Theme of Touching Spirit Bear
Editor's Note: This is another post for my Touching Spirit Bear project. You can find all of the other posts I've written for this Touching Spirit Bear post right here.
What is a theme? How do I find the theme of a novel? Why should I care? What does Touching Spirit Bear have to do with any of this? Those are probably a few questions going through your mind right now. A theme is the central idea of a work of literature. Without a theme, a novel would be no different from the back of a cereal box. That is why today I'm going to cover three things: How to find the theme in a novel, what the theme of Touching Spirit Bear is, and what the Touching Spirit Bear novel would be like without a theme.
How to find a theme - Before I say how to find a theme, I have to give you a little bit more detail into what a theme is: Remember that themes are not items or subjects. They are the idea the writer expresses on that subject - their opinion on it. Furthermore, a theme is debatable. Usually, there is more than one theme in a novel, so finding the main theme is relative to the finder of said theme. There are four things you can do to find a theme. Firstly, see what happens to the main character. How do they change? In a good way or a bad way? If they change in a good way, the theme is based around the fact that readers should do what the main character did. If the change is bad, the theme might be to avoid the main character's choices. Secondly, look at the statements of the characters. They may say something that could help to determine the theme of that novel. For example, a character might say, "Nature truly is powerful." In that circumstance the theme of the novel may be that nature is powerful. Thirdly, look at the title. Sometimes, the title could be something like, "Never Trust a Dwarf," if that was the case, the theme is pretty clear; you should never trust a dwarf. Lastly, look at the conflict of the novel. When the conflict is something like a nerd versus a bully, the theme may be how you should never bully people.
The theme of Touching Spirit Bear - Arguably the biggest theme in Touching Spirit Bear is how you can't escape your feelings; you can only change your reaction to theme. A few of the tricks to finding a theme were used to find this one. First of all, statement. While soaking in the pond with Cole, Edwin says, "The right end of this stick is your happiness, the left end is your anger. Break off the left end and get rid of your anger... You broke off the left end, but a left end still exists. Go ahead, break it off again" (144). That proves that Cole escape his feelings. His anger - the left end of the stick - was always going to exist. All that he could do was change how he reacted and felt towards that end of the stick. Secondly, looking at the main character is a way to determine that this is the main theme of Touching Spirit Bear. Throughout the novel, Cole tries to get rid of his anger. Obviously, that doesn't work. Once Cole learns to change how he reacts to his anger (for example, by soaking in the pond instead of yelling or punching something) is when he's able to realize the roots of his anger and how to suppress it. Lastly, looking at the conflict was another way to figure out what the theme for Touching Spirit Bear could be. Through practically all of the novel, Cole is having an internal struggle with his anger. Therefore, one could deduce that the theme would have something to do with anger and/or emotions.
What would happen if there was no theme? - As I said in my introduction, without a theme, a novel is no different than the back of a cereal box. Furthermore, there would be serious differences in Touching Spirit Bear if there wasn't a theme. To begin with, there would be no primary purpose. Throughout the novel, it would just be aimless talking and walking around without a theme. Moreover, it would be completely uninteresting to the reader. Most books are exciting because of the overall theme to them.
In conclusion, a theme is the moral of the story in a novel. It can be found using four different methods: Looking at the main character, looking at the statements, looking at the title, and looking at the conflict. Without a theme a book would be no different than something like a cereal box. All in all, the next time you're reading a novel, try to find the theme and then imagine what it would be like without that theme.
What is a theme? How do I find the theme of a novel? Why should I care? What does Touching Spirit Bear have to do with any of this? Those are probably a few questions going through your mind right now. A theme is the central idea of a work of literature. Without a theme, a novel would be no different from the back of a cereal box. That is why today I'm going to cover three things: How to find the theme in a novel, what the theme of Touching Spirit Bear is, and what the Touching Spirit Bear novel would be like without a theme.
How to find a theme - Before I say how to find a theme, I have to give you a little bit more detail into what a theme is: Remember that themes are not items or subjects. They are the idea the writer expresses on that subject - their opinion on it. Furthermore, a theme is debatable. Usually, there is more than one theme in a novel, so finding the main theme is relative to the finder of said theme. There are four things you can do to find a theme. Firstly, see what happens to the main character. How do they change? In a good way or a bad way? If they change in a good way, the theme is based around the fact that readers should do what the main character did. If the change is bad, the theme might be to avoid the main character's choices. Secondly, look at the statements of the characters. They may say something that could help to determine the theme of that novel. For example, a character might say, "Nature truly is powerful." In that circumstance the theme of the novel may be that nature is powerful. Thirdly, look at the title. Sometimes, the title could be something like, "Never Trust a Dwarf," if that was the case, the theme is pretty clear; you should never trust a dwarf. Lastly, look at the conflict of the novel. When the conflict is something like a nerd versus a bully, the theme may be how you should never bully people.
The theme of Touching Spirit Bear - Arguably the biggest theme in Touching Spirit Bear is how you can't escape your feelings; you can only change your reaction to theme. A few of the tricks to finding a theme were used to find this one. First of all, statement. While soaking in the pond with Cole, Edwin says, "The right end of this stick is your happiness, the left end is your anger. Break off the left end and get rid of your anger... You broke off the left end, but a left end still exists. Go ahead, break it off again" (144). That proves that Cole escape his feelings. His anger - the left end of the stick - was always going to exist. All that he could do was change how he reacted and felt towards that end of the stick. Secondly, looking at the main character is a way to determine that this is the main theme of Touching Spirit Bear. Throughout the novel, Cole tries to get rid of his anger. Obviously, that doesn't work. Once Cole learns to change how he reacts to his anger (for example, by soaking in the pond instead of yelling or punching something) is when he's able to realize the roots of his anger and how to suppress it. Lastly, looking at the conflict was another way to figure out what the theme for Touching Spirit Bear could be. Through practically all of the novel, Cole is having an internal struggle with his anger. Therefore, one could deduce that the theme would have something to do with anger and/or emotions.
What would happen if there was no theme? - As I said in my introduction, without a theme, a novel is no different than the back of a cereal box. Furthermore, there would be serious differences in Touching Spirit Bear if there wasn't a theme. To begin with, there would be no primary purpose. Throughout the novel, it would just be aimless talking and walking around without a theme. Moreover, it would be completely uninteresting to the reader. Most books are exciting because of the overall theme to them.
In conclusion, a theme is the moral of the story in a novel. It can be found using four different methods: Looking at the main character, looking at the statements, looking at the title, and looking at the conflict. Without a theme a book would be no different than something like a cereal box. All in all, the next time you're reading a novel, try to find the theme and then imagine what it would be like without that theme.
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