2015 AP Exam Free-Response Prompts

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AP® English Language and Composition Exam - 2016 Administration

This document outlines the structure, content, and administrative procedures for the 2016 AP English Language and Composition Exam. It includes instructions for both the Multiple-Choice and Free-Response sections, as well as scoring guidelines and performance data.

Section I: Multiple Choice

  • Number of Questions: 55
  • Percentage of Total Score: 45%
  • Writing Instrument: Pencil required
  • Instructions:
    • Answer questions 1-55 on the provided answer sheet.
    • Completely fill in the circle corresponding to the best answer.
    • Erase completely if changing an answer.
    • Use the exam booklet for notes or scratch work; no credit is given for anything written in the booklet.
    • Manage time effectively; do not spend too much time on any single question.
    • It is not expected that all questions will be answered correctly.
    • Scoring: Total score is based solely on the number of correct answers. No points are deducted for incorrect or unanswered questions.

Section II: Free Response

  • Total Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
  • Number of Questions: 3
  • Percentage of Total Score: 55%
  • Writing Instrument: Pen with black or dark blue ink
  • Structure:
    • 15-minute Reading Period: For Question 1 (Synthesis Essay). Students should read the question, analyze sources, and plan their response. They may also read the other essay questions.
    • 2-hour Writing Period: Students write their essays.
  • Essay Prompts:
    1. Synthesis Essay: Argue a position on the value of preserving, reading, or studying "everyday writing" (e.g., diary entries, text messages), synthesizing information from at least three provided sources.
    2. Rhetorical Analysis Essay: Analyze the rhetorical strategies used by Elizabeth Barrett Browning in her letter to Napoleon III, petitioning for Victor Hugo's pardon.
    3. Argument Essay: Develop a position on Michael J. Sandel's claim that citizens should openly address moral disagreements on matters of public policy for the common good, using evidence from experience, observation, or reading.
  • Scoring: Essays are judged on clarity, effectiveness in addressing the prompt, and quality of writing. Quality is prioritized over quantity.

Exam Content and Structure Overview

The exam assesses students' ability to analyze and interpret various texts, develop arguments, and employ rhetorical strategies. It includes:

  • Multiple-Choice Section: Features selections from prose works with questions on content, form, and style. Questions may require careful attention to words like "NOT," "LEAST," or "EXCEPT."
  • Free-Response Section: Consists of three essay questions:
    • Synthesis: Requires students to synthesize information from provided sources to support their own argument.
    • Rhetorical Analysis: Demands an analysis of how a writer uses rhetorical strategies to achieve a specific purpose.
    • Argument: Asks students to develop their own argument on a given topic, supported by evidence.

Administrative Information

  • Form Code: 4MBP4-S
  • Copyright: © 2016 The College Board.
  • Prohibitions: Unauthorized commercial use, copying, or redistribution of exam materials is prohibited and may lead to legal action. Materials are provided for AP exam preparation only and should be used securely.

Key Themes and Concepts Explored in the Passages:

The provided passages cover a range of topics relevant to language and composition:

  • Passage 1 (Essay on Expression and Reserve): Discusses the psychological impact of speaking about one's troubles versus maintaining reserve, emphasizing self-reliance and confronting fears through reason.
  • Passage 2 (Reading and Writing Habits of American Women): Explores the participatory and collaborative nature of literary activities in the 19th century, focusing on diary keeping and letter writing as significant forms of expression and self-reflection for women.
  • Passage 3 (Development of Author's Vocation): Narrates the author's childhood experience in a Southern Black community, highlighting the suppression of "girl talk" and the struggle for voice and authorship against societal expectations.
  • Passage 4 (Pragmatism and Decision Making): Examines pragmatism as an account of human thought, emphasizing that thinking makes beliefs and principles real, and that decisions are often made before reasons are fully deduced.

Scoring and Performance Data

  • Scoring Guidelines: Detailed rubrics are provided for each free-response question, outlining criteria for scores from 0 to 9, focusing on argument development, synthesis, analysis, and prose quality.
  • Performance Data: Includes correct answers for multiple-choice questions and data on student performance, indicating the difficulty and effectiveness of each question.
  • Conversion Chart: Shows how composite scores are converted into AP scores (1-5).

This document serves as a comprehensive guide to the 2016 AP English Language and Composition Exam, detailing its structure, content, and evaluation methods.

This document outlines the AP English Language and Composition Course and Exam Description, focusing on the skills and content students need to develop for college-level analysis and argumentation. It details a nine-unit structure designed to scaffold learning, emphasizing the cyclical process of analyzing others' arguments and then composing one's own.

Main Idea

The AP English Language and Composition course aims to cultivate students' abilities in evidence-based analytic and argumentative writing, rhetorical analysis of nonfiction texts, and strategic writing choices. It emphasizes understanding how language functions rhetorically to communicate intentions and elicit responses within specific situations.

Key Concepts and Skills

The course is built around four Big Ideas, each with associated Enduring Understandings and specific Course Skills:

  • Rhetorical Situation (RHS):

    • Enduring Understanding: Individuals write within a particular situation and make strategic writing choices based on that situation.
    • Skills: Identifying and describing components of the rhetorical situation (exigence, audience, writer, purpose, context, message); explaining how arguments demonstrate understanding of an audience; writing introductions and conclusions appropriate to the rhetorical situation.

  • Claims and Evidence (CLE):

    • Enduring Understanding: Writers make claims about subjects, rely on evidence that supports the reasoning that justifies the claim, and often acknowledge or respond to other, possibly opposing, arguments.
    • Skills: Identifying and explaining claims and evidence; identifying and describing the overarching thesis; developing paragraphs with claims and evidence; writing thesis statements that require defense; explaining how claims are qualified.

  • Reasoning and Organization (REO):

    • Enduring Understanding: Writers guide understanding of a text's lines of reasoning and claims through that text's organization and integration of evidence.
    • Skills: Describing the line of reasoning and its support for the thesis; explaining how organization creates unity and coherence; recognizing and explaining methods of development; developing a line of reasoning and commentary; using transitional elements; using appropriate methods of development.

  • Style (STL):

    • Enduring Understanding: The rhetorical situation informs the strategic stylistic choices that writers make.
    • Skills: Explaining how word choice, comparisons, and syntax contribute to tone or style; explaining how clauses show relationships between ideas; explaining how grammar and mechanics contribute to clarity; strategically using words, comparisons, and syntax; writing clear sentences; using established conventions of grammar and mechanics.

Unit Structure and Progression

The course is organized into nine units, each building upon the previous ones. While the unit sequence is optional, it's designed to scaffold skill development. Each unit includes:

  • Unit Overview: Outlines enduring understandings, skills, and essential knowledge.
  • Instructional Planning Page: Guides teachers in selecting texts, pacing, and activities.
  • Personal Progress Checks (PPCs): Formative assessments (multiple-choice and free-response) to gauge student progress and identify areas needing further practice.

The units progressively move from foundational skills like identifying claims and evidence to more complex tasks such as developing lines of reasoning, synthesizing sources, and refining stylistic choices.

Key Instructional Approaches

  • Focus on Practice: Frequent practice in writing paragraphs with claims and evidence is crucial.
  • Text Selection: Teachers should select strategically, using a single text to teach a range of skills. Texts should be challenging, typically nonfiction, and appropriate for college-level work. Shorter works are often preferred for in-depth analysis.
  • Rhetorical Terminology: While understanding rhetorical terms is important, the emphasis is on their application in analysis, not just memorization.
  • Argumentation: Students learn to analyze and construct arguments, understanding concepts like appeals (ethos, pathos, logos), structure, and evidence types.
  • Synthesis: Students learn to evaluate, synthesize, and cite research from multiple sources to support their arguments.
  • Visual and Multimodal Texts: The course acknowledges the importance of analyzing images, graphics, and other non-written texts.
  • Grammar and Mechanics: While not the primary focus, students are expected to write complete sentences and avoid errors that interfere with communication. Unit 7 includes focused instruction on punctuation.

AP Exam Structure

The AP English Language and Composition Exam is 3 hours and 15 minutes long and consists of:

  • Section I: Multiple-Choice (45 questions, 1 hour 45 minutes): Assesses all eight skill categories, with a focus on reading skills.
  • Section II: Free-Response (3 questions, 2 hours 15 minutes):
    • Question 1: Synthesis: Students synthesize material from provided sources to develop their own position.
    • Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis: Students analyze the rhetorical choices made by a writer in a provided passage.
    • Question 3: Argument: Students write an essay arguing their position on a given topic, using their own evidence.

