Connecting Motif to Theme

1. Connecting Motif to Theme • Now that we’ve tracked motifs through much of the novel, we need to ask, what is the author trying to actually tell us about this topic? • Let’s go back to our previous example, The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

2. “My Name” “She looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow” (11).

3. Symbol of separation

4. The repetition of window with woman creates the motif of a longing for freedom.

5. Theme = Subject + Author’s Intended Message What is Cisneros trying to say about how the roles of women in her neighborhood help to isolate and repress them? What should women (e.g. Esperanza) do about this? The author’s response is a theme (an opinion about a significant topic in the book).

6. Theme SUBJECT – • Separation • Longing for Freedom • Oppression • Theme STATEMENT – • What the author intends to convey about the theme subject • The author’s opinion or message about the theme subject

7. Theme = Subject + Author’s Intended Message An example: Cisneros develops the theme that women on Mango Street require imagination and perseverance in order to become liberated from an oppressive, male-dominated environment.

8. Thesis = Motif + Relationship to Theme An example: In The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, the motif of separation establishes that women, especially those on Mango Street, require imagination and perseverance in order to become liberated from an oppressive, male-dominated environment.

9. Essay Prompt • In a multi-paragraph essay, detail the existence of a motif throughout the novel, and analyze how Salinger employs the motif to develop a major theme. You must include MLA format, an introduction, 3 body paragraphs with a total of at least 6 CDs, and a conclusion.

10. Thesis Statement • 1 sentence • Last sentence of Intro Paragraph • Include Author’s Full Name • Include Title of Work • Answers the prompt – use the language of the prompt • Should be able to Stand Alone

11. Strong Thesis Statement • Answers a question (prompt) • Takes a position • Provides direction for your essay • Avoids the obvious • Can be supported with evidence

12. Weak Thesis Statement • Too Simple • Too Factual • Too Broad • Too Vague • Does Not Answer Prompt

13. Thesis • Holden is always lonesome and travels around New York City and meeting all kinds of people who just make him feel worse.

14. In the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, the main character Holden feels isolated, even in crowded situations and in turn isolates himself even more. Holden isolates himself subconsciously because he does not want to get hurt again like he did when his brother, Allie died. However, no matter how much Holden isolates himself he ends up getting hurt in the end. In the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D Salinger, he uses the motif isolation to say that people try and isolate themselves that way they do not get themselves hurt. However, they end up hurting themselves anyways and always feeling lonely and depressed because of the fact that they isolate themselves.

15. Individuals who are fascinated by death and mutilation are rendered incapable of adequate social interaction and are often intensely distracted by this fixation. People fascinated with death may be so due to a true or perceived social rejection or deeper emotional issues such as depression, or even a sort of morbid vanity.

16. One of the major motifs in the book Catcher in the Rye is phoniness. Holden like to describe people as phony and fake when he doesn’t understand them or doesn’t like them. This shows up many times in the book. There are even times where he calls himself phony. This is one of the major times in the book where Holden calls someone phony or fake. By the end of the book Holden turns out to be kind of an unbalanced person.

17. Throughout J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in The Rye, the motif of catching a falling person is clearly visible. There are many cases where Holden knows that he is falling and expects for somebody to catch him. This series of motifs gradually develops into a theme as the story progresses. At the beginning, Holden felt that it was the responsibility of Allie to make sure that Holden didn’t “disappear.” Later on, he depended on the idea of Jane Gallagher to keep him afloat. Towards the end of the novel, he openly confided in his sister, Phoebe along with the memory of is deceased brother to keep himself from falling. Salinger teaches us that when people expect for people to catch them, they will undoubtedly be disappointed. As the story progresses, it becomes blatantly clear that this series of motifs will eventually establish itself as a theme.

18. In our life, changes of all magnitudes and manners find us at the worst possible times. How a person responds to these haphazard and unpredictable changes can either complicate their life and put them in distressful situations or present an opportunity for enlightenment. Throughout the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield struggles against the tempestuous changes inevitably brought on by adolescence. Throughout the novel, Holden's reactions to the adjustments in his life form a motif of resistance to change which, in turn, establishes a connection to the theme that when people refuse to accept adjustments in their life, they will often only find themselves in a worse situation than before.

19. Everyone will experience change in life. Some people will deal with it well, while some people have difficulty dealing with it. Facing change is a challenge for everyone, but dealing with the challenge is the key to develop an ability to live in society. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the motif of dealing with change establishes the theme that changes in life are unavoidable. Facing the change and adapting to it is important since escaping from that change affects a person’s ability to live in society.

20. In The Catcher in the Rye, author J.D. Salinger develops the motif of dealing with change, which he uses to illustrate the theme that when people are in pain they unsuccessfully try to revert back to the past, alienating themselves further from the support they need, thus creating more trauma in their lives.