Depict Themes in Shiloh

Themes, symbols, and motifs come alive when you use a storyboard. In this activity, students will identify a theme of Shiloh and support it with evidence from the text.

Example Themes from Shiloh

Honesty

1. When Judd questions Marty about the dog, he stutters and states hesitantly, “Haven’t seen any dog of any kind in our yard all day.”

2. David asks to come over to Marty’s house but Marty lies saying, “Ma’s had this sort of headache lately, and she can’t take any noise at all.”

3. “I never kept a secret from your dad in the fourteen years we’ve been married.”

Determination

1. “I’d made a promise to Judd Travers I wasn’t going to keep, Jesus help me. But I’m making one to Shiloh that I will, God strike me dead.”

2. “But the more I sit there petting his head, feeling his happiness, the more I know I can’t give him up. I won’t.”

3. Marty realizes that he is blackmailing Judd, but thinks, "I'd got to the place where I'd do most anything to save Shiloh."

Other possible themes include: love, kindness, and family.

Student Instructions

Create a storyboard that identifies recurring themes in Shiloh. Illustrate instances of each theme and write a short description below each cell.

1. Click "Start Assignment".
2. Identify the theme(s) from Shiloh you wish to include and replace the "Theme 1" text.
3. Create an image for examples that represent this theme.
4. Write a description of each of the examples.