Scoring

AP Exams are criterion-referenced, meaning scores are based on established criteria, not a curve. Scores range from 1 to 5, with 3, 4, and 5 typically qualifying for college credit or placement. Scoring guidelines are provided for each free-response question, detailing criteria for thesis, evidence and commentary, and sophistication.

This document contains practice questions and scoring guidelines for the AP English Language and Composition exam, focusing on multiple-choice and free-response sections. It includes examples of prompts and rubrics for essays analyzing rhetorical choices, synthesizing sources on genetically modified foods, and arguing a position on "Buy Nothing Day."

AP English Language and Composition: Digital Exam Practice Overview

This document provides practice materials for the AP English Language and Composition exam, specifically designed for the digital testing platform. It includes examples of multiple-choice questions and free-response prompts with their corresponding scoring guidelines.

Section I: Multiple-Choice Questions

This section features practice questions based on provided passages. The questions assess reading comprehension, rhetorical analysis, and understanding of argumentation.

  • Example Passage 1: The Mars Climate Orbiter Failure

    • Focuses on the failure of the Mars Climate Orbiter due to a unit conversion error (imperial vs. metric system).
    • Questions assess:
      • Effective introductory sentences.
      • Identifying the writer's thesis.
      • Strengthening arguments for industrial benefits of the metric system.
      • Optimal placement of an additional sentence.
      • Identifying irrelevant evidence for the main argument.

  • Example Passage 2: Cultural Studies and Personal Experience

    • This passage appears to be an excerpt from a book discussing the author's upbringing in a Southern Black community, focusing on "back talk," the role of women in the home, and the author's development of her voice and desire to write.
    • Questions assess:
      • Identifying the primary subject of the passage.
      • The author's main promotion or argument.
      • The function and content of the first paragraph.
      • The purpose of juxtaposing different forms of "preaching."
      • The shift in discussion within the first three paragraphs.
      • The main point of the fourth paragraph.
      • Describing the "right speech of womanhood" across paragraphs.
      • The purpose of a specific simile ("cheap diaries").
      • The purpose of a simile in the sixth paragraph.

Section II: Free-Response Questions

This section outlines prompts for the free-response portion of the exam, along with scoring guidelines.

  • Prompt 1: "Buy Nothing Day" Argumentative Essay

    • Task: Write an essay arguing a position on the establishment of an annual "Buy Nothing Day."
    • Requirements:
      • Present a defensible thesis.
      • Provide and explain evidence to support the reasoning.
      • Use appropriate grammar and punctuation.
    • Scoring Guidelines:
      • Thesis (1 point): Must present a defensible position responding to the prompt.
      • Evidence and Commentary (0-4 points): Requires specific evidence, explanation of how it supports the reasoning, and a clear line of reasoning.
      • Sophistication (0-1 point): Demonstrates nuanced thought, complex understanding, effective rhetorical choices, or vivid style.

  • Prompt 2: Genetically Modified (GM) Foods Synthesis Essay

    • Context: GM foods are widely produced but often misunderstood. Producers claim safety and necessity, while critics cite dangers.
    • Task: Write an essay synthesizing material from at least three provided sources to develop a position on the role of GM foods in the global food supply.
    • Requirements:
      • Present a defensible thesis.
      • Select and use evidence from at least three sources (citing them).
      • Explain how the evidence supports the reasoning.
      • Use appropriate grammar and punctuation.
    • Scoring Guidelines:
      • Thesis (1 point): Must present a defensible position on the role of GM foods.
      • Evidence and Commentary (0-4 points): Requires specific evidence from at least three sources, explanation of its support for the reasoning, and a clear line of reasoning.
      • Sophistication (0-1 point): Demonstrates nuanced thought, complex understanding, effective rhetorical choices, or vivid style.

  • Prompt 3: Cesar Chavez Rhetorical Analysis Essay

    • Context: An excerpt from Cesar Chavez's 1978 article "He Showed Us the Way," reflecting on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and nonviolent resistance.
    • Task: Write an essay analyzing the rhetorical choices Chavez makes to develop his argument about nonviolent resistance.
    • Requirements:
      • Present a defensible thesis analyzing rhetorical choices.
      • Provide and explain evidence to support the reasoning.
      • Demonstrate understanding of the rhetorical situation.
      • Use appropriate grammar and punctuation.
    • Scoring Guidelines:
      • Thesis (1 point): Must present a defensible thesis analyzing Chavez's rhetorical choices.
      • Evidence and Commentary (0-4 points): Requires specific evidence (rhetorical choices), explanation of how they support the argument/purpose, and a clear line of reasoning.
      • Sophistication (0-1 point): Demonstrates nuanced thought, complex understanding of the rhetorical situation, effective rhetorical choices, or vivid style.

Scoring Rubric Overview

The scoring guidelines for each free-response question follow a similar structure:

  • Row A: Thesis (0-1 point): Assesses whether the response has a defensible thesis that directly addresses the prompt.
  • Row B: Evidence and Commentary (0-4 points): Evaluates the quality and use of evidence, the explanation of how it supports the argument (commentary), and the development of a coherent line of reasoning.
  • Row C: Sophistication (0-1 point): Awards a point for demonstrating sophistication of thought, a complex understanding of the rhetorical situation, or employing a consistently vivid and persuasive style.

The document also includes notes on how scores are determined and common pitfalls to avoid for each scoring category. It emphasizes that the digital exam practice is not a full-length exam and should not be used to predict performance on the actual AP Exam.

This document contains materials for the AP English Language and Composition Exam from 2014, including instructions, passages for analysis, multiple-choice questions, and free-response prompts with scoring guidelines.

Section I: Multiple Choice

This section consists of multiple-choice questions based on provided passages. The questions assess reading comprehension, analysis of rhetorical strategies, style, and tone.

  • Passage 1 (Late 20th Century Essay): Explores the author's relationship with language, particularly the differences between standard English used in public and the "family talk" used with her mother. It highlights the author's awareness of linguistic variation and the personal significance of different Englishes.
  • Passage 2 (Book about Clouds): Discusses the environmental impact of aircraft contrails, suggesting they contribute significantly to global warming, potentially more than CO2 emissions. It examines research on contrails and proposes a solution involving altitude restrictions for aircraft.
  • Passage 3 (Recent Book about the Arts): Traces the rise of social respectability for artists in Western Europe and the United States by the late 19th century, focusing on the ideology of "art for art's sake" championed by Théophile Gautier. It explores the concept of artistic autonomy and its implications.
  • Passage 4 (18th-Century Essay): Reflects on human enjoyment and the human tendency to be "impatient of the present." It contrasts the pleasure of planning and anticipation with the difficulties and disillusionment that often accompany actual execution of plans.

Section II: Free-Response Questions

This section requires students to write essays based on provided prompts and sources.

  • Question 1: Synthesis (Suggested time: 40 minutes)

    • Prompt: Analyze the claim that checking social networking profiles is an acceptable practice for potential employers or college admissions officers.
    • Task: Synthesize information from at least three of the eight provided sources to develop a position on the claim. Sources include articles discussing college admissions practices, legal and ethical considerations of online privacy, and opinions on employer screening.
    • Sources:
      • Source A (Cartwright): Teenager's perspective on college admissions checking Facebook.
      • Source B (NACAC): Press release on the rise of social networking use in college admissions.
      • Source C (Schiffman): Online newspaper article on social media's role in college admissions.
      • Source D (Graph): Survey data on high school seniors' concerns about private information on social networking sites.
      • Source E (Jolly): Article on Germany's proposed limits on Facebook use in hiring.
      • Source F (boyd): Weblog excerpt discussing the use of social media data by employers and the context of online profiles.
      • Source G (Lee): Article arguing for the legitimacy of employers checking social networking sites.
      • Source H (Jones et al.): Online book excerpt on the ethics of internet prescreening for employment.

  • Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis (Suggested time: 40 minutes)

    • Prompt: Analyze the rhetorical strategies J. Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur uses in his 1782 essay "Letters from an American Farmer" to define Americans and argue about colonial American society.
    • Task: Analyze Crèvecoeur's passage, focusing on his definition of the "new man" and the rhetorical techniques employed to support his argument.

