THEME

Chapter 4

OBJECTIVE: WE WILL BE ABLE TO DEFINE THEME AND GENRE

Objectives for later in the unit…• We will be able to determine the theme of a

story• We will be able to compare works of different

genres that have a universal theme• We will be able to cite evidence in the text that

contributes to the development of a theme• We will be able to explain how the selection of

genre shapes theme

APK=ACTIVATING PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Q=What do you already know

about THEME and/or the GENRE?

A=Genre is a category

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT-GENRES

Fiction(fake)

Science Fiction

MangaOuter Space underwater

FutureTime travel

Fantasy Mystery Western RomanceActionThriller

Realistic FictionSpy NovelSurvival

Horror

How would you categorize ___________?How do you know?

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT-GENRES

Non-Fiction(true)

Newspaper

Autobiography

Autobiographical

Narrative

Biography

Biographical

Narrative

How-To

Informational text

Textbooks

“Taste, the Final Frontier” would be categorized as ____________.How do you know?

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT-THEME

Themes are the fundamental ( )

and often universal ( ) ideas

explored in a literary work.

Theme is THE MEssage the text is trying

to send the reader about a specific idea or

topic

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT-THEME

WHAT IT IS WHAT IT ISN’T

What all the elements of a good story add up toAn insight about life or human natureIs unseen and unstatedA revelation about the author’s personal attitude toward the world or how people should behave

Not a summaryNot the moral (lesson)Not the topic or subjectNot a one-word answer or phrase

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Checking for understanding• What is GENRE?• What are the two major GENRES

of writing?• Can you name a sub-genre?

• What is a THEME?• What is THEME NOT?

IMPORTANCE

Why are Genre and Theme important? Every book, movie, song belongs to a

particular genre… Most stories (including movies) have a

THEME that the writer/director/producer is trying to convey to the audience…

SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND GUIDED PRACTICE

Steps to figuring out THEME

1. Determine some general TOPICS the story is

about

2. Figure out what the story’s MESSAGE about

those topics is

3. Write the message the story/author is sending to

the reader in a complete sentence

SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND GUIDED PRACTICE

Practice with “Everyday Use”

1. Determine some general TOPICS the story

was about• Family, Heritage, Heirlooms

2. Figure out what the story’s MESSAGE was

about those topics• Pair share…what was the author’s message about

Family, Heritage, Heirlooms?

SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND GUIDED PRACTICE

3. Write the message the story/author is sending

to the reader in a complete sentence• Family is more important than social status

and material possessions.• To really understand one’s heritage, one must

understand and appreciate his/her ancestors.• Often times an heirloom’s sentimental value is

more important than its monetary value.

CLOSURE

What are the steps to figuring out

theme?

INDEPENDENT PRACTICE

Time to APPLY

Independently or with a partner, determine a possible

theme for one of the other stories we have read in

class…• “The Love Letter”; “Contents of the Dead Man’s

Pocket”; “Typhoid Fever”; “Cold Equations”• Follow the steps to determine a possible THEME

THEME

Cold Equations• Share out topics:

• Consider how the main character changes• Consider the conflict of the story, and how it is

resolved

• Which of the topics does the story have the MOST to say about?

THEME

Make a specific statement from the story that

reveals what the story has to say about the topic.

Now make the statement general so it can apply to

a broad range of stories.