What Is Theme? “Big” Ideas Plot Isn’t Theme Where Does It Say That? Evaluating the Theme...

What Is Theme?

“Big” Ideas

Plot Isn ’t Theme

Where Does It Say That?

Evaluating the Theme

Practice

Theme: What’s the Big Idea?

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The theme is what the story is really about.

The theme reveals a basic truth about our lives and human experience.

What Is Theme?

The writer rarely tells you the theme directly. Usually, you have to discover the theme yourself.

Near the end of the story, one friend betrays the other.

What Is Theme?

Suppose you read a story about two friends.

If the story is well written, we feel that betrayal.

we realize that that the story is about more than what happens.

What Is Theme?

As we share the characters’ experiences,

The story is really about how betrayal can destroy the bond between friends. This is the theme of the story.

Themes focus on the “big” topics in everyone’s life:

“Big” Ideas

LoveLoss

Responsibility

Ambition

Friendship

Works by different writers can have similar themes about the same “big” idea.

“Big” Ideas

In both Divergent and The Hunger Games, the heroine (Tris and Katniss) is underestimated because they are smaller than the others.

What theme could these stories have in common?

In these two stories, the biggest and strongest characters do not win. Size matters less than courage and strength of character.

Have you read other stories with a similar theme?

“Big” Ideas

Are these sayings familiar? They have been used (and overused) by writers for centuries.

Themes occur over and over again because some truths about human experience are universal.

“Big” Ideas

What goes up, must

come down.

Love conquers

all.

All that glitters is not gold.

Time waits for no man.

Plot is what a story is about—what happens in the story.

Plot Isn’t Theme

ExpositionSomebody (the main character, be sure to use the character’s name and you may want to include some helpful details to describe him or her)

Somewhere (this is the setting, the time and the place, and often plays a big part in the story)

Rising ActionWanted (What does the main character want or need to do? This is the action that drives the plot. It is the motivation, why the character does something)

ClimaxBut (is the conflict, the road block, the problem that heightens the action and increases our interest in the story)

Falling ActionSo (tells how the character solves the problem, finds a detour, solves the problem and lives happily ever after

ResolutionThen (tells how the problem is solved; the conclusion)

1. Is this event important in the story? Why?

2. What does this event mean?

3. Do the characters understand the meaning of the event?

Plot Isn’t Theme

After you identify key events in a story, ask yourself some questions:

Theme is what a story is really about—what the story reveals about life.

. . .and what the events mean.

Plot Isn’t Theme

You know what happened in the story . . .

But what does the story say about life?

EVENTS MEANING THEME

Student answers for The Hunger Games or Divergent.

A theme can be stated in more than one way.

A person’s character is what matters—not size.

Stories can have more than one theme.

Courage and determination help you reach goals.

A person’s character is what matters—not size.

Failure and frustration can make a person a bully.

You might see all these themes in “”—or an entirely different theme.

Plot Isn’t Theme

A writer doesn’t usually state the theme directly. You probably wouldn’t want to read a story that begins this way:


Theme is what the writer wants you to discover for yourself.

“This is a story that shows character matters more than size.”

One way to discover theme is by analyzing the characters in a story.


How does the main character change during the story?

What does this change say about life or about people in general?

Which scenes or passages seem to be most important? What ideas about life do they suggest?


Look at the story’s title. What hints does it give you about the story’s meaning?

There are also other ways to discover theme—other questions you can ask.

Whether you know it or not—and whether you like it or not—the theme will get through.

Why bother to figure out a story’s theme?


For example, most sports movies are about teamwork or end with the “impossible” goal or save. Do you agree with what these movies say about life?

These stories also share a similar theme:

Nothing can stand in the way of true love.

Many teen romances follow the same plot: two people who are very different from each other fall in love.


Is that really true?

Putting a theme into words brings it into the open. You can then look at it closely and decide if it fits with what you know about life.

You don’t have to like the way a story ends.


You don’t have to agree with a theme, either.

Sometimes the hero

dies?

Why didn’t they get

back together?

