How To Write A Theme Paper: Use Advanced Techniques
A theme paper looks at the most powerful aspect or theme of another piece of work. This may be a novel which contains a very strong theme of independence or maturity or any other trait. Putting together one of these essays is easy enough once you go through the following steps.
- Familiarize yourself with the source material
- Make precise notes
- Make an outline from your notes
- Create an essay from your outline
- Put in the finishing touches
Read the book, preferably more than once and look at it critically. At this point you should be digesting its parts mentally to get an idea of what that central theme might be. Once you feel comfortable enough with it you can move onto the next step.
In a later reading session you should make note of the parts that stand out to you, They may be useful for quoting or referring to directly in your paper. They may also be inspiration for you to search for another book that contains a related theme, These notes will also contain the beginnings of several points you will be including in your paper.
Once your notes are complete you can begin to put them in some sort of order to create the paper’s outline. You can come up with a basic introduction if you feel ambitious but the main purpose is to see how the body of the essay will go at this point.
Making the essay out of the outline requires you to start wording everything from your draft in long-form. Pay close attention to proving any points you can include. Anecdotal evidence and opinions will not win over your readers. Refer to your original notes or the source material itself if you get overwhelmed.
At this point your paper is basically ready. You should read it over looking for errors, sentences that go on too long and any other style mistakes. This is also a good point to recruit a friend to look over your work and tell you what they think honestly. If this person is going to try to spare you’re feelings then don’t bother. Brutal honesty is best at this stage and will lead to a much more sturdy essay in the end.
Like any essay, themed papers can easily be completed once you follow all of the right rules closely.