If it does, then the author has done a good job of portraying the theme of his story. The theme should represent the overall ideals of the work, rather than simply one or two lines, paragraphs, or sections.Įxamine the ending of the tale, the last lines of a poem, or any concluding concepts to see if the text reflects what you think its basic meaning is. This theme stems from what the characters do, word choice, organisation, and other rhetorical factors. Instead, the phrase “Good defeats evil” is a better description of the story of Star Wars. The line “Luke defeats Darth Vader” is a story synopsis rather than a theme or major concept assertion. The theme or primary concept statement should explain the work’s overall meaning rather than specific events, activities, or characters. For example, “The subject of the text is love and death”, aptly represents what the story is about. That implies that they will have to compress the meaning of the story to fit it into a single phrase. When the author writes a theme, they are substituting one sentence for the whole content. Every theme, in some way, makes a statement or a point. If the theme or key concept statement adheres to the principles below it will strongly convey the writer’s interpretation. Characteristics of an Effective ThemeĪn effective theme must be broad enough to capture the overall meaning of the work while being particular enough to reflect the writer’s personal perspective. What happens if that connection is broken? You’d have a narrative that goes nowhere and readers who lose interest. It connects the character’s problems and passions to the exterior storyline, giving readers something to care about. Keep in mind that the theme is linked to the protagonist‘s personal journey. Simply said, if a tale lacks a theme, the reader may not be able to connect with it. The next part is determining the significance of a theme in books and writing. It’s excellent that you now know what a theme is, but that only answers half of our question.

Janetter themes