This is an article about themes. For an example to teach readers about themes in books, I am using Catherine Coulter's book "The Maze". Even though I have done a book review on "The Maze," I decided to write a further essay in regards to theme. When readers just read for enjoyment, they miss the whole idea of the story.
A theme is something the author is wanting to get across to readers. Themes are easily identified because they are mentioned several times throughout the story. There is one main theme in the book, "The Maze" that I have focused on for this article. The theme of the book is the maze.
As I previously mentioned in my book review, a man and his son built a maze in an abandon building. They hit a woman on the head and took her to the building. When she woke up, she found herself in a dimly lit building with a string beside her. After that, she had to go through a maze.
As I did some further thinking about themes in books, I decided to write an article on themes. My main question for this particular book was "What is the purpose of having women go through a maze?" Different passages throughout the book discuss the maze and why Marlin and his father created it.
After the woman picks up the string, she goes through all kinds of turns and obstacles. When the string runs out, a man calls out to her and tells her she is going to lose the game and will be punished. After she reaches the center of the maze, she thinks she has won, but she is killed.
When Lacey questions Marlin about the purpose of the string. He tells her that he uses it as a guide to help the victim follow the path to the center of the maze. He said, " ‘I didn't want to paint signs. That would have been too obvious' " (112). Marlin doesn't want to use arrows or paint signs because he thinks the string is tantalizing. He also used the string to tie a note around the first woman's neck. After the death of the first woman, he didn't feel it was necessary to write a note. People would get the message.
As Lacey continues to question Marlin, she asks him why he uses a maze. He replies by saying, " ‘It's like finding your way to your own soul, Marty. (Marlin calls Lacey Marty.) There are lots of wrong turns and dead ends, but if you're good enough, if you try hard enough, you'll eventually come to the center of your soul and then you'll know the truth of who and what you are' " (113). Marlin is saying that the center of the maze is like the center of a person's soul -- their true identity. He wants people to know who they are.
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