Name ______Date ______Period ______
Unit 2 Study Guide
Point of View and Theme
It is absolutely essential that all of you do well on Wednesday’s exam. Not only is this a chance for you to show us how well you understand the material that you will need to know for the CAHSEE, but it will directly affect your grade in the class. While some questions will be about new material, most of the questions are about things we have gone over in the last three weeks, so if you prepare properly, there is no reason you cannot earn a passing score on this test! In order to help you review, you will need to complete this study guide according to the directions and turn it in with your Unit 2 homework packet on Thursday.
Literary Response and Analysis
Literary Terms
You will be responsible for knowing all of the following terms on the test. To review them, match the following literary terms with their definitions. Each term is only used once.
bias / genre / themecompare / moral / third-person limited point of view
contrast / narrator / third-person omniscient point of view
credible / persona / tone
diction / point of view / topic
first-person point of view / pronoun
generalization / satire
1. type or category of literature ______
2. a particular tendency or inclination that prevents fair consideration of a question; prejudice (common in first-person narration) ______
3. a lesson or piece of advice in a story that instructs readers on how to behave or live ______
4. a writer’s or speaker’s choice of words; it is an essential element of a writer’s style ______
5. a type of writing that makes fun of human weakness in order to bring about social reform ______
6. the attitude a writer takes toward a subject, a character, or the reader; it is created through the writer’s choice of words and details ______
7. one or two words that identify what a piece of writing is about ______
8. the vantage point or perspective from which a writer tells a story ______
9. a broad statement about an entire group ______
10. believable ______
11. the narrator is a character in the story; the narrator uses the pronouns “I,” “me,” and “we” and can only reveal his/her own thoughts, not the thoughts of other characters ______
12. to identify differences between two things ______
13. word used to emphasize that a narrator is a fictional creation by an author to tell a story, even if the story is told in first-person or is supposed to be autobiographical ______
14. the narrator, who plays no part in the story, zooms in on the thoughts and feelings of one character ______
15. to identify similarities between two things ______
16. the central idea or insight about human life an author wants us to obtain from reading his or her story; it must be written in a complete sentence ______
17. the narrator plays no part in the story but can tell us what more than one of the characters is thinking and feeling as well as what is happening in other places ______
18. the person telling the story ______
19. a word that replaces a noun ______
Identifying Point of View
You will be expected to read three paragraphs and identify the point of view (first-person, third-person limited, or third-person omniscient) of each one. In order to help you practice, we have provided you with several practice paragraphs and a handy-dandy checklist. Circle the correct point of view for each excerpt. Be sure to underline or highlight the clues that helped you figure it out.
POV Checklist:þ Does the passage use first-person pronouns (I, me, we, our)? Then, it’s first-person point of view!
þ Does the passage use third-person pronouns (he, she, they, it)? Move on to the next question.
þ Underline all of the words and phrases indicating that the narrator knows what one character is thinking.
þ Does the narrator go into a second character’s mind?
o If the answer is “No,” then it’s third-person limited point of view.
o If the answer is “Yes,” then it’s third-person omniscient point of view.
Excerpt #1: From Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
[When Jess drew], the peace would start at the top of his muddled brain and seep down through his tired and tensed-up body. Lord, he loved to draw. Animals, mostly. Not regular animals like Miss Bessie and the chickens, but crazy animals with problems—for some reason he liked to put his beasts into impossible fixes. . . .He would like to show his drawings to his dad, but he didn't dare. When he was in first grade, he told his father than he wanted to be an artist when he grew up. He'd thought he would be pleased. He wasn't. “What are they teaching in that school?” he had asked. “Bunch of old ladies turning my son into some kind of a—.”He had stopped on the word, but Jess had gotten the message. It was one you didn't forget, even after four years.
Circle one: First-person point of view / Third-person limited point of view / Third-person omniscient point of view
Excerpt #2: From The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
No one ever noticed. Sydelle Pulaski limped through the lobby. She could be carrying a high-powered rifle in that package and no one would notice. She had moved to Sunset Towers hoping to meet elegant people, but no one had invited her in for so much as a cup of tea. No one paid any attention to her, except that poor crippled boy whose smile could break your heart, and that bratty kid with the braid – she’ll be sorry she kicked her in the shin. . . . On the plastic-covered dining table she set out the contents of the shopping bag: six cans of enamel, paint thinner, and brushes. She unwrapped the long package and leaned four wooden crutches against the wall. The sun was setting over the parking lot, but Sydelle Pulaski did not look out her back window. From the side window smoke could be seen rising from the Westing house, but Sydelle Pulaski did not notice.
Circle one: First-person point of view / Third-person limited point of view / Third-person omniscient point of view
Excerpt #3: From Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Pa was very tired and his hands ached so that he could not drive very well, but the horses knew the way home. Ma sat beside him with Baby Carrie, and Laura and Mary sat on the board behind them. Then they heard Pa tell about what Charley had done. . . . Laura and Mary were horrified. They were often naughty, themselves, but they had never imagined that anyone could be as naughty as Charley had been. He hadn’t worked to help save the oats. He hadn’t minded his father quickly when his father spoke to him. He had bothered Pa and Uncle Henry when they were hard at work.
