Theme Essay
Recipe Card due date: __________________
Rough Draft due date:____________________
Final Draft due date:______________________
Prompt:
A theme is the central and dominating idea of a literary work. The theme reveals a basic
truth about life and the human experience. In this essay, you will need to state what you
believe is the theme of your outside reading novel. You have been gathering passages in
your T-Chart Journals on thematic topics; it is now time to determine the theme of the novel
based off of these big ideas and the passages you have chosen.
Your Thesis:
Your thesis, which will include your statement of what the theme is, will also include three
subpoints. The subpoints will dictate what each body paragraph is about. Subpoints should
have one focus (i.e.: relationships, a character, an action, etc).
Example: In her novel The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton conveys the message that the events of
one’s life directly affect the decisions they make. This theme is shown in the actions of
Johnny Cade, the relationship between the Curtis brothers, and the brotherhood of the
greaser gang.
Statement of theme: In her book The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton conveys the message that the
events of one’s life directly affect the decisions they make.
Subpoint 1 (what body paragraph 1 is about): the actions of Johnny Cade
Subpoint 2 (what body paragraph 2 is about): the relationship between the Curtis brothers
Subpoint 3 (what body paragraph 3 is about): the brotherhood of the greaser gang
Directions:
1. Read through your quotes and choose a thematic topic
2. Decide on a theme that you can support through 3 subpoints
3. Read the dos and don’ts
4. Write a quality rough draft
Don’t Do:
 Don’t use personal pronouns (I, me,
you, I think, etc)
 Don’t use slang (unless in a passage
from the book)
 Don’t assume the reader of the
essay knows things about the story
 Don’t Stress!!!! – Come see me ASAP
if you need any help! 
Do:
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Do your best work
Do proofread all of your work
Do use MLA formatting
Do follow all deadlines and due
dates
 Do ask if you need help! 