🌟 Your ability to do well on the AP English Lit exam depends on your performance on the multiple choice section. Knowing beforehand what you will encounter is helpful and can increase your score. Here are the 4 main types you could see and their corresponding keywords and phrases! 🌟

What types of multiple choice questions will appear on the AP English Literature exam?

The focus of this practice prompt is diction – analyzing it AND using it yourself, with a little syntax thrown in! Try it yourself and compare it with student responses and feedback given below by Fiveable teacher Candace Moore!

try to analyze diction (esp. to characterize Clarisse)

include modifiers in your thesis (earthy imagery, floral metaphors)

use 2-3 different methods to integrate quotes

start each body paragraph with a sentence that asserts the paragraph’s argument

put a short sentence in one or both paragraphs

make sure you have a 2:1 ratio for commentary: evidence

 the author uses diction and syntax to Characterize Clarisse as a unique, elegant figure who quickly draws the attention and awe of Montag. The author’s use of diction is key in establishing both Clarisse’s character and the effect she has on Montag.

The words used to describe Clarisse are very descriptive and have the tone of grace and elegance. When Clarisse is first introduced, she is described as moving in a “gliding walk.” This implies that she moved smoothly and graciously. Her physical appearance is also described in great detail, such as her “slender” and “milk-white” face and its “tireless curiosity.” Everything about her is gentle and serene, and even her dress “whispered.” These words paint a character who is innocent and pristine in an attractive way.

The word choice of this passage not only describes Clarisse, it also reveals the impact that she has on Montag. When Montag encounters her up close, it is clear that he feels a wondering admiration towards her. She looked at him, “with eyes so dark and so shining and so alive that he felt he had something quite wonderful.” The detail put into describing Clarisse’s eyes indicate that Montag took a lot of time to really look at her, and her gaze made him feel happy. Her eyes are described yet again, as “shining drops of bright water” and “miraculous bits of violet amber.” When Montag sees her face again, he sees “milk crystal” with the “strangely comfortable and rare and gently flattering light of the candle.” Montag notices every detail of Clarisse, all in a flattering way. The word choice used by the author leaves no question as to how Clarisse affects Montag; she seems to have entranced him and he is very compelled by everything about her.

Your thesis presents an argument: Clarisse is unique and elegant, and draws Montags attention. The specificity of your ideas all appear in the first sentence, so I would recommend adding the device into your existing thesis, instead of creating another sentence that presents very little new information. 1/1

You have selected evidence that supports your diction claim well. However, be careful about using words like “descriptive” and “detail” because they are vague. Your assertion would be strengthened by deleting “are very descriptive” and focusing on the grace-related diction. In your second paragraph, your evidence is less directly connected to your commentary throughout the paragraph. You have multiple evidence points about Clarisse’s eyes, but very little commentary that clearly establishes their effect on Montag. 3/4

Thesis: In Fahrenheit 452, Ray Bradbury uses soft and white diction to characterize Clarisse as gentle and pure; Bradbury also employs dark and light juxtaposition to contrast Clarisse and Guy Montag.

Through quiet and bright diction, Bradbury characterizes Clarisse as having a small, gentle, and nonthreatening presence. Bradbury first describes Clarisse as having “the faintest whisper”. Clarisse is introduced as being quiet, which emphasizes her small persona. The repetition of similar soft diction, including how she walks “quietly” and makes “infinitely small sounds”, further reveals her gentle and small, yet not unnoticeable, disposition. Guy Montag is intrigued by his new neighbor; he does notices her, despite her underwhelming presence. Bradbury also describes Clarisse with white and bright diction; she has a “milk-white face”, a “white dress”, and face with “constant light”. Both whiteness and brightness often suggest purity and innocent, which further demonstrates her gentleness. Bradbury also describes Clarisse as having a “gentle hunger” and being “hypnotized by the salamander”, which demonstrates her curiosity and wonder for the world around her. Because of her gentleness, purity, and curiosity, Clarisse has nonthreatening impression. Guy Montag is intrigued by her interest in him, something Guy Montag probably has not encountered.

The repeated juxtaposition of light and dark demonstrates the darkness in Guy Montag compared to Clarisse’s innocence. Bradbury vividly describes Clarisse as being “white”, yet her eyes are “dark”. While this could suggest that Clarisse has an inner darkness in her, later in the passage Guy describes himself as being “dark” in her eyes, which suggests that the darkness is not coming from inside Clarisse. Eyes can reflect what is in front of them, so this suggests that Guy’s personality is dark compared to Clarisse’s. Guy is not gentle, pure, and quiet, rather he is the opposite of Clarisse’s light. Bradbury describes Clarissa as having a “flattering light of the candle”, which highlights that she brings light to the darkness without being overpowering. It is like she can bring light effortlessly. Given that Guy feels comfortable with Clarissa, she could bring light to diminish his darkness.

Very strong thesis in regards to your devices and presenting a line of reasoning. I caution you to make sure that you answer all parts of the prompt – it’s not clear in your thesis what exactly Clarisse’s impact is on Montag. For that reason, I would not award a thesis point.

Your body paragraphs, however, are very strong. You analyze Clarisse’s character through very specific references to the white and bright diction. Your line of reasoning about her “underwhelming presence” is well-supported and very neatly connected to her impact on Guy. While your second paragraph is not as strong in your use of evidence, it continues the support of your thesis. However, you have no evidence to show that Guy is “not gentle, pure and quiet”, so be careful of including analysis not supported in the passage. 4/4

, Bradbury uses elements of nature to amplify the appearance of Clarisse, making her seem to be pure and natural. The idea of having Clarrise to be youthless and attractive sets her apart from the other women within the novel. Her appearance makes a mark on Montag, changing his view of his “ideal” life.

Through diction, natural elements in nature were able to make a clear distinction of what Clarisse’s appearance. Clarisse is kind and promotes a sense of youthfulness through her subtle appearance in the novel. Clarisse’s appearance even seems to have Montag stuck within an inescapable trance. She is described as having a face that "was slender and milk-white, and in it was a kind of gentle hunger that touched over everything with tireless curiosity". Within this quote, the audience can establish that she is a young woman who is has a passion for adventure. The youthfulness and attractiveness of Clarisse’s character have been proven undeniable as Montag loses himself within her young and subtle features. He says, “He saw himself in her eyes, suspended in two shining drops of bright water, himself dark and tiny, in fine detail, the lines about his mouth, everything there, as if her eyes were two miraculous bits of violet amber that might capture and hold him intact”. The hold that Clarisse has over Montag supports the way her natural features has a sense of attractiveness, making her character different from other females that are portrayed in the rest of the novel. She gives Montag the chance to break away from the social norms of their dystopian society. Just her natural appearance and optimistic yet cautious outlook on life showed Montag the reality of their hopeless situation which allowed him, in the end, to break away from society and live as an outcast.

Very strong thesis! You have laid out your line of reasoning about Clarisse’s natural and youthful nature, as well as how she impacts Montag’s life. 1/1

However, it is not well-supported in your paragraphs. Your commentary seems very disconnected from the evidence. I am not clear on which elements of each quote are natural elements, and how exactly those elements convey Clarisse’s character. Perhaps you could try selecting smaller evidence points (more like 5-7 words than multiple lines) so that you can more closely focus on the meaning or connotation of those words. For example, where in the first quote do you see Clarisse’s “passion for adventure”? Make sure that you have a clear tie between your evidence and your thesis. 2/4

, Guy Montag takes his usual walk home but meets Clarisse who impacts his life by giving him clarity. The author uses gentle diction and juxtaposition of light and dark to characterize her as a quiet and serene person who refreshes Montag and brightens his darkness. However, Montag idolizes her, almost making her seem not human.

Clarisse is described using words that are related to gentleness, implying she’s a quiet and soft person. Montag first hears Clarisse’s “faintest whisper” as she stands “very quietly” in the pavement. Using words such as faintest and very, the author exaggerates how light her presence is; she doesn’t take up much space. “Her face was slender and milk-white, and in it was a kind of gentle hunger that touched over everything with tireless curiosity.” From “gentle hunger” we can assume that even though shes soft-spoken, she craves to expand her knowledge and explore her curiosities. Clarisse looks upon the world with an open-mindedness. She is benevolent. Montag feels at peace and accepted in her occupancy.

