The Concept of Theme The analysis of literature does not have to be a “touchy-feely” process that is impossible for anyone who is not highly intuitive.  Instead, it can be done systematically.  It is a process that any college student can learn, and that process is what you will learn in this course.  The key to this type of systematic analysis is to learn a handful of basic literary devices, which are like the writer’s toolbox.  I teach eight basic devices in this course.  Once you learn them, you can, with practice, analyze all but perhaps the most difficult short stories, novels, movies, television dramas, and stageplays.  (The analysis of poetry and song is a bit different; we’ll cover that later in the course.)  However, before I introduce the eight basic literary devices, it is crucial that you understand what you are aiming toward: Your goal in using the literary devices is to figure out a theme for the story or drama. So what is a theme? Theme: the author’s message; a moral lesson which applies not only to the characters in the work, but to its readers too—to me and you.  Once you have practiced using the literary devices to help you figure out a work’s theme, you will be able to state a theme for a work in one sentence. That statement of theme will state the specific moral lesson taught by the work.  However, you will word that moral lesson so it will apply to us as well as the character in the work.  So this is Lesson One; you are starting to learn to do this right now.  One thing to avoid is confusing the issue of the work with its theme (its moral lesson).  Let’s say I have asked you to read a short story about a couple who go through a nasty divorce.  If I ask you “What is the theme of this work?” and you answer, “Well, it’s about divorce,” then you have stated the issue, but you have not stated the theme yet.  Note the wording in that answer:  “…it’s about (whatever).”  When you say “it’s about…” or “it has to do with…” then almost certainly you are telling the issue, not the theme.  Yet telling the main issue, which we can also call the main challenge or problem of the characters, is a good step and can point you toward the theme of the work.  So the issue of this hypothetical literary work is divorce.  You have taken a good first step.  Now the question becomes this:  What does the writer think about divorce?  Or, What is his (or her) message or lesson  about divorce?  When you answer this question, presto!  You have a theme.  Of course, not all works deal with divorce, but you get the general idea. So let’s push on.  A very effective way to state a theme is actually to include the issue in that same sentence.  Example:  “In this work, the author suggests to us that when we experience ____________________, we should _____________________.”  The first blank is to tell what the issue or challenge is; the second blank is to tell what message or lesson the author is sending to us about such a challenge, should we ever be faced with it. Note also that the lesson is not stated so that it applies only to the character in the story.  Instead, the statement of theme says that “we should (do something or other if faced with that issue).”  Alternate wording might say “a person should…” or something else similar.  Lastly, notice the verb in the wording of the second, most important part:  “…we should…” do something or other.  Other wordings are also possible, such as “we often tend to... .”  But I like the first better, because it jumps past what we may do and says what we ought to do—it is worded as a true moral lesson. Please note that I intend for you to use this general wording, or something similar, whenever you state a theme for a story we are studying.  You are reading this to learn how to state a theme in this course. Let’s go back to the hypothetical work dealing with divorce.  Using the general pattern of wording I am teaching you here, a statement of theme for that work might go like this:  “In this story, the writer suggests that if we experience the conflict and heartbreak of divorce, we should …”  We should what?  Swear off romance?  Be more careful next time around?  Learn to avoid lunatics when choosing a mate?  Or should we try to see how we ourselves contributed to this sad outcome?  Well, every one of those four possibilities is a moral lesson, with the last one being perhaps the one which reaches deepest and might be most useful.  Each one is a possible moral lesson—a theme.  Which one does the work teach?  To learn that, you first need to learn the eight basic literary devices writers use to show us their themes in the first place.  But study what I have covered here.  Yes, of course you can change the wording around quite a bit, but now you know how to state a work’s theme clearly.  The next step:  Study the Eight Basic Literary Devices.  Questions on Theme The following questions on the concept of theme are to be answered in Blackboard for the Quiz One assignment.  You will create a file, answer the questions in complete sentences and numbered just as the questions are, you will name the file Q1 plus your three initials, you will save the file as Rich Text, and you will submit it within the Quiz One assignment under Daily Grades in Blackboard.  For a more detailed review of how to do the above steps of submitting the quiz, go now to the assignment in Blackboard. Here are the quiz questions: In a complete sentence and in your own words, define what is meant by the issue of a work of literature.  By "in your own words," I mean that you may use my key terms from the material above, but do not just copy and paste my sentences!  You don't learn much that way!  Use my key terms in a sentence of your own wording.  Number your answer. Tell me, in one sentence, the difference between the issue of a work and its theme. Who all does the theme of a work apply to?  Be careful with your answer.  Think beyond the work itself. Think either of some work of literature you know well, or alternatively, think of some experience in your own life which taught you a moral lesson.  Review above how I want you to state a theme.  As your answer to this question, use something close to my wording above, but state the moral lesson from the work or experience you are thinking of.  Note that if you choose a work of literature, your answer must name the work; if you choose a personal experience, your answer must briefly name the experience.  (You do not need to tell the whole story, in either case!)  In either case, state the theme in wording that makes it clear that it applies beyond just yourself or the main character in the work.  (Movies are okay as choices.  I am not grading you here on whether I agree with a theme for some literary work; I am grading you on whether you know how to state a theme.) Now do the same thing again, with another literary work or personal experience.  Vary your wording slightly.  If you chose a personal experience for #4, try to choose a movie, novel, etc., for this one.

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