Circle one: First-person point of view / Third-person limited point of view / Third-person omniscient point of view
Excerpt #4: From The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Secret Garden was what Mary called it when she was thinking of it. She liked the name, and she liked still more the feeling that when its beautiful old walls shut her in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost like being shut out of the world in some fairy place. The few books she had read and liked had been fairy-story books, and she had read of secret gardens in some of the stories. Sometimes people went to sleep in them for a hundred years, which she had thought must be rather stupid. She had no intention of going to sleep, and, in fact, she was becoming wider awake every day which passed at Misselthwaite.
Circle one: First-person point of view / Third-person limited point of view / Third-person omniscient point of view
Excerpt #5: From The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner
It was pitch-black outside, moments before midnight, when we climbed the fence and looked down to see what appeared to be a solid landing spot, either the ground or a building top. Hitting down simultaneously on a heavy metal surface, we realized to our horror that we’d landed on a van. And not just any van. It was a van occupied by two brothers from the Shore Patrol. Judging from their groggy appearances, it was clear they’d both been taking a nap and we had awakened them. Now they were upset.
Circle one: First-person point of view / Third-person limited point of view / Third-person omniscient point of view
Topics, Themes, and Morals
You will be expected to answer questions about the difference between topics, themes, and morals. Identify each of the examples below as a topic, theme, or moral.
1. family ______
2. When people are selfish, they are less likely to develop strong friendships. ______
3. Taking shortcuts often leads to problems in the future. ______
4. Don’t judge a book by its cover. ______
5. greed ______
6. Friends are important because they provide support in difficult times. ______
7. Don’t worry about tomorrow when you should be focused on today. ______
8. growing up ______
9. Treat others the way you want to be treated. ______
“The Storyteller” (pp. 154-159)
Use your homework organizer and textbook to review the events of the story so you remember what happens!
Answer the following questions in a complete sentence.
ü What point of view does Saki use to tell his story? ______
ü What is Saki satirizing (def: making fun of) in “The Storyteller”?
______
______
ü What is one possible theme of “The Storyteller”?
______
______
“Catch the Moon” (pp. 233-240)
Use your homework organizer and textbook to review the events of the story so you remember what happens!
Answer the following questions in a complete sentence.
ü What point of view is “Catch the Moon” told in? ______
ü Is Luis a static or dynamic character? How do you know?
______
______
ü What is an external conflict from “Catch the Moon”?
______
______
ü What is an internal conflict from “Catch the Moon”?
______
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ü What is one possible theme of “Catch the Moon”?
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“The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant” (pp. 243-250)
Use your homework organizer and textbook to review the events of the story so you remember what happens!
Answer the following questions in a complete sentence.
ü What point of view is “The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant” told in? ______
ü Is the narrator a static or dynamic character? How do you know?
______
______
ü What is an external conflict from “The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant”?
______
______
ü What is an internal conflict from “The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant”?
______
______
ü What is one possible theme of “The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant”?
______
______
Written Conventions (Grammar)
Phrases
You will be responsible for knowing (and being able to identify) each of the types of phrases we learned in this unit. Here’s a quick summary, but you should review the examples in your grammar packet:
þ Phrase – a group of related words without a subject and predictate
þ Prepositional Phrase – a phrase that begins with a preposition (in, on, to, at, of . . .); Example – Jill went to the candy store.
þ Verb Phrase – a group of verbs that makes up the main verb (predicate) in a sentence; Example – Sue will be speaking at the convention.
þ Infinitive Phrase – a phrase that begins with an infinitive (to + verb) and functions as a noun, adjective, or adverb; Example – Ann likes to shop for bargains.
þ Gerund Phrase – a phrase that begins with an –ing verb and functions as a noun; Example – Shopping online is Emily’s favorite activity.
þ Participial Phrase – a phrase that begins with an –ing or –ed verb and functions as an adjective; Example – Shopping at her favorite stores, Renee spent her entire paycheck.
þ Appositive Phrase – a noun or pronoun that is placed beside another noun or pronoun in order to identify or describe it; Example – Spaghetti, my favorite food, is originally from Italy.
Are you having trouble with these phrases? Use the checklist below to help you:
Phrases Checklist:ü Does the phrase start with “to”?
o Is “to” followed by a verb? Then it’s an infinitive phrase.
o Is “to” followed by something other than a verb? Then it’s a prepositional phrase.
ü Does the phrase start with another preposition (in, on, to, at, from . . .)? Then it’s a prepositional phrase.
ü Does the phrase start with a verb?
o Does the verb end in “-ed”? Then it’s a participial phrase.
o Does the verb end in “-ing”?
§ Is the phrase describing another noun in the sentence? Then it’s a participial phrase.
§ Is the phrase acting like a noun that does something (or “is” something)? Then it’s a gerund phrase.
ü Is the phrase a noun (or group of nouns) that defines/describes another noun in the sentence? Then it’s an appositive phrase.
Here are some practice questions for you to answer. Identify each of the underlined phrases as a prepositional phrase, verb phrase, infinitive phrase, gerund phrase, participial phrase, or appositive phrase.
1. Bicycling through the countryside is a favorite hobby of mine. ______