Research Assignment 1 - Literary Terms

Directions: Look up each of the following terms and come up with a definition for each—as it applies to literature. You can reword the definition in your own language (i.e. paraphrase) and/or use a whole or partial quote to describe it (but make sure you use appropriate parenthetical citations). At the end of your vocabulary list with definitions, create a short Annotated Bibliography for each source used (minimum of 2 internet or print sources). See the next page for instructions on how to create an Annotated Bibliography. NOTE: For this assignment, you will only need to discuss the reliability/credibility of the source for each annotation.

• Alliteration
• Allusion
• Climax
• Connotation
• Didactic
• Ethos
• Foreshadowing
• Hyperbole
• Imagery
• Intertextuality
• Irony
• Juxtaposition
• Metaphor
• Mood
• Motif
• Style
• Theme

"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Directions: Follow the general directions for a Reader Response (refer to the first assignment posting). Read Gabriella Garcia Marquez’s short story “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings” and consider the role of perspective—each character’s, the narrator, and your own—in the interpretation of this story. What have you noticed and thought about regarding this role? So, is the old man an angel or not, or does it even matter?

Reader Response One - Cathedral by Raymond Carver

General directions: Write a 1-2 page response to the literary work using the writing prompt below. Handwritten is fine but use discretion on size of handwriting and length of response by judging the quality of the response and not the quantity. Make sure this is an in-depth analysis of what you read. DO NOT SUMMARIZE. Rather, briefly explain what happens in the story if the plot is necessary for you include, and then explain the significance of you bringing it up again. Include direct quotes to support your ideas.

Think about: Mood, themes, language, literary techniques (allusions, symbolism, irony, etc.), arguments in disguise. Another good tip is to always use the formula: claim --> evidence --> explanation/reasoning.

Directions: Respond to question 8 on page 537: "In paragraph 96, the blind man observes that the men who began work on a cathedral never lived to see it completed. In this way, he says, 'they're no different from the rest of us.' What does the cathedral symbolize to the blind man? What does it come to symbolize to the narrator?"