Theme symbols and motifs in literature - an overview

2. Theme…
Themes are found everywhere:
literature, art, stories, movies, etc.
The theme of a fable is moral.
The theme of a parable is to teach.
The theme of a piece of literature is its view about life and
how people behave.

3. Theme
The main idea or message of a literary work.
A universal truth
A significant statement a story is making about
society, human nature, or the human condition.
Theme is not the subject of the work. It is an insight
about life or human nature.
THEME = IDEA

4. Theme
Stated Theme- expressed directly,
Implied Theme- revealed gradually through other literary
elements such as plot, character, setting, point of view,
imagery, figures of speech, or symbolism.

5. What is the purpose of a theme?
An understanding of theme is dependent upon one’s
experience of life and literature… yet…
Theme in literature can enlarge one’s understanding of
life.
The theme will never completely explain the story, but
rather supports all of the other elements in the story.

6. Common themes in literature
The quest for immortality
The individual’s relationship with and obligation to
society… character vs. society
Individual’s journey to understanding him/herself…
character vs. self
Individual’s relationship with and obligation to nature…
character vs. nature

7. Common themes in literature
How justice and injustice are decided
What it means to be a hero or antihero
What it means to be a survivor
An individual’s experience with alienation or despair
What the future holds
Love and hate and effects of

8. Symbolism
The practice of representing things by means of
symbols or of attributing symbolic meanings or
significance to objects, events, or relationships.
a person, place, thing, or idea that stands for
something else. They are used deliberately to
reinforce meaning.
For example, a sword may be a sword and also
symbolize justice.
A symbol may be said to embody an idea.

9. Symbolism
A symbol may have more than one meaning, or its
meaning may change from the beginning to the end of
a literary work.
Personal: a meaning uniquely associated with our
experiences.
Contextual: a private meaning created by an
author.
Cultural: a meaning uniquely influenced by our
culture.
Universal: a meaning that is given to a thing by
most people and cultures.

10. Motifs
A recurring image, word, phrase, or action that tend
to create unity within a literary work.
Sometimes the motif helps to create the theme in
literature
A motif differs from a theme in that it can be
expressed as a single word or fragmentary phrase,
while a theme usually must be expressed as a
complete sentence.

11. Below is a short list of common literary motifs…
there are many more!
Death
Supernatural Adversaries
Extraordinary AnimalsWishes
Magical Objects
Magical Powers
Deep Sleeps Witches
Trickery
Illness
Consequences of Greed
Flowers/plants
Beautiful Princess
Foolish or Dimwitted Hero
Adapted from http://www.storyboardthat.com