Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The Dreaded THEMES!
Does anyone have any techniques they have picked up that aid in formulating themes? I find it a bit easier to do after Mr. Bruno has taken a sock full of soap and beaten the pieces of the puzzle into our heads, but we won't have him there for the test. How do you guys pick apart the literature and derive a generalized statement that the author is trying to get us to understand?
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Obviously, some are easier than others. What I do, I try to put myself into that sitaution. Then, once I've fit into the scenario, I read the story again as if I were the character. Then, I think what is the one thing I learned from this entire story and then try to formulate it into a general sentence.
ReplyDeleteHope that helps...
Yeah, themes arent an easy thing for me to understand either, but I've just been re-reading a lot of the stories because usually everytime I do I realize something that I didn't notice before.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed that It also helps to take a break from it. Come back to the story once you've just chilled and you may look at it differently
I always get themes confused with morals, which is probably my biggest problem. Themes aren't exactly what one learns from a story, though that is a great place to start, which is what Tyler was saying. Re-reading seems to be a good tactic, but that can be somewhat time consuming, though definitely necessary in some instances. I think that works best for me is usually just looking at the story in pieces, then picking something important from each part, then finally seeing whta is common in each part. This doesn't work for all stories, of course, but when I take the time to do this method, I sometimes get pretty close to a decent theme haha
ReplyDeleteI tend to look for symbols and repeated concepts. Generally, I find that if an author is taking the time to include something repeatedly or abstractly, then he or she finds it instrumental to the plot and it can therefore most likely be applied to the theme. For the multiple choice, generally questions and answers regarded the theme are straightforward and obvious.
ReplyDeleteI do agree, making themes has been a lot easier.
ReplyDeleteI just think of the symbolism presented in the piece, how it applies, and make different motifs. Sometimes I do look back on how we used to think a theme was a moral, but I elaborate from that and make sure it isn't a moral.
What is the author talking about, what does it remind me of? I think it is really this simple.
ReplyDeletei love what tyler said and i definitely agree! i always put myself in the characters situation and think of how i would react or what i would learn from it. this works very well with poetry, because it is so hard to understand, for me anyway. for example the essay we had to write on the AP test of the speech written by shakespeare.
ReplyDeleteI think the best way is to read the story as a narrator and then read it again as a character. Eventually sometime while reading it in those two ways you will come to understand what is the lesson of the story. THis helps me a lot.
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