Practice

1. What does each character want?

Let’s Try It

On a beautiful summer afternoon, Grasshopper lay on his back on a leaf, gazing at clouds and humming a little grasshopper song. This was Grasshopper’s favorite thing to do—all day, every day. By and by, Grasshopper’s good friend Ant came by, struggling under a heavy load. “Are you crazy?” Grasshopper sneered at the ant. “It’s way too beautiful outside to work!” “You said that yesterday, Grasshopper,” Ant replied. “And the day before, and the day before, and the day before. . . .” “That’s right, Ant. It’s always too beautiful to work! That’s what I say!”

2. What else does Grasshopper want?

Practice 1. What does each character want?

Let’s Try It

On a beautiful summer afternoon, Grasshopper lay on his back on a leaf, gazing at clouds and humming a little grasshopper song. This was Grasshopper’s favorite thing to do—all day, every day. By and by, Grasshopper’s good friend Ant came by, struggling under a heavy load. “Are you crazy?” Grasshopper sneered at the ant. “It’s way too beautiful outside to work!” “You said that yesterday, Grasshopper,” Ant replied. “And the day before, and the day before, and the day before. . . .” “That’s right, Ant. It’s always too beautiful to work! That’s what I say!”

2. What else does Grasshopper want?

Grasshopper wants to lie around all day.

Ant wants to get some work done.

Grasshopper wants Ant to stop working

PracticeLet’s Try It

3. Why does Ant want to work?

4. What happens when winter comes?

5. Why is Ant hesitant about helping Grass-hopper?

“True, but there’s a little chill in the air, Grasshopper. I’ve got to get ready for winter.” “Time enough for that, Ant. Maybe tomorrow.” Grasshopper leaned back and started humming again. Ant trudged on. By and by, the little chill became a freeze. Ant and his family were cozy and warm in their anthill as the snow began falling. One night, Ant heard a little tapping and went to the door. There stood Grasshopper, shivering and slapping his skinny legs to keep warm. “Let me in, Ant, old buddy. It’s cold out here, and I’m so hungry.” “I don’t know about that, Grasshopper. You’re pretty big for this house, and you probably eat more than all of us put together.”


3. Why does Ant want to work?

4. What happens when winter comes?

5. Why is Ant hesitant about helping Grass-hopper?


Ant agrees it’s a beautiful day, but he needs to get ready for winter.

Grasshopper wants Ant to feed him and give him a warm place to stay.

Ant is afraid there won’t be enough for Grasshopper and Ant’s family.

6. Without knowing the end of the story, what do you think is a possible theme for the story?



6. Without knowing the end of the story, what do you think is a possible theme for the story?



Plan for the future.

You get back what you put in.

Here’s one resolution for the story.

Practice

8. Does this ending introduce another theme?

Let’s Try It

Ant shut the door in Grasshopper’s face. He’d worked hard all summer while that lazy Grasshopper sat around humming. Too bad for him, Ant thought, and went back to warm his hands at the fireplace.

7. Does this ending change the theme?

Here’s one resolution for the story.

Practice


Let’s Try It

Ant shut the door in Grasshopper’s face. He’d worked hard all summer while that lazy Grasshopper sat around humming. Too bad for him, Ant thought, and went back to warm his hands at the fireplace.


No. There is still a theme about the consequences of playing all the time and not planning for the future.

Yes.

You can’t always count on friends to rescue you from your mistakes.

Practice

Here’s another, different ending.


Let’s Try It

“Please, please, Ant! Just until the snow stops falling. I’ll do anything—and I’ll never be lazy again!”

“Oh, all right,” said the kindhearted Ant. “I could use your help in the spring anyway.”


Practice

Here’s another, different ending.


Let’s Try It

“Please, please, Ant! Just until the snow stops falling. I’ll do anything—and I’ll never be lazy again!”

“Oh, all right,” said the kindhearted Ant. “I could use your help in the spring anyway.”


Maybe, maybe not. The work theme doesn’t seem quite as strong because Grasshopper doesn’t suffer consequences.

Yes.

Friendship is more important than being “right.”

On Your Own

A) I am going to give you three short stories. Read them all and choose the two you believe have similar topics—courage, loyalty, friendship, responsibility, etc.

B) Draw a chart like this one. Write the title and topic of the two stories you choose.

C) Then, write what each story reveals to you about that topic.

D) Write a one sentence theme about the two stories you chose.

