Previous
Heidi and John Eggers’s Ashes
Looks like you're viewing this page on a mobile device. The A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius Theme Wheel is a beautiful super helpful visualization of where the themes occur throughout the text. They're only accessible on tablets, laptops, or desktop computers, so check them out on a compatible device.
The Theme Wheel visualizes all of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius's themes and plot points on one page.
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme. Select any of the themes in the key below to highlight it in the Theme Wheel.
Self-Consciousness and Meta-Narration
Coming of Age, Parenthood, and Responsibility
Death, Humor, and the Worst-Case Scenario
Identity
Guilt and Poetic License
Loading...
How does the Theme Wheel work?
- Each wedge of the blue ring represents a chapter.
- Each row of colored boxes extending from a wedge represents a part of the chapter. The closer to the blue ring, the closer to the beginning of the chapter.
- The colors in each row indicate which themes are “active” in that part of the chapter.
The Theme Wheel is interactive.
- Themes: Hover over or tap any of the themes in the Themes and Colors Key to show only that theme. Click a theme in the Themes Key to lock it.
- Summary: Hover over or tap any row of colored boxes to read the summary associated with that row. Click the row to lock the summary.
