Octorara Area Junior/Senior High School Octorara Area Junior & Senior High School Grades 7-12

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1 Octorara Area Junior/Senior High School Octorara Area Junior & Senior High School Grades HIGHLAND ROAD, ATGLEN, PA Phone: Fax: June 1, 2018 Scott S. Rohrer, Ed.D. Principal Clifford J. Blantz, M.Ed. Jonathan Propper, M.Ed. Mark Peticca, M.A. Assistant Principal Assistant Principal Assistant Principal Dear Honors English 9 student, We are excited to meet all of you next year as you enter the high school. Congratulations on all of your hard work in completing your junior high school education, whether it be at Octorara Junior High School, West Fallowfield, or another district outside the area. Your freshman year Honors English 9 reading will consist of classic works of Western Civilization. We will be closely reading and analyzing several Shakespearean plays, a wide range of poems, several novels, short stories and articles. In addition, expect an intensive vocabulary program consisting of the study of word parts, context decoding, and Latin translations. We will work hard, but we ll also have a lot of fun. Your summer honors assignment will consist of a reading guide and an essay. Reading: You are responsible for picking up a copy of Ray Bradbury s Fahrenheit 451 from Mrs. Blochberger or the main office of the high school (or buy/borrow your own copy) and read it closely at least once. Assignments: A. Reading Guide: Answer the questions on the following pages. Each of your answers should be in complete, grammatically correct sentences, and should be free of spelling and typographical errors. When asked for brief explanations, one or two paragraphs will suffice. Your answers must be typed and clearly organized. B. Essay Topic: Though Ray Bradbury s Fahrenheit 451 is a work of science fiction, the novel is poignantly real in the sense that it carries a strong message for its readers about the society they are living in and how they engage with it. Originally written in the 1953, many details of the book have proven to be prophetic. In a well-organized two page essay, analyze Fahrenheit 451 and explain to what extent its dystopian view of the future acts as a warning, or a cautionary tale, both to its original readers and readers of today. Include a clear thesis in your introduction and plenty of supporting details from the novel. The only source for information in your essay should be the novel itself. (more on reverse side) Maximizing Opportunities for Success

2 Format: Your reading guide must be typed with sections and question numbers clearly labeled. The essay must be in the following format: Essay must be 2 full pages in length (please keep to this length) Reading guide and essay must be typed (black 12 point Times New Roman font) and essay must be double-spaced with all margins set to one inch. Name at top right of front page of reading guide answers and essay No plastic covers or binders, please Points will be subtracted for incorrect format Due date: Both your guided reading questions and your essay are due on the first day of school (August 27, 2018). Summer assignments will be collected during the first meeting of your section of Honors English 9. In the event (and only if) your class section does not meet on the first day of school (if scheduled for period 1 or 5), summer assignments will be collected in class on Tuesday, August 28, Early submissions will also be accepted. If you have any questions throughout the summer, please don t hesitate to contact your assigned teacher for the course by (Mr. Creighton: bcreighton@octorara.org; Mr. McCarthy: dmccarthy@octorara.org). Please note: Failure to turn in summer assignment on or before Monday, August 27, 2018 will result in immediate removal from Honors English 9 to Literature and Composition 9. You should only use Bradbury s text as the source for your guided readings and essay. Have a great summer and we hope you enjoy the reading! Mr. Creighton and Mr. McCarthy

3 The Hearth and the Salamander (Pages 1-68) READING GUIDE- FAHRENHEIT 451 1) Guy Montag is the main protagonist, and the third-person point-of-view focuses on his thoughts and actions throughout the novel. What attitude is reflected in the tone of the opening paragraphs? 2) Why is being a pedestrian a crime in this society? 3) Why does Mildred refer to the TV characters as her family? What implications does this have? 4) Montag describes Clarisse as being similar to a mirror. Briefly explain what he means by this. 5) In this section, Montag observes that the Mechanical Hound doesn t seem to like him. How might this function as foreshadowing? 6) How does Clarisse explain the educational system and her view of what it means to be social? 7) What is Montag s motivation for taking a book? Use evidence from this situation and also what he later says about it. 8) What do you observe about Guy and Mildred s relationship, and of traffic laws in this society? Is there any connection between the two? 9) What is the purpose of the firemen, and how is this tied to the U.S. Constitution? 10) At the end of Beatty s lecture to Montag, he explains that what they do as fireman protects people from conflicting thought and keeps them happy. Are the firemen succeeding at protecting people from unhappiness? 11) Near the end of this section, Montag recalls something Clarisse had said about porches, gardens, and rocking chairs. What do these things all have in common? 12) What is the meaning of the title, The Hearth and the Salamander?

4 The Sieve and the Sand (Pages ) 1) Montag once again reflects on Clarisse at the beginning of this section. What is it about her that made such an impression on him? 2) Explain what drew Montag and Faber to one another when they initially met. 3) What is the meaning of the title of this section, The Sieve and the Sand? 4) Denham s Dentrifice is a phrase that is repeated many times in a few short pages in this section. Why? What does this reveal, not only about this society, but also about Montag s struggle? 5) What does Faber imply that the firemen are really after? 6) List and briefly explain the three things that Faber says are missing from their society. 7) What are the potential pros and cons to Montag and Faber s scheme to frame the firemen? 8) What do you make of the women s response to Montag s reading of Dover Beach, and why does Montag kick them out? 9) Beatty is clearly well-read. How can someone who has read so many books be so intent on destroying them? 10) Explain to what extent Beatty can be regarded as this story s antagonist. What other forces in this novel can be thought to be antagonists? Explain.

5 Burning Bright (Pages ) 1) Who reported Montag to the firemen, and how is this significant? 2) What is Montag s motivation for doing what he does to Beatty on page 119? 3) How does Montag know that Beatty wanted to die? 4) What is the significance of the police chase being broadcast on TV? 5) What does Montag s swim in the river symbolize? 6) Why is it significant that Montag runs to the forest? How is the forest contrasted with the city in this novel? 7) How does Montag s understanding about the nature of fire evolve in this section? How have we seen the references to fire/burning evolve with the development of Montag as a character over the course of the novel? 8) Explain the significance of the symbol of the phoenix near the novel s end. 9) Why does Granger want to build a mirror factory? 10) What allusions are included in the final paragraphs of the novel? 11) There is a theme of censorship throughout this novel. Is censorship ever a good thing? Are there some books worth banning? Essay Question: Though Ray Bradbury s Fahrenheit 451 is a work of science fiction, the novel is poignantly real in the sense that it carries a strong message for its readers about the society they are living in and how they engage with it. Originally written in the 1953, many details of the book have proven to be prophetic. In a well-organized two page essay, analyze Fahrenheit 451 and explain to what extent its dystopian view of the future acts as a warning, or a cautionary tale, both to its original readers and readers of today. Include a clear thesis in your introduction and plenty of supporting details from the novel. The only source for information in your essay should be the novel itself.