English I Semester Exam Review Notes

Semester Exam Quick Facts:

50 questions (multiple choice, true/false, matching, fill-in-the-blank).
On Schoology.
Covers information from Semester 2.
Comprehension and skills-based questions.
Literature:
- "A Raisin in the Sun" by Lorraine Hansberry
- "Happy New Year, Mom" by Unknown
- "We Choose to Go to the Moon" by Pres. John F. Kennedy
- "Examination Day" by Henry Slesar

Section 1: Literary Terms & Figurative Language

Author’s Purpose: The reason an author writes a text—typically to inform, persuade, entertain, or express feelings.
Central Idea: The main point or message that the author wants to convey in a text.
Characterization: The method an author uses to reveal a character's personality, either directly or indirectly.
First Person Point-of-View: A narrative perspective where the story is told by a character using "I" or "we."
Hyperbole: An intentional and obvious exaggeration used for emphasis or effect.
Imagery: Descriptive language that appeals to the senses, creating vivid mental pictures.
Irony: A contrast between expectations and reality, often highlighting the opposite of what is expected.
Metaphor: A figure of speech that directly compares two unrelated things by stating one is the other.
Personification: Assigning human traits or actions to non-human entities or objects.
Point-of-View: The perspective from which a story is narrated.
Theme: The underlying message or main idea explored in a literary work.
Simile: A comparison between two different things using "like" or "as."
Symbolism: Using symbols—objects, characters, or events—to represent larger ideas or concepts.
Tone: The author's attitude toward the subject, conveyed through word choice and style.
Word Choice (aka Diction): The specific vocabulary an author uses to convey meaning and evoke emotions.

Section 2: Annotate the Short Stories

Annotate for tone, word choice (aka diction), imagery, theme, ethos, pathos, logos, Kairos and author’s purpose.
Each story must include at least five annotations.
An annotation is something purposefully highlighted and a note about WHY you chose to highlight it.

Section 3: Plot Diagram

Exposition: The beginning of the story where characters, setting, and background information are introduced.
Inciting Incident: The event that sets the main story/conflict in motion.
Conflict: The main problem or struggle between opposing forces (e.g., character vs. character, self, society, or nature).
Rising Action: The series of events that build up to the climax, adding tension and developing the conflict.
Climax: The turning point or most intense moment in the story.
Falling Action: Events that happen after the climax as the story starts to wrap up.
Denouement (“Resolution” on the chart): The end of the story where loose ends are tied up and the conflict is resolved.
Ethos: An appeal to credibility or character—trusting the speaker or writer.
Logos: An appeal to logic and reason—using facts, statistics, or logical arguments.
Pathos: An appeal to emotion—trying to make the reader feel something (like sadness, anger, or hope).

Section 4: Short-Constructed Response and Extended-Constructed Response

Short-Constructed Response: A brief answer (2–4 sentences) that answers a question and supports it with evidence.
Extended-Constructed Response: A longer, multi-paragraph response that includes a full explanation, evidence, and reasoning.
Topic Sentence: The sentence that introduces the main idea of a paragraph.
Claim: A statement of assertion declaring that something is true
Text Evidence: Quotes or examples from a text that support your claim.
Rationale #1: The first explanation of why your evidence supports your claim.
Rationale #2: A second explanation or insight showing deeper thinking about the evidence and claim.
Closing Sentence: The sentence that wraps up a paragraph by reinforcing the main idea.
Introduction Paragraph: The first paragraph of an essay; includes hook, background info, and thesis. (Usually shaped like a triangle—starts broad, ends specific.)
Body Paragraph: A middle paragraph that explains and supports your argument. (Shaped like a rectangle—organized and even throughout.)
Conclusion Paragraph: The last paragraph of an essay that restates the thesis and leaves the reader with a final thought. (Shaped like a triangle—starts specific, ends broad.)
Thesis Statement: One sentence that states your main argument or position and previews your main points.
Transition Sentence: A sentence that smoothly connects one idea or paragraph to the next.
Call to Action: A sentence urging the reader to do something or think differently after reading.
Refutation: A statement that counters the opposing viewpoint to strengthen your own argument.
Source / Credible Source: Where one finds the evidence to support their claims that is credible and trustworthy.

A Raisin in the Sun Background Notes

Synopsis

The play tells the story of the Youngers, a low-class black family, and their struggle to gain middle class acceptance.
Mama is waiting for a $10,000$ check from her husband's death, and the drama focuses on how the check should be spent.

About the Author

Childhood

Lorraine Hansberry was born on May 19, 1930, and was the youngest of four children.
She enjoyed a comfortable middle-class existence.
She lived in South Side Chicago and knew some of the greatest African Americans of her time, like Langston Hughes, Duke Ellington, Joe Lewis.
W.E.B. Du Bois was Hansberry's mentor.

