What kind of themes are there in books

These universal themes are popular among authors and readers alike because they are experiences we can relate to. To give you some ideas on finding a book's theme, explore some of the most popular and discover examples of those themes in well-known writings. Remember, however, that the messages in any piece of literature can go much deeper than this, but it will at least give you a good starting point.

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The younger waiter has the hallmarks of a happy life: youth, confidence, and a wife to come home to. The older waiter, like Hemingway, empathizes with the plight of the old man. What kind of a place is that? Additionally, the place should not have music or be a bar: it must let you preserve the quiet dignity of yourself.

This belies the irony of loneliness: only the lonely recognize it. The older waiter lacks confidence, youth, and belief in a greater good. He recognizes these traits in the old man, as they both share a need for a clean, well-lighted place long after most people fall asleep. Does loneliness beget craziness? But to call the waiter and old man crazy would dismiss their feelings and experiences, further deepening their loneliness.

I have a wife waiting in bed for me. Word Choice: Take a look at the words used to describe love. What do those words mean? What are their connotations? These words and phrases all bear positive connotations, and many of them evoke images of warmth, safety, and the hearth. This word choice suggests an endless, benevolent, holistic, all-consuming love. Simile and Metaphor: Similes and metaphors are comparison statements, and the poem routinely compares love to different objects and ideas.

It consumes her soul, her everyday activities, her every emotion, her sense of justice and humility, and perhaps her afterlife, too. What surprising, unexpected comparisons! To the speaker, love is freedom and the search for a greater good; it is also as pure as humility.

While the theme of a story encompasses its central ideas, the writer also expresses these ideas through different devices.

You may have heard of some of these devices: motif, moral, topic, etc. What is motif vs theme? What is theme vs moral? Additionally, the topic of a piece of literature is definitive, whereas the theme of a story or poem is interpretive. Every reader can agree on the topic, but many readers will have different interpretations of the theme.

A motif is an idea that occurs throughout a literary work. Think of the motif as a facet of the theme: it explains, expands, and contributes to themes in literature. Motif develops a central idea without being the central idea itself. In Animal Farm , for example, we encounter motif when Napoleon the pig starts walking like a human. This represents the corrupting force of power, because Napoleon has become as much of a despot as Mr. Jones, the previous owner of the farm.

What can we learn from thinking about a specific piece of literature? The moral is interpreted from the theme of a story or poem. My interpretation is that we should be much more sympathetic towards the lonely, since loneliness is a quiet affliction that many lonely people cannot express.

Great literature does not tell us what to think, it gives us stories to think about, and the more we discuss our thoughts and interpretations, the more we learn from each other.

The theme of a story affects everything else: the decisions that characters make, the mood that words and images build, the moral that readers interpret, etc. Recognizing how writers utilize various themes in literature will help you craft stronger, more nuanced works of prose and poetry.

You can, though of course it depends on the actual story you want to tell. Some writers certainly start with a theme. You might decide you want to write a story about themes like love, family, justice, gender roles, the environment, or the pursuit of revenge. From there, you can build everything else: plot points, characters, conflicts, etc.

Examining themes in literature can help you generate some strong story ideas! Nonetheless, theme is not the only way to approach a creative writing project. Some writers start with plot, others with character, others with conflicts, and still others with just a vague notion of what the story might be about. You might not even realize the themes in your work until after you finish writing it.

So, experiment with ideas and try different ways of writing. Writing in a community can help. Whether you join our Facebook group or enroll in one of our upcoming courses , we have the tools and resources to sharpen your writing. Sometimes this breakthrough is obvious, other times it is not. The loss of innocence theme interprets the specifics of this breakthrough and the eminent consequences moving forward.

When this theme is presented, the protagonist is introduced as a visionary, seeing reality through a distorted lens. The character then moves through the story, slowly realizing their idealistic and ignorant folly along the way. A character may relinquish their childhood dreams after coming to grips with agonizing adversity. On the other hand, a character may abandon misguided views and adopt new views better suited to their aims.

The alternative effects of loss of innocence adds a layer of unpredictability to this theme. Authors favor chaos and suspense. As a result, novelists incorporate the loss of innocence theme into their writing frequently. Experiences pile up as one goes through life. With this invaluable experience, comes the benefit of wisdom.

Why is this important? This theme gives you about as thorough of an answer as you can get. A young protagonist believes they can do it all on their own without any help.

Their eventual failures often lie in their lack of experience. This is where sharp mentors come into the story. These wise masters show the protagonist the way, exchanging their misguided ways for more constructive ones. Without the assistance of such characters, the protagonist would still be wallowing in failure. The theme of wisdom and experience is intertwined with the internal journey of the protagonist.

