Hello!
If you couldn’t tell, I’ve decided to write my blog about A Song of Ice and Fire, the famous book series by George R. R. Martin. I’m going to try to delve into a variety of topics related to the series. This is the first time where I’m going to put my thoughts on the series out to a general audience, so I’d love to hear feedback related to them. Finally, before I start my first post, I’d like to ask you guys what your preference is on spoilers in my blog posts. As part of your first comment, tell me if you’d be okay with me writing about spoilers or if you’d rather I avoid them for right now. Thanks, and without further ado, here’s my first thought:
A Song of Ice and Fire Would be a Great Book Series to Teach in AP Literature & Composition
So, let me explain.
First, if you’re not familiar with the class of AP Lit, it’s essentially a class that focuses literary analysis. In other words, its goal is to teach students to analyze fiction. The goal of the course is to prepare you for the AP Lit test, which consists of a multiple choice section and three essays. The three essays ask students to 1) analyze a poem, 2) analyze a short passage of writing, and 3) analyze a novel based on a given prompt. Generally, the books that you are assigned to read in this class are in order to help you write the third essay, which is what I want to focus on now.
The third essay asks questions about themes that might be present in different works of literature. The student’s job is to write an essay relating a specific theme to a specific piece of literature. Generally, students read at least 5 books in this class in order to encompass all the potential themes that the AP test would ask a student to analyze. I would argue that reading all 5 books in A Song of Ice and Fire would be preparation enough for any student.
Obviously, I’m not going to explore every single essay prompt that the AP test has utilized. But, I will give several examples, along with a quick explanation of the topic for the essay.
Prompt 1 (from the 2017 test): “Select a novel… that features a character whose origins are unusual or mysterious… analyze how these origins shape the character and that character’s relationships, and how the origins contribute to the meaning of the work as a whole”: Jon Snow is a prominent character within the novels; however, he’s a bastard (which in a medieval/feudal kind of setting means a lot as far as his inheritances are concerned). No one knows who his mother is, and he was raised with his father and his half-siblings. He feels like he doesn’t belong, which he struggles with and drives his actions in the story. However, what he accomplishes shows that the content of your character matters more than your birthplace/status.
Prompt 2 (from the 2014 test): “…Select a character that has deliberately sacrificed, surrendered, or forfeited something in a way that highlights that character’s values… analyze how the particular sacrifice illuminates the character’s values and provides a deeper understanding of the meaning of the work as a whole:” Ned Stark sacrifices himself in the hopes of making a secret known, highlighting his honor; he then sacrifices himself in order to save his family; however, this sacrifice helps show how the society he lives in isn’t honor bound like himself.
Prompt 3 (from 2009 test): “… Select a novel… and write an essay analyzing how the symbol functions in the work and what it reveals about the characters or themes of the work as a whole:” The iron throne is generally viewed as a symbol of the political “system,” one of corruption and power-hungriness.
What I wanted to highlight from this is that A Song of Ice and Fire addresses many classic literary themes, which is one of the many reasons why this series is so good.
Hi Matt! I wouldn’t mind spoilers if it leads to more insightful and detailed commentary regarding the series. However, if one of your goals of the blog is to get us to want to read the series, then I would steer clear of the spoilers. Back to your actual post, this was an interesting approach to introduce “A Song of Fire and Ice.” I wasn’t really sure what to expect for this first post, maybe an overarching plot summary, but this took a completely different approach. I like that you acknowledged the versatility of the novel and its value as not just an entertaining read, but as a work of literature that enriches the overall experience. The way you described it really conveys the idea that it is a series filled with rich educational value, and I am excited to see what else you can do with this blog series.
“A Song of Ice and Fire”*
Hi Matt,
I’m glad to see you chose a topic you are so clearly passionate about. I personally would not encourage too many big spoilers (just incase I get the chance to read these books), but I would definitely like to see a summary of the plot in order to get a better idea of the topics of the novel you are exploring. I really like the way you have approached this topic by asking questions from a more analytical perspective which shows me that this novel clearly has a lot of interesting topics to be explored. I look forward to seeing what comes next.
Hi Matt! In regards to spoilers, I personally don’t mind spoilers, especially if they help develop the topics you choose to relate to the series. I agree with Miran’s comment, though- if your goal is to encourage us to read the series, less spoilers is probably better.
This post was a very interesting way to show how there are many topics to explore in the series, and is a great way to set up future topics. The only thing I would suggest is maybe having a post that briefly introduces some of the more important characters or the general plot. This might make it easier for us readers to follow future posts.