  • Question 3: Argumentative Essay (Suggested time: 40 minutes)

    • Prompt: Develop a position on Alfie Kohn's claim that "competition by its very nature is always unhealthy."
    • Task: Respond to Kohn's assertion using evidence from reading, experience, or observation to support your argument.

Scoring Guidelines

The document includes scoring guidelines for the free-response questions, outlining criteria for essays earning scores from 0 to 9.

  • General Criteria: Essays are evaluated holistically based on the quality of the argument, development, use of evidence, and control of language.
  • Synthesis (Question 1): Effective essays synthesize at least three sources to develop a convincing position. Higher scores require more thorough development and sophisticated use of sources.
  • Rhetorical Analysis (Question 2): Effective essays analyze rhetorical strategies used by Crèvecoeur, supported by appropriate and convincing evidence from the passage.
  • Argumentative Essay (Question 3): Effective essays develop a position on Kohn's claim, supported by appropriate and convincing evidence and reasoning.

Exam Administration and Logistics

The document also contains administrative details for the exam, including:

  • Timing: Specific time allocations for reading and writing for each section.
  • Materials: Instructions for proctors regarding exam booklets, answer sheets, and student identification.
  • Procedures: Detailed steps for administering the multiple-choice and free-response sections, including breaks and collection of materials.
  • Scoring: Information on the scoring worksheet and conversion chart used to calculate the composite AP score.
  • Copyright and Usage: Notes on the use of copyrighted material and College Board policies.

Summary of AP English Language and Composition Exam Materials

This document contains materials related to the AP English Language and Composition Exam, including a free-response prompt, scoring guidelines, multiple-choice questions, and administrative instructions.

Free-Response Question 1: Synthesis Prompt

  • Suggested Time: 40 minutes
  • Weight: One-third of the total essay section score
  • Topic: The extent to which a community should limit plastic bags, if at all.
  • Task: Students must synthesize material from at least three provided sources (Ritch, Suzuki, chart, Gunther, Rael, McGrath) to support a position on limiting plastic bags. The essay should focus on the argument, using sources to develop it and explain the reasoning, avoiding mere summarization. Sources must be clearly cited.

Free-Response Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis Prompt

  • Suggested Time: 40 minutes
  • Weight: One-third of the total essay section score
  • Topic: Analyzing the rhetorical function of Eliza Stacey's 1847 letter to her father-in-law.
  • Task: Students must explain how the letter functions rhetorically as an attempt to persuade her father-in-law to help her family again. The analysis should be supported by evidence from the letter.

Free-Response Question 3: Argument Prompt

  • Suggested Time: 40 minutes
  • Weight: One-third of the total essay section score
  • Prompt: In a 2011 essay, Lori Gottlieb stated, "Nowadays, it's not enough to be happy-if you can be even happier." She also cited Barry Schwartz: "Happiness as a byproduct of living your life is a great thing . . . [b]ut happiness as a goal is a recipe for disaster."
  • Task: Students must take a position on the claim that pursuing happiness as a goal has detrimental effects and support their argument with evidence from their experience, observations, or reading.

Scoring Guidelines for Free-Response Questions

The scoring guidelines provide a rubric for evaluating student essays on a scale of 0 to 9. Key aspects include:

  • Holistic Evaluation: Scores reflect the paper as a whole, considering it as a draft written under timed conditions.
  • Argument/Analysis: The quality of the position taken, the development of the argument, and the use of evidence and explanation.
  • Synthesis (Question 1): Effectively using and citing at least three sources to develop a position.
  • Rhetorical Analysis (Question 2): Effectively explaining how the author's rhetorical choices achieve a purpose.
  • Argument (Question 3): Asserting a claim justified by evidence and/or reasoning.
  • Prose Style: Control of language, including diction, syntax, grammar, and mechanics. Lapses are acceptable, but persistent errors that interfere with understanding will lower the score.
  • Sophistication: Essays earning a 9 are especially sophisticated in argument, thorough in development, or impressive in language control.

Multiple-Choice Section (Section I)

  • Format: 55 questions based on provided prose passages.
  • Content: Questions assess understanding of content, form, and style, including rhetorical strategies, author's tone, purpose, and meaning.
  • Scoring: Based solely on the number of questions answered correctly; no penalty for incorrect answers.
  • Example Passages and Questions: The document includes excerpts from various writers (e.g., a nineteenth-century British writer on women's education, a work on the conquest of Mexico and its artistic traditions, an essay on the effects of walking, and an excerpt from Salman Rushdie's "Imaginary Homelands"). Questions focus on identifying author's strategies, tone, meaning of phrases, and overall purpose.

Administrative Information

  • Exam Structure: Section I (Multiple Choice, 1 hour, 45% of score) and Section II (Free Response, 2 hours 15 minutes including 15-minute reading period, 55% of score).
  • Materials: Exam booklets (Section I and Section II), answer sheets, AP number labels.
  • Procedures: Detailed instructions for proctors on distributing materials, managing time, collecting responses, and student identification.
  • Copyright: Materials are copyrighted by the College Board and are for exam preparation purposes only. Unauthorized copying or reuse is illegal.

Key Themes and Concepts from Passages (Illustrative Examples)

  • Women's Education: A passage argues for the intellectual and practical benefits of educating women, challenging the notion that such studies unfit them for domestic roles.
  • Cultural Transmission in Colonial Mexico: An excerpt discusses how the Spanish conquest led to the adaptation and preservation of indigenous artistic traditions, particularly through documents like the Codex Mendoza and Relaciones Geográficas.
  • The Effects of Walking: An essay humorously critiques "walking for walking's sake," arguing it hinders intellectual activity by silencing the brain.
  • Memory and Identity (Salman Rushdie): An excerpt explores the complex relationship between memory, homeland, and identity for an expatriate writer, emphasizing the creation of "imaginary homelands" through fiction.

This summary provides an overview of the structure, content, and administrative details of the AP English Language and Composition Exam materials provided.

This document contains materials from the 2018 AP English Language and Composition Exam, including multiple-choice questions, free-response prompts, scoring guidelines, and administrative instructions. The content is divided into several sections, each focusing on different aspects of the exam.

Section I: Multiple-Choice Questions

This section comprises multiple-choice questions based on provided passages. The questions assess students' ability to analyze rhetorical strategies, understand content, form, and style.

Passage 1: Early 20th Century Essay on Children and Language

  • Main Idea: The author critiques the common practice of ridiculing children's mistakes as they learn language and other skills, arguing that this behavior is disrespectful and harmful.
  • Key Points:
    • Children learn language by trial and error, not through perfect instruction.
    • Adults would find it rude if their own language errors were met with laughter and mockery.
    • Children's errors are natural developmental steps, not grounds for ridicule.
    • An anecdote illustrates an adult's inappropriate and mortifying introduction of a young child.
    • The author questions the justification for such behavior, concluding it stems from a lack of respect for children's rights.
    • Children are often treated as playthings, and their sensitivity to ridicule is highlighted.
    • The author contrasts legitimate play with disrespectful jeering and points out the injustice of punishing children for reacting to mistreatment.
  • Rhetorical Devices: Analogies (foreigner learning language, gentleman in snow, machine-top, cat and kittens), anecdote, rhetorical questions, use of "we" to include the reader.

Passage 2: Early 2000s Essay on Lincoln's Humor

  • Main Idea: The author explores the complexities of analyzing Abraham Lincoln's humor, focusing on the difficulties of attribution and the crucial role of his delivery.
  • Key Points:
    • Difficulty 1: Attribution: Many stories attributed to Lincoln were not actually told by him, making verification difficult due to reliance on hearsay.
    • Difficulty 2: Delivery: The effectiveness of a joke depends heavily on the storyteller's manner. Lincoln was a master storyteller, using his facial expressions, voice, and physical presence to enhance even dull jokes.
    • General Appeal: Lincoln's humor appealed to a wide range of people, from lawyers and farmers to urban Easterners.
    • Originality: Lincoln often embellished or improved upon stories he heard, describing himself as a "retail dealer" rather than an originator. His skill lay in memory, association, and histrionic ability.
    • Mimicry: Lincoln's talent for mimicry was a significant factor in his success as a storyteller.
  • Supporting Details: Citations from A. K. McClure, Isaac N. Arnold, Henry C. Whitney, Judge David Davis, Charles Sumner, T. G. Onstot, and William Dean Howells. Notes provide context and scholarly commentary on sources.