Having a third party gently push their thoughts in the right direction helps these characters unravel their personal dilemmas. Do love and sacrifice go hand in hand? There are some that would argue yes, while others would argue no. This theme assesses the complicated relationship between love and sacrifice in literature.

A protagonist has people that they hold closely. Friends and family love the protagonist and the protagonists loves them right back. The theme of love and sacrifice explores the delicate seesaw of what is best for these loved ones and what is best for the protagonist.

Operating on the basis of extremes can be harmful. Finding the delicate mix between these two priorities can be tedious, yet worthwhile. Protagonists are routinely put to the test in showing how much they will sacrifice for their loved ones. The lessons learned from these tests are absorbed by the reader with ease. This theme plays with the logic and emotions of the reader. It urges them to explore their own delicate balance of love and sacrifice. Names are not mere labels. The significance of names has carried over throughout history to contemporary times.

The power of names is a theme that investigates the extent of influence a name can have. In storybooks, names hold tremendous importance. They mark history, recount tales, and bring people together. They can expand or limit the scope of perspective that a main character has.

Uncovering the sincere essence of a name is challenging work. This theme proves this hard work to be gratifying in the end.

A prominent example of this is seen in The Name of the Wind, one of the most renowned works in fantasy that I had the privilege of reviewing. The power of names is undoubtedly one of the lesser known themes on this list. Nonetheless, it is present in every literary novel. After all, a writer must name aspects of significance in their work. Thus, the power of names is one of the more common themes in literature.

Unfortunately, most humans are not a jack of all trades. Every individual has their strengths as well as their weaknesses.

The theme of overcoming weakness determines why combating your weaknesses is so noteworthy toward your own development. At the beginning stages of a novel, a protagonist ignores their flaws and their weaknesses.

They brush over their weaknesses in favor of showcasing their strengths. External and internal conflicts expose these weaknesses to the reader and other characters in the novel. It is only then that the protagonist realizes the folly of their inaction. The protagonist then attacks these weaknesses with reckless abandon until they become strengths.

Literary conflicts are centered around the weaknesses of the main characters. Therefore, with nearly every conflict the theme of overcoming weakness is present.

With great power comes great responsibility. It can be tempting for leadership to abuse their powers for personal gain. The convoluted relationship of power and corruption is heavily scrutinized in this theme to understand why these temptations exist. Although power does not always lead to corruption, it is possible.

Plots surrounding corrupted regimes and leaders paint a graphic visual of how this malfeasance originates. All the dominoes fall when one takes a tumble. Power is devilishly convincing in its manner of unraveling the good intentions of an individual.

This theme outlines that once power is attained, there is only one barrier between due process and injustice. This singular barrier is the moral standing of the person in power. Power and corruption exists in any narrative where there are cracks in the reigning social authority.

Hubris is excessive pride and vanity that eventually results in the undoing of that character. Hubris is a quality regularly found in protagonists and antagonists. Often, their sense of reality can be skewed in the pursuit of their dreams. These main characters believe they can bend the universe to their will.

They exaggerate their skills and convince others of this lofty illusion. Their grand schemes come back to bit them despite their best efforts, ultimately bringing about their downfall. A reader can take home many teachings from the victims of hubris in literature.

The theme of hubris gives compelling examples of why pride can be such a dangerous thing. When we think of an archetypical quest, we think of the protagonist that ventures out into the unknown to recover some special artifact or piece of knowledge.

The quest for discovery revolves around this basic idea. In this theme, the main character of the story sets out on a campaign to discover something unique and unfamiliar. The discovery does not have to be something physical, like an item or object. The discovery can be something that the character finds in themselves. This finding is often the more valuable of the two. The quest for discovery is found all over literature.

This theme does not revolve around the journey of the protagonist, it IS the journey of the protagonist. As a result, the quest for discovery more than qualifies on this list as one of the most common themes in literature. Revenge is one of the most common themes in literature. Every now and again, we can get a hankering for revenge when someone crosses us.

The theme of revenge dives into the inner workings of this concept and why it can be so tempting. Revenge is a common tool among writers to bring a character out of their shell.

It uncovers a primal side of them that seizes the attention of the reader. Vengeance is one of the most powerful motivators there is.

Revenge can become an obsession, devouring a character until they are only a shell of themself. The cost of vengeance is steep. When this cost finally does come to bear, it can have major repercussions on the story. The benefits this theme provides in terms of characterization are unparalleled. Authors rarely skip out on an opportunity to give depth to their characters.

This is why this theme is so universal in the literary world. Table of Contents. I enjoy spending the snowy winters in the midwest by reading fantasy novels in my free time.

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