Turning Point

In 1938, Hansberry's father, Carl, challenged the segregated housing pattern in Chicago when he purchased a house in an all-white neighborhood.
The family was threatened by a white mob and forced to leave by a court order.
Carl Hansberry took the case to the Supreme Court where he won a favorable judgment in 1940 (Hansberry vs. Lee).
Despite the victory, the experience left a lasting impact on Carl Hansberry.

Education

Hansberry attended the University of Wisconsin but left after becoming dissatisfied with the curriculum.
She moved to New York and became a reporter for the radical black newspaper, Freedom.
Eventually, she attended the Art Institute of New York, where she fell in love with theater and playwriting.
Hansberry attended the University of Wisconsin and the Art Institute of New York.

Literary Influences

Frederick Douglass: She felt inspired by early activists and abolitionists.
W.E.B. Du Bois: She had an early fascination with Africa and spent time there with her mentor, writer, and activist Du Bois.
Langston Hughes: Another influencer and family friend.
She used a line from Hughes's poem "Harlem" for the title of her play, A Raisin in the Sun.

Accomplishments

In 1957, A Raisin in the Sun was completed and gained critical attention, not only for its content but also for the fact that it was written by a young African American woman.
After successful runs in Philadelphia, Chicago, and New York, A Raisin in the Sun opened on Broadway on March 11, 1959, and critics raved.
Hansberry is the first African American woman to have her play produced on Broadway, running for 538 performances.
Her play crossed social lines with powerful grace, appealing to critics, activists, artists, and theatergoers and shed light on the Civil Rights Movement.
The play won the New York Dramatic Critics Award that year, a first for any African American.

Death

In 1965, Lorraine Hansberry died an early death from pancreatic cancer. She was 34.
Although her life and career were cut short, an informal autobiography by her ex-husband was put together.
It was called To Be Young, Gifted and Black. It is a tribute to Hansberry's literary, social, and personal vision.
To Be Young, Gifted, and Black is a tribute to Hansberry's literary, social, and personal vision.

Historical Context

Civil Rights Movement

The play A Raisin in the Sun is set during the 1950s. This was a pivotal time during the Civil Rights Movement and changes in history.
During this time period, it was legal to discriminate against people based on race or sex, in terms of employment, education, and public accommodations.

Great Northern Migration

Many African Americans continued to move to northern cities from the South.
Chicago was one of the cities that grew most from southern black immigration.
Between 1940 and 1950, the number of African Americans living in Chicago grew by 80%. The number of whites grew by 0.1%.

City Life

Many of the African-Americans living in Chicago were living in run-down neighborhoods which became all-black public housing projects.
Most units were overcrowded and shared bathroom facilities between multiple families.
Jobs were increasingly hard to find for both black men and women after WWII. Many women worked as domestic help, and the men were working in plants.

1954-1963

1954 Board v. Board of Education outlawed segregated public schools; however, it was left to local officials to decide when they'd like to start desegregating.
Moreover, the case's decision did not abolish segregation in other public areas, such as restaurants and restrooms.
1955 - Montgomery Bus Boycott: Sparked by the arrest of Rosa Parks, the Montgomery bus boycott was a 13-month mass protest that ended with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that segregation on public buses is unconstitutional.
1956: Congressmen from Confederate States called on their states to refuse to comply with Brown v. Board; President Eisenhower also opposed Brown v. Board.
1957: The governor of Arkansas refused to let nine black students enter a local high school. The U.S. Army was called to escort and protect the nine students.
Martin Luther King formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
1963 - I Have a Dream: Sentiments from A Raisin in the Sun will be echoed by MLK in later speeches, marches, and rallies.
Brown v. Board of Education was responsible for desegregating schools.

Major Characters

Mama (Leena Younger): A recent widow, years of hard work are catching up with her. She is religious, compassionate, and strong-willed. She worries about her family and wrestles with decisions about the insurance money her family is about to inherit.
Walter Lee Younger: Mama's thirty-five-year-old son, works as a chauffeur but dreams of owning his own business. He neglects his marriage, drinks to excess and betrays his mother. Walter is a dreamer. He wants to be rich and devises plans to acquire wealth with his friends.
Ruth Younger: Walter's wife and the mother of their son, Travis. She is desperate to see her family in a home of their own. Ruth is torn between her disgust with Walter's present behavior and her love for the man he once was. She is about thirty, but her weariness makes her seem older. Constantly fighting poverty and domestic troubles, she continues to be an emotionally strong woman. Her almost pessimistic pragmatism helps her to survive.
Beneatha Younger: Mama's daughter and Walter's sister. Beneatha is an intellectual. Twenty years old, she attends college and is better educated than the rest of the Younger family. Some of her personal beliefs and views have distanced her from conservative Mama. She dreams of being a doctor and struggles to determine her identity as a well-educated black woman. She is