Passage 3: 1920s Essay on Parties and Social Gatherings

  • Main Idea: The author critically examines the nature of social gatherings, particularly parties, suggesting that their appeal often stems from convention and social obligation rather than genuine pleasure.
  • Key Points:
    • Comprehensible Diversions: Activities like swimming, watching plays, visiting the zoo, eating, and playing games are easily understood as pleasurable.
    • Conventional Amusements: Many "amusements" are considered enjoyable due to social convention, not inherent pleasure.
    • Gregarious Nature: Humans have a strong inclination to assemble. St. Paul's admonition to gather is seen as superfluous.
    • The Ritual of Parties: Attending parties involves specific clothing choices and social rituals. The author questions whether the pleasure comes from self-adornment and conforming to "savage and primitive conventionalism."
    • Interaction at Parties: Talking with friends is possible at home; parties often interrupt such conversations. Introductions to new acquaintances may not lead to lasting connections, and conversation can be forced.
    • The Noise and Conversation: Parties are characterized by clamor, and conversation must be sustained above it. The author notes that much is said, but questions if it's beneficial.
    • Alternative: For those who don't enjoy conversation or listening, simply observing the sounds and sights (like clothes) can be a form of passive entertainment.
  • Rhetorical Devices: Contrasting categories of amusement (comprehensible vs. conventional), irony, rhetorical questions, use of "we" and "you" to engage the reader, vivid descriptions (clamor like a jazz band).

Passage 4: Excerpt on the Declaration of Independence

  • Main Idea: The author proposes a new way to understand the Declaration of Independence by framing it as an ordinary "memo" rather than a sacred or unique text, thereby revealing its "democratic art."
  • Key Points:
    • Reading Strategy: To be better readers, one should ask fundamental questions about any text: What kind is it? Who is the audience? What is its structure? How do its parts achieve the whole's purpose?
    • The Declaration's Type: The author challenges the common perception of the Declaration as a sacred text, treatise, or law.
    • The "Memo" Analogy: The Declaration is presented as an ordinary memo – a document that announces, explains, and brings about change. An example of a college dean's announcement about dining hall hours is used.
    • Definition of Memo: "Memorandum" means "something that needs to be remembered." It has historically been a tool for social organization, diplomatic messages, justifying decisions, and recommending action.
    • Historical Usage: The oldest usage of "memo" spawned a formula for declarations: "Memorandum, That it is hereby declared..."
    • Modern Importance: Memos have become increasingly important, with skilled writers setting policy. Their impact on memory and organization is significant.
    • Practicality of the Declaration: It critiques an institution (Great Britain), announces separation, and establishes a new political system. Crucially, it organized a group for joint action (revolt).
    • Understanding Institutions: The author poses questions about group action, decision-making, and collaboration to help readers build context for understanding the Declaration through their own experiences.
  • Key Terms: Democratic art, memo, memorandum.

Section II: Free-Response Questions

This section contains three free-response prompts, each requiring a developed essay.

Question 1: Synthesis Prompt on Kindergarten Education

  • Task: Synthesize material from at least three provided sources to argue a position on what kindergarten should be.
  • Context: The prompt discusses the historical conception of kindergarten as a play-based environment versus the modern trend of increased academic focus.
  • Sources: Six sources (Svensen, Breen, Rioual, chart, Curwood, photo) offering various perspectives on the changes in kindergarten, including historical context, research findings, parental pressures, and the role of play versus academics.
  • Scoring: Essays are scored holistically based on the effectiveness of the argument, synthesis of sources, development of ideas, and control of language. Scores range from 0 to 9.

Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis Prompt on William Cronon's "The Trouble With Wilderness"

  • Task: Analyze the rhetorical choices William Cronon makes to challenge habitual ways of thinking about wilderness.
  • Passage: An excerpt from Cronon's essay arguing that the modern concept of "wilderness" is paradoxical, often embodying the very values it seeks to reject and creating a harmful dualism between humans and nature.
  • Key Arguments in Passage:
    • Wilderness is seen as an "unfallen" antithesis to civilization, a place of authenticity.
    • However, the concept of wilderness often represents a "flight from history" and a false hope of escaping responsibility.
    • The romantic ideology of wilderness leaves no room for humans to live from the land.
    • The paradox: Wilderness embodies a dualistic vision where humans are outside nature, leading to the idea that human presence "falls" nature.
    • This dualism offers no solutions to environmental problems and allows urban dwellers to evade responsibility for their actual lives.
    • Celebrating wilderness as a measure of civilization hinders the discovery of an ethical human place in nature.
  • Scoring: Essays are scored on the effectiveness of the analysis of rhetorical choices, development of the argument, and control of language. Scores range from 0 to 9.

Question 3: Argument Prompt on Future Thinking and Present Experience

  • Task: Develop a position on the extent to which anticipating and planning for the future affects one's ability to experience and appreciate the present, using the provided quote from Richard DeGrandpre as a starting point.
  • DeGrandpre's Assertion: Ruminating about and planning for the future often unintentionally redirects consciousness away from the present, leading to an undervaluing of the present moment.
  • Prompt Question: How does thinking about the future affect one's ability to experience and appreciate the present?
  • Scoring: Essays are scored on the development of a position, the use of specific evidence to support the argument, and the control of language. Scores range from 0 to 9.

Administrative Materials

The document also includes:

  • Answer Key: For the multiple-choice section.
  • Scoring Guidelines: Detailed rubrics for each free-response question, outlining criteria for scores from 0 to 9.
  • Scoring Worksheet and Conversion Chart: For calculating composite scores and converting them to AP scores (1-5).
  • Question Descriptors and Performance Data: Information on student performance for each multiple-choice question.
  • Exam Instructions: Detailed directions for proctors and students regarding exam administration, including procedures for both the multiple-choice and free-response sections, breaks, and material collection.
  • Student Answer Sheet: A sample of the answer sheet used for the multiple-choice section.
  • Copyright and Usage Information: Statements regarding the use and distribution of the exam materials.

This document contains materials related to the 2015 AP English Language and Composition Exam, including prompts, scoring guidelines, and administrative instructions. The core content relevant to summarization includes the prompts for the free-response essays.

Free-Response Questions Summary

The 2015 AP English Language and Composition Exam featured three free-response questions, each weighted equally and allotted 40 minutes for writing after a 15-minute reading period.

Question 1: Synthesis Essay

  • Topic: The ethics of marketing goods and services to children.
  • Task: Students were required to synthesize material from at least three provided sources (a graph, articles, and a cartoon) to develop a coherent essay arguing a position on the ethics of marketing to children.
  • Key Instruction: Avoid merely summarizing sources; use them to develop and support the student's own argument. Sources should be cited.
  • Sources Provided:
    • Source A: Graph showing annual exposure to TV advertising for children.
    • Source B (Benady): Opinion piece discussing "positive pester power" and the potential for marketing to promote positive behaviors, while acknowledging opposition to all marketing to children.
    • Source C (Beder): Article discussing children's inability to understand persuasive intent and evaluate advertising claims, the vulnerability of older children to peer pressure, and the ethical concerns of marketing to young children.
    • Source D (Wilcox): Cartoon depicting a child's perception of "normal" eating habits influenced by advertising.
    • Source E (FTC Press Release): Information on proposed voluntary principles for marketing food to children, aimed at combating childhood obesity.
    • Source F (Brooks-Gunn and Donahue): Report detailing the effectiveness of social marketing campaigns in promoting healthy behaviors and preventing risky behaviors among youth, citing examples like anti-smoking campaigns.

Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis Essay

  • Topic: Jane Addams's address commemorating George Washington's birthday.
  • Prompt: Analyze the rhetorical strategies Addams uses to communicate her views on the significance of George Washington's legacy.
  • Task: Students must analyze Addams's use of rhetorical choices to achieve her purpose, supporting the analysis with specific textual references.
  • Passage Provided: An excerpt from Jane Addams's speech, which defines a "great man" and applies this definition to George Washington by examining his roles as a soldier, statesman, and citizen, linking his legacy to contemporary issues like materialism and equality.

