The theme of a story is what the author is trying to convey in other words the central idea of the story short stories often have just one theme whereas novels usually have multiple themes the theme of a story is woven all the way through the story and the characters actions interactions and motivations all reflect the storys theme. The theme in a story is its underlying message or big idea in other words what critical belief about life is the author trying to convey in the writing of a novel play short story or poem. What is the theme of a story a theme is a universal concept that pervades and recurs throughout every piece of fiction it is the meaning behind the story and is expressed through the plot and through the characters journeys some will describe it as the heartbeat or soul of the story. A storys main plot might explore one theme while its subplots explore other themes the strongest stories tend to use themes that are interconnected and complement or contrast with one another the 1997 film titanic is rich with themes that swirl around class wealth versus poverty