Response to Course Material #2

Since the last course material post, we have been getting a lot of handouts. There have been several readings about the different literary movements, writing styles and techniques, and literary terms. Although I have already learned about a lot of the concepts we are covering in class, such as aspects of comedy, or Greek archetypes and allusions, the class discussions and have helped me study these in more depth. For example, everyone knows what comedy is, but in class, we learned how comedy is created, and what is important to include in comedy to help it appeal to large audiences. Not only that, but there are so many different levels of comedy, adding to ways that humor can be conveyed in writing. Also in class we learned about the Theater of the Absurd. The American Dream, one of the most famous works of Theater of the Absurd, at first seemed completely nonsensical. After dissecting the play in class, different underlying meaning became clearer to me. The AP lit class has really helped me analyze what ideas different works of literature are trying to project. Meanings in literature are often subtle, and subjective to readers, so that more people can take away from readings in ways that relate to them. However, when reading different works, it is important to not bring false preconceptions with you, because it can cloud from the true ideas of the work or ideas of the author. The different literary eras in class have helped me organize literature. By learning the characteristics of each era, I find it easier to see patterns in literary material.