Edgenuity Edgar Allan Poe the Monsters in Us Unit Lesson Review Questions

Central Idea in Literature

Teacher: Ms. Becky Villarreal

The key idea is the central, unifying element of the story, which ties together all of the other elements of fiction used past the writer to tell the story. The key idea tin be best described every bit the dominant impression or the universal, generic truth found in the story. Therefore, the central thought argument should avert using the names of characters.

Central ideas reflect the discoveries, emotions, conflicts, and experiences of a story's principal character. They are commentaries nearly the way the world works and or how the author views human being existence. Central ideas are supportable. Endeavour to discover the estimation that is most hands supported and covers the greatest percentage of story.

The central idea or theme of a story is an writer'south comment, normally unsaid, on the bailiwick of his narrative. It is insufficient to say that the central idea of a story is nearly "loyalty" or "maternity." For instance, a poorly written key thought for the story of Cinderella would say: "Cinderella is the story of a poor, retainer daughter who overcomes the cruelty of her family and lives happily every after with Prince Charming." On the other mitt, a well-written central idea would say something like: "The story of Cinderella reveals that people who are kind and patient are oftentimes rewarded for their good deeds." For the Sorcerer of Oz, instead of maxim it is "about a girl named Dorothy who learns to appreciate the life that she has," yous might say: "The Magician of Oz reveals that when people lose sight of reality, they sometimes forget to appreciate the beauty of their everyday lives."

Examples of poorly written primal ideas:

* The central idea is about love. (not a complete statement)

* Jackson'southward tale suggests that Tessie was treated unfairly. (not generic or universal)

* The central idea reveals that we are cruel and don't see ourselves as others practise. (omit first person in primal idea)

* Poe's story is well-nigh how people react to tragedy. (you lot should answer the question of how people do react to tragedy)

* The central idea is that you lot can't trust people because they volition sometimes effort to deceive you. (omit second person)

* Hemingway suggests that some people feel that the grass is always greener on the other side. (omit clichés)

Examples of well-written central ideas:

* The story reveals that the overwhelming desire of a 1-sided infatuation can blindly bulldoze people to seek intimacy in the name of love.

* The central idea is that a person who has difficulty dealing with reality will sometimes escape into a fantasy earth.

To identify the central idea or theme, ane must likewise expect at the other elements of fiction (plot, characters, setting, conflict, etc.) to explain how the author has tied all of these together. In club to understand the central thought or theme of the story ask yourself the following questions:

• How is the central idea or theme expressed through the characters, setting, point of view, tone, linguistic communication, or conflict?
• In what style does the resolution of the external conflict signal the central idea or theme? How does the resolution of the internal conflict limited the story'south theme?
• Are symbols, metaphors, or similes used to portray the central thought or theme?
• What are the repeated images, words, or expressions in the story?
• How does the title make sense in terms of the story? Is it significant?
• What the story reveal about society, people in general, the roles of men and women, the fourth dimension flow in which the story takes place?
• Does the primal idea brand sense in lite of the story and the title?

Remember, in that location is no one way to express the cardinal idea of a story (but some statements are definitely better than others). The best stories accept multiple levels of meaning and crave More THAN ONE READING earlier the central idea becomes clear.

Helpful Links Near the Elements of Fiction

Setting

Grapheme

Point of View

Conflict Lecture

Tone Lecture

Language Lecture

Fiction Terms

Elements of Fiction

Writing Almost Curt Fiction

Elements of Fiction PPT

Click hither for another PPT

Created by Becky Villarreal Austin Community College 2001

jostbrients.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.austincc.edu/bvillarr/theme.htm

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