Today ,we first studied how to discern and to develop a thematic statement. I clarified for Aiden the difference between a literary work and a parable. In other words, thematic statements address observations about human nature, life , or/and society. They are not necessarily didactic epigrams. With that in mind, we studied the next pages of the novella focusing on the representative or symbolic nature of the plot and what the events depict or suggest about life and society :here the dehumanizing impact of modernity caused by isolation and impersonal forces. We will finish the novella tomorrow-test on Thursday/Friday.