Writing the Prose Response Essay

The Ten Commandments of the Prose Response

I.Read the Prompt Closely and Carefully

Make sure to look for the specific requirements of the prompt. Circle or underline them before you read the actual passage. If a prompt demands specific analysis of a particular device, you must do it. If it suggests a particular device, I recommend writing about that device if you can, because the scoring guides often reference those suggested devices.

II.Frame Your Argument Correctly. The Author’s Action Are Key.

When writing (especially thesis statements and topic sentences), make sure that you frame the argument around what the author does in the passage, not the plot or characters. That will help avoid plot/character summary. Consider the following thesis statements:

  1. The characters in Elizabeth Gaskell’s Mary Barton are rich and complex. (character driven)
  2. The characters in Mary Barton are depicted as rich and complex by Elizabeth Gaskell. (passive voice–avoid)
  3. In her work Mary Barton, Elizabeth Gaskell depicts rich and complex characters. (active, author-driven, good)

III.Writing About Tone is Delightful

  1. Remember, tone is the author’s point of view towards his/her subject. Characters can also have tone towards one another in their dialogue, but you need to be precise in your analysis.
  2. Tone is often one of the easiest things to write about.
  3. When writing about tone, don’t forget the WILDS Model. (Word choice, imagery, language, detail, syntax)

IV.Writing About Point of View

  • Point of view is an objective evaluation of the author’s position relative to the text. It’s not some vague or amorphous thing, Make sure to identify what it specifically is.Check the Point of View handout to review the different forms it can take.
  • When writing about point of view, keep it short and focus on the impact on the reader.
  • You can further explore point of view in terms of the narrator’s position, i.e. whether or not he/she is detached/close/interested, etc. This is secondary to the objective detail.

V.Broad Social Themes/Modern Issues Are Not For You

Unless the prompt specifically demands it, do not make the essay a persuasive exposition about social issues or current events. Stay focused on literary analysis.

VI.Details, Details, Details

Use specific details to show the reader how smart you are, or to give the illusion of your intelligence. 🙂 General, surface essays do not score as well. Details are the proof for your claims, and you can’t leave them out.

VII.Don’t Get Fixated on One Detail, Though

  • As good as detail analysis is, don’t get carried away on any one particular detail. It’s easy to slip into spending a whole paragraph on one detail–but that will not prove that you understand the whole passage.
  • A 2-3 sentence limit on any one particular detail is a good guideline.

VIII.Combining Details Is Helpful

  • You can combine details to give your analysis more depth. If two examples have similar function, including both, though you only have time to analyze one, will give your analysis more power.
  • You might write a sentence like this: Whether it is Moreen’s soiled gloves or her fine leather boots, James demonstrates…

IX.Try Not to Use ‘Use’ All the Time

  • Uses is a fine word with many uses; I just wish you would use it less.
  • Utilize is even worse. It’s one of those signals of sloppy, thesarus-driven writing.

X.Introduction, What’s Your Function?

Introductions are critical for first impressions. If you have time, please review the introduction for spelling, grammar, sentence errors and parallelism.

Organizational Strategies

The most important part of writing the essay is to determine the natural divisions that occur in the piece. Finding these divisions will make it easier to write about the sections of the poem as arguments. Typically, a poem or prose piece on the AP exam is divided in one of the following ways:

  1. narrative shifts–changes in the story
  2. tonal shifts
  3. point of view shifts.
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Embedding Quotes

Basic Guidelines for the Use of Quotations

  • Use quotation marks to support, not make your argument.
  • When you incorporate quoted material into your own sentence, the combined product must be sound grammatically.
  • Never offer a quotation without offering your analysis/commentary/insight.
  • Do not use overlong quotations. Keep them as short as possible, using ellipsis if necessary.
  • Do not distort/hide the context of a quotation to make your argument.
  • Do quote phrases that are especially unique, powerful, and/or interesting. Paraphrase generic observations and quote powerful words and phrases.

Three Methods for Incorporating Quotations

As Part of the Sentence

Example: “There has to be a process in place that prevents someone from rejoining society if they’re still dangerous,” said Jeffrey Klein, a Democratic member of the New York State Senate who has pushed for civil confinement there.

