How to Interrogate Cliffs Notes

Originally a study aid to reading Shakespeare, Cliffs Notes have grown to encompass modern literature and other subjects, including advanced placement testing. To keep students from substituting Cliffs Notes for the reading of the text, challenge them to read both together. Have readers use these steps to "interrogate" Cliffs Notes.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

1. Hunt for what the Cliffs Notes leave out. In order to publish the brief, skimmable style that Cliffs Notes is known for, note writers leave out a lot. Locate the missing pieces, and decide whether you would have made a different selection.
2. List what you know about the setting. Compare what you learned about the setting of the text from the Cliffs Notes and what you learned from the book itself.
3. Write your own plot summary of a literary work. Compare and contrast it to the plot summary in a Cliffs Notes version. Find three similarities between your plot summary and Cliffs. Continue by finding three ways in which the two differ.
4. Choose a favorite chapter of a book. Write a summary of the chapter and analyze it. Then compare it to a Cliffs Notes version.
5. Explore the symbols mentioned in Cliffs Notes. Figure out whether you agree with the interpretation of the symbolism. Think about other symbolism that Cliffs Notes may have left out.
6. Compare Cliffs Notes with similar versions of supplemental study aids by other publishers. Explore the variations in the different versions based on a single popular literary work.
7. Use the author biography in Cliffs Notes as a starting place for researching the life of and other works by an author. Find at least one important thing about the author that Cliffs Notes leaves out.

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