greedy nature but instead an opportunistic drive that makes Americans so impulsive. In the early 1800’s, when then-President Thomas Jefferson sent Robert Livingston to France in order to negotiate with the Emperor Napoleon, he was simply aiming to acquire the New Orleans territory (“Louisiana Purchase”). However, when the embattled French leader offered much more, Livingston agreed to the deal without consulting Jefferson (Ibid). The deal was over the budget provided by Jefferson, but Livingston thought that he would agree on the fantastic terms provided (Ibid). It was this impulsive decision that saved the deal from potentially falling off the table, and nearly doubled the size of the U.S. This is a typical form of American impulsiveness, as it reflects the opportunities present in America and the eagerness of Americans to jump on these opportunities, impulsively, because they believe the opportunities will be beneficial for them. American impulsiveness often consists of "seizing-of-the-moment" opportunities such as the Louisiana Purchase, which has led to great prosperity for our country.

            And perhaps no one knows better of “seizing-of-the-moment” opportunities than Rosa Parks, who was riding a bus while sitting behind the ten seats designated for white people when she was told to vacate her seat. Given that she had already moved aside in the same row to make room for a white man, she refused to give up her seat and was later tried in court for her indignance (U.S. District Court). Rosa Parks made the decision during her famous bus ride to not give up her seat to the white man, even though the white section of the bus was overflowing and the bus driver instructed her to get up so that the white man could sit down. Rosa Parks was already sitting in the colored section, and she believed that she should not have to give up her seat for a white man to sit down. She made an impulsive decision during that bus ride to stand her ground and sit down for her rights, and while she was arrested for it she ended up victorious through the Montgomery Bus Boycott that followed under her leadership. Parks' impulsiveness to stand up for what she believed in is a common part of the American Experience, as Americans often assert their beliefs at the slightest challenge. Rosa Parks could not have known that day that the white section would overflow into the colored section, but when she was asked to vacate her seat she still made an impulsive decision to stand up for herself and tell the white man "no". Parks instincts told her that she needed to defend her beliefs, and in doing so she reestablished impulse as the American Experience.

            Thus Americans encounter the influence of impulse nearly every day, and their failures and achievements in life derive from this influence. Their experience as Americans has driven them to snap decisions that turn out either beautiful or disastrous, beneficial or detrimental. One could look back and reflect on these decisions, attempt to learn from their mistakes and prepare for the future; however, a true American chooses to take their impulsive experiences in stride, wading forward in the depths of trial and error until, finally, they can emerge above it all and bask in the glow of their long-awaited fortune. Only after making multiple impulsive decisions such as investing in Facebook because one was “caught up in the excitement of an enormous social media company going public”, then losing a great deal of money as the stock price plummeted can one experience the success felt by those Americans who impulsively joined the California Gold Rush (Jones). And only then, at the moment of success, is there time for reflection, time to decide which of their impulsive decisions were well-made or poorly-conceived. The American Experience is one of impulsiveness, and in the fast-paced culture of modern society he or she who challenges this claim is already a step behind.

Works Cited

Edgecliffe-Johnson, Andrew. “Impulse Buying Gives Way to US Frugality.” Financial Times. The Financial Times Limited 2012, 4 Nov. 2009. Web. 20 Mar. 2012.

Fitzgerald, Thomas. “Paralysis on Debt Further Erodes Congress’ Image.” Philadelphia Inquirer 22 Nov. 2011. General OneFile. Web. 10 Apr. 2012.

“Gold Rush.”  10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America. The History Channel. 2006. American History in Video. Web. 23 Mar. 2012.

Harvard College Office of Admissions. “Applying to Harvard Frequently Asked Questions.” Harvard College Office of Admissions. Harvard College. Web. 10 Apr. 2012.

Jones, Roland. "Facebook's Bungled IPO Ticks Off Small Investors." Market Day.
     MSNBC, 25 May 2012. Web. 25 May 2012.

Lopresti, Mike. “People Who Barely Follow the NBA Are Jumping on the Lin Bandwagon: ‘Linsanity’ Hits Toronto Tonight.” McClatchy-Tribune 14 Feb. 2012. eLibrary. Web. 23 Mar. 2012.

“The Louisiana Purchase.” Monticello, Home of Thomas Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Inc., Feb. 2003. Web. 23 Mar. 2012.