Example: In announcing a deal with legislative leaders on Thursday, Gov. Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, suggested that New York’s proposed civil commitment law would “become a national model.”

With an Introduction

Example: Toni Morrison’s character Twyla is self-conscious about her uniform and describes what she is wearing but also uses her description to show how she feels, and she says, “Nothing could have been less sheer than my stockings” (Morrison 215).

With a Colon

Example: “The Juniper Tree” portrays the stepmother as being pure evil: “Then the little boy came in at the door, and the Devil made her say to him kindly: ‘My son, will you have an apple?’ and she looked wickedly at him” (Grimm 17).

Using Signal Phrases

While it is necessary to introduce direct quotations in order to qualify them in relation to the rest of a paper, it is also necessary to introduce these quotations using a varied wording. It becomes monotonous if all the quotations in a paper are introduced with stock phrases: “this critic states” or “another critic says.” A paper is much more interesting and cohesive if the introductory phrases, or “signal phrases,” are varied.

Here are some possible signal phrases:
· According to Jane Doe, “…”
· As Jane Doe goes on to explain, “…”
· Characterized by John Doe, the society is “…”
· As one critic points out, “…”
· John Doe believes that “…”
· Jane Doe claims that “…”
· In the words of John Doe, “…”

Note that there exist fine shades of meaning between phrases such as “contend” and “argue” and large differences between ones such as “claim” and “demonstrate.” Ask yourself questions as to whether the source material is making a claim, asserting a belief, stating a fact, etc. Then choose a verb that is appropriate for the source material’s purpose.

Signal Phrase Words

acknowledges, adds, admits, affirms, agrees, argues, asserts, believes, claims, comments, compares, confirms, contends, declares, demonstrates, denies, disputes, emphasizes, endorses, grants, illustrates, implies, insists, notes, observes, points out, reasons, refutes, rejects, reports, responds, states, suggests, thinks, underlines, writes

Download the PDF of this file here.

Sources

  • http://writing2.richmond.edu/writing/wweb/introquo.html
  • http://www6.svsu.edu/~rich/resources/quotes.html
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Writing the Open Response Essay

Introduction

  • A brief, 3-4 sentence opening that draws the reader in, expresses a thesis, and ends
  • Introductions should not:
    • Involve asking a rhetorical question, or any question
    • Start with a general statement about the nature of the universe, humanity, or writing
    • Begin with a quotation
    • Include the author and/or title of the work in the first five words
    • Should not be a restatement of the prompt
  • Introductory Sentences should:
    • Be engaging and fit the tone of the work
    • Not be forced. Let the author do the work for you. The best introductory story/anecdote is often found in the novel itself
  • The Thesis Statement
    • Should capture the entirety of the prompt. If the essay asks for the meaning of the work as a whole, then answer what that is.
    • Should be the last sentence of the first paragraph 96% of the time (only deviate if you have a reason to do so)
    • Should be one sentence 93.4% of the time (Again, only deviate when you have a reason to do so)
    • Must be an argument

Body Paragraphs (First Half of the Prompt)

  • Should start with a clear topic sentence that is an argument that supports the thesis. If your topic sentence is plot-driven or does not flow back through the thesis and then the prompt, you are on the wrong track.
  • Each paragraph should then contain sub-topics or examples that a) support the topic sentence and b) support the thesis. You want to excise any information that does not.
  • Each example/sub-topic deserves analysis, a thoughtful examination of how the sub-topic relates to topic sentence and thesis. You want to show not only that you are aware of the plot elements of the novel, but that you can fashion arguments from them.
  • Each body paragraph should be as distinct as possible. Try to avoid going back to the same examples/details as other paragraphs or the introduction.

Body Paragraph (“Meaning the Work as a Whole” Part of Prompt)

  • The most important function of this paragraph is to relate the first part of the essay to the theme. You want to demonstrate how the controversy/difference/disagreement/growth of the first two paragraphs demonstrates a major theme of the novel.
  • If you can develop 6-8 sentences here without becoming repetitive, treacly and sophomoric, by all means just focus on the conflict and the theme. If you are struggling to extend this section, use the rest of the novel, in brief mentions, to show that the conflict you have chose to highlight is only one of the places where they author has developed the theme.

