Identifying Theme in Literature

Have you ever had this situation? You're reading a piece of literature and you get so frustrated. Well, part of the reason might be that you haven't taken the time to identify the themes within literature that you're reading. What is the theme? You may ask. The theme is an idea that the author is trying to express to his reader about life for human nature. It's the underlining message or meaning behind the story in which youre reading. So how can one identify the theme? For starters, read the text. Then summarize the plot conflict in character personalities. Then write down how do the main characters change throughout the space or, determine how the black conflict and characters connect to the subject, and then finally rhines storm. What is the author trying to tell me about mankind and life? I'll bet at this point you have a much better idea of the theme than you had when you kept staring at the title hoping that the scene would miraculously jump into your brain on its own.