Reading literature thoughtfully: Questions to ask when reading literary texts
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Connections: What does this remind me of? How does this relate?
○ Within text
○ Across literature
○ Across subjects
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Circles: What keeps happening again and again? Why?
○ When characters find themselves in the same situation repeatedly, it
either emphasizes a theme (the same thing happens) or it demonstrates
change (same context but with di erences)
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Contrasts: Are two people/things/situations opposite in some way? What do
those di erences represent?
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Transformation: Who/what changes? Who/what stays the same? What do
those changes represent? How does the environment reflect the change? (Does
the weather change? The lighting?)
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Quests: Who stays? Who goes? What does this journey represent?
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Symbols: Do certain “random” objects or people seem to be more important
than others? What might they represent? Does an object or a scenario give you a
picture of the greater story of the book?
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Important moments: What are the important moments in this book (external
or internal)? How does the author show us the importance of this moment?
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Culture: How do the characters’ attitudes or beliefs influence the events of the
story? Do all characters share the same attitudes and beliefs? Could this story
be true in any time or place (universal), or only in this specific time or place?
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Biblical themes
○ Specific stories (the fall, Abraham/Isaac, Job)
○ Redemption
○ Sacrifice
○ Prophecy
○ Promise
○ Baptism
○ Communion