Question 3: Argumentative Essay

  • Topic: Ralph Waldo Emerson's assertion: "Books are the best of things, well used; abused, among the worst."
  • Task: Examine the extent to which Emerson's assertion about the power of books is true or relevant today, supporting the argument with appropriate examples from reading, observation, or experience.
  • Quotation Provided: A short quote from Emerson's "The American Scholar."

Scoring Guidelines Summary

The scoring guidelines for the free-response questions (Questions 1, 2, and 3) outline criteria for evaluating student essays on a scale of 0-9.

  • General Principles:
    • Essays are judged holistically on argument, development, and control of language.
    • Students had limited time, so papers are evaluated as drafts.
    • Occasional lapses are acceptable, but numerous errors in grammar and mechanics will lower the score.
  • Score 9: Meets criteria for Score 8 and is especially sophisticated, thorough, or impressive in language control.
  • Score 8: Effectively develops a position/analysis with appropriate and convincing evidence/explanations, and demonstrates consistent control of a wide range of writing elements.
  • Score 7: Meets criteria for Score 6 but with more complete explanation, thorough development, or mature prose.
  • Score 6: Adequately develops a position/analysis with appropriate and sufficient evidence/explanations. Prose is generally clear, though may have lapses.
  • Score 5: Develops a position/analysis, but use of evidence/explanations may be uneven, inconsistent, or limited. Prose may have lapses but usually conveys ideas.
  • Score 4: Inadequately develops a position/analysis. Evidence/explanations may be inappropriate, insufficient, or unconvincing. Sources may dominate, or the link to the argument may be weak. Prose may be inconsistent.
  • Score 3: Meets criteria for Score 4 but with less success in development, perception, or maturity. Explanations/examples may be limited or simplistic.
  • Score 2: Demonstrates little success. May allude to sources rather than cite, have a weak/absent link to sources, misread sources, or substitute a simpler task (e.g., summarizing). Prose often shows consistent weaknesses.
  • Score 1: Meets criteria for Score 2 but is undeveloped, simplistic, weak in control, or does not use/allude to any sources.
  • Score 0: Off-topic, repeats prompt, entirely crossed out, drawing, or in a non-English language.
  • Score -: Blank response.

Specific Notes for Each Question:

  • Question 1 (Synthesis): Focuses on synthesizing at least three sources to develop a position. "Synthesis" means using sources to develop a position and citing them accurately.
  • Question 2 (Rhetorical Analysis): Focuses on analyzing rhetorical choices and their effects/purpose. "Analysis" means explaining rhetorical choices an author makes to achieve a particular effect or purpose.
  • Question 3 (Argument): Focuses on asserting a claim justified by evidence and/or reasoning. "Argument" means asserting a claim justified by evidence and/or reasoning.

Multiple-Choice Section Summary

The document also includes instructions and sample questions for the multiple-choice section (Section I) of the exam.

  • Format: 55 questions, 45% of the total score.
  • Time: 1 hour.
  • Scoring: Points are awarded for correct answers; no points are deducted for incorrect answers.
  • Content: Questions are based on provided prose passages, testing reading comprehension, analysis of content, form, and style.
  • Instructions: Emphasize careful reading, time management, and proper marking of the answer sheet.

Administrative Information

The document contains various administrative details, including:

  • Exam Structure: Section I (Multiple Choice) and Section II (Free Response).
  • Timing: Specific times allocated for each section and the reading period.
  • Materials: Instructions for proctors and students regarding exam booklets, answer sheets, pencils, pens, and seals.
  • Security: Strict rules about discussing exam questions.
  • Scoring: Information on how scores are calculated, including weighted scores and a conversion chart.
  • Copyright and Usage: Notes on the use of copyrighted material and College Board policies.

This document contains materials from the 2013 AP English Language and Composition Exam, including multiple-choice questions, free-response prompts, scoring guidelines, and administrative instructions.

Section I: Multiple-Choice Questions

This section consists of 55 questions designed to assess students' understanding of prose passages, their content, form, and style. The questions cover various literary and rhetorical concepts.

Passage 1: Ellen Terry (Questions 1-13)

This passage, excerpted from a 1940s essay, discusses the ephemeral nature of an actor's legacy and focuses on the actress Ellen Terry.

  • Main Idea: Actors leave behind only fleeting impressions, and Ellen Terry, despite her desire to articulate the greatness of others like Henry Irving, was herself a writer whose words, though unconventional, were expressive.
  • Key Points:
    • Actors' legacies are like "picture postcards" or "wavering, insubstantial phantoms" that fade after their performances.
    • Ellen Terry's attempts to describe Henry Irving's Hamlet were unsuccessful, leading her to wish she were a writer.
    • The author argues that Terry was, in fact, a writer, evidenced by her autobiography and letters to Bernard Shaw.
    • Terry's writing style is described as "beautiful rapid hand" with "dashes and notes of exclamation" to capture spoken tone.
    • Her self-portrait in writing is not a finished "Academy portrait" but a collection of "sketches" that can sometimes contradict each other.
    • The passage questions which of Terry's many roles (mother, wife, actress, etc.) defines the "real" Ellen Terry.
    • Ultimately, Terry is presented as an "original part" created by Nature, defying categorization and remembered for being "Ellen Terry" herself, rather than for specific roles.
  • Rhetorical Devices/Style: Metaphor (picture postcards, phantom, sketches), contrast (Academy portrait vs. sketches, professional typewriter vs. Terry's pen), personification (Nature as a dramatist).

Passage 2: Humanity's Relationship with Wild Food Sources (Questions 14-30)

This passage, excerpted from a recent nonfiction book, examines humanity's historical and present-day relationship with selecting and domesticating species for consumption, focusing on fish.

  • Main Idea: Humanity has a history of selecting a few species for domestication (mammals, birds), and now faces complex decisions regarding fish. The author questions whether modern humans, unlike early man, can exercise restraint to maintain a balance with wild food sources or are inherently driven to exploit and domesticate.
  • Key Points:
    • Humanity has historically selected four archetypes of mammals (cows, pigs, sheep, goats) and four types of birds (chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese) for consumption.
    • The current selection of fish presents more complex decisions due to modern humanity's awareness of its "destructive potential" and ability to "remake the world."
    • Early man had little thought for preserving wild food, being a minority in nature.
    • Modern man, aware of transformative abilities, historically viewed them as positive and inevitable (e.g., Francis Galton's views on the doomed fate of undomesticated animals).
    • The passage poses the question of whether humanity can manage wildness or is "hardwired to eradicate the wild majority."
    • Wild fish still exist in significant numbers (90 million tons/year), and rest can restore depleted grounds.
    • World War II is presented as "The Great Reprieve" for North Atlantic fish due to reduced fishing pressure.
    • The author questions modern humanity's capacity for conscious restraint without external forces like war.
  • Rhetorical Devices/Style: Rhetorical questions, historical comparison (early man vs. modern man), use of expert opinions and citations (Gjedrem, Galton, Pauly), contrasting perspectives (Galton's prediction vs. the "Great Reprieve").

Passage 3: Tornadoes (Questions 31-43)

This passage, excerpted from a late twentieth-century nonfiction book, describes tornadoes using both scientific and anecdotal accounts.

  • Main Idea: The passage vividly portrays the power, variety, and unpredictable nature of tornadoes through a combination of technical descriptions from climatologists and personal accounts from witnesses.
  • Key Points:
    • Climatologists describe tornadoes using technical terms related to storm formation, cloud types ("funicular envelopes," "anvil clouds with pendant mammati"), and wind speeds ("cyclonic vorticity," "torquing at velocities up to three hundred miles an hour").
    • Tornadoes are described with varying speeds (from a "strolling man" to a "barrel-assing semi") and destruction paths (from "home plate and deep center field" to "New York City and Philadelphia").
    • Tornadoes are more violent than hurricanes but have shorter lifespans, often "snuff[ing] out as it was born: unnamed."
    • Anecdotal accounts include a grandfather calling twisters "Old Nell" and threatening to carry off crying children.
    • Witnesses describe the colors (pastel-pink, black, blue, gray), visual phenomena ("hole opened in the sky," "glowing like it was illuminated from the inside"), and shapes (cone, cylinder, tube, ribbon, etc.).
    • Specific examples of destruction and survival are given: ponds vacuumed dry, chickens plucked, water pulled from toilet bowls, a wife killed, a child carried two miles unharmed, a woman cured of headaches, and another dropped unharmed with a record of "Stormy Weather."
  • Rhetorical Devices/Style: Juxtaposition (technical jargon vs. colloquialisms and vivid imagery), accumulation of detail, sensory language, figurative language (similes, metaphors).

