Tone & Theme

​Key Elements of a Literary Text

• Setting

• Plot

• Characterization

• Conflict

• Point of View

• Theme

• Tone

We must have a solid understanding of these foundational elements of fiction in order to understand how they add layers of meaning or style to the text.

Labeling

Label the elements of plot on the diagram.

Drag labels to their correct position on the image

Exposition

Climax

Rising Action

Falling Action

Resolution

Match

Match the image and the type of conflict depicted in the pictures.

Click the pictures for a better view!

Man vs Man

Man vs Nature

Man vs Society

Man vs Self

Man vs Technology

• Man vs Man

• Man vs Nature

• Man vs Society

• Man vs Self

• Man vs Technology

Match

Match the following perspectives with their descriptions.

• First Person

• Second Person

• Third Person Limited

• Omniscient

Has a narrator "I, me, we"

Gives directions or instructions to you

Tells actions, not thoughts or feelings

All-knowing, tells many people's thought

• Has a narrator "I, me, we"

• Gives directions or instructions to you

• Tells actions, not thoughts or feelings

• All-knowing, tells many people's thought

Tone Vs. Mood

•​Tone is the author’s attitude toward the subject, the characters or the readers, which is revealed by the author’s diction (word choice). 

•Mood is the feeling a piece of literature arouses in the reader. It is the atmosphere created by the author. 

Multiple Choice

Mood describes how who feels?

• Author

• Reader

• Characters

Multiple Choice

Tone describes how who feels?

• Reader

• Author

• Characters

Multiple Choice

What is the tone of the passage below?

We have come together this afternoon to mourn the deaths of sixteen miners—our friends and neighbors—who were trapped by fire yesterday, deep below the earth. They lived bravely and they died too soon, leaving behind grieving wives and bewildered children. We bid them a final farewell.

• Forgiving

• Sorrowful

• Angry

• Excited

Multiple Choice

What is the tone of the passage below?

Each year in the middle of February, when slush is underfoot and the sky is a depressing gray, I begin dreaming of warm beaches, tropical fruits and sunsets. If only I could save enough for a winter vacation! Maybe next year I’ll win the lottery. Meanwhile, I’ll read travel brochures and sigh.

• Unsure

• Joyous

• Longing

• Indifferent

Multiple Choice

Often you feel you’ve done nothing when you’ve actually done a lot. That’s because what you did seemed beneath notice—it was so small that it didn’t “count.” But it did—just as each stitch counts toward a finished dress, each brick or nail toward a house you can live in, each mistake toward knowing how to do things right.

What is the tone of that passage?

• Joyful

• Aggressive

• Argumentative

• Optimistic

Multiple Choice

What is the tone of the passage below?

A vaccine is a preparation of killed or weakened germs that is injected under the skin and causes the blood to produce antibodies against the disease. Effective vaccines, for instance, have been developed for small pox, rabies, and polio.ous

• objective

• arrogant

• regretful

• humorous

Universal Themes

​​What is a literary theme?

A theme is the central idea, message, or insight within a literary work.​

​

It should not be confused with the topic or main idea which tell what the story is about. A theme—the author’s message about the topic—can be expressed in a sentence.

Quick Review of Thematic Elements

Characterization is the description of the characters. The behaviors, motivations, emotions, and interactions of characters can be clues to a story’s theme.​

​

The plot is the sequence of events in a story. Plots are driven by one or more conflicts that the characters face. The types of conflicts and the ways in which characters deal with them give clues to a story’s theme.

​

​The setting is the time and place in which characters live. Historical and cultural effects of the setting (such as war, famine, or social inequality) may give clues to a story’s theme.

​To figure out the theme, readers should ask questions such as these:

​• What do I know about the characters and their interactions?

• What is the story’s setting?

What effect, if any, does it have on the characters?

• What conflicts are presented in the plot?

• How do characters deal with the conflicts?

• What do characters learn from the conflicts?

Multiple Choice

True or False? There can be many themes found in one story.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Which of these things is NOT related to the theme in a text?

• a specific character's name

• a "life lesson" the main character learns
• the conflict being faced

• the moral of the story

Multiple Choice

What is the best definition of THEME?

• A universal truth, moral, or idea that the author wants to express. 
• The location and time of the story
• The events that occur in the story
• The author's reason for writing a story

Multiple Choice

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

• Your past does not define you. 
• Returning home after a long time

• A man sees a group of people he used to work for a long time ago. 
• An old man who used to be a farmer

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is the BEST statement of a theme?

• Cruelty.

• Cruelty is bad.

• Cruelty might be disguised as kindness.

• The cruelty of good people.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is the BEST statement of a theme?

• High-school romances.

• Love.

• Young love can be true love.

• Even though Hazel and Gus were teenagers, their love was mature and real.

Multiple Choice

During a baseball game, Tanner tried to tag a player leaving first base. When the umpire called the player out, Tanner immediately informed the umpire that he in fact did not tag the runner. Two weeks later, the very same umpire was at another one of Tanner’s baseball games. Tanner was playing short stop and tagged a runner as they approached third base. When the umpire called the player safe, Tanner didn’t say a word, but the umpire noticed the surprised look on Tanner’s face. “Did you tag the runner?” she asked Tanner. When Tanner told her that he did tag the runner, the umpire changed her decision and called the player out. The coaches and parents were furious, but the umpire stood by her decision.
What is the theme?

• You should cheat to win.
• Always work hard.
• It pays to be honest.
• Teamwork is best.

Multiple Choice

A Dog, to whom the butcher had thrown a bone, was hurrying home with his prize as fast as he could go. As he crossed a narrow bridge, he looked down and saw his reflection in the quiet water as if in a mirror. But the greedy Dog thought he saw a real Dog carrying a bone much bigger than his own. If he had stopped to think he would have known better. But instead of thinking, he dropped his bone and sprang at the Dog in the river, only to find himself swimming for dear life to reach the shore. At last he managed to scramble out, and as he stood sadly thinking about the good bone he had lost, he realized what a foolish Dog he had been.
What is the theme?

• Be honest.
• Don't be greedy.
• Always share your things with others.
• Be respectful to others.

Multiple Choice

In a spell of dry weather, when the Birds could find very little to drink, a thirsty Crow found a pitcher with a little water in it. But the pitcher was high and had a narrow neck, and no matter how he tried, the Crow could not reach the water. The poor thing felt as if he would die of thirst. Then an idea came to him. Picking up some small pebbles, he dropped them into the pitcher one by one. With each pebble the water rose a little higher until at last it was near enough so he could drink.
What is the theme?

• Be persistent.
• Be honest.
• Always share with others.
• Respect your family.

Multiple Choice

An old turtle looked up and said,
“Mr. Sky, I have lived a long time.I have seen it all,
And what they say is true.
There is nothing new under the sun.”
“Really?” said Sky.
And from six miles up, he dropped 
A single snowflake. 
Which sentence describes the theme of the poem?

• There’s always something new to experience.
• Nature always challenges us to think twice.
• Animals understand nature better than humans.
• It’s important to gather new knowledge.

​Work Period

​Please complete
1. Student Guide to Identifying Theme
2.Perspective & Point of View
3. Theme

Trophy #2 Due 11/11!!!!!


These are already in Focus.