Plot vs Theme: Difference and Comparison

Both plot and theme are an important part of the story, but both terms play a very different role from each other.

Key Takeaways

1. The plot refers to the sequence of events in a story, including the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
2. The theme refers to a story’s underlying message or meaning, which is often abstract and may require analysis to uncover.
3. While the plot is the literal storyline, the theme is the deeper message or lesson the story tries to convey to its audience.

Plot vs Theme

A plot refers to the series of events that make up a story, including the description, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolve. A theme refers to the underlying message or meaning conveyed by a work of literature or art, often related to universal human experiences or ideas.

The word plot has been taken from old English. The plot is referred to as the link connecting the sequences so the story can progress.

It is to believe that the action that appears in the story or anything that happens with the story’s character, what action they will do, where they can go, or when they will appear are all parts of a plot.

The word theme has been derived from the Latin language. It is a central message that the author wants to convey through the piece of writing. Every piece of writing that does, no matter how artificial, will have a theme.

It is mainly told in a one-word or one sentence. The theme is generally what the reader or audience understands.

Comparison Table

Parameter of Comparison	Plot	Theme
Meaning	The plot is the whole story, which happens from beginning to end.	The theme is defined as the story’s motif or main idea.
Understanding	Plots are very much difficult to understand sometimes.	The theme is simple to understand.
Origin	Plots originated before the 12th century.	The theme originated from 1200-1300.
Length	The plot of the story is mainly lengthy.	The theme can be described in a one-word or one sentence.
Used	There are many plots in a story.	There is only a single theme in a story.

What is the Plot?

The plot is the sequence of the incident and the circumstance which make up the story. The story’s incident is linked to each other as the theory is cause and effect.

In general, one incident is the reason for another incident. It is referred to as the most important literary element in the storyline. The plot has five main elements, rising action, falling action, resolution, exposition, and climax.

Rising action: it is a section that begins with the quarrel. It contains the makeup of the incident with a quarrel’s introduction till the end of the story.

Falling action: falling action has the incident leading to the climax. The disagreement begins to solve in this section.

1. Resolution: Resolution is a part in which the story ends. The disagreement is resolved, and the story ends with a tragic or happy ending. It is also called resolution.
2. Exposition: This writing section introduces the main lead and another main character of the story and setting.
3. Climax: it is a part where the story turns. The quarrel in the story is at its peak. Emotion and interest are created in this part of the plot.

What is the Theme?

The word theme has been derived from the Latin language. It also refers to the story’s central message that the author wants to convey through a piece of writing. The theme is an important part of any fiction or nonfiction writing.

The friction story theme is unclear as the writer does not want to show the theme; they only give a clue about the hint. It depends upon the readers to understand the theme in a story that the writer wants to convey.

It is also believed that in a literary theory, the theme has been divided into two types: one is the thematic concept, and another one is a thematic statement.

The thematic statement refers to a theme that the writer wants to convey through his or her writing, whereas the thematic concept is the theme that the reader wants to understand through the story.

It also means that the theme reflects the reader’s and writer’s views since understanding is different.

It is also believed that a piece of writing can have more than one theme. In general, books mainly have one central theme that is found as the main idea in the book.

It is also divided into two parts: major and minor, depending on the importance. It is also referred to as universal as it can be taken from the text and applied to other texts.  

Main Differences Between Plot and Theme

1. Both the terms plot and theme are important parts of the author’s writing.
2. The plot is to explain the main incident in the story. On the other hand, the theme delivers the author’s message in the story.
3. The plot of the story is mainly lengthy. On the other hand, the theme can be described in a one-word or one sentence.
4. The plot is the sequence or the story’s storyline, which tells what will happen in the story from start to end. On the other hand, themes are the motif or control of the idea of the story.
5. The plot is more structured in the story, whereas the theme does not have more structure.
6. The story can have many plots in it. On the other hand, there is only a single theme in a story.
7. Plots are difficult to understand sometimes; in contrast, they are simple to understand.

References

1. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00393279950136634
2. http://search.proquest.com/openview/4d00f611e322dbb25117a7af64294844/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=1816590