2. What is a Theme?
• Theme: some idea or insight about human life
and human nature that gives meaning to the
story
• A good story should mean something to the
reader.
• The story can reveal the writer’s whole view of
life (how it works or fails to work).
3. What Do We Mean by
Theme?• A theme is unseen and usually unstated
• Theme is an idea; it may give insight into some
aspect of life
• Theme is not the same as the story’s plot (series
of events)
• Theme is not the same as the story’s subject
4. Discovering a Story’s
Theme
1. A theme may be stated in no less than a single
sentence (may need to be longer).
• Ex. Hard work will always be rewarded.
2. A theme is not the same thing as a moral,
which is a rule of conduct.
• Ex. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.
(This is a moral because it tells you what to do.)
5. Discovering a Story’s
Theme
3. Ask how the protagonist has changed during the
story & what the character has learned about
life.
4. There is no one correct way to state the theme
of a story. You may have several ideas about
what the theme is.
6. Discovering a Story’s
Theme
3. Ask how the protagonist has changed during the
story & what the character has learned about
life.
4. There is no one correct way to state the theme
of a story. You may have several ideas about
what the theme is.