This summer you will read BOTH Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser ...

Elizabeth Seton High School Summer Reading --- Grade 11
Required Text: The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Your summer reading assignment will be completed through the Turnitin.com website by uploading a Word document of
the assignment below (use MLA format). The grade you receive on this assignment will be based on both the quality of
your ideas and the quality of your writing. Take your time on this assignment. It is due the first day of school (the 7-period
review day). If you have “computer issues” and are unable to upload your document, bring a hard copy on the first day of
class. DO NOT USE INTERNET SOURCES, CLIFF’S NOTES, OR ANY OTHER OUTSIDE SOURCES WHILE
READING THE BOOK OR WHILE WORKING ON THIS ASSIGNMENT. Any student who is found to use outside
sources will be given a zero. We want to see YOUR ideas only!
***In addition to completing this assignment, students should also be prepared for a CHECK TEST on The
Awakening within the first 2 cycles of the school year. Your teacher will give you more information about this test
the day you return.***
Use the same Turnitin.com class that you used for the Fast Food Nation discussion board (copied below for your
reference). Under the “assignments” tab, you will see a place to upload your document under an assignment titled “The
Awakening” (detailed directions for uploading assignments are attached). Just as a reminder, the class ID information and
password are as follows:
• Students with last names beginning with A-L:
Class Title: Junior Summer Reading A-L
Class ID: 4034818
Enrollment password: english2011
• Students with last name beginning with M-Z:
Class Title: Junior Summer Reading M-Z
Class ID: 4034824
Enrollment password: summer2011
Respond to each of the following questions in 8-10 sentences. You can opt to number your paragraphs, if you prefer.
Naturally, all writing must have proper grammar, punctuation, spelling and should demonstrate your vast vocabulary
knowledge.
1) After The Awakening’s publication in 1899, it was banned and received harsh public criticism for decades. Why do you
think Chopin’s novel was so ill-received in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries? How would the response Chopin received
back then differ from the response that she would get if she was releasing her book in the 21 st century? Explain your
answer.
2) Is The Awakening a coming-of-age novel? Why or why not? Explain using at least two specific events (quotes or
narration cited according to MLA guidelines) from the novel. You may want to think about whether the protagonist, Edna
Pontellier, experiences a loss of innocence or rites of passage or whether she tries to “re-invent” herself. How might Edna’s
coming-of-age compare to a young woman “coming of age” in 2011?
3) Why has Edna chosen the path she has at the conclusion of the novel? Do you admire her? Pity her? What other
emotions do you feel towards her? How has your opinion of Edna changed throughout the novel?
4) Analyze Edna Pontellier from a SOCIAL perspective (the social setting is an elite community in the southern United
States in the late 1800s). Some questions to guide you (you do not need to address every question):
- How is she defined, limited, and/or guided by society?
- Does Edna’s gender, social status, and/or race affect her?
- Does Edna hold social power? Over whom? Who holds power over her?
- Does Edna comply with her expected role as a lady of the south in the late 19 th century?
- How might Edna be perceived socially in today’s society?
5) Birds and the sea are significant symbols in the novel. Choose one and analyze its significance. Cite at least two specific
passages from the novel (quotes or narration) in your analysis. Be sure to discuss the object itself (birds or the sea) and its
deeper meaning.