The contrast of light and dark that describes Clarisse illuminates the darkness in Montag. Although she is “milk-white…almost of pale surprise” her eyes were dark as they “were so fixed to the world that no move escaped them.” Montag feels exposed as she sees him for he is. He sees himself in her eyes: tiny and dark. As she turned to look at him he sees a “soft and constant light” in her face. The light she radiates reminds him of a candle he used in his childhood and the feeling it gave him. Like that candle, Clarisse gives him comfort. In a dark room, space doesn’t seem as vast in her radiance. He feels rejuvenated. The way she invokes his emotions with her clarity highlights the differences between Clarisse and Montag: like light and dark. He wants the feelings she gives him to remain and may inspire him to a journey of rediscovery.

Just like Clarisse’s impact on Montag, we all have a special person that lightens up life. Someone that gives an exhilarating feeling and makes us question ourselves. That person can be anyone: even a stranger you meet on the street.

Very strong thesis! You have all of the parts you need, and did well in modifiers and verbs that imply that you have an understanding of the argument you will support. 1/1

You establish an argument in your assertions that continue the line of reasoning in response to the prompt. The first half of your first body paragraph is clear and insightful.
However, the second half is not as tightly analytical – you don’t draw a clear thread, for example, between Clarisse’s curiosity and her benevolence, which unfortunately detracts from the power of your short sentence. Your second body paragraph is stronger and better organized, though, in explaining how the contrasts function in the meaning of the work, although your commentary does not all stem directly from the evidence. 3/4

Note: Make sure that your quotes are always part of a sentence, and not stand-alone sentences, ever.

, Ray Bradbury relies heavily on diction and imagery to characterize Clarisse. When Bradbury does this it forms the characterization of Clarisse to be that of a refreshing youthful pure woman, in contrast to the firemen Montag, who now is in awe of Clarisse and starts to change his perspective from the only world he has known.

The diction of Clarisse is very soft and gentle and creates a sense of serenity surrounding Clarisse. Montag sees her face as slender and describes her as small and quiet, nothing about this seems about of the ordinary. Yet Montag sees this and is pulled in by this quiet calm women. Bradbury describes her in simple yet peaceful ways, with “bright shining and alive” eyes, that suggest she is curious and Montag wants to know why. She is described as talking slowly and her voice the “faintest whisper”, suggesting she isn’t in a rush and wants to talk to Montag and get his attention. Clarisse is the opposite of Montag, who is a fireman that burns books, he is fire and she is gentle and pure. Clarisse continues to pull him in as they walk and talk through her “thoughtful” words and her being “hypnotized” by the salamander on his arm and phoenix on his chest. Montag is drawn to Clarisse by her quiet peaceful nature, that throws him off on his way home. The diction describing Clarisse emphasizes how drawn in Montag is of Clarisse as she talks about how she isn’t afraid of firemen, surprising Montag as he thinks back to his childhood.

The author also employs imagery to create a sense of aura around Clarisse to show her in a majestic earthy way. Clarisse is seen as almost being “carried forward” by the wind and leaves as if she is one with nature, this pulls Montag deeper towards Clarisse and her pureness, because this image is so peaceful. He then sees her “fragile” face that is soft and a “constant light” which shows a brightness and sunny disposition of her, making her seem similar to a flame or the sun. But the light in Clarisse’s eyes continues to shine, pulling Montag in and surprising him yet again. This earthy aura around Clarisse is what makes her so refreshing and different from what Montag has ever seen before, this strong imagery creates a sense of what Montag feels towards Clarisse.

You have a strong thesis that answers the prompt thoroughly. You didn’t make the challenge bullet point of including modifiers to imply line of reasoning, but that doesn’t take away your thesis point. 1/1

Your body paragraphs are solid, with a mix of character and impact to address the prompt. But the evidence in your second paragraph does not consistently support your assertion of a “majestic earthy” characterization of Clarisse. The second paragraph also repeats ideas already argued in the first; consider organizing by idea or prompt part instead of by device so you do not have to use different devices to make the same commentary in separate paragraphs. 3/4

 Bradbury use of diction characterizes Clarisse as an elegant and mysterious figure closely related to the autumnal season, that quickly draws in Montag with awe. Having her characterized as such a figure makes Clarisse stand out similar to Montag, a fireman, who stands out himself.

Montags first encounter with Clarisse was magical in every sense of the word. The autumn wind made it seem as if Clarisse was moving there seem fixed to a sliding walk, this captured the attention Montag, who already had an odd feeling of the night. This scene also adds to the characterization of Clarisse natural mystery, being able to manipulate the wind and convey the illusion of walking with motion in an otherwise stagnant setting. Furthering Montag’s captivation over Clarisse is the juxtaposition of her features; her face was slender and milk-white, yet she had dark eyes. Juxtaposing light and dark elements with one another, Bradbury captures the mysterious characteristic of nature. Clarisse herself is a representation of the autumn, a time that is both light yet has dark features.

Both Clarisse and Montag stand out from the rest of the crowd, one being a fireman and the other being this elegant force of nature. Clarisse, too, was captivated by Montag, she seemed hypnotized by the salamander on his arm and the phoenix disc on his chest. Clarisse was struck at first, realizing that Montag was a fireman, someone people admire and fear, yet she converses with Montag claiming that she You know, I’m not afraid of you at all." She sympathizes with Montag since she also stands out and might be considered to be hard to approach, she sees Montag as only a man, that his job is irrelevant to his person. Both seem to be drawn to each other and nature was the catalyst that brought both of them together.

Strong thesis and use of modifiers for the character and the diction. 1/1

Interesting analysis of Clarisse’s magical nature. However, your commentary is interpretive without being consistently analytical – what is the significance of Clarisse’s magic, and how does it impact Montag, i.e. it captivates him, but what does that do for him? The second paragraph is much weaker in evidence and connection to your thesis, and does not analyze through the lens of literary devices. 2/4

In Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, the writer emphasizes the dynamic juxtaposition between Clarisse’s physical fragility and her powerful presence and insightful intelligence. In addition, Bradbury makes deft use to vivid imagery and contrasting dictions to ensure the reader can experience Clarisse’s formless influence on Guy Montag intimately.

Clarisse’s physical weakness is punctuated by Bradbury’s overweighted choice of details as well as the powerful presence of the wind. Nevertheless, Bradbury is not stingy with his juxtaposition to show Clarisse’s contradictory yet stark brilliance. Clarisse is characterized as a “soft”, “slender”, and “tender” girl with a “faintest…whisper”. The narrator is able to create a soundless atmosphere with a slight, almost unnoticeable presence of Clarisse, showing that she is a fragile, weak character before Guy Montag. Clarisse is not only weak in front of Montag but also in front of the wind. She notices the “stir” of her shoelaces while “letting the motion of wind and leaves carry her forward”. This further creates a more passive role for Clarisse as a delicate girl who seems unable to defeat the omnipotent nature. The narrator’s selection of detail indicates that Clarisse is observant in her relationship with the world that surrounds her, as little as the wind blowing her shoelace. Nevertheless, Clarisse’s weakness is juxtaposed with her soulful, “tireless(ly) curious” dark eyes, which is a contrast with her pale milk-white skin. While her appearance renders the feeling of death, emaciation, the “gentle hunger” is not merely physical but an intellectual hunger of Clarisse, perhaps books. Her eyes bring her character life, joy, and power despite the well-built Guy Montag or strong nature. In contrast with her body, her eyes are fixed on the nature. They are almost archenemy of the wind: her eyes do not escape, waver, or condescend. In addition, Clarisse seems to ask a lot of questions, signified by the repetition and personification of her physical features “whispering”. This not only establishes a tone of inquiry but also highlights the contradicting characterization between Clarisse’s undesired physical qualities and her ingenious mental qualities.

