Please note that there are two distinct parts to the summer reading assignment and that both parts are due the day the camping trip begins: Part 1, the annotation of the novel, and part 2, the essay on the novel. Remember that this will be your first graded project for your English class next fall, so do as good a job on it as you can. (N.B.: If you haven’t picked up your copy of One Hundred Years of Solitude, call the school to arrange to pick one up as soon as possible.)

PART 1: Reading and Annotating Gabriel García Márquez’ One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Please refer to the “Summer Reading Assignment Part 1” handout (which you received earlier this summer) for the full text of the annotation assignment. Click here to see the full annotation assignment.

Short introduction to the annotation assignment:
Read the novel with a pen or pencil in hand (non-black, ball-point pen is the easiest to read later). Mark the passages that you find important: passages that evoke a strong reaction from you, passages that you have something to say about as well as passages that make you ask questions; write short comments or key words in the margin of the book about these significant passages. Your comments may record your ongoing interpretation of the reading, your emotional reaction to it, any patterns you have noticed in the book, or a question you have about it. Read carefully, but do not worry about whether what you write is right or wrong; there are no such categories for this assignment. This process of underlining and labeling passages and writing comments in the margin is called annotating. We read more actively when we annotate than when we do not, and we notice more about the book as well as about ourselves as readers. Your books will be collected at the Fall Retreat, and your annotations will be graded—be thoughtful when working on this part of the assignment.  Again, be sure to read the full text of the annotations assignment carefully.

For the first time this year there will also be a blog moderated by Maybeck’s English teachers to help you with the book as you read it.  Feel free to post questions on the blog and contribute to the dialog.  The blog can be found at HTTP://maybecksummer08reading.blogspot.com.

PART 2: Essay

In addition to annotating, you will write an essay about One Hundred Years of Solitude, answering one of the questions below. Write the essay over the summer; like the annotations, the essay is due on September 5, the first day of the camping trip.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT for COMPOSITION STUDENTS (all incoming ninth graders)
Length of Essay: 500-600 words.
Format: Your essay should be typed in 12 point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, and should have standard margins (1.25 inches on each side). You should include your name, the date, and the title of your essay.

Choose one of the following two topics. Choose specific examples and short quotes from the book to discuss with your points.

1. Magical Realism, the genre of Márquez' One Hundred Years of Solitude, isthe integration of magical, fantastic, or dreamlike elements into an otherwise realistic setting. Choose at least three events, characters, or descriptions with magical qualities, and explore the role they play in the novel.
   

2. The women and men in One Hundred Years of Solitude share many characteristics. Decide whether you would like to write about the characteristics that the men share OR the characteristics that the women share, and write an essay that explores the connections among characters. Choose at least three characters (of the same gender) to analyze in your essay.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT for INTERMEDIATE COMPOSITION STUDENTS
Length of Essay: 2 ½ to 3 pages (750-900 words).
Format: Your essay should be typed in size 12 Times New Roman font, double-spaced, and should have standard margins (1.25 inches on each side). You should include your name, the date, and the title of your essay.

Choose one of the following three topics. Be sure to build your essay around a clear central thesis presented in a clear, concise thesis statement. Develop your argument paying attention to the structure of the paragraphs as well as to the overall structure of the essay. Include textual evidence in the form of examples and quotes. Don’t forget to proofread.

1. What significance does García Márquez suggest memory and history have to the community of Macondo?  What occurs when memory is distorted and history annihilated?

2. In how many ways does power manifest itself in One Hundred Years of Solitude?  How do characters respond to these manifestations, and how does this impact Macondo?  You might pay particular attention to Colonel Aureliano Buendía.

3. Why is the novel not entirely linear?  Why is reality made magical? Are these two facts of the novel related? How does nonlinear storytelling and the presence of magic in an otherwise realistic story enable García Márquez to communicate the solitude of Latin America?

Please e-mail Wendy at wendy at maybeckhs dot org if you have any questions about the summer assignment.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT for LITERATURE STUDENTS
Length of Essay: 2-4 pages (minimum 600 words).
Format: Your essay should be typed, double-spaced, with 12 point Times New Roman font, one-inch margins, and a title.

Please choose one of the essay topics below:

1. On the first page we are told that “The world was so recent that many things lacked names.” What is the importance of names and of naming (of people, things, and events) in the novel?

2. What is the importance of the various inventions, gadgets, and technological wonders introduced into Macondo over the years? Is the sequence in which they are introduced significant?

3. When and how do politics enter the life of Macondo? With what short-term and long-term consequences?

As always, your essay should begin with an introduction and clear thesis statement, should contain convincing supporting points for that thesis, should provide strong textual evidence, and should have a conclusion.

Please e-mail Jane at shamaeva at sbcglobal dot net if you have any questions about the summer assignment.

WRITING ASSIGNMENT for ADVANCED ENGLISH STUDENTS
Length of Essay: 900-1000 words.
Format: Your essay should be typed, double-spaced, with 12 point Times New Roman font, one-inch margins, name, date, and title.

Please choose one of the essay topics below:

1. What kinds of solitude occur in the novel (for example, solitude of pride, grief, power, love, or death), and with whom are they associated? What circumstances produce them? Are these feelings of solitude inherited from prior generations, or are they created anew by each character?

2. Metamorphosis occurs in numerous ways in Márquez’ novel. The town of Macondo, for instance, goes through numerous changes as it passes through history. What is the significance of these changes and how does the metamorphosis of the town and its natural setting stand out as a theme and part of the meaning in One Hundred Years?

3. The characters in One Hundred Years are also subject to huge metamorphoses in character and attitude. For instance, every time Melquíades appears, he is very different from how he was in his last appearance. How do these metamorphoses contribute to the novel’s many meanings? For this question, choose two characters that undergo huge changes and compare the different ways in which their changes contribute to the impact of the novel.

Please e-mail Michael at mjditmore at comcast dot net, Nina at nina.lacour at gmail dot com or Jane at shamaeva at sbcglobal dot net if you have any questions about the summer assignment.