AP English Literature
AP English Literature Summer Assignment 2019
All parts of this assignment are due on Friday, August 20, 2019. This assignment will be a major factor on your five week progress report. You will also write an in-class essay on the play during the first two weeks of school in August.
A. Reading: Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
You may get a copy of the play or a download from the library, get a copy at a used bookstore, or purchase a copy from a bookstore or online.
B. Write fully developed answers for the questions below using MLA paragraph format.
- Discuss Willy as a father, giving specific examples from his interactions with each of his sons to support your opinions.
- With which son does Willy identify? Is this son the closest to him in dreams and actions? Explain.
- Discuss the passage of time in the play, including the purpose and significance of flashbacks.
- What is important to Willy in life? How has this affected his feelings about himself and about those around him?
- Compare and contrast the characters of Biff and Bernard. What further insight into Biff’s character does Bernard
provide?
- What were Willy’s dreams? Why didn’t he achieve them? How did they contribute to his destruction?
- Describe Linda’s relationship with her husband and sons. What is her attitude toward their dreams? What role does
she play in the success or failure of their dreams?
- Is Willy Loman a tragic hero? Support your answer with evidence from the text.
C. Print out and complete three sets of data sheets.
These may be found on the school website (www.jfkcougars.org) under the AP section. One set should be for Death of a Salesman. The other two should be from works of literary merit that you have studied during high school (such as Romeo and Juliet, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Crucible, or The Great Gatsby).
If you have questions about any part of this assignment, please contact Mrs. Koskela at jlk1281@lausd.net or Ms. Serrano at mts9171@lausd.net.