Clarisse’s influence on Montag is significant despite him being in a simple, everyday scene. This is achieved by the narrator’s use of imagery and Clarisse’s characterization that defies not only the expectation of the reader but that of Montag. The imagery is picturesque and lively among the quietness and peaceful setting, which provides an opportunity for Montag to notice the details of Clarisse: the narrator appeals to senses with sound and sight. Montag not only can hear the “sound of hand” but also can feel and see that Clarisse has “miraculous violet” eyes and is “turning him end for end” as well as “shaking him quietly”. This illustrates a formless, intimate, quiet influence Clarisse has on Montag through his experience told in third-person limited narration. It further builds up the irony how a weaker Clarisse has such leverage over Montag, holds his mind toward her, and earns his full attention. Clarisse also defies Montag’s expectation of a little girl. She is not only fearless when seeing Montag, a fireman, but also fixes her eyes on him, not triggered, and talks to him with grace and confidence. This also contradicts the reader’s expectation of Clarisse based on the former mentioning of her dainty appearance, creating a strong emphasis on how powerful and impactful Clarisse is in building the senses of Montag. She becomes not merely a stranger passing by, but a more vivid character who renders Montag’s memory of childhood, makes Montag curious about her background and intelligence, and bewilders Montag with her insightful comment on the firemen.

Your thesis is strong in argument, but has a couple grammatical missteps that would not affect your thesis score (“deft use to vivid imagery”, “dictions”). 1/1

Your first body paragraph is strong, with persuasive commentary regarding Clarisse’s characterization. However, the other side of the juxtaposition is not as well-supported with evidence, and relies on inferences that are not clearly tied back to the passage (her focus on nature and "ingenious mental qualities). The same is true for the second paragraph, which begins grounded in evidence, but then veers from the text. While Clarisse is small and quiet, the characterization/contrast of Montag is not text-based enough to be analysis and not conjecture. 2/4

By developing images associated with light and innocence and juxtaposing Clarisse’s fair complexion with her dark eyes, Bradbury characterizes Clarisse by her purity and suggests that the light within her is both comforting and unsettling for Montag.

Bradbury incorporates delicate images that connote purity and daintiness in order to establish her gentle innocence. He describes Clarisse’s face as a “pale” “fragile milk crystal” and mentions her flowing “white” dress. Bradbury’s selection of the images “pale,” “milk,” and “crystal” emphasizes the “white” quality of Clarisse’s appearance, playing to the archetype that associates the color white with innocence and purity, thus depicting Clarisse as a gentle and innocent character. Bradbury further develops Clarisse’s innocent character by describing her dainty, floating movements that appear to let “the motion of the wind and the leaves carry her forward.” The lightness in Clarisse’s walk portray her gentle and almost angelic character. By developing images that illustrate Clarisse’s ethereal purity, Bradbury characterizes her as tender and innocent.

Bradbury juxtaposes Clarisse’s radiance with her piercing dark eyes, suggesting that the light Clarisse exudes both warms Montag and exposes him to her scrutiny. Bradbury describes Clarisse’s light as “strangely comfortable and rare and gently flattering,” which implies that Clarisse’s figurative luminance soothes Montag and highlights his best qualities. At the same time, Clarisse’s presence is unsettling. Bradbury describes Clarisse’s “dark and shining” eyes as “so fixed to the world that no move escaped them,” and Montag feels as if they could “capture” him. By comparing Clarisse’s luminance with the darkness in her eyes, Bradbury demonstrates that Clarisse is both casting a spotlight onto Montag and examining him with her captivating and unescapable gaze. Despite Clarisse’s warmth and gentleness, Montag’s discomfort and vulnerability towards her shine through.

You have a strong thesis, and it is very clear how you intend to analyze Clarisse and her impact. 1/1

Your paragraph follows the line of reasoning you establish in your thesis, and your selection of evidence is strong. If it seems as though your analysis does not move forward because of repetition, your diction can make a difference there – varying your word choice conveys your own comfort with your argument. Also, you do not have to give all of the pieces at once: for example, you could save the “connote purity and daintiness” idea for its second appearance in the paragraph instead of the assertion. Think of the assertion as the stem, the evidence as the leaves, and the commentary as the flower; this puts the bulk of the beauty in the commentary, and the other parts are support. Also, white does connote innocence, but you don’t have any other evidence that supports innocence as well as its supports purity and daintiness, so it stays undeveloped as an idea. The second paragraph is stronger, although Clarisse’s impact on Montag is not as well developed as your analysis of her eyes. 3/4

, Bradbury uses both diction and syntax in order to establish a friendly, yet perplexing relationship between Guy Montag and Clarisse, and to also characterize Clarisse as a mysterious and pure character.
Bradbury uses certain words to describe the way that Montag and Clarisse interact with each other that gives the story an eerie and mysterious feeling. For example, When conversing, Clarisse “trails off,” and she talks “slowly,” and in “awe.” These word choices reveal the Clarisse is being very observant of Montag and is almost studying him. This is perplexing because normally when you met someone, you are friendly and upbeat, not slow and attentive. Montag also described her presence as “he felt she was walking in circles about him, turning him end for end, shaking him quietly, and emptying his pockets, without once moving herself.” By using phrases like “turning him end from end,” and “shaking him quietly,” show that Montag felt like she was judging him and observing him. These interactions and word choices from the author show that Clarisse’s and Montag’s interactions were very odd and peculiar, compared to how people normally interact with one another.
Brdbury also uses diction to characterize Clarisse. She was described as having a “milk-white face,” Everything about her was described as “white,” her clothes, her movements, and her facial expressions. White is a color used to symbolize purity, innocence, and cleanliness. By associating the color and word “white” with Clarisse, she is characterized as a innocent girl, who is untouched by the dirtiness and filth of the world that Montag is from. Clarisse is Montag’s juxtaposition, he resembles the bad of the world they live in and she resembles the good.

Your thesis is solid in format, although there could be an important distinction between “impact” and “relationship”. 1/1

Note on phrasing: If your assertion is focused on your prompt-focused argument, you will modify/describe the words used, not the feelings created. Then after interpreting the meaning or connotation of the words, make sure you connect that interpretation to your overall argument (e.g. why does it matter that Clarisse’s behavior is different than normal, and how does that impact him?). Also, the commentary about Montag’s world is unsupported by evidence, weakening that portion of the argument. 2/4

AP Lit Prose Analysis Practice Prompt Answers & Feedback: Fahrenheit 451 (Diction)

Practicing Prose Analysis is a great way to prep for the AP exam! Review practice writing samples and corresponding feedback from Fiveable teacher Candace Moore. 

While reading, consider the following questions:

1) the relationship Petry establishes between Lutie Johnson and the setting, 

2) which figurative language devices Petry employed to establish the relationship, and 

3) any complexity you identified in that relationship.



 of figurative language and its role in the relationship. You should have 

 making the connection between the language and the claim from your thesis.


Replay: Prose Analysis Thesis and Introduction

Read the selection carefully and then write an essay
analyzing how Petry establishes Lutie Johnson’s
relationship to the urban setting through the use of
literary devices.

, by Ann Petry, the author establishes a victim and attacker relationship between Johnson and the urban setting. She uses personification, metaphor, and imagery of the wind to convey their relationship. Although the setting is portrayed as very violent, Petry also showcases its annoying characteristics to further add to their relationship.

The passage starts off with introducing the wind as it "

”. Immediately, it’s described as a violent figure that gives off an aggressive and depressing atmosphere. It purposely bothers people, going as far as driving them out the streets. It meticulously bothers Lutie Johnson as she shivers when “

the cold fingers of the wind touched the back of her neck, and explored the sides of her head.

”: making her feel uncomfortable and powerless.

You have a thesis that establishes a line of reasoning, and names the relationship between Lutie and the setting, which is great! So that earns the point. My push for you would be to get all of that into one sentence, because that would cut down on the repetition, and strengthen your writing style. 1/1: Thesis

Your paragraph uses well-selected evidence, but as a reader, I’m not convinced that you know what part of your argument you’re proving in this paragraph, or how your line of reasoning is supported. The first three sentences are connected by the violence/aggression, but then you shift to a different aspect of the relationship in the second half without a clear link between. Ev&Comm: 2/4

 by Ann Petry, she establishes a negative relationship between Lutie Johnson and the urban setting. She uses the literary devices, personification and metaphor to show how the wind is impacting the people in the city. Petry also displays how the people in the urban area felt with the wind to express the negative relationship they have with the wind.

