Theme in Literature

Theme in Literature

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What is a THEME in literature?

A theme is the big idea in a story. It's the message about people or the world that the author is trying to get across.

Themes are universal, which means they are true in all times and all places. They apply to many different types of people.

A theme of a story ...

• Is usually one complete sentence

• Finishes the sentence: The author seems to believe that ...

Multiple Choice

To find a theme of a story, you should ask yourself...

• Where and when does the story occur?

• What happens in the story?

• What does the author seem to believe about the world?

Multiple Choice

To find a theme of a story, you should ask yourself...

• Where and when does the story occur?

• What happens in the story?

• What does the author seem to believe about the world?

Remember the first story we read this year?

What was a theme in The Ravine?

Theme of "The Ravine"?

• Fear?

• Peer Pressure?

• Standing up for your beliefs?

• Danger in nature?

• NO! Those are not themes. Those are TOPICS.

• To make a THEME, take one of those topics and write a sentence about it.

Let's take the topic of FEAR in The Ravine...

• What does the author seem to be saying about FEAR?

• Finish this sentence:

• The author seems to believe that .... (use the word "fear" or "afraid")

• You might have said this:

• The author seems to believe that a person can be strong, can do what he believes right, even when he is afraid of what his friends will think.

• Now we have a THEME. The part in red is a theme of that story.

Multiple Choice

Which is a theme of the story "The Ravine"?

• fear

• peer pressure

• danger in nature

• A person can overcome his fear of what others think.

Multiple Choice

When discussing the Three Little Pigs,

"EFFORT" is a

• summary

• topic

• theme

On the next slide, if the video won't play,

click on "Watch on YouTube"

Multiple Choice

Which is a THEME of Goldilocks and the Three Bears?

• "just right"

• The medium amount of something is better

  (not "too" anything).

• disrespect

• Goldilocks disrespected the personal property of a bear family.

Multiple Choice

In Romeo and Juliet,

A boy and a girl fall in love, despite their families hating each other. The hate and violence between the families result in the deaths of both Romeo and Juliet. Their families, in their grief over the deaths of their children, finally make peace.

The text above is a

• title

• summary

• topic

• theme

Multiple Choice

Romeo and Juliet talks about:

love

hate

consequences of hate

The text in blue shows

• titles

• summaries

• topics

• themes

Multiple Choice

In Romeo and Juliet, we learn that:

hate can have deadly consequences.

The text in blue is a

• title

• summary

• topic

• theme

What is a theme in this story?

Rohan triumphantly lifted the trophy above his head. Despite all the obstacles, he had won.

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​Beneath his cheerful exterior, he felt a twinge of the constant pain he’d learned to live with. Almost unconsciously, Rohan removed one hand from the trophy and rubbed the thin red scar that snaked around his ankle. He thought back to the surgery and the weeks spent lying in his bed, unable to compete. The months of exercises to strengthen his leg.

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​“Rohan!” he heard the crowd scream, as if in slow motion. A smile broke across Rohan’s face, shattering his thoughts. He returned his hand to his trophy, firmly grasping it.

Multiple Choice

Someone's mind wandered in the story you just read.

Which is true?

• Robert's mind wandered to his recent injury.

  His face showed his pain.

• Rohan's face appeared happy,

  but he was thinking about the injury to his ankle and leg.

• Rohan's face appeared confused.

  He wasn't sure how he could have won the trophy, given his recent injuries.

Multiple Choice

Which is a likely theme of the story of Rohan on the previous slide?

• Some goals are too hard to achieve even if you try many times.

• Through determination, you can overcome big challenges.

• sports

• determination

Themes are messages, not topics or events.

Themes are about universal topics.

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Plot events are not themes. For example, an event could be "Billy felt compassion for his brother, and helped his fix his broken bike."

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For example, a topic could be compassion, relationships or fate.

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A theme is often stated as a judgment about one of these topics. For example, a theme about the topic of relationships could be "relationships teach you important lessons."

Multiple Choice

Which of the following could be the theme of a story?

• Never turn your back on your family.

• A young girl returns to her family after moving far away.

• “I’ll never speak to you again,” she said quietly to her mother.

• family

Read the following passage from a story. What theme(s) seem to be expressed?

​Eriene gazed across the field, noticing how peaceful Creature's Cove seemed now. The only evidence of the battle were the scorched patches of earth dotting the landscape like a sunburn. Eriene clasped the jade pendant that dangled heavily under her robe. Her great-aunt's words echoed in her head. "This necklace has always belonged to the protector of what is good and just in the kingdom. Now, it belongs to you."

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Eriene had passed her first test, the dragon no longer a threat to the kingdom's way of life. Wisps of smoke drifted up from the land that its poisonous breath had burned. Soon, new grass would poke through, and memories of the battle would recede into the past. But Eriene knew this was not the end.

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This dragon lay slain in the Yonderland. But its spirit would return again and again in different forms.

Multiple Choice

An object is used as a symbol in this story. Which is true?

• A necklace now belongs to the bad guy in the story. It belongs to anyone who caused trouble for the kingdom.

• A dragon now belongs to the hero. A relative predicted that the hero would tame the dragon.

• A relative had predicted that a necklace would belong to the hero, who would become the protector of the kingdom.

