Studying a text, whether it be an art novel, a scientific dissertation, a pamphlet, a poem, a joke, the first thing the reader asks, sorting out words and sentences, what is written here that the author wanted to express with a set of precisely these words? When the writer was able to fully reveal his plan, it is not difficult to understand it, the main idea of the text is understood already in the process of reading, and the leitmotif passes through the whole narrative. But when the idea itself is ephemeral, and even expressed not literally, but by metaphors, a figurative description, it is quite difficult to understand the author. Each reader will see in the main idea of the text something of their own, close, depending on his worldview, level of
intelligence, social status in society. And it is very likely that what the reader knows and understands will be far from such a concept as the main idea of the text, which the author himself tried to put into the work.
The importance of defining the main idea
In most cases, the general impression is formed even before the last phrase is read, and the high ideas of the writer, with whom he set to work, remain incomprehensible or completely unknown. In this case, it is very difficult for the average person to understand the enthusiasm of his friends or the positive reviews of respected experts on this work. Perplexity at the fact that someone found something special in him, and someone not, is capable of puzzling at best, and at worst, forming a certain inferiority complex. The latter concerns particularly impressionable readers, and there are many of them. It is worth paying special attention to the works that caused the polar reviews and to understand what caused these impressions.
It is necessary to determine the main idea of the text. how do it? First, you should answer a few questions: “What did the author want to express and convey to the reader in his work, what made him take up the pen?” It is possible to determine the tasks that a writer, journalist or publicist set himself by relying on a comparison of the time the text was written and the time where the author of the event described in it was transferred.
Typical examples of the definition of the main in the text
A rather characteristic example of this method of cognition is the immortal and ingenious work of Mikhail Bulgakov, “The Heart of a Dog”. In each sentence, an entire passage, there is an allegorical attitude of the writer on the events taking place in the country after the 1917 revolution. Here, the theme and the main idea of the text are veiled under the implausible transformation of one living individual into another under the influence of external factors. Bulgakov’s attitude to global transformations in the state and the minds of his citizens are expressed as accurately and frankly as possible. He conveyed to the reader his position through the stylistic presentation of the text, the coverage of the whole range of problems that arose in the country at that time, using the example of the private life of the inhabitants of a single apartment and their relationship with others. Comparing the important and secondary events described in the story and taking place in the country, you can understand how to find the main idea of the text through the presentation of these events by the author.
Equal to the author
In addition to the example given to determine the main idea in a work, there are several ways of a general nature, without reference to a specific author and his work. The most common is a careful reading of the text and highlighting several major associations that arose during the reading process. If the author was able to understand the first time and what he writes about, there is no need to rush with the assertion that the main idea of the text is found. It is better to convey one or two sentences of your understanding of the topic, and then re-read the work again. If the conviction that the first time everything was understood correctly is confirmed, then the main idea of the text is presented intelligibly and with an ideal presentation. But if with each subsequent reading more and more associations will arise, one should try to penetrate deeper into the foregoing and simultaneously familiarize oneself with reviews of this work of the author. It is likely that besides himself, no one else understood anything. And in this case, it is impossible to choose a method how to find the main idea of the text.
Fortunately, there are very few works for the general public that are not amenable to analysis and reasonable perception, and similar difficulties can arise when familiarizing yourself with topics of a specific specific nature, but they tend to arouse interest among a certain circle of readers whose thoughts and lives are close the main theme of these works.
If the topic is asked by the author
So, back to the general rule for determining the main idea of the text. After reading the work two or three times, if the opportunity, desire and necessity require it, it is important to understand exactly what it is about and retell its essence. Sometimes the main thing in the text is hidden by a layering of overly lush and flowery phrases, it all depends on the style of presentation of the topic by the author. But if it was possible to formulate the main thing with one short and concise phrase, it means that the author was able to convey to the reader his attitude to the described events or heroes.
From title to text
Sometimes the main idea of a work is embedded in its table of contents. This is quite common. Sometimes the name is the key to the whole work, and in this case, the method, how to determine the main idea of the text, consists in expressing a detailed authorial position. For example, the theme of the novel by Nikolai Chernyshevsky “What to do?” is determined by the direct answer to the question in his table of contents or in the characteristic chapters describing the dreams of Vera Pavlovna. In the title of the novel, the question mark at the end of the phrase is the key to finding the main idea. If the title of the text has proper names, the attitude to them that has developed after reading them is also the key to determining the main thing in the above.
Read and think
And finally, another characteristic way of defining the main idea of the text. For this, it is necessary to understand what conclusions the author makes himself from what the story was about. This can be framed as a certain result, to which the author led the reader, and at the end of the work a few phrases drew a line under his idea. An example of morality in fables shows that in such cases the main idea was determined by the author himself, and the reader can either agree with it or not.