Section II: Free-Response Questions

This section contains three essay prompts, each weighted equally and accounting for 55% of the total score.

Question 1: Synthesis (Suggested Time: 40 minutes)

  • Prompt: Analyze the role of genetically modified (GM) foods in the global food supply, synthesizing information from at least three provided sources.
  • Sources: Seven sources (Agadoni, McKie, graph/map, Human Genome Project, Cage, University of Queensland, Manda) present various perspectives on GM foods, including potential health risks, environmental impacts, benefits for food production, ethical considerations, and public perception.
  • Task: Students must develop a central argument about the role of GM foods and support it by effectively integrating evidence from the sources.

Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis (Suggested Time: 40 minutes)

  • Prompt: Analyze the rhetorical strategies Samuel Johnson uses to argue his position on debtors' prisons in the provided excerpt.
  • Passage: Johnson responds to comments about a letter he sent to a British lawmaker, arguing against the practice of debtors' prisons.
  • Task: Students must analyze how Johnson's rhetorical choices (e.g., appeals to logic, emotion, statistics, figurative language) contribute to his argument.

Question 3: Argumentative Essay (Suggested Time: 40 minutes)

  • Prompt: Write an essay explaining your position on the statement "individuality is more important than nationality," using evidence from reading, experience, or observation.
  • Context: The prompt references Sui Sin Far's assertion that individuality is more important than nationality and notes that some argue for the primacy of societal/cultural identity over individual identity.
  • Task: Students must take a clear stance on the issue and support it with well-reasoned evidence.

Scoring Information

  • Multiple-Choice Section: Scored based on the number of correct answers. No penalty for incorrect answers.
  • Free-Response Section: Essays are scored holistically on a 9-point scale based on the quality of the argument, development, synthesis (for Q1), analysis (for Q2), use of evidence, and control of language.
  • Composite Score: Calculated by combining weighted scores from Section I and Section II, then converted to an AP score (1-5).

Administrative Information

  • The exam includes detailed instructions for proctors and students regarding timing, materials, answer sheet completion, and exam procedures.
  • Emphasis is placed on maintaining exam security and adhering to College Board policies.
  • The document includes scoring worksheets and conversion charts for calculating final scores.

Summary of Provided Content

This document contains materials related to the AP English Language and Composition Exam, including multiple-choice questions, free-response prompts, scoring guidelines, and administrative instructions. The content is divided into sections, each focusing on different aspects of the exam and its administration.

Section I: Multiple-Choice Questions

This section comprises a series of multiple-choice questions based on several provided passages. The questions assess reading comprehension, analysis of rhetorical strategies, understanding of vocabulary in context, and interpretation of authorial intent and tone.

Passage 1: Biology and Taxonomy

  • Main Idea: The passage discusses the decline of taxonomy, the study of biological classification, and its negative impact on other scientific fields. It highlights the critical but underappreciated role of specialists in identifying and understanding various organisms.
  • Key Points:
    • Less is known about life on Earth than about space due to underfunding of taxonomy.
    • Taxonomy is compared to "glass-blowing and harpsichord manufacture," indicating it's a specialized field with few practitioners.
    • Examples like springtails and oribatid mites illustrate the vast diversity and ecological importance of small soil organisms, yet there are very few experts to study them.
    • The neglect of taxonomy weakens other scientific disciplines like museum studies, systematics, biogeography, and ecology.
    • The author emphasizes the importance of correctly identifying organisms ("getting things by their right names") for the future of biology.
    • "Biodiversity studies" are presented as a hybrid discipline that can help boost taxonomy by systematically examining the full array of organisms and their diversity.
    • Two key events brought biodiversity to the forefront: the recognition of widespread extinction due to human activity and the understanding that conservation can benefit humanity.
  • Vocabulary:
    • Taxonomy: The study of classification and biological diversity.
    • Systematics: The branch of biology that uses taxonomy and studies similarities among species to understand evolution.
    • Biogeography: The analysis of the distribution of organisms.
    • Ecology: The discipline exploring the relationships of organisms to their environment and each other.
    • Biodiversity studies: A hybrid discipline examining the full array of organisms, the origin of diversity, and technologies for its maintenance and utilization.

Passage 2: Canadian Book Clubs

  • Main Idea: The passage examines the widespread phenomenon of book clubs, their expansion into various media, and the criticisms and benefits associated with them.
  • Key Points:
    • The book club format has expanded beyond traditional meetings to include television shows (Oprah Winfrey), online platforms, bookstores, and resorts ("readers' retreats").
    • Guides and newsletters exist to help people establish and manage book clubs.
    • A "book-club backlash" exists, with critics arguing that reading is becoming overly scheduled and less immersive.
    • Some book groups are described as "literary pressure cookers" with aggressive competition and social skirmishing, leading to the emergence of "book-group therapists."
    • Despite these pitfalls, the author concludes that the positives outweigh the negatives, as book clubs offer readers an enhanced dimension of appreciation and understanding.
    • A discrepancy is noted between the shared, synergistic nature of book club discussions and the focus of literary theorists and reader-response critics on individual readers as isolates.
  • Key Terms:
    • Book-club phenomenon: The widespread popularity and expansion of book clubs.
    • Book-club backlash: Criticism and negative reactions to the book club trend.
    • Literary pressure cookers: Book clubs characterized by intense competition and social dynamics.

Passage 3: Landscape, Dreams, and Laguna Pueblo Culture

  • Main Idea: The passage explores the connection between landscape, dreams, and the cultural practices of the Laguna Pueblo people, emphasizing how stories and shared experiences strengthen community bonds and mitigate individual fear.
  • Key Points:
    • Landscapes and dreams share the power to translate deep feelings and instincts into concrete images, allowing humans to confront and channel emotions through rituals and narratives.
    • These narratives reaffirm group values, strengthen individual identity within the group, and alleviate the terror of facing the world alone.
    • At Laguna Pueblo, social occasions involve recounting recent events, which often leads to retelling older stories connected to specific places.
    • These stories, even if disturbing, are told in the presence of children and women to reassure individuals of their connection to the clan, preventing isolation.
    • Ancient cohesiveness was crucial for survival, with individuals recognized as bonded to family and clan.
    • The author uses the example of a dangerous arroyo (a dry creek bed) near Kings Bar to illustrate how shared stories about losses (like vehicles falling in) connect people and reinforce the idea that suffering is not unique.
    • The arroyo is personified as a living being with character, demanding respect and caution, symbolizing the connection between humans and the earth.
    • The author feels a "strange affection" for the arroyo because it generates stories that connect inhabitants to the earth and foster respect.
  • Key Concepts:
    • Shared experience: The role of storytelling in mitigating individual fear and isolation.
    • Community cohesion: How narratives and shared rituals strengthen group identity and resilience.
    • Personification of landscape: Treating natural features like the arroyo as living beings with character.

Passage 4: The Public Taste for Anecdote

  • Main Idea: The passage argues that the public's preference for anecdotes and private memoirs over formal history is a sign of good sense and a philosophical temper, as it allows for a more accurate understanding of human character.
  • Key Points:
    • Critics dismiss the public's taste for anecdote, but the author defends it as proof of public good sense.
    • Formal history is often criticized for presenting heroes unrealistically ("decked out," "measured prose," "sublime or diabolical motives"), making them hard to sympathize with.
    • The inherent uncertainty in historical accounts leads to a preference for "secret memoirs and private anecdotes" to uncover truth.
    • True character is revealed more reliably through "careless conversations" and "half-finished sentences" than public actions or appearance.
    • Personal writings like diaries and letters are valued for their insight into domestic lives and the actual happiness or misery of individuals.
    • Comparing individuals' private lives helps assess the real rewards of virtue and punishments of vice, a task historians often neglect.
    • The author argues that the best biographers are not necessarily the most intellectually talented, preferring a "plain unvarnished tale" over "highly ornamented narrative."
    • Overly polished writing ("rounding of a period," "pointing an antithesis") can obscure truth.
  • Key Terms:
    • Anecdote: An informal story involving personal details.
    • Secret memoirs and private anecdotes: Personal accounts offering direct insight into individuals' lives.
    • Plain unvarnished tale: A simple, unembellished narrative.
    • Highly ornamented narrative: Writing that is overly elaborate or stylized.

