ShmoopTube

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[Coop and Dino singing]

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If you’re sitting down to write, it’s a good idea to have something to write about. [woman sits down and thinks about writing]

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Otherwise, you might as well just be putting together a shopping list.

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What your piece of writing needs is a subject.

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A subject can usually be described in one or two words. [Coop describing what a subject is]

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For instance, surfing is a subject. So is autumn. So is toilet bowl cleaner, if you

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can find a way to make it interesting. [A man wearing rubber gloves cleaning a toilet]

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The theme, on the other hand, is the message about being human that the author sends when

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writing about the subject. [Dino discussing the theme]

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Any piece of writing worth its salt has some kind of message.

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It could be saying that we are all born basically good…[A baby in a basinet and a halo appears]

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…or that true love conquers all…

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…or that we have a hard time turning down anything wrapped in bacon. [Man serving food wrapped in bacon to a woman]

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Doesn’t have to be profound…but there does have to be some kind of message.

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But…an author would not be much of a writer if they just out-and-out stated the theme

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and then, uh…went home. [A door with an out to lunch sign displayed]

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Themes aren’t usually stated directly in a text. The reader has to discover the theme…[Woman using binoculars in a country side]

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and that's part of the fun of reading.

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That, and being able to turn on a flashlight under the covers when it’s past your bedtime. [flashlight turned on under the covers]

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Readers infer themes as they read a text.

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To infer is to guess or figure out, using details from the text.

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In a fictional story, the reader sees what happens to the characters and figures out [Girl reading a Harry Potter book in a library]

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what mistakes they make, how they've changed because of them, and what it all means.

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Nonfiction writing has themes as well.

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When you’re reading something and trying to nail down the theme… [Hammer striking a nail]

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…see if you can find a word or short phrase that seems to capture the entire idea,

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or subject, of the piece. [Astronaut floating in outer space looking at Earth]

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Then, you can try to think of a way to explain what the author said about that subject.

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If you can come up with a suitable explanation that delivers some sort of message about the [Darth Vader crossing a road with a light saber]

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human condition…

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…and that message is fully supported by all of the text…

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…then boom – you’ve tracked down the theme.

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Just make sure you’ve got a firm grip on it. They’re slippery little suckers. [Theme slips off of a scale]

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