Conclusion

  • Again, short. 3-4 sentences.
  • Restate your thesis statement
  • Go back to the clever and interesting introduction that you offered in the beginning of the piece. Bookends.


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Elements of Film

General Terms

  • shot – single piece of camera work
  • scene – a shot or a series of shots that deals with a single action
  • sequence – connected piece of film
  • still – single frame of a film, like a photo
  • composition – the arrangement of people or things in a photograph, painting, or film — see "rule of three"
  • clip – short piece of film or video
  • caption – words that are shown on a screen, often to establish the scene of a story
  • screenplay – film script with dialogue, location descriptions, and some camera angles and movements
  • storyboard – series of simple pictures showing the sequence of main shots, often with notes about camera angles and movement
  • flashback – a scene or sequence dealing with the past inserted into the film’s "present"
  • flash-forward – a scene or sequence which looks into the future
  • subtitle – printed words, usually below the picture
  • footage – piece of film or video
  • freeze-frame – effect when all action is stopped
  • credits – the list of people who helped make the film or program
  • casting – choosing actors to impersonate the characters in a film
  • producer – the person responsible for the overall organization, especially the financing and marketing of a film
  • director
    – person responsible for the artistic production of a film, i.e.
    lighting, camera work, action, and the actors’ interpretation of their
    roles
  • editor – the person responsible for arranging the camera shots and splicing (cutting and pasting) the shots together

Lighting

The language of lighting has its own vocabulary, and you probably
understand it more than you think. In a low-light scene you can bet
that someone will get killed or kissed. That is the universal language
of lighting. Here are some terms you need to understand:

  • High-key: The scene is brightly lit. This is normal lighting. You can see everything.
  • Low-key: The scene is dark with sharp contrasts. It creates a romantic or eerie feeling.
  • Front: This softens the face, giving it a look of innocence.
  • Bottom: Faces become sinister by creating sharp contrasts (Bride of Frankenstein, Psycho).
  • Back: The figures are silhouettes, losing their identity (Gone With the Wind).
  • Shadows: Shadows conceal identity or make a symbolic statement (Strangers on a Train).
  • Diffused: Lighting that is altered by fog, smoke, or filter to create a mood, to obscure an aspect of the shot.
  • Spot:
    Intense pool of light that isolates a small field of the shot, usually
    focused in on a face, a key element of the subject of the shot.

Color

You already understand the
symbolic meaning of colors from your study of literature. These same
symbols transfer to film. When watching an old western you can tell the
good guy from the bad guy by the color of his hat. The director
deliberately chooses color for its effect in the scene (Gone with the Wind, Dick Tracy, Schindler’s List).

Framing

The
four edges of a movie screen form the window in which we see the story.
Placement of characters and objects within this window shows
relationships and importance. Film is voyeuristic. Through the frame of
the screen we peep into the private lives of the characters (Citizen Kane, 12 Angry Men).

Motion and Speed

Motion in film is not limited to characters moving around the scene. It
can be as big as a camera sweeping across a scene to small movements
like gestures and facial expressions. Each type of movement adds to the
story being told.