United States. James K. Polk: Annual Message . By James Polk. Washington: United States, 1848. Books & Authors. Web. 23 Mar. 2012.

U.S. District Court for Middle District of Alabama. Illustration of Bus where Rosa Parks Sat. 1955. National Archives and Records Administration-Southeast Region, East Point, GA. The National Archives. Web. 23 Mar. 2012.

Get Ready

Get ready for AP Lang, if you choose to take it. Get ready for a difficult class that will keep you on your toes the whole year. Get ready for essays, and get ready for more essays. Get ready for the knowledge to argue your way through almost anything and the power to write an amazing piece of work for your SAT and other needs. But right now, get ready to read these important tips on how to succeed in this course (if you choose to succeed). These five tips are my keys to success in AP Lang, and I highly suggest anyone taking the class read them before you start the class, when you run into some of the problems associated with these tips, and pretty much every night before you go to bed. Just kidding, but seriously, these are important. You're welcome.

Second Quarter Reflection

          For my first quarter reflection I said that the American Experience at the beginning of our country was "one of constant difficulties which often were voiced and had action taken to resolve them." However, during first quarter I believed that the current American Experience was one of great opportunity in almost all aspects, and I still stand by this belief.
          Unlike some powerful governments like those in China and North Korea, the American government is very nonrestrictive- American citizens enjoy many rights citizens in other countries don't, such as freedom of speech. And unlike other countries like India, America has great opportunities for social mobility unhindered by rigid social structures. While America is certainly not the only country with this sort of freedom, for hundreds of years it has certainly been viewed as such: our country has frequently experienced great immigration rates during mass exoduses abroad such as during the Great Irish Potato Famine and World War II. Why else would they choose America but for the chance for a better life. This has been the perceived view of people from other countries, that America is a land of opportunity.
          This view in turns helps our country to sustain it; we offer jobs and education to immigrants that help them to choose whatever life they desire, and this labor supports our economy, which offers an incentive again to offer opportunities to members of the lower classes, immigrants being a member of that class. In a failing world economy in which new jobs have often been said to be the answer, America is the land of opportunity that can offer the social mobility that suppressed and economically depressed members of the global society desire. This is my stance on the great American Experience, as it has always been, mostly because both sides of my family's immigration to America can be traced back to leaving their lives in suppressed countries (Germany and Mexico) for better opportunities in America.
         

Tip #5

How to Handle the Pressure

          I can almost guarantee you this will be one of the hardest classes you ever take: it's an AP class. And with all the other classes you will be taking, most likely other advanced classes, you will be under a lot of pressure in AP Lang to keep up your grade. However, in a class based so much on writing, including a lot of on the spot writing, it is important to be well in your head so that you can think and write clearly.
          I'm not going to tell you that you'll be able to keep the same grade you usually get in your classes; for me I've accepted that I may not. It is important to stay motivated, but you may have to change your goals. I personally lowered my expectations a letter grade so that they are more achievable. Many people have probably told you that a key to success in life is setting achievable goals; it's true, especially for AP Lang. If you set your goals to high you may crash and burn and get a lower grade than you would have with lower but more achievable goals. That's what happened to me first quarter, and after that I decided to lower my expectations and relieve myself of some of the pressure I was feeling.
          This in turn helped my grade to increase. Now, at the end of second quarter, I'm looking at a higher grade than I had last quarter because by taking some heavy pressure of my shoulders I was able to get more sleep and enjoy the class a little more. This all helped me write better in my essays and more clearly comprehend quiz questions, and it also helped me do when when we began to do seminars.

All the tips I have offered here are critical, but in order to succeed in AP Lang one must have a clear mind free of unnecessary pressure so that they can provide their best possible work.

          

Tip #4

How to Take an AP Multiple Choice Quiz

          At the end of the year, every kid who takes AP Lang will most likely take the AP Lang Exam to test the knowledge they gained. However, throughout the year these students will take small portions of past Exams as periodic evaluations of the student's progress. These "AP multiple choice quizzes" are timed, fairly difficult, and hard to study for. Yet not only can they often have a great impact on your quarter grade, they can also prepare you for the AP Exam at the end of the year, which by passing can earn you college credit for taking the course in high school. Learning how to do well on these quizzes is critical to both your learning and your grade, so here's some tips.