The way that the wind is expressed in the passage is as it were a human and has human features. An example of the wind having a human feature would be when the wind “did everything it could to discourage the people walking along the street.” One can notice that the wind ruined a person’s spirit while they are strolling through the streets. "And then the wind grabbed their hats, pried their scarves from around their necks, stuck its fingers inside their coat collars, blew their coats away from their bodies. " Petry used personification in that sentence to make it seem as though the wind has hands by saying that it grabbed hats and stuck its fingers in their coat collars to portray that the wind felt very eerie.

Your thesis establishes a relationship (negative), and names the devices that you will use in your analysis. However, your thesis does not establish a strong line of reasoning because you don’t make a whole argument when you say “how the people … felt” and “how the wind is impacting” instead of giving your interpretation (e.g. the people felt like victims, or the wind assaults them). 1/1

Your paragraph does clearly interpret the personification in the passage, and uses evidence that shows how Petry gives human qualities to the wind. However, you did not go the next step to analyze the relationship through the personification thoroughly. Try to spend more of your paragraph connecting the device to your argument, as well as clarifying the connection between the evidence points in your paragraph. 2/4

 by Ann Petry, a negative relationship was established between the character Lutie Johnson and the urban setting in the story. The author uses diction, personification, and imagery to portray how the wind and Lutie have a negative relationship.

The word choice of Petry clearly establishes a negative relationship between Lutie and the wind by using words like “discourage,” “entangling,” “cold,” and “shivered.” All of these words hold negative connotation and create a feeling of invasiveness and being attacked. When the wind lifted Lutie’s hair and she “shivered as the cold fingers of the wind touched the back of her neck,” the audience can clearly see that the wind is not creating a pleasant sensation for Lutie. If the author were to use plain diction like “Lutie felt cold when the wind toughed her neck,” there would be no emotion and nor establishment of a strong relationship. The audience would have just known that the wind was cold.

Your thesis establishes your argument about a negative relationship and names the devices you will use. 1/1

The first two sentences of your paragraph are very strong – you have a device supported by the evidence, and your commentary connects to the argument. However, the rest of the paragraph does not analyze the relationship; it only interprets the diction. If you explained the connotation of that line as clearly, you would have a strong commentary. 2/4

, Ann Petry portrays the abusive relationship between Johnson and the urban setting, through the usage of diction, personification, and imagery. The main culprit of this abuse is the natural wind, how it is violent and stops at nothing to bother the characters.

The passage begins with introducing the wind as it “rattled the tops of garbage cans” and “sucked window shades out”. Right off the bat, the characteristics of the wind is violent, a force that cannot be stopped. The wind is aggressive, purposely bothering the people, completely emptying the streets. The wind then begins abuses Johnson, making her shiver with “[its] cold fingers touch[ing] the back of her neck, and explor[ing] the sides of her head.” This removes any power that Johnson could of had, ending with the wind dominating over her.

You have a strong thesis in regards to its argument establishment – you have clearly interpreted the relationship. 1/1

Your evidence is well-selected, and your commentary tightly connected to the line of reasoning you established in your thesis. The last sentence is very strong. Organizationally, I would move the second sentence to the beginning of the paragraph as your assertion, creating a thread for the paragraph from the start that you can follow through the rest of the sentences. This makes your line of reasoning clearer and stronger, and more “sophisticated”. 3/4

, by Ann Petry, a tug of war dynamic relationship is established between Lutie Johnson and the urban setting and portrayed in a negative light. Through the use of personification, imagery, and diction the fight Johnson faces against the brutal wind is shown.


Petry uses personification throughout the passage to describe the wind as if it is a person. Things such as, “Each time she thought she had the sign in focus, the wind pushed it away from her” By doing this the audience sees the wind directly affecting Johnson and creating a fighting relationship between the two of them. As Johnson tries to read a sign the wind pushes it away as if it doesn’t want her to go. By making it seem like the wind is trying to directly fight Johnson it makes the fight more personal The wind even chills Johnson by touching the back of her neck with its “cold fingers”. The wind now seems even more human like, as if the wind is grabbing Johnson in an aggressive manner. The act of the wind touching her neck is meant to scare Johnson and hold her back even more for where she needs to go. Each time Johnson tugs away from the wind, the wind pulls even more to fight Johnson.

Your thesis is strong, and establishes the relationship as one with a “tug of war dynamic”. 1/1

Your first sentence of your body paragraph establishes personification as the device, but only defines personification instead of beginning your interpretation that will lead to analysis (e.g. … personification to show the wind as creating barriers for Lutie). Your analysis is clear and effective, however, in showing the relationship and how the personification creates it. 3/4

, by Ann Petry, the author establishes an obstructive relationship between Luti Johnson and the urban setting, particularly the wind. Petry employs the use of personification, imagery, and metaphor to express how Luti struggles against the wind.

The author used personification to describe the wind throughout this passage. This makes the effects of the wind seem deliberate and personal. When Luti is first introduces in the passage, the wind “lifted” her hair, exposing her neck. This action caused Luti to feel vulnerable and cold. Then, “the cold fingers of the wind touched the back of her neck, explored the sides of her head.” This statement makes it seem as if the wind is purposely violating Luti’s privacy and exposing her to the cold. By using personification to describe the wind, the author takes a natural element and turns it into a cruel, aggressive character. By giving the wind this “personality,” Petry is able to convey how destructive its actions are towards Luti.

Good thesis! You’ve given a very specific name to the relationship that establishes a line of reasoning. Having two sentences to establish these parts isn’t necessary, though. 1/1

I appreciate that you have an assertion that shows where the sentence is going. Again those first two sentences could be one: Throughout the passage, the author personifies the wind’s actions as deliberate and personal. The rest of the paragraph is strong, however, and connects clearly and effectively to your argument. Make sure that it connects clearly to the thesis, as well.

, by Ann Petry, the author uses personification in order to show the wind as a powerful figure. Through these literary devices, the audience can see the influence of the winds on the people of the town, creating the wind to seem like a relentless bully.

At the beginning of the story, the personification of the wind is established. The wind comes off as aggressive and ruthless by driving people into their homes. The wind’s motive is then revealed, creating a sense of motivation that drives the wind 

“It did everything it could to discourage the people walking along the street”

 By blinding people with dust and wrapping the newspaper around their feet, the wind is portraying doing what a human would do when they are being malicious and ruthless. When Lutie Johnson is introduced, the audience gains a sense of innocence in her character. So, when the wind 

“… blew her eyelashes away from her eyes so that her eyeballs were bathed in a rush of coldness…”

, the wind is conceived as a bully. The audience can help to feel bad for what she has to endure. The wind continues to have this bully mentality when she tries to read the sign. However, the wind eventually lets her read the sign, allowing her to see it for an instant.

Strong thesis! “Relentless bully” shows you are clear on the relationship, as well as how you plan to analyze it through the personification. 1/1

You have very effective word choice in your analysis, which makes your writing and analysis fluid. The line of reasoning from your thesis is supported by your interpretation of the wind as malicious, ruthless, etc. However, your introduction of Lutie as a character with innocence is not as clearly connected or supported, and your last sentence seems to contradict the rest of the paragraph. 3/4

AP Lit Prose Analysis: Practice Prompt Samples & Feedback

Writing essays is a great way to practice prose analysis and prep for the AP exam! Review student responses for an essay prompt and corresponding feedback from Fiveable teacher Candace Moore.  

 the 2013 exam prompt with a passage from 

D. H. Lawrence’s The Rainbow (1915): The following passage focuses on the lives of the Brangwens, a farming family who lived in rural England during the late nineteenth century. Read the passage carefully.

Then write an essay in which you analyze how Lawrence employs literary devices to characterize the woman and capture her situation.

Try to give yourself a timer to do this – 45 minutes

Keep in mind everything about setting and social environment, diction as choice, and symbolism of spaces and thoughts.

organized for complexity instead of by device

broader context application for sophistication

In D.H. Lawrence’s The Rainbow, a woman wants to explore urban life but is restricted by her situation. Lawrence’s curious diction and juxtaposition of inquisitiveness and complacency portrays Mrs. Brangwen to be an ambitious yet judgmental woman who looks down on her husband and almost idolizes city people.

