ENGLISH 9 HONORS (Saucer): 2025 EXAM STUDY GUIDE

Fiction

• Dramatic Irony: When the audience or reader knows more than the characters.
  • Example: In a horror movie, the audience knows the killer is hiding in the closet, but the character does not.
• Situational Irony: When the exact opposite of what is expected occurs.
  • Example: A fire station burns down.
• Verbal Irony: When the speaker says the opposite of what they really mean on purpose for effect.
  • Example: Sarcasm; saying "That's just great" when something bad happens.
• Setting: The time, place, and culture of the story.
  • Example: The setting of Romeo and Juliet is Verona, Italy, in the 16th century.
• Plot Structure:
  • Exposition: At the beginning of a story, when the setting and characters are introduced and fleshed out.
    • Example: The beginning of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, where we learn about Harry's life with the Dursleys.
  • Rising Action: When problems arise and the plot thickens.
    • Example: In The Hunger Games, the events leading up to the Games, including Katniss volunteering for Prim.
  • Climax: The turning point, when things cannot proceed as they did before.
    • Example: The final battle in The Lord of the Rings.
  • Falling Action: The beginning of the end; where things return to normalcy or further unravel, depending on the resolution.
    • Example: After the battle in The Lord of the Rings, the journey back to the Shire.
  • Resolution/Denouement: The conclusion reached at the end; the level at which problems are/are not resolved.
    • Example: The ending of Pride and Prejudice, where Elizabeth and Darcy get married.
• Metaphor: A comparison of two seemingly dissimilar things without the use of “like” or “as”.
  • Example: "The world is a stage."
• Simile: An explicit comparison between two unlike things (using “like” or “as”).
  • Example: "She is as brave as a lion."
• Imagery: Descriptive language that appeals to the senses.
  • Example: "The crimson sun sank slowly in the west, painting the clouds with fire."
• Direct Characterization: When the author directly TELLS the reader about the character’s traits.
  • Example: "Jane was a kind and generous person."
• Indirect Characterization: When the author SHOWS the reader about the character’s traits by showing how they think, act, speak, and affect others.
  • Example: Showing a character volunteering at a soup kitchen to demonstrate their kindness.
• Theme: The central idea of the narrative; the universal lesson of the piece.
  • Example: The theme of The Great Gatsby is the illusion of the American Dream.
• Diction: The writer’s choice of words to create an effect.
  • Example: Using formal diction to create a serious tone.
• Point of View: The perspective from which the story is told.
  • Example: First-person, second-person, third-person.
• Mood: The general atmosphere or feeling evoked by the story or passage.
  • Example: A dark and suspenseful mood in a horror story.
• Tone: The speaker’s attitude towards the subject discussed (can be tough with fiction).
  • Example: A sarcastic tone in an essay.
• Allusion: Indirect reference to something outside the story (with which the reader is familiar).
  • Example: "He was a real Romeo with the ladies," referencing Shakespeare’s Romeo.
• Alliteration: The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.
  • Example: "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers."
• Oxymoron: A figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction.
  • Example: "living dead", "deafening silence".
• Foreshadowing: Dropping of hints or clues about future events or developments in a story.
  • Example: A character finding a gun early in the story might foreshadow violence later on.
• Personification: When an inanimate thing is described as having human characteristics.
  • Example: "The wind whispered through the trees."
• Hyperbole: Extreme and obvious exaggeration, often used for humorous effect.
  • Example: "I'm so hungry I could eat a horse."
• Motif: Recurring idea or element that leads to abstract idea or universal theme.
  • Example: Recurring images of light and darkness in Romeo and Juliet.
• Symbol: A character, object, or color which represents an idea.
  • Example: A dove symbolizing peace. or Rose symbolizing love.

Poetry

• Characteristics of an Epic Poem:
  • Epithet: An epithet is a descriptive phrase that characterizes a person, place, or thing, often used repeatedly in an epic to maintain rhythm and familiarity.
    • Example: “rosy-fingered dawn” in The Odyssey.
  • Epic Simile: An epic simile (also called a Homeric simile) is an extended comparison that usually uses “like” or “as” and spans several lines, often comparing heroic actions to everyday experiences.
    • Example: Comparing a hero's charge in battle to a lion attacking its prey.
  • In Media Res: In Media Res means “in the middle of things.” Epics often begin in the middle of the action rather than from the start of the hero’s life. Background details are filled in later.
    • Example: The Odyssey begins with Odysseus held captive and then flashes back.
  • Invocation: An invocation is a formal plea for inspiration, often directed to a muse or deity at the beginning of an epic poem.
    • Example: The opening lines of The Iliad, invoking the muse to tell the story of Achilles.
• Rhyme Scheme: Pattern of end rhyme between lines of a poem. Letters are used at the end of each line to indicate which lines rhyme.
  • Example: AABB, ABAB, ABCB.
• Structure of a Shakespearean Sonnet:
  • Lines: Three quatrains (stanzas of four lines) followed by a couplet (a two-lined stanza).
  • Rhyme Scheme: Has a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.
  • Iambic Pentameter: Five sets of iambic feet in each line, meaning each line will be 10 syllables. One iambic foot = one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable. Iambic pentameter sounds like a heartbeat (daDUM daDUM daDUM).
    • Example: "Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?"

