Open Question Evidence Bank

Open Question Evidence Bank: Building Your Literary Repertoire

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to identify which literary works to prioritize for AP Lit exam preparation, organize your knowledge of key works around thematic frameworks, and practice quick-retrieval of literary evidence.

Why You Need an Evidence Bank

The AP Lit open question FRQ gives you a thematic prompt and asks you to discuss a novel, play, or poem you've read. You have no text in front of you. You have 40 minutes.

Students who have built an evidence bank — organized knowledge of multiple works around themes, techniques, and pivotal moments — can respond to nearly any prompt. Students who haven't often choose a work that doesn't fit well, or write plot summaries because they can't recall specific evidence.

The evidence bank goal: Know 6-8 works so well that you can recall specific scenes, dialogue, character names, structural choices, and thematic patterns under exam pressure.

How to Build Your Evidence Bank

For each work, know:

1. Core thematic concerns: What questions is the work asking? (Not just "the theme is justice" but "in what way does the work explore justice, and what does it conclude?")

2. Key moments: The 4-6 scenes most essential to the work's argument. For each: who is present, what happens, what it reveals, and a line or two of notable language.

3. Character arcs: How does the protagonist change or fail to change? What drives this?

4. Formal/structural choices: How is the work narrated? What is significant about the structure?

5. Thematic versatility: What AP Lit themes can this work address? (A versatile work can address 5-6 different prompts.)

Core Works: Thematic Profiles

Hamlet (Shakespeare)

Core themes:

• The impossibility of certain knowledge ("to be or not to be" = epistemological, not just existential)
• Performance and appearance vs. reality ("The lady doth protest too much")
• Corruption and moral compromise
• Revenge and justice; mortality

Key moments: