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Senior English – British Literature - Honors

Summer Reading Questions

Required Text: 1984 - George Orwell

Consider the following questions while you read the novel and be prepared to discuss them in class. You

should be able to refer to specific examples from the novel. Remember to highlight and annotate the

novel. You will also be required to either take a quiz and/or write an essay.

1. What are the three slogans of the Inner Party?

2. Explain the Party slogan, “Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present

controls the past.”

3. Parsons brags about his children for doing what?

4. What is the purpose of marriage in the state?

5. How does Winston view the proles?

6. What finally convinces Winston that O’Brien is a member of the Brotherhood?

7. What does Winston remember about his family and his relationship with his mother?

8. How does O’Brien test Julia and Winston?

9. What is the purpose of war in the world of 1984?

10. What is doublethink and what is its purpose to the ruling class?

11. What is O’Brien attempting to teach Winston?

12. What final question does Winston ask O’Brien?

13. How does Winston show that he is not entirely true to Big Brother?

14. How is it evident that Winston really is a different person?

15. Could America ever become a society as depicted in 1984?

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Senior English – Honors

Summer Reading Questions (Continued)

Required Text: Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

Consider the following questions and prompts while you read the novel and be prepared to discuss them

in class. You should be able to refer to specific examples from the novel. Remember to highlight and

annotate the novel. You will also be required to either take a quiz and/or write an essay.

1. To what extent does the setting of Bronte’s novel contribute to mood and characterization?

2. What does the dream motif add to the meaning of this novel? Describe the two dreams Mr.

Lockwood has while staying at Wuthering Heights. How do you interpret each of the dreams?

What is your interpretation of Catherine’s dream about heaven (chapter 9)?

3. What is the point-of-view from which this novel is told? What impact does point-of-view have

on this Gothic tale?

4. Contrast Heathcliff and Edgar Linton. Why is Catherine drawn to each of these men?

5. What is your best answer to each of the two questions Isabella poses to Nelly in the beginning of

her letter?

6. Explain what Catherine means when she says, “He shall never know how I love him; and that,

not because he’s handsome …but because he’s more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are

made of, his and mine, are the same.”

7. How does the love triangle of the second generation echo the love triangle of the first

generation?

8. Why is Linton so fearful and anxious in Chapter 26?

9. In Chapter 27 Heathcliff says, “It’s odd what a savage feeling I have to anything that seems

afraid of me!” Is there any truth in this self-assessment? Give examples.

10. In what ways might Nelly be responsible for some of the tragic events of the story?

11. Do you think Catherine (the elder) has really been haunting Heathcliff since her death or is her

ghost just in his mind? Explain your answer.

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Senior English – Honors

Summer Reading Questions (Continued)

Required Text: The Importance of Being Earnest - Oscar Wilde

Consider the following questions and prompts while you read the novel and be prepared to discuss them

in class. You should be able to refer to specific examples from the novel. Remember to highlight and

annotate the novel. You will also be required to either take a quiz and/or write an essay.

1. Why is the notion of “being earnest” important in this play? Why does Wilde call the play The

Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People?

2. What is “bunburying”? What does this activity reveal about the use of social masks?

3. Algernon says, “The very essence of romance is uncertainty. If ever I get married, I’ll certainly

try to forget the fact.” How does this statement satirize Victorian attitudes towards marriage?

4. Research the term “comedy of manners.” As you read this play, annotate the text for examples

of irony and satire. What effect does the irony, sarcasm, wit, and word play have on you, the

reader? How do you describe Wilde’s writing style and tone as he depicts Victorian society in

this comedy of manners?

5. In what ways do Algernon and Jack’s views about love and marriage differ? Use specific lines

from the play to support your response.

6. How does Wilde characterize the Victorian women (i.e. Gwendolen, Lady Bracknell, Cecily, and

Miss Prism)? Compare and contrast the various female characters.

7. What is the purpose of Cecily’s use of a diary? What is the connection between reality and

writing?

8. Research the Aesthetic Movement of the nineteenth century and Oscar Wilde’s role in it. How do

his views on “art for art’s sake” manifest in The Importance of Being Earnest?

9. What is your favorite scene in the play? Why?