Section II: Free-Response Questions

This section contains three free-response prompts, each requiring a timed essay response.

Question 1: Synthesis Essay - Restructuring the USPS

  • Task: Synthesize information from at least three provided sources (articles, a graph, a photo) to argue for or against restructuring the United States Postal Service (USPS) to meet the needs of a changing world, and if so, how.
  • Sources Provided:
    • Source A (Stone): Offers management consultant advice for the USPS, including embracing e-business, increasing service (7-day delivery), using coupons, controlling broadband, rebranding, strategically closing branches, and reorganizing staff.
    • Source B (Graph): Illustrates the challenge of declining mail volume versus increasing delivery points for the USPS.
    • Source C (O'Keefe): Reports on the USPS's financial struggles ($3.8 billion loss), declining first-class mail volume, and Postmaster General Potter's call for flexibility in delivery schedules, prices, and labor costs, potentially ending Saturday deliveries.
    • Source D (Hawkins): (Content not available due to copyright).
    • Source E (McDevitt): Discusses the threat of "junk mail" reduction efforts (like GreenDimes) to the USPS, as direct mail constitutes 52% of mail volume and is crucial for revenue. It notes opposition from postal workers to "Do Not Mail" lists.
    • Source F (Cullen): Argues for the enduring value of "real" handwritten letters, highlighting their permanence compared to electronic records and their affordability (44 cents). It notes the USPS's financial issues since 2006, potential losses, and proposed cuts (Saturday delivery, post office closures).
    • Source G (Photo): Shows the Ochopee Post Office, Florida, the smallest post office in the US, illustrating the USPS's presence even in remote areas.
  • Scoring Guidelines: Essays are scored holistically based on the effectiveness of the argument, the synthesis of sources (at least three), the use of evidence and explanations, and the quality of writing. Scores range from 0 (off-topic) to 9 (exceptionally sophisticated).

Question 2: Rhetorical Analysis Essay - JFK's Steel Price Hike Speech

  • Task: Analyze the rhetorical strategies President John F. Kennedy uses in his April 11, 1962, remarks to achieve his purpose regarding the steel companies' price increase.
  • Passage Content: Kennedy condemns the steel companies' price increase as an "irresponsible defiance of the public interest," especially during a time of national crisis (Berlin, Vietnam) and calls for sacrifice. He argues there is no justification for the increase, citing declining labor costs, raw material costs, and high profits. He details the negative economic impacts (increased costs for consumers and businesses, inflation, defense costs, balance of payments) and outlines government actions (Justice Department, FTC reviews, Congressional inquiries). He concludes by emphasizing the public's right to expect business responsibility in return for economic freedom.
  • Scoring Guidelines: Essays are scored on the effectiveness of the analysis of rhetorical strategies, the use of specific textual evidence, and the quality of writing. Scores range from 0 to 9.

Question 3: Argument Essay - Certainty and Doubt

  • Task: Take a position on the relationship between certainty and doubt, supporting the argument with appropriate evidence and examples.
  • Provided Statements:
    • William Lyon Phelps: Absolute certainty enables accomplishment, even of impossible things.
    • Bertrand Russell: We should always entertain opinions with some measure of doubt; dogmatic belief is discouraged.
  • Scoring Guidelines: Essays are scored on the clarity and coherence of the argument, the quality and relevance of evidence and examples, and the quality of writing. Scores range from 0 to 9.

Administrative Materials

The document also includes:

  • Copyright and Usage Information: Notes that commercial use is prohibited and distribution is permitted only under specific EULAs (End User License Agreements).
  • Exam Instructions: Detailed instructions for proctors and students regarding the administration of the exam, including timing, materials, and procedures for both the multiple-choice and free-response sections.
  • Answer Key and Scoring Guidelines: Provided for the multiple-choice section and the free-response questions, outlining how essays will be evaluated.
  • Scoring Worksheet and Conversion Chart: Tools for calculating composite scores and converting them to AP grades.
  • College Board Information: A description of the College Board's mission and services.
  • Student Answer Sheet: A sample of the answer sheet used for the multiple-choice section.

This summary covers the main content and structure of the provided document, focusing on the exam questions, passages, and administrative details.

这里有9套AP科目真题，我今年要考了，很焦虑，帮我统计一下高频知识点，对应核心terms，中英输出，table展现

苡甜甜甜，下面为你汇总9套AP English Language and Composition真题与课程说明里的高频知识点和核心术语，表格中给出中英文对照，帮你系统复习。
（数据依据：AP+Lang+2021.pdf, AP Lang 2014.pdf, AP Lang 2018.pdf, AP Lang 2013.pdf, AP Lang 2012.pdf, AP Lang 2015.pdf, AP Lang 2016(1).pdf, AP Lang 2020 course-and-exam-description.pdf, AP Lang 2017(1).pdf）

高频知识点&核心术语总结

| 英文术语 | 中文解释 | 高频考查点&说明 | |---------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------| | Rhetorical Situation | 修辞情境 | 分析作者、受众、目的、背景（exigence, audience, purpose, context, message）[5] | | Thesis/Claim | 论点/主旨 | 明确可辩护的中心观点，是argument类作文必备[167] | | Evidence | 证据 | 用事实、数据、引用、名人实例支撑论点[161] | | Commentary | 评论/解释 | 解释证据如何支持论点，避免纯罗列事实[167] | | Synthesis | 综合/融合 | 整合多个材料/观点形成原创分析，1号题核心[167] | | Counterargument | 反方观点/反驳 | 指出、辩驳对立观点，提升argument的深度[5][52] | | Reasoning/Line of Reasoning| 推理/推理论证链 | 系统展开论点和证据，逻辑递进，非单点断裂[95] | | Rhetorical Devices | 修辞手法 | 比喻（metaphor）、排比（parallelism）、设问（rhetorical question）、对比（contrast）、反语（irony）等[167] | | Tone/Style | 语气/行文风格 | 分析文本风格（formal, informal, ironic, earnest等），解题常见[7][70] | | Organization | 逻辑结构/篇章组织 | 段落结构，首段引入，总-分-总，主题句等，作文和阅读都考[95] | | Synthesis Source Integration | 综合信息来源/材料融合 | 引用并规范标注不少于三篇材料，避免仅总结材料[174] | | Argumentation | 论证/议论文 | 明确表态、给出理由+证据+分析，回应反方，终结总结[95] | | Sophistication | 思维复杂度/论证深度 | 处理复杂立场、展示nuance，非黑即白[170] | | Rhetorical Analysis | 修辞分析 | 阐述作者如何用修辞策略服务特定目的（2号题核心）[170] |

详细表格（中英对照，结合AP官方核心考点）

| 高频考点 (英文) | 高频考点 (中文) | 核心细化术语/概念（中英对照） | |----------------------------|-------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Rhetorical Situation | 修辞情境 | Exigence（动因）、Audience（受众）、Purpose（目的）、Context（背景）、Message（信息）、Writer（作者） | | Thesis/Claim | 论点/主旨 | Defensible thesis（可辩护论点）、argument（论证）、assertion（陈述） | | Evidence & Commentary | 证据与评论/解释 | Quotation（引用）、Statistic（数据）、Anecdote（轶事）、Historical Example（历史例子）、commentary（解释说明） | | Reasoning & Organization | 推理与结构 | Line of reasoning（推理论证链）、Paragraph development（段落展开）、Transitions（过渡） | | Synthesis | 整合/融合（1号题） | Source Integration（材料融合）、Citation（引用标注）、paraphrase（释义）、direct quote（直引） | | Rhetorical Devices | 修辞手法 | Metaphor（隐喻）、Simile（明喻）、Parallelism（排比）、Antithesis（对照）、Hypophora（自问自答）、Irony（反语） | | Style & Tone | 风格与语气 | Diction（用词）、Syntax（句法）、Tone（语气）、Voice（文风：formal正式/informal非正式/ironic讽刺等） | | Counterargument/Rebuttal | 反方观点与反驳 | Counterclaim（对方观点）、Rebut/concede（反驳/让步）、Refute（驳斥） | | Argumentation Strategies | 论证策略 | Logos（逻辑）、Ethos（信誉）、Pathos（情感）、Example（案例）、Qualification（限定） | | Sophistication | 复杂思维/高级论述 | Nuance（细节分层）、Concession（让步）、Broader Context（大背景外延） | | Multiple-Choice Skills | 选择题能力 | Recognizing main idea（主旨判别）、Inference（推断）、Vocabulary in context（语境词汇）、Function（句/段落作用） | | Synthesis Prompt | 综合写作（1号题） | "Write an essay that synthesizes material from at least three of the sources"（至少引用三份材料合成观点） | | Rhetorical Analysis Prompt | 修辞分析（2号题） | "Analyze the rhetorical choices the author makes..."（分析作者做了哪些修辞选择及其目的） | | Argument Prompt | 议论文写作（3号题） | "Take a position on..."（对某观点表态并展开论证） |

