Theme Development Tracker
Overview of Theme
A theme of a literary text is the underlying idea or universal value (e.g., love, honesty, loyalty,
sacrifice, fairness, forgiveness) that applies to everyone. A theme may be a moral or lesson,
but this is not always the case. Themes do not mention characters, plot, or others textual
details in a text. Instead, themes are general messages to the reader that could apply to
many different situations outside of the text itself. Importantly, a literary text can have
multiple themes. For example, one theme in a story may be that we all have the opportunity
to be heroic. An event in which a character must choose whether or not to risk her own
safety by helping someone she thought was her enemy is a textual detail that develops the
theme.
These are some additional examples of possible themes of literary texts:
• Honesty and courage
• Perseverance (or “never give up!”)
• Prejudice and self-worth
In contrast, the following are not themes because they mention textual details, such as
characters, settings, and plot:
• In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch had to stand up for what was right.
• Harry Potter’s bravery at Hogwarts
• The prejudice faced by the Logan family in Mississippi
Learning to identify themes can improve your understanding of literary texts. However,
identifying themes can be tricky. Fortunately, there are several strategies you can use to
identify themes while reading.
Using the Theme Development Tracker
You can use this Theme Development Tracker to practice these strategies. Follow the
instructions below to use the Theme Development Tracker.
1. There are several clues you can use to identify textual details that may be introducing or
developing a theme. As you read, watch for these clues: