English 1302 Review
3rd Principle of Theme
We must be careful not to make the generalization larger than is justified by the terms of the story.
6th Principle of Theme
We should avoid any statement that reduces the theme to some familiar saying that we have heard all our lives
some, sometimes, may
terms that are often more accurate in stating the theme
every, all, always
terms that should be used very cautiously in stating the theme
why writing the story is important
the purpose of the story is to yield up to the abstract statement (theme). Also, the function of literary writers is not to state a theme but to vivify it and deliver it to our emotions, senses, and imaginations, not just to our intellects.
all the major details
the theme must account for _____ of the story.
commercial themes
usually widely accepted platitudes of experience that may or may not be supported by the life around readers
how we determine a text's theme
we must determine what its central purpose is: what view of life it supports or what insight into life it reveals
explicit theme
when the author explains the theme or makes remarks about it
implicit theme
when the theme is implied, not stated outright
commercial themes
represent life as well as we would like it to be, not always as it is.
moral
some rule of conduct that the reader might regard as applicable to his or her life.
why it's important to state a story's theme
1. Because it allows the reader to have a more thorough understanding of the story. 2. Because we can test our understanding of the story
why the term "theme" is preferable to "moral" when discussing literary/commercial fiction
1. The term "theme" is less likely to obscure the fact that a story is not a preachment or a sermon. A story's first object should always be enjoyment. 2. The term "theme" should keep readers from trying to find a didactic pronouncement about life. Readers who week "moral" in every story are likely to oversimplify and conventionalize the central idea of the story.
why story writers most often use implied themes
1. Their first business is to reveal life, not to comment on it 2. They may feel that if the story is to have its maximum emotional effect, they must refrain from interrupting it or making remarks about it 3. Story writers are wary of spoiling a story for perspective readers by over "explaining" the theme.
when theme exists
1. When an author has seriously attempted to record life accurately or to reveal some truth about it 2. When an author has deliberately introduced as a unifying element some concept or theory of life that the story illuminates
determines the length of a thematic statement
1. a single sentence can adequately state the theme in a simple of very brief story. 2. in a story that is more complicated or profound, stating the theme may require the use of a compound/complex sentence
methods to uncover a story's theme
1. ask yourself what way the main character has changed in the course of the story and what the character has learned before its end. 2. explore the nature of the central conflict and its outcome 3. the title will provide an important clue to the story's theme
Theme
The controlling idea or central insight of a piece of fiction. Also, it is the unifying generalization about life stated or implied by the story.
stated or clearly implied
The theme cannot rely upon facts that are not actually _______ by the story.
2nd Principle of Theme
The theme should be stated as a generalization about life
contradicted
The theme should not be ______ by any detail of the story.
literary fiction
Theme exits almost always in this type of fiction
commercial fiction
Theme is often of secondary importance to elements such as plot and suspense.
4th Principle of Theme
Theme is the central and unifying concept of a story
literary fiction
Theme is the primary purpose of a story.
commercial fiction
Theme only exists some in this type of fiction.
1st Principle of Theme
Theme should be expressed in the form of a statement with a subject and a predicate
5th Principle of Theme
There is no one way of stating the theme of a story
"What does the story reveal?"
What is it better to ask instead of "what does this story teach?"
central purpose
When a ready-made phrase comes to mind as the theme of a story, this may be a sign that the reader should think more deeply and thoroughly about the author's ______________.
fresh perception
When readers force every new experience into an old formula, they lose the chance for a ______________.
literary themes
are likely to question one's beliefs and often challenge them.
literary themes
are the formulations of sensitive and independent observers who have collected all that they have been read and taught by life itself
commercial themes
confirm their reader's prejudices, endorse their opinions, ratify their feelings, and satisfy their wishes.
how the theme gives the story unity
in stating the theme in a sentence, readers must pick the central insight, the one that explains the greatest number of elements in the story and relates them to each other.
literary themes
often do not correspond to the pretty little sentiments found inscribed in greeting cards, but represent rather somber truths.