Drama

• Monologue: A long, formal speech made by a character in a play to other characters.
  • Example: A king addressing his court.
• Soliloquy: A long speech in which a character who is usually alone on stage expresses their private thoughts or feelings.
  • Example: Hamlet's "To be or not to be" speech.
• Aside: Private words that a character in a play speaks to the audience or to another character. These lines are not meant to be overheard by others on stage.
  • Example: A character making a quick, sarcastic comment to the audience.
• Blank Verse: Unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter. Used by Shakespeare in his plays.

Nonfiction

• Definition of Nonfiction: Writing that tells us about real people, places, and events. Nonfiction texts are written to convey factual information, and this information can be verified by other sources. Nonfiction can come in many forms and can be written from different perspectives: Newspaper articles, letters, essays, biographies, speeches, personal narratives, etc.
• Definition of Narrative Nonfiction: Tells a real-life story about real people and events with stylistic elements akin to that seen more in fiction. It often requires more research than traditional news reportage due to its creative flexibility, as narrative nonfiction writers must go to greater lengths to accurately express the facts and details of another person’s life in a literary way.
  • Example: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote.
• Bias: Our perception of the way things are, or perhaps should be, even if it’s not accurate. We show our bias when we assume that something is one way based on our experiences or beliefs.

Writing

• Thesis Statement: A thesis statement is the main point or "big idea" of your paper or presentation. It tells your audience what you're going to prove or explain and sets up the structure of your argument. A strong thesis helps organize your thoughts and guides your readers or listeners through your argument.
• Parts of a Body Paragraph (refer to ACEIT notes):
  • Assertion: Also known as your topic sentence, the assertion will be arguable and should state the main point you want to prove in the paragraph. Your assertion should directly support your thesis.
  • Context: Introduces evidence by providing background information to help the reader understand.
  • Evidence: This proves your assertion, and therefore your thesis. In a literary analysis paper, evidence is usually a direct quote from the text. Evidence can also be facts, statistics, and specific examples. If using a quote, make sure your quote is embedded in the paragraph. (Don’t plop your quotes!)
  • Interpretation: Interpretation is your chance to explain your reasoning. Why does the evidence you just provided support the assertion? Interpretation should be at least 2-4 sentences long.
  • Transition: Now that you’ve made your point in this paragraph, it’s time to move on to your next point. Your transition should wrap up the main point of the current paragraph, reinforce your thesis, and connect to the topic of the next paragraph.
• Proper MLA In-text Citations for Novels, Epic Poems, Plays, etc.:
  • Novel: (Author Page#). For example: (Steinbeck 100)
  • Epic Poem: (Author Book.Line-Line). For example: (Homer 9.410-415)
  • Play: (Author Act Number.Scene Number.Line). For example: (Shakespeare 1.5.104-107)
• Correct Formatting for Book Titles, Play Titles, Poem Titles, etc.:
  • “Big” works like books, plays, movies, etc.: Italics
    • Example: Hamlet, The Great Gatsby
  • “Smaller” works like poems, songs, articles: “Quotation Marks”
    • Example: “The Raven”, “Yesterday”
• Proper Tense for Writing English Essays: Third person present tense.

Grammar

• Comma Rules: Used to separate items in a list, after introductory words/phrases, around non-essential clauses (appositives), before conjunctions in compound sentences, between adjectives if they modify the same noun equally.
  • Example: "I need to buy milk, eggs, and bread." , "However, I disagree."
• Semicolon Rules: Used to join two closely related independent clauses and separate complex list items (if commas are already used).
  • Example: "The rain was pouring; the streets were flooded."
• Colon Rules: Used to introduce a list or explanation or after an independent clause to emphasize what follows.
  • Example: "I need three things from the store: milk, bread, and eggs."
• Ways to Correct Run-on Sentences: Add a period (make two sentences), use a semicolon (if closely related), add a comma + coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS), or rewrite as a complex sentence (add a subordinating conjunction).
• Ways to Correct Sentence Fragments: Attach to an independent clause, add a missing subject or verb, or remove the subordinating conjunction (if unnecessary).
• Dependent Clauses: Cannot stand alone as a sentence. They typically begin with subordinating conjunctions (ex: because, if, when) or can function as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns.
  • Example: Because it was raining.
• Independent Clauses: They can stand alone as a complete sentence, contain a subject and a verb, and can be joined with conjunctions or semicolons.
  • Example: "The cat sat on the mat."

