This is the central idea in a piece of work. Although there are other ideas that may be birth in your story, the concept which you decided to write about is the main idea in your story. Merriam Webster defines it as the ‘The main subject that is being discussed often or repeatedly’.
Few stories are written simply to entertain – some young children’s stories might be, but most stories are, in reality, an entertaining ‘vehicle’ or means for their author to present a series of persuasive ideas to the reader. These ideas are called the themes of the story; they are the author’s views concerning some important aspect – one if the ‘big issues’ – of life. Many authors choose themes that relate to aspects of their society’s prevailing or dominant ideologies. As I said earlier, you can’t entertain without Educate. But it’s mundane to keep Educating without entertaining. Who wants to read your rant about life issues. They need to realise this truth themselves. Your story has to show them what they need to see.
Writers are peculiarly creative and sensitive individuals; they can be deeply aware of the frictions within society. They use their imaginative genius to weave compelling stories around interesting characters to highlight and help you sympathise with certain ideas and points of view. And this is what you should always aim to do.
If you have read ‘ Purple Hibiscus’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, however much you enjoyed the story, after you finish the last page and close the cover, many of its ideas will stay with you for a long time, if not for the remainder of your life. These ideas or themes will have been revealed and explored in the story through the actions of its characters. You will have been brought to empathise with and often feel sympathy for the plight of certain characters in a story, and to dislike others. Those with which you sympathise, you will tend to feel strongly about, even identify with. What happens to them will interest you – and it is in this way that many ideas about society can be highlighted and brought to your attention.
J.K Rowling’s Novel, HarryPorter1-7’ centred on the way people saw death. Although many other theme were birth from the original theme like the issue of bad parenting/Guiding( from Guidants). We were open to series of ways Voldemort tried to escape death.
To develop a theme, these questions should ring in your mind. 1.Why am I writing? 2. What lesson do I want to teach in this story? In the movie Afterlife written by Will Smith, the concept of Fear was discussed through a child point of view(POV). 3. What misconception do I want to correct? Many horror movies we see and horror novels that are out there are out to prove a religious truth or a psychological fact. A good film that portrayed that is the Exorcism of Emily. The film was trying to bring to the notice of readers that there are spiritual occurrences. How do you get Theme? The following ways are the best way to get a theme.
Love: What do you like? What is that thing you love others to know how to do? What is that message you wish others should learn of? What do you want to people improve themselves on. Hatred: What do you hate most? What problems are you seeing in Nigeria? The best novels and plays in Nigeria are noticed because they portrayed a hatred for certain event or culture. Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe was known because it was trying to show the world the way European maltreated Eastern Nigerians. And that Igbo community had a system that governs them at the advent of the whites.


https://litehelp./2016/02/02/theme/