温馨建议

如果需要专项举例、真题练习方向、或者每个高频知识点的题型出题分布，还可以随时问我哦！

自己觉得哪个点不懂/想打磨，告诉我可为你单独举例演练（随时记住，我也可以帮你记忆重点~）

祝你备考顺利，自信满满进步！如需板块专项强化，直接说关键词，我给你专项刷题和模考建议哦！

修辞手法知识点我没学好，可以给我具体讲讲，配上真题教教我

当然可以，苡甜甜甜！**修辞手法（rhetorical devices/choices）**是AP英语语言最核心的高频知识点，尤其是第2题（Rhetorical Analysis），几乎每年考，日常的多选题中也会各种影子。下面我带你系统地梳理——配合历年真题讲解，并用中英文表格和例句帮你直观理解。

1. 高频修辞手法核心术语对照表

| 英文术语 | 中文名 | 解释与真题常见用法 | 真题例子简析（年份） | |----------------------|---------------|------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------| | Metaphor | 隐喻 | 用“不像”的表达，把A说成B（类比/形象化） | "the gay smile of alacrity disappears"（2014 Q55） | | Simile | 明喻 | 用“like, as...”表明A像B | "he is like a machine-top"（2018多选） | | Parallelism | 排比 | 结构重复，多用在句子、分句、短语等 | "He did not...He did not...He did not..."（2018多选Lincoln） | | Repetition | 重复 | 重复单词/结构，突出强调 | "He says...He adds...He says..."（2018 Q32） | | Rhetorical Question | 设问 | 提问实际无须回答——引导思路、强调主旨 | "Now why...Why should Two-and-a-half be thus insulted?"（2018 Q40） | | Antithesis/Contrast | 对比/对照 | 并列两个相反/对立事物以突出矛盾 | "planning and acting"（2014 Q55）；"truth comes limping after it"（2015）| | Allusion | 典故/引用 | 引用历史、文化、宗教、文献中的内容来增加说服力 | 引用圣经、莎翁、历史名言等——考试常考（多场次） | | Anecdote | 小故事/轶事 | 个人/他人真实的小故事，既引出话题又易打动人 | 女孩不愿被舅妈抱进（2018多选，实为“推销理论”） | | Imagery | 意象/形象化语言 | 通过具体生动描述引发画面感 | "smile seemed to gather up, curtain-like, the corners of his mouth"（2018） | | Appeal to Pathos | 情感感染 | 激发读者的情感共鸣（同情、愤怒、悲伤等） | 审题时属于argument的“pathos” | | Appeal to Ethos | 信誉召唤 | 建立自己的正当性/可信度（权威、自谦、引用专家） | "As a mother and citizen, I..."（2016 Q2题中自称woman）| | Appeal to Logos | 逻辑召唤 | 用事实/数据/因果推理，而不是仅诉诸情绪 | “一千多万人，假如三百分之一被监禁……”（2013/17 Debtor’s Prison）| | Tone Shift | 语气转变 | 文中语气、态度发生转换——考“shift”很常见 | "from speculative to emphatic"（2014 Q54） | | Juxtaposition | 并置 | 并排展示两个场景或事物，形成烘托对比（比对比更细腻） | "children talking vs. adults talking" | | Irony | 反语/讽刺 | 表面和实际意思反差，往往用来批判 | “an unparalleled generosity forgets”，实际是讽刺政客（2015 Q45）| | Hyperbole | 夸张 | 明显夸大的表达方式 | “I could eat a horse!”等 |

你在选择题看到大类words：Rhetorical Strategies, Tone, Function, Purpose, Parallel Structure, Comparison/Contrast, Metaphor, Simile, Irony, Allusion, Imagery, Anecdote, Juxtaposition等，背后其实都是这些基本修辞在变种！

2. 真题高频场景+原文颠覆讲解

✦ 【2018年 Lincoln幽默分析】

原文片段分析
Lincoln’s讲故事“His little gray eyes sparkled; ...every vestige of seriousness disappeared from his face.”
修辞手法：

  • Imagery（意象）：作者用具象化语言让读者“看到”林肯的幽默风采
  • Parallelism（排比）："every vestige...disappeared; his little gray eyes...; a smile...;" 排比结构形象描述。
  • Anecdote（轶事）：插入与林肯相关的小段子丰富阅读体验。

✦ 【2016年Browning致拿破仑的信】

原文："Ah sire, you are great enough!"
修辞手法：

  • Appeal to Ethos/Pathos：自谦身份，呼吁拿破仑的宽容，强化“我只是弱小女人”情感。
  • Repetition（重复）："What touches you is..." 强化诉求。
  • Allusion："as God made an exception...when He gave him genius" 典故提升道德高度。

✦ 【2015年Jane Addams论华盛顿遗产】

原文："the power of losing his own life for the life of a larger cause"
修辞手法：

  • Metaphor（隐喻）：用生命奉献类比伟人品质。
  • Parallelism/Anaphora（排比\首语重复）：“What is it that we admire about the soldier?...what we admire about the soldier is...”
  • Appeal to Logos：用逻辑推论来呼吁道德担当。

✦ 【2018年儿童语言学习】

原文："Now why...should Two-and-a-half be thus insulted?"
修辞手法：

  • Rhetorical Question（设问）：连续设问，引导读者共鸣。
  • Contrast（对比）：儿童学习错误与成人对待差异。

✦ 【2021年“Black women need to reach out...”片段】

文章中大量用Juxtaposition（并置）和Contrast，比如男性式“preaching” VS 家庭女性强势语言等，突出女性表达权力斗争。

3. 真题多选题型专练解法举例

比如你看到如下题型：

"Which of the following rhetorical strategies does the author employ in lines XX-YY?"

A. Simile
B. Anecdote
C. Rhetorical Question
D. Parallel Structure
E. Hyperbole

做法：通读段落——找形象化/对比/排比/设问/小故事出现，相应选择。

4. 写作时如何用/辨认修辞手法

  • 分析型作文（第2题），用下面句式：
    • The author employs xxx (修辞手法) to illustrate/highlight/emphasize...
    • For example: “具体句子” utilizes metaphor, comparing...to...
    • This strategy is effective because it appeals to the reader’s sense of .../establishes the author’s...
  • 写Argument/Synthesis也能主动引用对方修辞（转化为反驳点）。

5. 考场小贴士

  • 做选择题见到“author’s strategy/device/tone/structure/function”等，立刻脑中去套表格里的考点/术语！
  • 第二题修辞分析不只找例子，还要能结合目的+效果解释其作用。
  • 多模仿真题中的答题结构分析，以例佐证，点明策略。

✦ 常见修辞术语速览表

| 英文 | 中文 | 快速联想例句或真题 | |-----------------|-----------|----------------------------------| | Metaphor | 隐喻 | "the gay smile of alacrity disappears" | | Repetition | 重复 | "What touches you is..."（2016） | | Allusion | 典故 | "as God made an exception..." | | Juxtaposition | 并置 | "Church men/家中女性对比" | | Irony | 反语 | "an unparalleled generosity..." | | Rhetorical Question| 设问 | "Now why...?"（2018） | | Parallelism | 排比 | "What is it that...that...that..." |

苡甜甜甜，如果你还有具体哪类修辞看不懂、或者要看真题解析、或直接想试着分析某一段落，随时告诉我可以递进讲！（想训练选题or写作实战也可以直接说呦~）

有需要记住这个表格、或者你自己的易错分析方法，我可以帮你设为长期记忆，点名提醒！💡

Ask Sia for quick explanations, examples, and study support.

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