RETEACH

Name: Date:

THEME

A theme is the key insight or central idea of a story. In some cases, a story’s
theme is stated directly, but in most stories the theme is implied, or
suggested through the events of the story. To identify a story’s theme,
consider:
 the story’s main conflict and how it is resolved.
 how the characters respond to the events in the story or how they change.
 how the title might help identify a theme
DIRECTIONS: Read the passage and then answer the questions. If you need
additional space to write, use a separate sheet of paper.
Mariam and her family were victims of war. After the bombing stopped, enemy
soldiers came to take over her family’s village. There, Corporal Zaid found two-
year-old Mariam playing near the river, unharmed. He was unable to find her
family. He cradled her in his arms and brought her home to his wife, Magda.
Years passed and Mariam grew up in the family of Corporal Zaid, who was no
longer a soldier. Mariam called Zaid “Papa” and Magda “Mama.” She felt loved
and secure. There was no reason, Zaid thought, to tell her what had really
happened.
At 18, Mariam went off to college, and a professor introduced Mariam to accounts
of the war. In her studies, Mariam came across a photograph of a soldier who
looked exactly like her father. He was holding a young child who looked much like
the photos she had seen of herself at a similar age. Mariam felt torn by all sorts of
new and conflicting emotions. When she finally asked Papa the questions she
needed to have answered, tears streamed down his face as he answered. “It is all
true,” he said, “but that doesn’t mean I haven’t loved you from the first day I laid
eyes on you.” Mariam didn’t doubt this, and she loved him too, but she also felt
confused and misled.
1. What is the main conflict Mariam faces, and how is it resolved?

2. How does Mariam respond to the events of the story?

3. State a theme of the story in your own words.

4. Is the theme stated or implied? Explain your answer.

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Savvas, et al., accepts no responsibility or liability for alterations implemented by their end users.
 PRACTICE

Name: Date:

THEME

DIRECTIONS: Read the passage and then answer the questions. If you need
additional space to write, use a separate sheet of paper.
From the time he was small, Zaid had always wanted to be a doctor. Zaid loved to
read books about medicine and watch (Islamic) movies and (Islamic) TV shows
that featured doctors, nurses, and hospitals. As a young teenager he volunteered
to work in a local hospital helping out the doctors and nurses. Zaid did well in
school, but he was never near the top of his class. When he asked his guidance
counselors about the prospect of medical school, they always told him to keep
working, keep volunteering, and stay focused.
When it came time for Zaid to take the entrance exam for medical school, he was
very nervous and didn’t sleep well that night. Zaid did poorly on the exam. He took
the exam a second, and even a third time. The results of those exams were not
much better. He applied to several medical schools and did very well in the
interviews, but ultimately was turned down. Zaid would not be going to medical
school.
For a while Zaid was crushed by this realization. He had planned for this career his
whole life and now it had vanished. Zaid felt like a failure. He was disappointed for
many months. One day, by chance, he sat next to a man named Jaasim on a train,
and the two struck up a conversation. Jaasim was a nurse. Jaasim told Zaid all
about nursing. Jaasim said he thought that nursing was better in many ways than
being a doctor because as a nurse you were closer to the patients on a human
level. “This is intriguing,” Zaid thought. Perhaps he had found a way to realize his
dream.

1. What main conflict does Zaid face and how is it resolved?

__________________________________________________________________
2. What does Zaid learn as a result of events in the story?
__________________________________________________________________

4. State a theme of the story in your own words.

5. Is the theme stated or implied? Explain.

___________________________________________________________________

ANSW

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© by Savvas Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Savvas, et al., accepts no responsibility or liability for alterations implemented by their end users.
 PRACTICE

Aa’

ANSWER KEY

1) Mariam realizes the person who she

thought was her father is not really her
father. No resolution
2) Answers may vary
3) Answers may vary. There is not one
correct answer.
4) Implied

1) Zaid failed and was not able to enter

medical school. He figures out he can be
a nurse
2&3) Answers may vary. He learns to
never lose hope for example.
4) Implied

3
© by Savvas Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Savvas, et al., accepts no responsibility or liability for alterations implemented by their end users.