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Students must write responses in essay form judged on clarity, effectiveness in addressing each prompt, and overall writing quality. Guidance includes pacing (about 40 minutes per question), using scratch paper for planning, and recognizing that no time warnings are provided in the final minutes. The section includes reading-based essay prompts using a poem and a novel excerpt, requiring thesis, evidence, and explanation.",{"@graph":69,"@context":123},[70,84,106],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":20,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/exam/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/ap-english-literature-and-composition-free-response-questions-section-ii/311282/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/ap-english-literature-and-composition-free-response-questions-section-ii/311282.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Kurz","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-29","2026-09-20",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":105},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",17,{"@type":107,"mainEntity":108},"FAQPage",[109,115,119],{"name":110,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":112},"How long is Section II of the AP® English Literature and Composition free-response exam?","Question",{"text":113,"@type":114},"Section II lasts 2 hours and includes three free-response questions.","Answer",{"name":116,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What should students include in each essay response?",{"text":118,"@type":114},"Each response should include a thesis, evidence that supports the reasoning, and explanations showing how the evidence proves the thesis.",{"name":120,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":121},"How should students manage their time across the three questions?",{"text":122,"@type":114},"A suggested approach is to spend about 40 minutes on each question and to pace themselves during the section.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":125,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":127,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":129,"site_id":62},311282,1789894073,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":132},{"doc_id":129,"user_id":133,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":134,"doc_module":4,"category_id":19,"category_name":20,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":135,"file_id":136,"file_url":137,"file_type":138,"file_size":139,"view_count":105,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":34,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":130,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},2336478945635,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_6f874abed73319feea01a86fa6f0fab8","2026  \nAP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions  \n© 2026 College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement, AP, AP Central, and the acorn logo are registered [trademarks of College Board. Visit College Board on the web: collegeboard.org](trademarks of College Board. Visit College Board on the web: collegeboard.org).  \nAP Central is the official online home for [the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org](the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org).  \nENGLISH LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION  \nSECTION II  \nTIME – 2 HOURS  \nDirections:  \nSection II has 3 free-response questions and lasts 2 hours.  \nThis section of the exam requires answers in essay form. Each essay will be judged on its clarity and effectiveness in dealing with the assigned topic and on the quality of the writing. In responding to Question 3, select a work of fiction that will be appropriate to the question. Use a work that you are familiar with either from your AP English Literature and Composition class or from other literature you have previously read.  \nYou may pace yourself as you answer the questions in this section, or you may use these optional timing recommendations:  \nIt is suggested that you spend an equal amount of time, approximately 40 minutes, on each question.  \nYou may use scratch paper for notes and planning, but credit will only be given for responses entered in this application. Text you enter as an annotation will not be included as part of your answer. You can go back and forth between questions in this section until time expires. The clock will turn red when 5 minutes remain—the proctor will not give you any time updates or warnings.  \nNote: This exam was originally administered digitally. It is presented here in a format optimized for teacher and student use in the classroom.  \n1. In Christopher Gilbert’s poem “Marking Time,” published in 1984, the speaker observes his surroundings during a morning jog. Read the poem carefully. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze how Gilbert uses literary elements and techniques to convey the speaker’s complex reflections while jogging.  \nIn your response you should do the following:  \n• Respond to the prompt with a thesis that presents a defensible interpretation.  \n• Select and use evidence to support your line of reasoning.  \n• Explain how the evidence supports your line of reasoning.  \n• Use appropriate grammar and punctuation in communicating your argument.  \nMarking Time  \nJogging out in the morning  \nagainst the few high clouds the blue  \nsky is a memory like a sheer silk fabric  \nheld so far back I can’t see through it—Line 5 when I breathe the new air my body  \nis young all over, a smell reminds  \nhow the two pear trees are white  \nagain, their flowers ephemeral  \nas the words I recite to pass time  \n10 in repetitious wheezed breath—  \nsquirrels, blue jays, downed trees for markers  \nto say how far I’ve gone, to be used  \nin their brief names to crowd my mind  \nwith anything I can count on.  \n15 Today as I struggle against the wind  \nup the hill I watch a small butterfly  \nwavering with spread wings, and remember  \ndreaming of my sister who called  \nlast night when I was sleeping, and how  \n20 twenty years ago she gave me  \nfrom the held darkness of her brown palms  \na black butterfly with yellow specks.  \nWhat it was she said is immaterial,  \nthere is the gesture though:  \n25 and watching a bird overhead fly past the disk of sun, there is a flaring shadow fanned down from above  \nthat flickers like a rustled page  \nwith a poem on it; it is that quick  \n30 flute darkness of a sister’s voice  \na brother will hear in his heart  \nwhen he’s breathing deep enough.  \nChristopher Gilbert,“Marking Time” from Turning into Dwelling. Copyright © 1984 by Christopher Gilbert. Used with the permission of The Permissions Company, LLC on behalf of Graywolf Press, [graywolfpress.org](graywolfpress.org).  \n2. The following excerpt is from Aimee Bender’s novel The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake,","cbCaiuBZSpKr1TNc","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiuBZSpKr1TNc","pdf",223951,"English","# Directions\n## Section II Overview and Timing\n## Question 1: Christopher Gilbert’s “Marking Time”\n## Question 2: Aimee Bender’s The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake","[{\"question\":\"How long is Section II of the AP® English Literature and Composition free-response exam?\",\"answer\":\"Section II lasts 2 hours and includes three free-response questions.\"},{\"question\":\"What should students include in each essay response?\",\"answer\":\"Each response should include a thesis, evidence that supports the reasoning, and explanations showing how the evidence proves the thesis.\"},{\"question\":\"How should students manage their time across the three questions?\",\"answer\":\"A suggested approach is to spend about 40 minutes on each question and to pace themselves during the section.\"}]","AP® English Literature and Composition Free-Response Questions - Section II | PDF",18]