  • Pan: The camera swivels (in the same
    base position) to follow a moving subject. A space is left in front of
    the subject: the pan ‘leads’ rather than ‘trails’. A pan usually begins
    and ends with a few seconds of still picture to give greater impact.
    The speed of a pan across a subject creates a particular mood as well
    as establishing the viewer’s relationship with the subject.
  • Tilt: Pivot the camera vertically (12 Angry Men, Twelve Monkeys)
  • Tracking or dolly shot:
    Tracking involves the camera itself being moved smoothly towards or
    away from the subject (contrast with zooming). Tracking in (like
    zooming) draws the viewer into a closer, more intense relationship with
    the subject; moving away tends to create emotional distance. (The Matrix)
  • Boom or crane shot: The camera moves vertically on a boom or crane (Far and Away).
  • Zoom:
    In zooming in the camera does not move; the lens is focused down from a
    long-shot to a close-up while the picture is still being shown. The
    subject is magnified, and attention is concentrated on details
    previously invisible as the shot tightens (contrast tracking). It may
    be used to surprise the viewer. Zooming out reveals more of the scene
    (perhaps where a character is, or to whom he or she is speaking) as the
    shot widens.
  • Crab: The camera moves (crabs) right or left.
  • Hand-held camera.
    A hand-held camera can produce a jerky, bouncy, unsteady image which
    may create a sense of immediacy or chaos. Its use is a form of
    subjective treatment. (Dead Poet’s Society)
  • Duration shots:
    Shots vary in time from subliminal (a few frames) to quick (less than a
    second) to “average” (more than a second and less than a minute) to
    lengthy (more than a minute)

Transitions

Transitions are the
punctuation marks of film. As periods, commas, question marks and
exclamation points tell us how to end a sentence, transitions show us
how to end a scene.

  • Cut: Like a period, it abruptly ends the shot. Two pieces of film are spliced together. The most common transition. Cutting may:
    • Change the scene;
    • Compress time;
    • Vary the point of view; or
    • Build up an image or idea.
  • Matching action cut:
    Shots are put together in such a way that they give the impression of
    natural continuity. For example, if a man is shown crossing a room
    toward a door and the next shot shows him opening the door, the images
    can be matched so the visual continuity is unbroken. (Smoke Signals).
  • Fade: The scene fades out until it is black (or white).
  • Dissolve: One scene melts out into another melting in. Usually shows a shift in time or place (Hope Floats).
  • Iris in or out: The iris of the camera closes or opens the scene (Young Frankenstein).
  • Wipe: The scene changes in a line moving across the screen (Young Frankenstein).
  • Sound: Sounds moves the viewer form one scene to another. A gunshot in one scene becomes a car backfire in another.
  • Superimpositions: Two or more images placed directly over each other (e.g. and eye and a camera lens to create a visual metaphor) (The Matrix).
  • Split screen:
    The division of the screen into parts which can show the viewer several
    images at the same time (sometimes the same action from slightly
    different perspectives, sometimes similar actions at different times).
    This can convey the excitement and frenzy of certain activities, but it
    can also overload the viewer.
  • Montage: Several small scenes connect bigger ones. It may shorten time.
  • Jump cut: A technique that joins two shots together but that doesn’t express continuity between the shots.

Camera Angle

The angle at which the shot is taken can have symbolic meaning.

  • Crane shot: A shot taken from a crane or other very tall device.
  • Bird’s-eye view or aerial: Extreme high angle shot that takes in the view of the location and dwarfs and distorts figures in the shot.
  • Close-up: A shot of the subject’s face. (Psycho, Unbreakable)
  • Extreme close-up (detail shot): a shot of a hand, eye, mouth, or object in detail. (Psycho)
  • Medium shot: Shows the subject’s body from the knees up.
  • Long shot: Shows entire figure, a view of a situation or setting from a distance.
  • Low-angle shot: A shot taken from below the subject’s waist (The Birds).
  • High-angle shot: Taken from above the subject’s waist. (Witness)
  • Point of View shot: A shot taken from the point of view of the subject. We see through the subject’s eyes (The Birds, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde).
  • Establishing shot:
    A long shot that reveals the time and place of the action. Taken from a
    neutral position, this shot often is used at the beginning. (Stand By Me)
  • Over the shoulder shot:
    The camera shoots over the shoulder of one character to provide focus
    on the other character. Establishes what the first character sees.
  • Eye level:
    A shot that approximates human vision — a camera presents an object so
    that the line between the camera and the object is parallel to the
    ground.

Sound

There are five kinds of sound in movies:

  • Dialogue: Characters talking to each other in synch with the picture.
  • Sound effects: Sounds that occur in synch with the picture that have been dubbed in later on.
  • Music: Adds to the emotional feeling of the scene. The source is not seen in the movie. (Stand By Me)
  • Sound bridge: Adding to continuity through sound, by running sound (narration,
    dialogue or music) from one shot across a cut to another shot to make the action seem
    uninterrupted. (Smoke Signals)
  • Voice-over: A narrator speaking to the audience from some distant future, but not appearing on screen. (To Kill a Mockingbird, A River Runs Through It)
  • Silence: The lack of any sound can have a profound effect on the viewers. (The Birds)
  • Voice off: not to be seen but to be heard
  • Diegetic sound: Also known as actual sound, diegetic sound is any sound presented as originated from a source within the film’s world (The Wire).
  • Non-diegetic sound: Also known as commentary sound, non-diegetic sound is represented as coming from the a source outside story space.

Special Effects

Special effects are techniques used by the director to create an illusion.

  • Stop-motion photography: Shooting is interrupted at intervals while the scenery or props are rearranged. Simple to do with a video camera (King Kong).
  • Animation:
    A drawing or clay object is changed slightly every time the camera
    stops. When film is projected at regular speed the object seems to move
    (Wallace and Grommit, Disney movies).
  • Miniature or models shots:
    A small-scale model is filmed to look full-sized. The camera must run
    at faster speed to slow down the action of the model to make it look
    like it is moving at regular speed (Star Wars).
  • Glass shots:
    Uses scenery painted on transparent class. The camera photographs the
    action through the glass so that the painted portions look like they
    are part of the scene (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom).
  • Rear projection: Action is filmed in front of a screen while another action is projected on the screen from behind (Singin’ in the Rain).
  • Matte shots:
    Uses an opaque screen or matte to obscure certain portions of the
    frames. The film is shot twice, once with the first matte, then with a
    second that obscures the area covered by the first. When projected, the
    two separate shots appear to be one (Forrest Gump).
  • Computer-generated graphics: Certain portions of the film to whole movies are created on the computer (Geri’s Game, Lord of the Rings).

Motifs

Motifs are recurrent thematic elements in an artistic or literary work.

  • Rosebud and the sled in Citizen Kane
  • The jagged line in Joe vs. the Volcano
  • The violin music in Young Frankenstein
  • The MacGuffins in any Hitchcock movie

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Other Parts of Speech

PREPOSITIONS

What is a Preposition?

A preposition is a word that begins a prepositional phrase and shows the relationship between its object and another word in the sentence. A preposition must always have an object. A prepositional phrase starts with a preposition, ends with an object, and may have modifiers between the proposition and object of the preposition.

Telling Prepositions from Adverbs

These words can be used as other parts of speech. What part of speech it is depends on how it is used in that sentence. Many of the common words used as prepositions can be used as adverbs. Words are prepositions if they have an object to complete them. To decide which it is say the preposition followed by whom or what. If a noun or a pronoun answers the question, the word is a preposition.

· The boy stood up and ran down the street.

· Up is an adverb because there is no object; down is a preposition because there is (the street).

Practice

1. Jim painted a picture on the wall of the house.

2. I like to lie in the shade of the apricot tree and think of the jobs for the day.

3. The dog jumped over the mound behind the barn and ran into the street.

4. Everyone but you will need a note from home with parental permission.

5. Around the yard for miles, you could see nothing except junk.

CONJUNCTIONS

What is a Conjunction?

A conjunction is a word that joins other words, phrases (groups of words), or clauses (groups of words with a subject and verb). Co-ordinate conjunctions join words, phrases, or clauses of equal rank. There are two kinds: simple and correlative. Subordinate conjunctions join dependent clauses to independent clauses.

Conjunctions

  • The co-ordinate conjunctions are the following: and, but, or, nor, for, and yet.
  • The correlative conjunctions are always in pairs. They are either-or, neither-nor, both-and, not only-but also, and whether-or.
  • Some common subordinate conjunctions are after, although, as, as if, because, before, if, since, so that, than, unless, until, when, where, while.

INTERJECTIONS!

What is an Interjection?

An interjection is a word or word group that shows feeling. A mild interjection is followed by a comma; a strong interjection is followed by an exclamation mark. Interjections are rather easy to understand so we will not spend much time on them.

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