Module 1 Section 4
Examining Themes: Building Close Reading Skills
In the painting, you can see the images of the island and Icarus are small and off-center (circled in yellow). They are interesting, but not the obvious, main elements of the painting.
The larger, central figures of the painting are actually pointed away from the Icarus figure. They completely miss the event due to their attention being on other tasks. The tragedy of the drowning boy goes unnoticed.
FINALLY: Put your observations into words.
You must look quite closely at the painting to draw these conclusions! Let’s start with the observations from what you have so far:
- A beautiful, seaside landscape with pastoral elements (shepherd, trees, farmer).
- Some out of place elements (drowning person, odd island).
- Attention of the larger and central figures points away from the drowning person; they are focused on their tasks (farmer) or daydreaming (shepherd).
Here's an example of a statement that brings these ideas together:
In this painting, which appears peaceful and serene, all the people involved are moving or looking away from the falling and drowning boy, and they are not even aware of the tragedy taking place right next to them.
In this sentence, you identify the big picture (people in a peaceful landscape), narrow the focus (“the falling and drowning boy”) and draw a conclusion (“they are not even aware of the tragedy taking place right next to them”).
As you begin writing about literature, remember the process of looking from the outside in, from the large details to the small. It’s ok if you don’t catch every detail! Look for the connections and patterns. This will help you determine the overall theme, or main idea, of the work.