By using diction that implies a strong spirit of inquiry, the author establishes the ambiousness of the woman. She looks towards the cities and governments and wonders about the “scope” of man. The land outside of the village being “magic” in her eyes. She proclaims it is where “secrets” are revealed. Such words characterize her curiosity. She wants to know what their secrets are, how far can man go, what can he achieve? The author yet again uses similar descriptors such as “enlarge” and’ “range.” These imply that there’s a plethora of knowledge outside of her rural home in England. Although she is physically limited, her mind constantly wonders about the world outside. Her desires are not met as a wife in a farming and believes there’s other things that will fulfill her interests. Her word choice of describing outside life not only shows admiration for urban life, but her disdain of the village lifestyle.

Throughout the excerpt, Mrs. Brangwen’s husband is contrasted with urban men. When describing the farmers day to day life and activities, the author repeats “it was enough”. “Enough” meaning that menial physical activities and mother nature satisfied him. Unlike her husband, the men outside are “dominant and creative.” They strive to answer questions and problems. “whilst her husband looked out to the back at sky and harvest and beast and land, she strained her eyes to see what man had done in fighting outwards to knowledge.” Compared to her husband who enjoys farm life and passes time by looking at the sky and attending to his crops, city men are adventurous. They fight each day to expand their horizons and apprehension: hoping to increase their grasp of the world. Although it’s enough for her husband, it isn’t sufficient for Mrs. Brangwen. She wants to join the “war” with the men. Her husband represents a complacent farming lifestyle while the vicar (city man) represents a superior, inquisive lifestyle. She later expands her views by proclaiming it’s not power or money that makes the vicar a “master” over her husband: it was his knowledge. It’s knowledge that makes him more appealing. She yearns to appease her intellectual curiosity: what her current situation is not providing.

The curious diction and juxtaposition of inquisitiveness and complacency in the passage showcases Mrs. Brangwen’s ambitiousness and longing to obtain more knowledge, though she’s restricted by her rural life. She represent people who want to achieve more in their life, but are tied down by their circumstances.

Very nice! I see that you have tightened your evidence points – these are word by word, as opposed to longer phrases or sentences, and this emphasizes your choice to analyze diction.

Your thesis is written well, although I’m not completely clear on what the situation is, in your argument. You have analyzed her character, and the devices that create it, but not the situation. Be sure to address all parts of the prompt, and if a concept is given (like “situation”), make sure that you qualify it and establish your interpretation. However, your use of 'restricted" implies your understanding. 1/1

Your evidence supports your assertion, but your commentary stops at interpretation of the words. In order to increase the effectiveness of your commentary, you would need to show more clearly not only how the words show her curiosity, but also how that curiosity shows the reader who the woman is. In the second paragraph, you show the contrast, but the paragraph’s focus on the men overshadows your argument about Mrs. Brangwen, although your thesis made a claim about her. This separates your commentary from your thesis, and therefore veers away from your line of reasoning. 2-3/4

I see your application of a broader context, which could have been more present throughout, but does push toward sophistication. But because your line of reasoning and argument are not supported consistently, and a few grammatical mistakes, you haven’t earned the sophistication point. 0/1

Sometimes, viewing history, we find ourselves drawn into the trap of believing that oppressed groups completely lacked strength and power. This was not so; for years, minorities have fought for their empowerment and found communities within one another, enough to grant them the strength to persevere in a society that rejected them or that attempted to reduce their social power to nothing at all. People are not as altogether weak as we sometimes assume. But that strength can only come from community, from forcibly pulling that power out of the solidarity that comes from co-existing with people who are like you; it cannot exist in isolation. And thus is the plight of the woman in D. H. Lawrence’s “The Rainbow,” who finds herself surrounded by men, forced to live on a farm, and trapped in a life far away from any urban area where she could hope to better herself or find a community of like-minded women. Thus, she begins to idolize the city as a miracle cure for all her ails, growing more and more resentful toward the men who keep her trapped in a life she never wanted nor chose. In “The Rainbow,” D. H. Lawrence characterizes the woman as unsatisfied with her traditional life and desperate to escape it by comparing her attitudes to those of the men, highlighting her interest in the outside world, and revealing her obsession toward the vicar.

Early on in the passage, Lawrence contrasts the woman’s attitudes toward her lifestyle with those held by the men in her family. Particularly, he uses the imagery of staring into the distance. Both the woman and the men, each drawn to certain lifestyles, engage in this action. However, the men stare toward “the sun […] the source of generation,” whereas she faces “toward where men moved dominant and creative.” Interestingly, both the men and the woman are seeking something similar. They are interested in “generation,” and she in creativity, both of which deal explicitly with creation and invention. However, by having them be physically turned in different directions, the author shows us that the woman wants to achieve her desire for creation elsewhere, somewhere where she is not burdened by her obligation to them as a wife and homemaker. Again, this disparity is given a physical description, with the men “faced inwards,” and her “faced outwards.” The repetition of this shared language, modified only slightly by a few letters at the beginning of the second word, helps to establish both the shared desires of the woman and the men, as well as their differences in approach. She seeks to find this “[creativity]” in the outside world, while they are already able to find it within themselves. Interestingly, this language suggests that, on some personal level, the woman is not satisfied with herself, or else she should, supposedly, find strength and meaning internally. Perhaps the problem exists within and cannot be solved by the outside world at all.

Lawrence also characterizes the woman’s dissatisfaction with fanciful language to describe the way that she views the outside world. The author uses the metaphor of a battle, saying that men have “[fought] outwards to knowledge” and that woman wants to be “of the fighting host.” The metaphor of physical conflict is so strong that it shows the extent to which the woman feels trapped in her life, as she is literally being subdued and kept at bay by malevolent enemy forces, rather than by where her family happens to live. For her, living in the city is not just a dream, but a noble fight against all the social norms that keep her down and bound to these men. Furthermore, the repetition of the word “outwards,” already used to interesting effect much earlier in the piece, reinforces the woman’s desperation to find this satisfaction in something outside of herself, something larger and more significant. She has constructed the image of this battle in order to justify that thinking, despite the fact that her desire and feeling of being trapped is something in which she is, as a result of being trapped in the country, utterly alone.

Finally, the author uses the woman’s obsession with the vicar to reveal just how dissatisfied she is with her life and her husband. Observing the vicar, she notes that he is “little and frail,” whereas her husband is like a “bull.” None of these words have especially positive connotations, but “bull” is still much harsher. “Little and frail” have to do with physical observation alone, whereas the word “bull” is very much tied to the imagery of destruction and physical power over intellectual power, such as in the idiom of “a bull in a china shop.” This word alone reveals much about her thoughts toward her husband, whom she also describes as seeming “dull and local” compared to the vicar. Throughout the piece, her husband has been described as having similar, though differently oriented, desires as her, but now we see just how much she has come to resent the situation in which she lives—so much so that her resentment has turned toward people. Yet with the vicar, she observes that he has “power” over her husband, despite his size and physical strength, or lack thereof. She is entranced by this notion, probably because she is envious of him. She, too, wishes to have some power of her husband, as she feels that he represents her trapped state in a rural area. Being a woman, it makes that she herself would also be “little and frail” compared to her husband, and she is astonished that someone like the vicar can be so powerful, in spite of his relative physical weakness. Although she does not make this connection explicitly, it is obvious that her obsession with the vicar comes from a desire to, like him, have such freedom and power that has been denied to her as a result of her gender.

Through the use of comparison between the woman and the men, fanciful language in the woman’s description of the city, and her obsession with the vicar, D. H. Lawrence creates a complicated and nuanced character, struggling to find a place for herself in a world where, isolated from other women, she is forced to become subservient, her opinions not a factor in her own life. The piece is a fascinating look into a time long gone, set almost 200 years in the past. And yet, much of the reality of that time still exists today, with women across the world, irrespective of all other factors, still not granted the same privileges as those given to men. In this way, “The Rainbow” is not simply a spyglass from which to view history, but a mirror to hold up to our own time, even in a world as different from the woman’s as ours today.

