AP Practice Essays

Groupthink

My group mostly discussed the poem I chose, "The Road Not Taken." I believe I had a good understanding of this poem, but it was nice to hear what the others thought as well. We all believed that there was a sort of struggle that was occurring. Some believed it was a choice that the character had to make while others believed it could also be something that was forced onto another. I say it could be either when only the first two stanzas are read. By the third and fourth however I see it as two options being presented, one more difficult than the other, and that you have to choose between those that are given. And then by choosing the more difficult one there will be more benefits.

Gridlock

Poem Analysis (TPCASTT ) of 'The Road Not Taken'

• Title: I believe the title means that are two different paths to choose from and that one of them, more often than not, isn't taken.
• Paraphrase: This poem could literally be about two paths in some type of forest, but I believe its really just about two choices going around in someone's head.
• Connotation: "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by" This means that there were two options in this persons life and they had to make a difficult choice. They chose to go where many don't, probably because it wasn't the easy way out.
• Diction: I think the words chosen by Robert Frost were smart and eloquent because this poem can be understood by many because it doesn't have big, scary words that you need a dictionary for. He wanted his message to be heard by all.
• Attitude: The person in the story seemed determined to find whatever he/she was looking for.
• Tone: This poem is very calming which I think is needed because it really makes you think about life and which paths you want to pursue.
• Shift(s): The person seems to be intrigued by the path that most people take, but in the end he decides to take the one most people avoid noting how much it was worth it.
• Title revisited: The title now seems to explain that there is a path that isn't followed, but it should be and that's what the person in this poem decides.
• Theme: The central message I believe is to know every option you have and to pursue the more difficult one because in the end it could change your life.

Seventh Reading

The Road Not Taken - Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Open Essay Prompts - Carrie by Stephen King

1. In some works of literature the insanity (or period of insanity) of a main character plays a central role. Choose a novel or play of literary merit and write a well-organized essay in which you discuss the mental illness of a central character and the specific ways in which that character’s mental illness relates to the larger themes of the work.

2. In some works of literature, mothers or the concept of motherhood play central roles. Choose a novel or play of literary merit and write a well-organized essay in which you discuss a maternal character and the specific ways the character and the concept of maternity relate to the larger themes of the work.

3. Novels and plays often include scenes of weddings, funerals, parties, and other social occasions [PROM]. Such scenes may reveal the values of the characters and the society in which they live. Select a novel or play that includes such a scene and, in a focused essay, discuss the contribution the scene makes to the meaning of the work as a whole.

---None of these prompts were meant specifically for Carrie, but I believe that they could all be responded to with this book in mind.