Formative Part 1

Story 1 Title

Topic

Theme

Topic

Theme

Story 2 Title

The Breakaway As far as Justin knew, there was only one way out of his neighborhood: basketball. So he ran with the ball like the hounds were chasing him. He could drop any of the older guys at the court in a blaze of crossovers, fadeaways, and finger rolls, and the younger guys didn’t stand a chance. Justin saw his way out and he ran for it. But the world has a funny way of changing right when you think you’ve got things figured out, and that’s just what happened to Justin. One day when Justin was shooting around at the local court, some guys from another block ran up and asked to play. The big one in the middle said that he had heard that Justin was the best and he wanted to see if it was true. Justin said, “Nah, Man, I’m just shooting around with my cousin, I ain’t trying to get all sweaty right now.” But the big guy was insistent, and Justin’s cousin was bugging, “C’mon, Justin, drop this guy.” So Justin figured that he’d just do what everyone wanted and play. Justin was running all over the big guy and making his shots while he did it. But just as the outcome of the game seemed certain, the big guy shoved Justin as he went for a lay up. Justin went flying in just such a way that he managed to tear up his right knee. The doctor said Justin might never play again, and if he did play, he wouldn’t play the same. Justin was devastated. The first six weeks, Justin just laid in bed with his leg in a long cast feeling like a broomstick. He watched three reruns of The Simpsons every day and ate potato chips until the bag was empty, and then he’d dig the salt and grease out of the corner with his index finger. Justin blew up like a balloon as watched his once bright future fadeway. Right when he reached the bottom of the pit of despair, Justin’s sister, Kiki came home from the university She came in the house like a whirl of sunshine, bringing exciting tales of a far away land called college. Justin was amazed and intrigued by the dorm room dramas and campus craziness that Kiki told, but he could hardly believe any of it. It was as if she were telling him about some fantasy land high above the clouds. Justin gazed off dreamily as she spoke. “Justin!” She interrupted his day dream. “Let me see your progress report.” Justin was ashamed. His grades had really slumped since his injury. “Oh no, this won’t do, J,” she said. “We’re going to have to get these up.” Well, Justin was a pretty stubborn guy, but his older sister had a way of getting him to do things that nobody else could. So, while she was home on break, they studied together, and they talked, and they worked, and Justin felt better than he ever had before. After spending those weeks with his sister, Justin realized that he didn’t want to feel bad for himself any more, and he didn ’t want to quit. Basketball used to be his thing, and he was good at it, but now there was only school, so he had to get good at that. Justin passed through all his classes like a half-court trap. By the time he got to senior year in high school, his GPA was hovering in the slam-dunk position. The last thing that Justin had to do to get into the college of his choice was score well on the ACT. Well wouldn’t you know it? Using the study skills Justin had acquired from his sister, Justin scored a 24 on the ACT. That’s not the highest score a person can get, but it was high enough for Justin. Now he had his academic game together. Though the recruiters never came to Justin’s door, every university that he applied to accepted him; and when the fall came, Justin had his choice in colleges. Though he’d miss his family, Justin decided to enroll in the sunniest university in Hawaii, and nobody could say that Justin made a bad choice.

When Gertrude Grew Great

Gertrude was just an average kid with an average life. She lived in an average sized house in an average neighborhood in a totally typical town. At home, she helped out just enough to slide by. At school, she did just enough homework to stay out of trouble. She had straight ‘C’s in all of her classes.

One day Gertrude’s teacher, Mr. Mister, stopped her after class. “Gertrude,” he said, “I know that you can do better. I’ve seen the work you do in class, and some of it is amazing… way better than ‘C’ work.” Gertrude knew that there were moments when she did try a little harder than what everyone expected, like when she put extra elbow grease into some of the dishes to make them really sparkle; or, when she took extra time with her handwriting on a few problems of her homework to make it look fancy. But she just didn’t have confidence in herself. She didn’t really believe that she could change; in fact, she was scared by the thought of having the power to become whatever she wanted. She had done just enough to get by for so long that being mediocre was her lifestyle. She stopped listening to Mr. Mister about half way through and just nodded her head until he stopped. Then, she walked out at an average pace.