Good job bringing broader context into your introduction, which helps to show that it is a part of your line of reasoning. Your thesis establishes an argument about both the woman and her situation. I like that you’ve done so by referencing what the author’s language 

Good insight on the direction of the woman’s attention vs. the men’s. For your analysis, the contrast is stronger as evidence than the imagery, but your commentary does bring it together. The end of your first body paragraph seems slightly disjointed, as you go in various directions in your interpretation of the woman facing inwards, and don’t fully manage to bring them all together to connect to her dissatisfaction wth her traditional life. Your analysis of the diction of conflict is also strong, but the relationship between that language and “outwards” is tenuous. In the final paragraph, you also make clear arguments about the comparison of the vicar and her husband, but your evidence does not connect to your final insight about her desire for power like the vicar. The obsession with the vicar is an inference that you wrote as a device, so your evidence was unable to serve its purpose. Overall, you make plausible arguments, but the evidence is inconsistently supportive of them. Your commentary is therefore much stronger than your selection of evidence. 3/4

You have explored a broader context to this passage, and written persuasively, but the inconsistencies in your analysis/evidence relationship preclude a sophistication point. 0/1

It is a common saying that knowledge is power. In the passage given, the author follows a woman’s search for dominance to demonstrate that knowledge, and therefore power, is available only to a select few. The author uses grimy imagery and combative but yearning diction to convey the woman’s dissatisfaction with her life on the farm and her ambitious character, which causes her to hopelessly seek power through knowledge and intellectual conquest.

The author begins by presenting dingy images of the mens’ labor on the farm, which portrays the life on the farm as primitive and unpleasant. The men must “ferret[] the rats from under the barn” and “br[eak] the back of the rabbit with a sharp knock of the hand” in order to maintain their lives on the farm. The descriptions of rats and the killing of the rabbits evoke images of disease and death, which are reinforced by the author’s mention of their “teeming life” of “blood-intimacy,” which implies that the woman’s life has been infested by her rural lifestyle. By selecting images that portray the lowliest aspects of farm living, the author illustrates the woman’s belief that her life is primitive, repulsive, and unwanted.

The woman’s dissatisfaction for her life manifests in her deep desire to seek a higher, magical knowledge to feel fulfilled. The author employs combative diction to develop the woman’s ambitious character and her futile attempts to gain knowledge and power. The woman wants to “enlarge [her] own scope and range and freedom” and wage a war “on the edge of the unknown.” She “crave[s]” knowledge of “conquest” as she believes that it will bring her “dominan[ce] and creativ[ity].” The author selects aggressive language that reflects the woman’s longing for control over her life. By implementing both assertive and longing language, the author characterizes the woman as ambitious while demonstrating her yearning for power that she cannot have. The author further develops the woman’s unfulfilled desires by repeating the word “man.” Despite the woman’s ambitious character, she acknowledges that she can only learn about “man[’s]” conquests, and experience “man[’s]” dominance and creativity. The woman craves higher knowledge “not in herself,” but in her children. By repeatedly mentioning mens’ accomplishments and failing to mention the accomplishments of women, the author suggests that men are the only ones capable of being dominant. The woman, therefore, is constrained by her gender and is unable to achieve the knowledge and power that she desires. Thus, by using assertive and longing diction to characterize the woman and by only associating men with knowledge and dominance, the author develops the woman’s unrealistically ambitious character and establishes her unfulfilled desires as the result of her gender.

Through primitive imagery and assertive but longing diction, the author characterizes the woman as ambitious and power-hungry and demonstrates that her gender confines to her distasteful rural lifestyle and prevents her from achieving the knowledge and control over her life that she craves. Much like rats on a farm, the passage reminds readers of the gender inequality that infests society and prevents people from achieving their dreams.

Grimy imagery! Love it. You fit all of the pieces into your thesis, which was quite a task for this prompt, and created a line of reasoning about power and knowledge that could wind through your essay and create a sophistication to your argument. 1/1

In your first body paragraph, I think you gave a solid analysis of the images, but missed the opportunity to make that connection to your argument about the woman, beyond that her life was infested. It would have been strengthened to point out there that the primitive life was good enough for the men, but the woman’s perspective showed her dissatisfaction. In the second paragraph, combative diction is appropriate and analytical, but I wonder if you have overcomplicated your argument by conflating the aggressive and longing language, and then how those show her ambition 

 her yearning. I appreciate how you continued the thread about power and gender, which adds to the insight you planted the seed for in your intro, but your ideas are entangled in each other, muddling your argument. It’s a great idea to have two bold and effective paragraphs, but it’s also a good choice to have your paragraphs be as streamlined as possible, so the diction of yearning and craving could have been its own paragraph. 3/4

However, noting the broader context and acknowledging the complexities of the woman, in addition to your mastery of language, I believe you have earned a sophistication point here. 1/1

In D.H. Lawrence’s The Rainbow, the author characterizes the woman with her sensible and perceptive observations. The author emphasizes her mental journey and desire for knowledge through figurative language and a third-person limited, inquiry-like narration. The contrasting descriptions between the vicar and the Brangwens further indicate the woman’s desire for a more intellectual life not only for herself but also for her children.

A sense of urgency and conflicting mind can be perceived by the woman’s inquiry-like tone and repeated diction: The passage opens with a parallel structure that describes the mundane farming tasks of the Brangwens. Yet the pervasive descriptions all started with the phrase “it is enough”. These lively scenes are so common to the woman as everyday events on repetition that they are emphasized and imprinted upon the woman’s mind. Though the woman half reserved her comments on those “dominant” tasks, which are full of strong senses and actions and with the “heat of blood”, she believes that her need is much more. The woman desires a greater range of freedom, like town life that is “perceived yet not attained”. The distance between the woman’s expectation and the reality she is living is also underscored by the repeated diction such as “face out”, “look out”, “outwards” and “far-off”. This emphasis on the imagery of “out” further indicates the woman’s pressing need and endless curiosity outside the limited worldview she possesses. She describes Brangwens living on the “desert island”, but that is her true reflection on her feeling about being trapped by the farmhouse.

Lawrence uses an interesting analogy to describe the woman’s passion toward the world beyond her. The writer shows that the woman desires the same level of freedom her husband enjoys: “strained her eyes to see what man had done in fighting outwards to knowledge.” She seeks to be a gladiator or an adventurer who is called out for a battle waged by the knowledge, a conquest of inquisition. The description is mirrored with the opening actions of the Brangwens, painted with masculinity and an “active scope of man”. The reader is able to perceive how the woman breaks the boundary of her social expectation and takes an active role of a woman who is secretly full of desire and makes future plans for her family on the journey toward civility.

The woman’s desire for more education in her household is punctuated by the juxtaposition between the vicar and Brangwens: Lawrence makes deft use of colorful contrast to show the conflicting value between a peaceful village life “pulsating the heat of creation” with a life of inquisition, a broader ambition, and meaningful conquest of knowledge, “waged on the edge of the unknown.” A lively analogy between Brangwens being cattle and the vicar being their master shows the woman’s astute opinion on the power of knowledge. While the vicar is week and frail, his scholarship exceeds the physical boundary of robust Brangwen men. The spiritual existence of the vicar is so appealing to the woman that she makes a final resolution acknowledging the importance of knowledge.

Through the woman’s mental journey, the reader can relate to the woman for not only her desire of knowledge but an elevated expectation for her children, and this cannot be better achieved by Lawrence’s skillful use of figurative language, inquisitive tone through questions she asked, and the contrast between the vicar and the Brangwens.

What a great insight about the narration – that’s a perspective I haven’t seen often. Your thesis is strong on the characterization of the woman, but slight on your argument about her situation, although perhaps her mental journey is her situation? Even with that lack of clarity, you have an argument and the plan for analysis. 1/1

Your body paragraphs are solid, although the first paragraph ends up in a different analytical point than it began. Your analysis of the language establishes your characterization of the woman as seeking and curious, but not urgent or conflicted. The repetition of “it is enough” is misinterpreted as her thought, as opposed to her attribution to the man. This paragraph suffers from an organizational weakness, since your evidence matches your commentary, just not your assertion. The second paragraph, though shorter, is still stronger because it all supports her desire for knowledge beyond her gendered expectations. It seems as though your commentary goes farther than your evidence supports, however, because the idea that she has broken the boundary is beyond the reach of the passage. The third is also slight on commentary, and does not sufficiently explain your own argument. Your commentary is more interpretation of the juxtaposition than application to the woman. Your line of reasoning is not clear throughout the essay, and your commentary is inconsistent in its connection to the thesis and between paragraphs. 2/4

You have reference to a broader context, and you have a line of reasoning about inquiry and knowledge that is introduced and concluded, but the body of your essay is not in line. 0/1

In life, we often feel confined in our situation and are in a state of utter bewilderment as to how to rectify it. This passage, taken from The Rainbow by D.H. Lawrence, speaks of a woman who feels trapped and confused in her calm, simple pastoral life. In the society she lives in, one is meant to pledge allegiance to the vicar and the church, to work the fields, and to stay inward, yet the woman is stuck because she understands that there is more to explore in the world and she wants to get out and see it. She also is not convinced about the vicar’s authority and ponders over the fact that he seems to have all power over her dear husband. The author uses vivid religious imagery, anaphora, and the symbol of light and heat in order to convey the message.