Multiple Choice

The story ends with:

This dragon lay slain in the Yonderland. But its spirit would return again and again in different forms.

Which is a likely theme of this text?

• Evil can easily be defeated.

• Eriene killed a dragon.

• Good and evil always exist in the world.

• dragons

Read the following passage.

The last time George saw Charity, they were eight years old, building forts of dirt and sticks in the corner lot. When Charity's family moved to Texas, George was heartbroken. There were 500 miles between them, but to George, she may as well have moved to the moon. For a time, George mourned the loss of their friendship.

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But much to his surprise, a letter appeared in his mailbox the next week. It was the first of many sharp, funny letters in which Charity's unique personality leaped off the page.

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Through this correspondence, George followed ten years of events in Charity's life: her family's many moves, her struggles in school, her triumphs playing the violin, and her plans for college. He hoped that she looked forward to his responses as much as he looked forward to hers.

Multiple Choice

What emotions are in the story in the previous slide?

• Charity and George annoy each other. They are glad when Charity moves away. George is relieved when Charity ends up 500 miles away.

• Charity and George work together at an old fort. Charity helps George learn his job. He appreciates how well she teaches him about clearing away dirt.

• Charity and George are childhood friends. George is sad when Charity moves away. Later, he enjoys getting letters from her.

Multiple Choice

Is this blue text a Theme in the story on the previous slide?

At first, boy is sad when his friend moves away. But by writing letters, they remain friends for years.

• Yes, the blue text is the theme.

  It tells what the author seems to believe about life.

  It's a lesson that we can apply.

• No, the blue text is not the theme. It's a summary.

  It tells what happened, not what the author believes.

After you decide on a theme, you may need to back up your decision with textual evidence.

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This is an important skill.

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Once you decide on a theme of a story, can you support your decision with text evidence?

Read the following passage from a story.

Marta was stumped. She had turned the details of the case over and over in her head, trying to figure out the answer. The suspect had somehow entered the store, stolen the artwork and exited without leaving any trace or fingerprints. Marta paced, her movements matching her storm of thoughts.

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Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the new technological device she had been given to use. The chief of detectives had encouraged her to learn how to use it, but she'd been avoiding it like the plague. "I wonder…" she thought. Hesitantly, Marta typed the details of the case into the device's keyboard.

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The device whirred and spat out a list of similar cases and how they'd been solved. Reading through the information, Marta was amazed. She had been pondering for hours, but 30 seconds with this device, and she could find answer! With new respect, she rushed off.

Multiple Choice

What is bothering Marta in the first paragraph?

• She doesn't like technology.

• She doesn't like her boss, the chief of detectives.

• She doesn't like being a detective.

• She is having difficulty solving a crime.

Multiple Choice

The story ends with, "With new respect, she rushed off."

Who had respect?

What was newly respected?

• Marta had new respect for the device that had given her information about similar animals.

• Marta had new respect for the device that had given her information about similar crime cases.

• The chief of detectives had a new respect for Marta's abilities to use technologhy.

Multiple Choice

Which detail from the passage on the previous slide provides the best clue that a theme of the story is "technology can have good effects"?

• "The suspect had somehow entered the store, stolen the artwork and exited without any trace or fingerprints."

• "Marta paced, her movements matching her storm of thoughts."

• "Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the new technological device she had been given to use, which she'd been avoiding like the plague."

• "She had been pondering for hours, but 30 seconds with this device, and she could find her answer!"

Wind whipped at Vanessa, Mo, and Jaime's faces as they trudged up the mountain. "Do you have the ice samples?" Vanessa questioned Mo again.

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​"Why don't you carry them the rest of the way?" he responded irritably. Mo was digging into his backpack to retrieve the samples when suddenly, a gust of wind snatched them out of his hands, sending them tumbling down the mountain.

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​"If we lose those, this was all for nothing!" Vanessa cried. The wind roared angrily, churning flakes of snow that had newly begun to fall. How far had the samples gone? The three scientists stared at each other in horrified silence.

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​"I'll go back for them," Jaime spoke up quietly. Vanessa and Mo looked at Jaime. He was the smallest and youngest of the group, barely strong enough to carry his large backpack. "I'll go," he said louder.

Multiple Choice

What's going on in this story?

• Three scientists are in a lab, testing ice samples. They lose one, and the experiment fails.

• Three mountain climbers are travelling over an icy area. Wind blows one of them down the mountain. Another climber bravely goes to rescue his injured friend.

• Three scientists are climbing a mountain with ice samples. A sample is dropped, and one scientist volunteers to go get it.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence from the passage provides the best support for a theme of the story being "Courage can be found in the people you least expect it"?

• "'Why don't you carry them the rest of the way?'" he responded irritably.

• "How far had the samples gone?"

• "The wind roared angrily, churning flakes of snow that had newly begun to fall."

• "He was the smallest and youngest of the group, barely strong enough to carry his large backpack."

Multiple Choice

To find a theme of a story, you should ask yourself...

• Where and when does the story occur?

• What happens in the story?

• What does the author seem to believe about the world?

Multiple Choice

When you are asked for a THEME of literature, you need to tell

• what happened in the story

• what the author seems to believe about the world

• what sensory details the story makes you imagine (sights, sounds, etc.)