Writing Lessons & Advice: Theme

Many of the necessary story elements have tangible aspects that make them easy to identify or develop. Central characters are typically the ones who first come up in a story. The setting may be either stated directly or described with relevant details. Specific plot points come to light as the story progresses and certain characteristics within any of these elements help establish the story’s genre.

On the other hand, aspects of a theme in writing are more broad, abstract, complex, and/or subtle. A theme is an implication about life or human nature, a central, unifying idea of a story. A theme often observes, weighs, and considers actions and ideas, but it avoids judging what people should or should not do. Like many of the other elements, it can be an idea, but it just lives through the other elements. Sean Glatch on Writers.com describes a theme as an idea + an opinion. Everything in the text should work together to help communicate that theme, like: “the decisions that characters make, the mood that words and images build, the moral that readers interpret, etc.“ Glatch expresses. Theme is also an element that makes creative writing creative writing (like show-and-tell).

To better show theme at work, here are a few expositions from literature and pop culture:

Work: The Constant Princess By Philippa Gregory (what I was reading at the time of this writing)

Themes noted: divine destiny vs. self-sufficiency, love vs. duty, identity, and growing up.

How: Main character Catalina (who later becomes Katherine of Aragon) is raised in the knowledge that she will be Queen of England. She’s known this since she was three years old and believes this to be God’s will. She reiterates these personal beliefs many times and it even drives some of her actions and motivations. On the other hand, her first husband holds a belief of self-sufficiency, recognizing that his family fought and established their position in power (pgs. 102-103).

Catalina recognizes that her betrothal to her first husband is mainly to establish an alliance between the two nations. It's a duty, but she still hopes and desires early in the story to “fall in love” with her first husband. This happens after a few misunderstandings are resolved (pgs. 74-87).

Additionally, when she loses her first husband and does not have a son with him, her position and identity change. She becomes a dowager princess, a childless widow in a patriarchal society. She falls behind her brother-in-law’s children in the line of succession (before marrying him of course). When she wants the comfort of her mother for her loss, she recognizes her mother is first and foremost Queen of Spain, who is duty-bound to her country’s best interests (pg. 171).

Also, in her loss and challenges, a few characters note how Catalina has physically and personally matured, changed, and grown up.

Work: Doctor Who (revival era; 2006-present)

Themes noted: nonviolent approaches or solutions to conflict, healthy companionship, ordinary people doing extraordinary things

How: The titular Doctor is an alien with the ability to travel all throughout time and space, favoring Earth and humanity the most. For a long time, he believed he is the last of his own kind and walked away from a terrible war. Given this characterization, he prefers nonviolent approaches or solutions to conflicts whenever possible. Note the episodes The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood, Victory of the Daleks, The Christmas Invasion, and The Unquiet Dead to name a few. In these stories, the Doctor attempts to curb hostilities between potentially combative aliens, humans, or situations as much as he can. Those who cross the line with him may pay dearly.

His choice in travel partners is significant too, almost always being working-class individuals from the twenty-first century, ordinary people most can relate to. A few are implied romantic connections, but that’s usually not their sole purpose in the long run. With the Doctor they do exciting, life-changing things, sometimes even to the point of saving the universe. Some of them, amid their departures, encourage the Doctor to not stay isolated. It’s recognized that he needs good friends as much as the universe needs him.

Work: Titanic

Themes noted: class and gender struggles, love, life

How: As elderly Rose recounts her experience on the fated ship, she begins her story by contrasting the luxury ship with her feelings of imprisonment by societal values and expectations of the time. She was traveling to America with her mother and wealthy but abusive fiance, Cal. Their marriage would resolve her family’s financial problems and maintain their upper-class status, but the relationship was ultimately loveless. This leads Rose to contemplate suicide on the stern railing of the ship, but Jack Dawson is nearby to talk her down.

As the two become friends, Rose longs for the less-constrained kind of life Jack is able to lead as a lower-class male. As the friends develop a romantic relationship, Cal vengefully frames Jack for theft with the Heart of the Ocean diamond necklace, intent on getting him out of the way. Her feelings for him lead her to seek him out and free him when he’s locked in the master-at-arms’ office for his “wrong-doing”. By the way, as these scenes progress, the ship's staff are blockading the lower classes below deck and the lower classes are fighting for their lives before all is lost. Meanwhile, Rose has a way to safety as women and children are prioritized on the lifeboats. However, her feelings for Jack make her unable to abandon him, so she clamors back into the chaos of the sinking ship for him.

Sadly, Jack perishes before they can be rescued from the wreckage. Rose promises she’ll never let go as she surrenders him to the icy ocean. On the rescue ship, she hides from her mother and ex-fiance in steerage and claims the last name Dawson when the worker asks. From there, she goes on to live the liberated life she planned with Jack.

Work: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Themes noted: avarice vs. generosity

How: The central characters are polar opposites. Scrooge is rich, but miserly and unfestive. He is not even “particularly cut up” at the loss of his business partner and only friend, but puts on a solitary, cost-efficient funeral service for him. Meanwhile, his nephew and his employee, Bob Cratchit, have much less fortunate situations (plus Bob has a sick child) but the warmest hearts, especially at Christmastime. The Ghost of Christmas Present uses them both to teach Scrooge about his ways.

The spirit shows Scrooge he is the butt of jokes in a party game hosted by his nephew. And they see Cratchit praise his hard-nosed boss as the “founder of the feast” over Christmas dinner—much to his wife’s displeasure. Yet, more significantly is when Scrooge faces helpless personifications of want and ignorance at the feet of Christmas Present. When asking about helping them, the spirit answers with the words he balked at the men gathering donations for charity, words he spoke with a very stingy heart.

It’s also worth noting that they also see Scrooge’s former romantic partner, happily living life with her own family. Christmas Past Ghost revealed that she left him when he started to get consumed by the love of money. Coupled with the visions from Christmas future, Scrooge realizes his greedy drive and aversion to generosity made him an unloved, friendless, and cold-hearted man.

As you may see, the examples rely on a combination of characterization, action, dialogue, conflicts, setting, literary devices, and in-text details to help establish the noted themes. Done adequately, a little bit of all your elements can help shape a theme, like puzzle pieces or guideposts that lead to the overarching idea. Well-written or well-examined literary themes bring a lot of depth to a story as well, as the themes make the examples more than just stories of love, adventure, history, tragedy, or growing up.

Having a theme in mind ahead of your story can be helpful, but its not a hard requirement. In some cases, the theme might become more prevalent during development or by the final product. Conversely, a theme that sparks you could be inspiration for a story (like a solution to writer’s block). Ultimately, how theme is approached is the storyteller’s decision or practice. Check out the sources/further reading for more insight on developing themes in writing.

Hopefully this clarifies the why and how of literary themes! Check out the other Creative Writing lessons for more tips on other elements:

Story Elements and Plot

Word count for stories