【正文】 ng his understanding of life. They may sometimes touch upon the human nature or social problems, but these issues are only used to push the plot forward and they are not mentioned for their own value. Theme exists only in the novel that seriously attempts to reflect life faithfully or intends to reveal truth about life, or in the novels that are based on ideas or theories of life. (for example, novels of ideas).II. Clarification about ThemeOne of the safest ments to make about novels is on the theme. Everyone is entitled to extract a theme based upon his understanding of the novel. Theme may be the most democratic elements in literature, because its definition is the least restrictive. The theme of a novel is its controlling idea or its central insight. Being an idea or an insight, the theme should be abstract and it should generalize about life. Labeled as controlling or central, the theme should be capable of unifying the whole novel. Aristotle in Poetics lists six basic elements of tragedy. Melody (song) and diction (language) fall in the general category of style, and spectacle is relevant to setting in our discussion of fiction. The other three aspects are mythos or plot, ethos or character, and dianoia, which we generally translate into “thought” in English. According to Aristotle, plot is the “soul” or shaping principle or fiction, and characters exist primarily as functions of the plot. In most of the stories, plot plays the role of principal structure of the story. But, as Northrop Frye points out, besides the internal fiction of the character and his/her society, there is an external fiction consisting of a relation between the writer and the writer’s society. We indeed have literary works by the likes of Shakespeare and Homer in which artistry is pletely absorbed in their internal characters and we can hardly perceive the existence of the author. However, as soon as the author’s personality appears on the horizon, a relation with the reader is established, and sometimes there seems no story at all apart from what the author is conveying to his/her reader. In this case, the primary interest in dianoia, the idea or thought that reader gets from the writer, which in modern criticism we generally call “theme”.flat characters. This division is proposed by Forster. Round characters are fully developed while flat characters are not. Or we can say that round characters grow while flat characters do not. Usually the reader is allowed access to the inner life of the round character and permitted to learn about many sides of the round character. The flat character is a “closed” character to whose inner thoughts the reader is denied access. Usually one side of the flat character is shown in the novel. Most heroes are round characters who grow emotionally or spiritually.contrasting. They may be main characters or minor characters. In a word, they serve as foils to the hero or heroine. Cohn in The Sun Also Rises is a good example. He is one of the main characters. Like Jake, he is also “l(fā)ost,” trying vainly to escape the past by courting women and drinking. But during their stay in Spain, Cohn displays qualities in contrast to those cherished by Jake, which makes Jake realize his own problems and finally find a solution, though temporarily. Cohn works mainly by contrast. Wilson in The Great Gatsby works by presenting. Gatsby lost his lover to Tom and Wilson lost his wife to Tom. By presenting Wilson’s case the novelist intends to point out the profound cause of Gatsby’s tragedy. Dr. Watson in the stories of Sherlock Holmes serves as a foil to the hero, rendering the detective smarter than he would otherwise appear to the reader.trouble with the hero Jordan, yet he is a main character as his wife Pilar is. Minor characters are those in remote and static relation with the hero. It is wrong to think that minor characters are all unimportant. In some novels, one or some of the minor characters may serve a critical role, structurally or interpretationally.Foil characters are ones that help enhance the intensity of the hero by strengthening or By the degree of their development, characters can be grouped as round characters and Chapter Three ThemeI. What Is Theme?So the theme of a story, then, is whatever general idea or insight the entire story reveals. Common as it is, theme suffers some misunderstandings. One misconception about Another misconception about theme is that the theme is largely what the novel is. Some Another pitfall concerning the theme is to confuse a theme with moral or lesson. Usually, a moral or a lesson is the advice stated or implied in a parable or fable. It is something of a rule by which one can regulate his behavior. For example, “Be kind to your neighbors,” or “Honesty is the best policy.” But a theme is more plicated than this as a novel is to enhance one’s awareness of life rather than simply to tell hi