          At the end of one semester of AP Lang I have taken many multiple choice quizzes, both at home and in class. As the year has progressed I have varied in my quiz scores, but overall they have improved, as has my comfortably with taking them. The first thing to remember is that these quizzes are timed, and even if you are at home you should probably time yourself to get an accurate judgement of well you are doing. On average each question on the quiz adds a minute and six seconds- a ten question quiz would take eleven minutes- according to Mrs. Blankenship. This time includes the time you must take to read the passage that goes with each quiz, which can eat up a considerable amount of time. Here is an example of a passage by Ralph Waldo Emerson my class had to take a quiz to for homework. See how long it takes you to read it:

          Promptly read, this passage may take you two and a half minutes to read; that leaves you with eight and a half minutes to answer ten questions. But how much of the passage did you really absorb? Many of the questions will require you to go back and read the text over again, killing even more time. This is the common problem AP Lang students who want a good grade face.

          In order to fix this, I usually skip passages of this size entirely and read the first question right as the quiz begins. If this question asks for an overall tone, argument, or something that would require a full reading of the passage, I move on to the next question. I keep moving on until I reach the first question on a specific few sentences or part of a paragraph- something that won't take me long to read. The questions are usually ordered chronologically, so this means that the first specific question should be from the beginning of the passage, and the last specific question will be from the end. By the time I finish all the specific questions, I've ended up reading a good portion of the passage.
          Nice. NOW I can go back and answer the overall questions. If it asks something about overall tone, I'll know about that because I just spent the last six or so minutes partially reading the passage; I could even keep these more general questions in the back of my head while I'm reading the passage to answer the more specific ones. This way I save time that might otherwise be wasted reading and rereading passages word for word.
          But before I even walk into the quiz, I can also do a bit of studying. I can review my vocab terms so that I know what the questions are referring to. But the most important thing I can do is look over past practice multiple choice quizzes.
          Have you ever thought, wow, the only reason I got that wrong was because I just don't think in those terms, while the test-writers do. Well that's a nice little thing to make yourself feel better, but it's not going to help you get a better score. By going over questions you got wrong on past quizzes, however, you can better understand how the test-writers think- for example, AP Lang test-writers are very specific and do everything for a purpose, so if most of an answer looks right except for one part, don't think they were just being ambivalent. They probably did that purposefully to trick you. These little thought processes will help you better get into the mind of an AP Lang Exam writer, and help you do better on the multiple choice quizzes.

Tip #3

How to Participate in a Seminar

  
          Since middle school, maybe even elementary school, I have periodically participated in what I knew as "Socratic Seminars". However, as I entered into the realm of AP classes, I noticed that they had become more frequent, and thus more essential to my grade. My participation in these seminars, especially in AP Lang, became critical, for not only did they have a decent impact on my quarter grade, they were also a way to convey knowledge to my teacher that I might struggle to express in my writing; they were a way to prove myself.
          Early in my AP Lang year, we read a book called Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, and had two ensuing seminars. Prior to these seminars we were told to read different portions of the book, and while some of the questions presented during the seminar were on storyline and content, requiring a sufficient understanding of the plot (see "How to Read Efficiently"), many of the questions were analytical and required second-level thinking.
          For me these seminars were always exciting as I usually felt confident that I was going to perform well. I believe this was my first key to a successful seminar: Confidence. Begin the seminar feeling comfortable that you had important things to say.
          And to help your confidence, make sure you are well-prepared before the seminar. I flipped through Frederick Douglass prior to the seminars and copied down some brief summary notes of the book, dog-earing sections I felt could have many uses for answering different questions. I also made sure I understood what Douglass' main overall argument was, so that if I began to speak and drew a blank, or couldn't think of anything in the first place, I could at least tie whatever the topic of the question was back to the overall argument.
          Also, speaking towards the beginning of a discussion on a question is very important; this helps you to offer original points that may have been taken later if you had chosen to wait. Flipping frantically through your book will most likely not help you, as the point could be taken during the time you were searching, or worse yet you might not here the point be taken and you could speak up only to restate almost exactly what someone had said before.
          However, if you truly can't think of something right away, and you feel you aren't fresh on the topic being discussed, you can still earn points by thinking on your feet. If you don't remember how a section of the book being discussed went down, and you don't have any notes on the topic, put both your notes and book to the side- they can't help you now. Pay attention closely to what the other people in the classroom are saying. Try to absorb the content of the situation as well as the overall context. As there are always different sides and opinions to everything, you may find yourself considering something different than what seems to be the mostly reiterated view of the discussion. Even if you don't fully agree with it, propose the idea to the class- just make sure you back it up with some evidence you heard someone else use or you finally remembered. A point is a point, and it tends to be an interesting one if it challenges the view of many people.
          In short, seminars in AP Lang are very important not just because they can help your grade but because they can relay knowledge to your teacher than you may have trouble expressing through other mediums. Confidence and preparation are key, but if you cant think of anything right away, try being the "devil's advocate" and challenge opinions that are being reiterated by members of the discussion. My teacher Mrs. Blankenship will periodically intervene in our seminars using the same technique, and she's the teacher so....