Romeo and Juliet Grammar Review - Part 1

• 1. “O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name.”
  • Proper noun: Romeo
  • Verb: Deny
• 2. “With love’s light wings did I o’erperch these walls, For stony limits cannot hold love out.”
  • Adjectives: light, stony
  • Coordinating conjunction: For
• 3. “But soft, what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.”
  • Coordinating conjunction: and
  • Prepositional phrase: through yonder window
• 4. “Therefore, love moderately. Long love doth so. Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow.”
  • Adverb: moderately
  • "Long love doth so" is a complete sentence.

Romeo and Juliet Grammar Review - Part 2

• 1. Sentences: Romeo loves Juliet. Juliet loves Romeo.
  • Combined sentence using a FANBOYS conjunction: Romeo loves Juliet, and Juliet loves Romeo.
• 2. Sentence: Because he was banished from Verona, he missed Juliet.
  • Dependent clause: Because he was banished from Verona
  • Independent clause: he missed Juliet
• 3. Sentence: Romeo went to the party he saw Juliet and he fell in love immediately.
  • Corrected sentences:
    • Romeo went to the party. He saw Juliet and fell in love immediately.
    • Romeo went to the party; he saw Juliet and fell in love immediately.
    • Romeo went to the party, and he saw Juliet and fell in love immediately.

Romeo and Juliet Grammar Review Free Response Examples

• 1. Prompt: Describe the initial meeting of Romeo and Juliet at the Capulet feast.
  • Include: At least two adjectives, one adverb, one prepositional phrase, and one compound sentence using a FANBOYS conjunction.
  • Example Paragraph: The masked Romeo entered the grand hall quietly, hoping to catch a glimpse of Rosaline. Among the crowd of party-goers, he saw Juliet, and he was instantly captivated by her beauty.
• 2. Prompt: Explain why Romeo is banished from Verona.
  • Include: At least one example of passive voice, one example of subject-verb agreement, and one independent clause next to a dependent clause.
  • Example Paragraph: Mercutio was slain by Tybalt, and Romeo, in a fit of rage, avenged his friend’s death. Because Romeo killed Tybalt, he is banished from Verona.
• 3. Prompt: Describe the tragic ending of Romeo and Juliet.
  • Include: At least one semicolon used correctly, one example of a direct object, and one complex sentence with a dependent clause.
  • Example Paragraph: Romeo heard of Juliet's death; he rushed to her tomb and bought poison, which he drank quickly.

Shakespeare Review: Sonnet 130 by William Shakespeare

• My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun;
• Coral is far more red than her lips’ red;
• If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
• If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
• I have seen roses damasked, red and white,
• But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
• And in some perfumes is there more delight
• Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
• I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
• That music hath a far more pleasing sound.
• I grant I never saw a goddess go;
• My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.
• And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
• As any she belied with false compare.
  • Rhyme scheme of the poem: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
  • Couplet: Lines 13-14
  • The poem is written in: Iambic pentameter
  • Simile: Line 1
  • Metaphor: Line 4
  • Tone conveyed by "dun", "reeks", and "treads": Critical
  • Overall tone of the poem: Clear-sighted
  • Reason the speaker gives for the superiority of his lover: He gives none
  • What is Shakespeare doing in this sonnet? Gently mocking the conventions of romantic poetry

Reading Passage Practice: “Long Live the Five-Paragraph Essay?” by Emma Camp

• Primary audience for this article: High school English teachers and students
• The phrase "soul-rending" in paragraph 4 emphasizes: The emotional frustration of formulaic essays
• The author includes their ninth-grade English teacher’s feedback to: Provide an expert evaluation of ChatGPT’s essay
• By the end of the article, the reader can infer that: The five-paragraph essay will persist but adapt to AI challenges
• The article’s title suggests: AI poses a threat but may not eliminate the assignment
• According to the article, a key weakness of ChatGPT’s essay is: It failed to follow the five-paragraph structure
• Corey Craft’s reaction to the AI-generated essay: Moderately approving but suspicious of its sophistication
• The author’s overall stance on the five-paragraph essay: critical but resigned to its persistence
• Solution for combating AI-generated essays: Assigning handwritten, in-class essays
• The article’s conclusion implies that education tends to: Resist change and maintain traditional methods