Is it acceptable to have the theme of a story remain hidden to its characters?
I am trying to expand the depth of my writing beyond simple storytelling. Although my previous novel was an action/adventure, I realized it has a deeper point than entertainment. Dean Koontz offers this definition of a theme:
“Theme is a statement, or series of related observations, about some aspect of the human condition, interpreted from the unique viewpoint of the author.”
I have read others suggesting that themes covey a message about the story's plot.
When we refer to the theme of a book, we are talking about a universal idea, lesson, or message that stretches through the entire story https://www.thoughtco.com/common-book-themes-1857647
But I agree with Mark Baker of SE:
Theme is not necessarily a message. It is more the thing that you are exploring. If the theme is love, for instance, you don't have to take a position on love, you don't have to have a covert message, like "love hurts" or "love sucks". The theme is love simply because the story is about love, is an exploration of what love it like. Does a story necessarily need a theme?
This was touched upon by a recent post from SE:
In the Tales of Huckleberry Finn, did you know that what's-his-face didn't care whether the man he'd come to tell his master set him free was freed? Think about it for a second. A boy is told that a runaway slave is set free, and doesn't have to run any more. And instead of telling him, he pretends to help him run further and further away, coming up with ever-increasingly elaborate plans to keep him safe, making himself the hero. But it's never stated. In fact, most people don't ever realize that's what happened (be honest, can you tell me the name of the boy in question here?). So the theme of physical slavery turns into a theme of mental slavery (he thinks he's still a slave, and continues running from it), showing the the very concept of slavery is all in your mind. How do I include a powerful theme in my story without making it blatantly obvious?
Nicely stated and it touches upon my question. Can the theme be so hidden that it is easily overlooked by even the casual reader. I think of the 2001: A Space Odyssey “Star Gate” light show in the final segment of the film where even Kubrick left the 'meaning' open to the viewer. https://movies.stackexchange.com/questions/69424/meaning-of-the-final-room-in-2001-a-space-odyssey/69438
I want the attentive reader to recognize the irony of my story without being told. So my question is: Do the characters or even the narrator have to understand that there is an underlying theme of the story?
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Do the characters or even the narrator have to understand that there is an underlying theme of the story?
I think obviously not; neither the characters or narrator need to know the theme.
Many books we feel to be "good" do have themes, either statements or topics, and the self-reinforcing nature of the different sub-plots (all variations on the theme) resonate with us readers even if we don't realize it consciously.
That is essentially the value of having a theme (message or topic), this resonance between character arcs, sub-plot variations, etc, instead of a stew of different character arcs with different kinds of goals. e.g. It helps if everybody is essentially seeking some aspect of love, instead of the myriad other goals they might have.
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Yes, it is fine for the characters to be unaware of theme.
Jack London's Call of the Wild had clear themes. The animals were likely not aware of them. Orwell's Animal Farm.
It took me, the author, a while to identify the themes of my own story. I found them, with some thought. They rang true to me and I understood better why I wrote the story. The knowledge didn't change the story. The themes were there whether I knew it or not. However, knowing them, I can use the knowledge to sharpen the story if I choose.
If I, as an author, am less than clear on my own theme, and if there is a human trait to tell story without prioritizing theme, then it is fine for the characters to be less aware of theme.
If you assign a story, say, Lord of the Flies, to a high school class - And ask students to identify theme. You will have many answers. Some require more thought and may in fact fall 'wrong.' But many will be legitimate and backed by evidence and argument and writing.
The characters' jobs is to be true to themselves. Don't give them extra work. It will fall flat.
A good story will have theme. Identifying your themes is a good exercise and gives you a tool to improve upon your writing.
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/33653. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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I'm not sure.
Is the narrator of "All Quiet on the Western Front" aware of the themes of the story? He is very much aware of the horror and the tragedy of the war, and of how much it has changed him, but is he aware of how senseless and futile parts of it were? Like his own death? Is his awareness of the horror and the tragedy similar to the awareness of the reader?
Tevye the Dairyman is very definitely not aware of how his thinking himself smarter than he really is and his inability to notice what's going on around him cause his daughters' misfortunes. Nor is Don Quixote aware of being a parody.
On the other hand, Tolkien's characters explicitly talk about various themes in the "Lord of the Rings" (sometimes you cannot really come home, small people are capable of great deeds, etc.) As does Pasternak's Dr. Zhivago.
The writer should know what it is they're writing. But the characters and the narrator can be as aware or unaware as serves the writer's goals, I think.
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