Transcript Antigone - Theme Powerpoint Antigone Quickwrite 2 Feedback.ppt

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Antigone Quickwrite #2
Feedback
Focus on THEME
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Writing about theme
“In Antigone, the interaction between Antigone and
Creon demonstrates the theme of determination.”
“The conflict between Ismene and Antigone shows
loyalty.”
“The interaction between Antigone and Creon in the play
Antigone is an example of justice.”
WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE THEME STATEMENTS?
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Theme Statements
TOPIC IS NOT THEME
TOPIC IS NOT THEME
TOPIC IS NOT THEME
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Theme Statements
Theme Statement:
Expressed
in a sentence.

It is the author’s opinion about a topic.

It must be arguable.
It has to make a statement about the nature of
humankind in universal terms.

It
requires much more sophisticated thought
than just thinking of a topic.
One
novel can have many theme statements.
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Theme Statements
When identifying a theme, keep in mind the
following:
A
theme is a message, not just a topic.
Avoid
clichés such as “Blood is thicker than water”
Don’t
state the theme as a commandment: “People
should not be racist”
Themes
should be universal, not limited to a character
in a story, or a plot point from the story: “Antigone is
loyal to the gods and her brother” is not a theme.
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Theme Statements

A theme statement must tell us something ABOUT the topic.
“In Antigone, the interaction between Antigone and Creon
demonstrates the theme of determination.”

This statement identifies a TOPIC and begins to answer the prompt,
which asks us to discuss a theme using the interaction of two
characters.

How can we re-write it to be a STRONGER theme statement?
BETTER THEME STATEMENT:
In Antigone, the interaction between Antigone and Creon
demonstrates the negative consequences of determination,
specifically when determination results in blind stubbornness.
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Theme statements

By discussing the nature of free will vs. fate, Sophocles is
saying that if the gods control our fate, then humans cannot
be fully responsible for their actions.

By having the characters view justice differently, Sophocles
is saying that when divine justice is in conflict with man’s law,
the consequences are often disastrous.

In examining Creon’s use of his power, the play Antigone
suggests that power eventually corrupts people, and causes
them to act in ways that hurt those they care about most.

Through Antigone and Creon’s interaction, Sophocles is
demonstrating that when two people have conflicting
loyalties, it is inevitable that they will have
misunderstandings
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Write your theme statement!
 If
you are writing an essay that deals with
theme, write your theme statement as the
topic sentence of your body paragraph that
addresses theme.