In the first sentence, the author uses anaphora with the refrain of “it was enough” and the second sentence with “so much”. This paragraph describes the contentment of the men in the society as the author prepares to introduce the woman and contrast her with the members of the opposite gender. These men are simple, and they do not need much in order to be happy. Their duties on the farm, such as plowing, hunting, and harvesting, are of utmost importance to them, but this is their main goal. The paragraph has two mentions of blood which points to this work as a sort of life force for them.

On the other hand, the woman feels that she needs something more than this basic life force of blood in order to feel fulfilled. She wants to see the outside world and see how other people live. It seems that she is tired of her way of life and wants to live a different way. All the men around her have “turned their back on the pulsing heat of creation.” This sentence has the religious imagery of creation and the heat and light energy. As opposed to the men who create with their hands, the woman wants to create with her mind. She feels stifled, as the church may control what people are allowed to think and she does not want to be controlled anymore. The men get their fulfillment of free thinking from working the farm, but she needs to be able to think for herself.

The woman, as we all are, is a product of her society. She presumably was brought up in a farm town, to farmer parents, married off to a farmer and is expected to raise a farming family. However, she deviates from this accepted norm as she wants to live in a city, away from the “magic” of the town. She feels conflicted, and by the end of the passage, she decides that the vicar is to blame. He has the most knowledge out of all the farmers, and this is what makes him superior. This passage brings truth to the cliche, “knowledge is power.”

Your introduction does a great job of establishing your line of reasoning about the woman and her situation – “trapped and confused in her calm, simple, pastoral life”. Your statement on her society also begins to open up a window into the broader context that could be followed through the essay. 1/1

Your analysis paragraphs clearly assert which device you are analyzing, and what the author’s language implies, but fall short of establishing why the author made those choices in his characterization of the woman. In the first body paragraph, you cite the anaphora, and then interpret it as the contrast between the woman and the men, but the commentary does not push deeper into the connection between these instances of anaphora and your line of reasoning about the woman. In the second body paragraph, there is a missing connection between Lawrence’s choice of religious imagery and the woman’s desire, so the line of reasoning is dropped. Because of these gaps in analysis, your evidence loses its relevance to your argument. 2/4

While you have made references to a broader context, that reference does not expand your own argument. 0/1

Set in the late 20th century, the main character is the wife of a farmer who is satisfied by the routine of a rural farm life. The men are satisfied with the physical work they are performing, however the woman feels as if her life is missing the intellectual stimulation and this is made especially clear when she dotes over the vicar at her home. Through extrapolating the personification of the landscape to an abstract image of intellect and the nonchalant jabs at mens’ spirituality threaded throughout the story, the woman initially appears to be dissatisfied with the routine of being the wife of a farmer. With the introduction of the vicar, she becomes inquisitive and a sense of longing is communicated over her boredom in her current situation.


The story opens with an introduction of the men, although it is the earth that is personified, given living traits of ‘heaving’ and the wind is ‘blowing’ the wheat that the men planted. This structure establishes the static character of the men by drawing attention to the actions of the scenery that the men tend to. The men are static, unwilling and physically unable to change their ways because they are satisfied with their agricultural progress and developments on the farm alone. Despite having invested a significant amount of hard work, it remains that they live the same routine of tending to the crops and animals without intellectual challenge. However, this is what the woman craves. The verbal parallel between her house facing out toward the road, the church, and the earth beyond and herself facing outward highlights her desire to expand her sphere of contact to the outside world, she would feel at home in places that mentally challenge her. However, she herself is shackled to the men who work tirelessly to control the possibilities of the earth to something that they themselves can consume in a cycle for their own benefit. Her longing for adventure, even contingency, is why she is suffocated by the men who do not wonder for more.


For the woman, the vicar was a form of home because of the vast intellectual depth he offers. Emotional cracks in her marriage are hinted at in her comparison of her husband to the vicar, where she declares the vicar the winner if both were stripped and set on a desert island. Her husband Tom Brangwan was of greater physical might and could control the cattle which translated to food, a fundamental need of living, but the woman believes the vicar to be mightier than her husband because he was of greater intellectual and spiritual depth. This reveal hints at the woman being a sapiophile, as she focuses on his knowledge and soul when she decides him as the winner in a true, life-and-death situation of being stripped and thrown into the desert. Her attitude toward the vicar is so admiring because she wanted to be like him, and her stable marriage is something that keeps her from achieving the closeness she wants to feel with the mystique of a universe she does not know. To the woman, the vicar represents the emotional depth that she longs for and because of this, she establishes the vicar to be greater than all the other men she knows.


The woman craves intellectual and spiritual exploration, which is evident in her interest in the vicar despite being the least physically noticeable man in the story. The immediate world she experiences is not of her interest, instead she wants an abstract life and this is highlighted in the juxtaposition of her husband and the vicar. The woman is discontent because of the mens’ secure aims of agricultural tending, and this is expressed through the narrator corresponding action with what is in the landscape rather than the men that tend to it. Her interest in the vicar indicates her shift from mere boredom to someone that desires to know more about the abstraction in the world she lives in.

Through your introduction, you have thoroughly established your interpretation of the woman’s situation, and your argument about her character. 1/1

I strongly recommend using more quoted text as evidence, instead of paraphrase, summary, or even your interpretation. It strengthens your argument when you ground it in the author’s specific words and language devices (evaluated in the rubric), and then make connections between those two essay elements in your own voice. Quoting evidence also helps to distinguish your analysis, and make sure that you are not restating the text as commentary. In this essay, your thesis clearly establishes the woman as dissatisfied and inquisitive, but your analysis paragraphs do not analyze the 

 of these traits (through the author’s language and devices) as deeply as the 

 of these traits. The second analysis paragraph also is less grounded in the literary language of the text, although it is still making inferences about the character of the woman. Your evidence is not consistently specific, therefore your line of reasoning, while established by the thesis, is not thoroughly supported by the evidence. 2/4

Your style of writing is clear, but you have not analyzed complexity or a line of reasoning that explores broader context, so this essay does not earn a sophistication point.

Society’s progress has been driven because humanity craves knowledge of the unknown, because it gives them power. When deprived of knowledge, a person is left powerless. This deprivation can stem from many places: youth, willful ignorance, and, most notably, societal expectations. In “The Rainbow,” D. H. Lawrence’s use of contrasting foils, monotonous listing, repetition, and conservative setting convey that the woman longs for knowledge and power, but is trapped in a stagnant situation by the rural area and society’s expectations for women.

The passage first speaks of the men, content with their station in life, not wanting anything more. These men are then used as a foil to contrast their contentment with the woman’s longing for something greater, for knowledge of what is unknown to her. Lawrence writes “Her house faced out from the farm-buildings and fields, looked out to the road and the village with church and Hall and the world beyond.” This by itself characterizes the woman as unsatisfied, yearning for the world beyond her rural life. By contrasting it to the previously mentioned contentment of the men, Lawrence places the woman and her desires on a stark background, highlighting the intensity and bizarreness of her wanting. This is further highlighted by the repeated use of diction meant to indicate longing. Lawrence writes that the woman “strained” to see more than her situation, that the “wanted to know” more, that she “craved to know” and “craved to achieve.” This language is pervasive, appearing throughout the passage. By repeatedly using this language, Lawrence depicts the extent of the woman’s longing and further solidifies that her craving is unique to her, a defining character trait that sets her apart from her surroundings. Additionally, the vicar is used as another foil. Lawrence writes, “the vicar, who spoke the other, magic language, and had the other, finer bearing, both of which she could perceive, but could never attain to,” and later “She decided it was a question of knowledge.” In the first quote, Lawrence sets the vicar aside from the rest men in the area, who are content with their lives and their ignorance. He also establishes that the vicar has what the woman wants, which is, as shown in the latter quote, knowledge. The vicar is characterized as a powerful man, starkly contrasting the woman, who longs for that which the vicar has but cannot attain it. Through character foils and repetitive diction, Lawrence characterizes the woman as someone who longs for knowledge and power.

