1. A universal message or truth about life
You can’t always get what you want

2. Sometimes stated directly
In Robert McNeil’s
“The Trouble with Television,”
the title states
the theme of the piece:
there are problems with television.

3. Through personification
Sometimes implied
Through metaphor
Through simile
Through personification
Through imagery
Through tone of voice
Through symbols

4. Implied through simile
Dream Deferred
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore—
and then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over—
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load
Or does it just explode?
- Langston
Hughes
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5. Implied through personification
Sleeping in the Forest
by Mary Oliver
I thought the earth remembered me,
she took me back so tenderly,
arranging her dark skirts, her pockets
full of lichens and seeds.
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6. Implied through tone of voice
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7. Implied through symbols
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8. Implied through metaphors
Life is a yo-yo. It's a series of ups and downs.
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9. Implied through Imagery