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Conflict and Theme Theme and Conflict English Conflict and Theme About this Lesson Students who are just beginning to understand the process of literary analysis sometimes mistake paraphrase for analysis, focusing on what happens in the story rather than on why it happens. Focusing on the conflict that occurs in a novel, play, or short story can be the key to helping students determine the theme or the insight about the human condition that the work conveys. Literary works move from the concrete to the abstract, taking the careful reader from what happens in the text to the universal observations the writer makes about the world and the human condition. (On AP* exams, this concept is often referred to as “the meaning of the work as a whole.”) This lesson is included in Module 8: Determining the Underlying Meaning. Objectives Students will complete a graphic organizer that links conflict with theme. write a thematic statement. Level TEACHER Grades Six through Ten Connection to Common Core Standards for English Language Arts LTF® Foundation Lessons are designed to be used across grade levels and therefore are aligned to the CCSS Anchor Standards. Teachers should consult their own grade-level-specific Standards. The activities in this lesson allow teachers to address the following Common Core Standards: Explicitly addressed in this lesson Code Standard Level of Depth of Thinking Knowledge R.1 Read closely to determine what the text says Understand III explicitly and to make logical inferences from it. Cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text. R.2 Determine central ideas or themes of a text and Analyze III analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas. R.3 Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas Analyze III develop and interact over the course of a text. W.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts Analyze III to support analysis, reflection, and research. AP* is a trademark of the College Entrance Examination Board. The College Entrance Examination Board was not involved in the production of this material. Copyright © 2012 Laying the Foundation®, Inc., Dallas, TX. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.ltftraining.org. i Teacher Overview—Conflict and Theme Implicitly addressed in this lesson Code Standard Level of Depth of Thinking Knowledge L.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of Understand I standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking. L.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of Understand I standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and Create III convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content. W.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for Apply III research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences. LTF Skill Focus The foundation for LTF English lessons is the Skill Progression Chart that identifies key skills for each domain, beginning with grade 6 and adding more complex skills at each subsequent grade level while reinforcing skills introduced at previous grade levels. The Skill Focus for each TEACHER individual lesson identifies the skills actually addressed in that lesson. Levels of Thinking Remember Understand Apply Analyze Evaluate Create Close Reading Grammar Composition written, spoken, and visual texts purposeful use of language for effect written, spoken, and visual products Reading Strategies Types (modes) Determining Author’s Expository Purpose analytical Determining Main Idea The Process of Composition Generalization PrewritingStructural Inference Elements Literary Elements Body Plot incorporation of quotes conflict Theme Connections to AP* Question 3 on the AP Literature and Composition exam requires students to analyze a major work of fiction (novel, drama, or epic poem) in reference to some specific element of the text and how that element reveals the meaning of the work as a whole. Practice with connecting the concrete events of the text with an abstract meaning can prepare students for this task. *Advanced Placement and AP are registered trademarks of the College Entrance Examination Board. The College Board was not involved in the production of this material. Copyright © 2012 Laying the Foundation®, Inc., Dallas, TX. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.ltftraining.org. ii Teacher Overview—Conflict and Theme Materials and Resources copies of the graphic organizer Assessments The following kinds of formative assessments are embedded in this lesson: graphic organizer written thematic statements Teaching Suggestions Teachers should review the types of conflict that occur in fictional literature. Teachers should thoroughly explain the link between conflict and theme as well as the difference between a thematic idea and a thematic statement. (See the first page of the student handout.) Students should examine carefully the sample chart in which “Ozymandias” is used as an example to demonstrate the link between the conflict that appears in a text, a thematic idea, and a universal statement of theme (thematic statement). Ask students, in groups or pairs, to examine a selection previously read and then complete the chart. Remind students that stories can contain several different kinds of conflict; they should choose one to examine for the purposes of the assignment. They should list major TEACHER events, determine conflicts drawn from those events, choose one conflict that reveals a thematic idea, write a statement on the thematic idea, and then identify the universal meaning of the work as a whole as it has been expressed in the thematic statement. After completing the chart and participating in class discussions on the differences between conflicts and thematic ideas and statements of universal meaning, students can move into writing an essay of analysis on a text previously studied. The chart serves as a generator of ideas and as a pre-writing activity. Answers Answers for this lesson are subjective and will vary. To obtain the maximum benefit of the lesson, ask students to go beyond the expected responses. Copyright © 2012 Laying the Foundation®, Inc., Dallas, TX. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.ltftraining.org. iii English Conflict and Theme Theme, or the relationship between a text and the human experience, is often revealed through a tension or conflict between two forces in a work of fiction. Basically, six types of conflict dominate the world of fiction: Human beings in conflict with nature Human beings in conflict with one another Human beings in conflict with themselves Human beings in conflict with society or the law Human beings in conflict with fate Two universal forces in conflict (good and evil, passion and reason, vengeance and compassion, etc.) Often fictional texts involve more than one of these conflicts. Just as in real life, conflict in a work of imaginative literature can teach us truths about what it means to be human. If a reader can determine at least one of the conflicts that a work contains, he or she can often find in it the means to uncover a universal theme. Below are definitions of terminology commonly used when discussing theme. Many students confuse thematic ideas with thematic statements. Consistency will help students clarify the concepts dealing with theme. The major idea that students need to come to understand is that theme (which is an abstract idea) is created/revealed through the conflict (which is concrete— what do the characters experience in the text?). When we discuss and write about theme, we are examining the ways that every element of the text is linked to the insight about life that the work reveals. Definition of Terms: Conflict: the tension or struggle between forces Specific Thematic Idea: an abstract idea (can be expressed in one or two words )the author explores through the plot and characters. See the list of thematic ideas. Thematic statement: a complete, declarative statement that reveals what the author is trying to communicate about the human experience through his/her literary work. One way to explain this to students is to ask the question: “What does this piece of literature have to say about (the thematic idea). Copyright © 2012 Laying the Foundation®, Inc., Dallas, TX. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.ltftraining.org. 1 Student Resource—Conflict and Theme Determining Conflicts and Universal Theme Statement (Example) As you can see by the chart, the major events of the plot remind us of the conflicts, and identifying one important conflict suggests a thematic idea from which a thematic statement can be developed. CONCRETE ABSTRACT Title Major Events List of Conflicts One Important Specific Thematic Statement Conflict Thematic Idea (complete sentence) (word or phrase) “Ozymandias” The speaker human beings in human beings the power of In his poem “Ozymandias,” Percy recounts a conflict with in conflict with nature Shelley explores the arrogance of the conversation with nature nature ancient ruler Ozymandias in someone who has opposition to nature, revealing that. seen the ruin of a human beings in despite the power that man accrues monumental conflict with throughout his life, it will never be statue in “an themselves enough to outlast or defeat the power ancient land.” of nature, which is eternal and invincible. The pedestal of the statue bears the boastful words of the ancient king Ozymandias, and the statue itself shows him to have been a cruel, arrogant ruler. Example: From “Ozymandias” Conflict: human beings in conflict with nature Specific Thematic Idea: the power of nature Thematic statement: Despite the power that man accrues throughout his life, it will never be enough to outlast or defeat the power of nature, which is eternal and invincible Copyright © 2012 Laying the Foundation®, Inc., Dallas, TX. All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.ltftraining.org.
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