What does theme mean in literature

The theme is an idea or concept that a literary work explores: love, despair, honor, etc. The author explores the theme through the subject matter of his or her work, and when telling the story, arrives at some kind of thematic statement.

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Explanation:

The theme in literature means the overarching idea of the text. Themes can be shown through the text, the plot, the characters, etc... I'm not sure if this is what you wanted but I hope this helps!

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