The woman cannot obtain the knowledge and power she so craves because she is stuck in a stagnant, rural area and chained by conventional gender roles. The stagnancy of her situation is shown when Lawrence lists the life of the men, and then contrasts that to how the woman feels about that life. The listing uses no commas, instead joining each item with “and” or “or”. This gives the writing a dreary feeling, showing the monotonous nature of the woman’s situation. This is partially due to the fact that she is in a rural area, where “the world beyond” and “the battle that she heard” are far from her grasp. This highlights the powerlessness of the woman’s situation, because she is trapped in her house that faces out but cannot go out to see the battles that she has heard of and wishes to take part in. The reader may infer that she cannot take part in these battles because she is a woman, which is forms the other aspect of her stagnant situation. The setting of the passage is the late eighteenth century in rural England. It can be inferred that due to the sentiments of the time, women were not expected to have power or knowledge, showing that the woman was stuck in her powerless situation by gender roles.

Through his use of contrasting foils, dreary listing, fervent repetition, and conservative setting, D. H. Lawrence depicts the woman as someone who wants knowledge and power but cannot achieve it because of her stagnant situation.

My feedback is brief, but this is a very strong essay. Your thesis establishes an argument that is defensible and thorough. 1/1

Your evidence and commentary support the thesis, although some of the devices are analyzed more effectively. Your second paragraph analyzes the syntax succinctly, but the second half of the paragraph is less strong. Your first body paragraph feels a little disorganized, although you have a reference to your argument as both a first and last sentence, which brings the focus back. I don’t think the diction section feels connected to the men and vicar as foils argument in style or content. However, overall, you chose significant evidence and explained its role in the characterization of the woman thoroughly and consistently. 4/4

The essay does not earn a sophistication point, although it strongly meets the criteria for other points.

AP Lit Prose Analysis Practice Essays & Feedback 

Hey-o, what’s poppin’? 🍿 Welcome back to another AP Literature study session, a scour for additional resources, or procrastination for the studying you want to be doing. Regardless of the occasion, we’re glad you are here! Below, I have compiled a list of super-duper helpful AP Lit Quizlets that may be able to aid you in your studying. I will link the Quizlets and point out some key terms included in each one! ✅

The best way to study vocabulary is through memorization and repetition, and what better way to enforce those methods than through flashcards? 

 is a popular site that allows students to use virtual flashcards to study. Here are some pre-made Quizlet decks that you can use to study and reference throughout the year to be successful on the exam in May. 🎉

If you need a general review of vocabulary but don’t know where to begin, look no further! This Quizlet deck features 101 words that act as an overview of the entire course, with concepts like figurative language, figures of speech, points of view, and more! 📕

 prose commentaries, to provide background information about the characters and their world.

 poetry that does not have a regular meter or rhyme scheme.

 a word inside a line rhymes with other words on the same line

  a long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone on a stage

 attitude a writer takes toward the audience, a subject, or a character

You'll need to know these terms from these Quizlets to better analyze old literature! Image Courtesy of 

This set of vocabulary words is significantly smaller, sitting at right over 30 terms. However, this set also focuses on poetry-related terms more specifically. It is super important to know the technical terms when describing poetry; not only will you have to analyze a poem within the free-response section, but these words will likely appear within the multiple-choice section as well!

 a story or poem that can be used to reveal a hidden meaning

 continuation of one line of a poem to the next without pause

 a regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry

 a literary work that criticizes human misconduct and ridicules vices, stupidities, and follies

This may seem like a small deck of cards, but it is jam-packed full of key terms and everything you need to know in the realm of the first unit. These are words that may appear within the multiple-choice section (and will therefore benefit you if you are more familiar with them!). 🗣️

 having mixed feelings about someone or something

 doubtfulness or uncertainty of meaning or intention; vagueness

 the undoing or breaking of a bond, tie, union, or partnership; dissolving into parts or elements

 a superficial appearance or illusion of something

This post is almost like a Literature dictionary - giving you definitions to important terms! Image Courtesy of 

This deck is also relatively small, but super helpful nonetheless! Similar to the set listed above, it focuses solely on one unit: unit 2. Mastering these vocabulary words will help you to understand the main concepts within unit 2 and help you expand your vocabulary in general!

: v. To approach and speak to first; to confront in a challenging or aggressive way

 adj. straying or wandering from a straight or direct course; done or acting in a shifty or underhanded way

 adj. nearsighted; lacking a broad, realistic view of a situation; lacking foresight or discernment

 n. Improper or disrespectful treatment of something held sacred

 v. To move in waves or with a wavelike motion; to have a wavelike appearance or form

As you can see, I skipped ahead in the unit-specific vocabulary decks. This does not mean there are no decks available for units 3-5 (or 7-9 for that matter!) I just wanted to highlight this deck to you because it is pretty big for just one unit - over 50 terms! That’s because this set not only defines vocabulary words but also provides synonyms and antonyms for each (notated with a + and - respectively). 📖

 (n.) someone or something that is abandoned or neglected

(adj.) left abandoned; neglectful of duty

-: punctilious, conscientious, scrupulous

 (n.) a grotesque or grossly inferior imitation; a disguise, especially the clothing of the opposite sex

(v.) to ridicule by imitating in a broad or burlesque fashion

 (adj.) no longer in effect. No longer in existence, extinct

And there you have it! This is just a sneak peek of the Quizlet decks out there, at your disposal! If you find that this is a good way for you to study, use it to your advantage! 

Even though there are pre-made decks for each AP Lit unit, if you find they are insufficient then you can make your own! Quizlet is an awesome resource, especially for a vocabulary-heavy class such as AP Lit. I hope this helps, and happy studying!

Best Quizlet Decks for AP English Literature 

Hey-o! Welcome back to the most lit 🔥 subject out there! Today we will be talking about the meat of the AP exam: the essays. The Free Response Questions (or FRQs) consist of 3 full-length essays in which you will be given 2 hours to complete (roughly 40 minutes per essay). This section counts for 55% of your overall score, so it is pretty important. Let’s look at a full breakdown of how these essays work and how you can do your best on them!

Join our Discord

AP English Literature Exam Prep 2020-21📚

Trending

Study Resources

Free Review 2020

Introduction

Exam Skills

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)

Free Response #1: Poetry

Free Response #2: Prose Fiction

Free Response #3: Literary Argument

Blogs

Creators

Candace Moore

Jenni MacLean

Candace Moore

Robby May

Celine Gomez

Rebecca Burnett

Peter Cao

Laura Walton

Samantha Himegarner

Caroline Kelley

Jessica Sanders

Chika Ojukwu

Isabel Snyder

Naderia Wade

Student Student

gayatri aluri

Join Our Discord

AP English Literature Exam Prep 2020-21📚

Trending

Study Resources

Free Review 2020﻿

Introduction﻿

Exam Skills﻿

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)﻿

Free Response #1: Poetry﻿

Free Response #2: Prose Fiction﻿

Free Response #3: Literary Argument﻿

Blogs﻿

Creators

Candace Moore﻿

Jenni MacLean﻿

Candace Moore﻿

Robby May﻿

Celine Gomez﻿

Rebecca Burnett﻿

Peter Cao﻿

Laura Walton﻿

Samantha Himegarner﻿

Caroline Kelley﻿

Jessica Sanders﻿

Chika Ojukwu﻿

Isabel Snyder﻿

Naderia Wade﻿

Student Student﻿

gayatri aluri﻿

Join Our Discord

Free Review 2020

Introduction

Exam Skills

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)

Free Response #1: Poetry

Free Response #2: Prose Fiction

Free Response #3: Literary Argument

Blogs

Candace Moore

Jenni MacLean

Candace Moore

Robby May

Celine Gomez

Rebecca Burnett

Peter Cao

Laura Walton

Samantha Himegarner

Caroline Kelley

Jessica Sanders

Chika Ojukwu

Isabel Snyder

Naderia Wade

Student Student

gayatri aluri