That night, Gertrude had a dream. It was ten years into the future and she was still living with her mom in her average neighborhood. She could not find an average job, because even the average jobs were filled by above-average workers: people who did more than what was expected of them. Gertrude loved her mom, but she wanted more for herself. She wanted her own place, her own life. A voice spoke in the dream: “The present is nothing more than the outcome of the choices made in the past. The future will only be the results of the choices we make today.” Gertrude began crying average sized tears, because she knew that she helped shape the world in which she lived, and the choices she made produced the options she had. She woke up with her pillow wet.

Gertrude was relieved to be back in middle school. She took a little more care in getting herself ready that morning, and she looked better than normal. She tried harder in school, and she felt smarter than usual. She helped more around the house, and she felt better than typical. Soon the pattern of success replaced the pattern of mediocrity, and Gertrude became great at everything. Sure, there were still lots of things that Gertrude struggled with, but just trying her best made her feel better when she didn’t succeed, and Gertrude even became great at failing by learning from her mistakes.

Ten years later, Gertrude lived in an average sized house in an average neighborhood in a totally typical town. She was just the average adult, working much harder than average to earn an average living. But her happiness was above average, because her life was hers. She still visited with her mom quite a bit. But when she was done, she was happy to go to her own house. Gertrude was living the great life.

The Wallet Jenny stared at the store window longingly. There was nothing in this world that she wanted more than a Happy Hannah doll and all that currently separated her from the hottest doll of the holiday season was a thin piece of glass and $29.95 plus tax. Unfortunately, Jenny didn't even have the 95 cents, so she let out a deep sigh and continued walking home. As she stomped across the slushy sidewalk, she considered her options. She thought about taking over her brother's chores. If she shoveled the driveway, washed the dishes all month, dusted, and vacuumed… she fidgeted with her fingers as she added it up… she would have eleven dollars. Just as she was concluding that this would not be enough, something caught her eye. It was a small, pink triangle poking out from the snow on the roadside. Jenny walked over to the triangle and removed it from the snow, whereupon she realized that it was not a triangle at all but a rectangle. More importantly she realized that the rectangle was a fashionable leather wallet. She unzipped the bulging wallet to find a thick wad of folded green bills. Jenny gasped and nearly dropped it. She gathered herself and went to close the snap on the wallet when she saw some plastic cards. One was a credit card and the other an ID. Jenny stared at the old woman in her driver’s license photo. The woman had a beautiful smile that reminded Jenny of her grandma. Jenny sighed and then she shoved the wallet into her purse. She turned around and walked in the direction from which she came. Jenny’s heart beat quickly as she entered the store. She had long dreamed about this moment, but something didn't feel right about it. As she approached a stack of Happy Hannah dolls, she pushed away her feelings. She grabbed one of the dolls off of the stack. She felt electricity surging through her body as she began walking toward the checkout. As Jenny approached the register, the Happy Hannah Show theme song began playing. Jenny looked around startled, and then realized that it was her mobile phone. She checked the caller ID and saw that it was her grandma. In one hand she held the Happy Hannah doll and in the other she held the phone on which her grandma was calling. Jenny heart filled with love and appreciation as she thought of her sweet old grandma. She put the doll down and picked up the phone call. "Hi, Grandma? I'm going to be a little bit late tonight. I've got to drop something off… Yeah, it was good… O.K… Alright… I love you too." Jenny left the store and walked through the slush all the way to the other side of town. She thought of her grandma as she rang the bell at 301 West Street. The women who answered the door had been crying recently and looked distressed. Jenny recognized her from the ID. "Here, I found this in the snow," Jenny said as she handed her the wallet. The woman face glowed with joy and relief. "Oh, good God! This is the money for the orphanage! Now we can bring the children the puppies for Christmas! It's a miracle!" The woman took the wallet smilingly. She was so appreciative that she gave Jenny a cookie and a ride home. Jenny had sort of hoped that she would reward her good deed with a Happy Hannah doll, but Jenny did get a chocolate chip cookie, and chocolate chip cookies were her favorite.

After doing her brother's chores for three months, Jenny finally got a Happy Hannah doll. She hated doing all of that extra work, but she knew that she had made the right choice when she was done because she could play with her Happy Hannah doll and look her grandma in the eyes.

On Your Own

A) Choose one of the short stories.

B) Draw and complete the plot diagram.

C) Turn your formative into Miss Bell.

Formative Part 2

What Is Theme? “Big” Ideas Plot Isn’t Theme Where Does It Say That? Evaluating the Theme...

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