Tip #2

How to Recognize Rhetorical Strategies

 
          AP Lang is as much a class about rhetoric, about making and understanding arguments, as any math class is about math, as any history class is about history. AP Lang. Is. Rhetoric. Understanding the rhetoric you read throughout the course, by different authors, is important for when you take the multiple choice portion of the exam at the end of the year, and being able to make your own rhetoric is important for when you write your essays as part of that exam. And an essential part of rhetoric is rhetorical strategies, so an essential part for understanding rhetoric is being able to recognize rhetorical strategies.
          If you can recognize the way that an author conveys his argument, you can often figure out what the author is arguing and why it is effective. Being able to recognize an author's rhetorical strategy can also help you answer many multiple choice questions that straight up ask you to identify how an author makes his argument. There are many reasons why having this skill is important for this course, but overall the skill simply helps you develop your own use of strategies, your own form of writing, and your own method of persuasion.
          And quite frankly, this knowledge is a tool that's easy to achieve. As you start out reading different documents, refer to your notes and handouts on the definitions of different rhetorical strategies; here is an extensive list of strategies and devices that you may use during your time in AP Lang. However, as your progress throughout the year, try to memorize as many terms as you can by studying the vocab; this will help you to easier sort through your "mental list" of different devices. By easily memorizing these terms before I read The Scarlet Letter by Nathanial Hawthorne I was able to much better understand Hawthorne's argument and purpose. This knowledge also helped me perform better on later assessments on the book.
          If you want to succeed in AP Lang, you must be able to recognize the rhetorical strategies of other authors. If you want to be able to recognize rhetorical strategies, you should make sure to memorize your terms and definitions. It really is simple, but you need to do it to succeed.

Tip #1

How to Read Efficiently

          If you plan on taking AP Language and Composition in the near future, you are most-likely a high-level student. Congratulations on having the self-worth to think you are ready for this class. But if you are a high-level student, you are most likely taking other advanced, maybe even AP, classes. This means you will not have a lot of time on your hands to waste.
          Unlike other English classes, AP Lang does not assign a lot of book reading; however, there are many documents that you must read throughout the year. Reading these documents, along with the occasional book, and answering any following questions are critical to helping you understand the course curriculum, as they not only exemplify how some of the greatest writers in history, such as Ralph Emerson and Thomas Paine, wrote, they also help you to understand and develop your own form of writing. These readings, when read well enough, can help you to see how different rhetorical strategies are efficiently used to convey an argument.
          But who has time to read every word of every book and document that is handed out? Certainly not a student who is taking other challenging courses besides AP Lang. That is why I quickly learned that being able to read efficiently was going to be critical to keep my grade up.
          Early in the year my AP Lang class had to read the book Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, by Douglass. While the book was short, I was currently in the middle of many other assignments from my other classes, and some from AP Lang as well. Therefore I resigned to shorten the time I spent reading this book, while still absorbing as much as I could.
          Now, each student will have a different way of reading efficiently; it is important to develop it on your own, because your confidence in your style will help to keep you attentive and effective as you read the book. Personally, I read the first one or two sentences of each paragraph, then moved on to the next. I looked out for speaking lines and action descriptions, but for the most part I decided that the meat of each paragraph happened at the beginning. Of course, there were paragraphs I came across that I had to finish because they were simply vital to the writer's argument. However, using my own method of reading efficiently, I found I finished the book with a fairly thorough understanding of both the content and the meaning.
          Again, this information was vital for my grade. Throughout the reading of the book I was able to glean both how the author was able to convey his argument and how to incorporate bits of his writing style into my own writing. And all the while I was able to maintain my workload both for AP Lang and all of my classes combined.