Compare Literary Themes Across Cultures and Time Periods

Develop deeper literary understanding by comparing universal themes in global texts.

Teaching Context:
Best suited to Year 10 to Year 12 English Literature or English as a Second Language students studying comparative text analysis or thematic essays.

Basic AI Prompt:
Compare how the theme of power is shown in two different books from different cultures.

Enhanced AI Prompt:
You are a senior English student comparing how the theme of power appears in two texts from different cultures or time periods. Choose works with contrasting settings (e.g. Macbeth and Things Fall Apart) and explain how each author explores power using characters, setting and narrative. Provide clear examples and a summary sentence.

Spice it Up (Optional Extension):
Ask for the response in TEEL or PEEL paragraph structure.

Lesson Implementation:
Start with a class discussion on common literary themes (e.g. power, love, freedom). Break students into small groups and allocate two culturally diverse texts to each. They use the AI prompt to guide their comparison, making sure to highlight different narrative techniques. A scaffolded table can help them record similarities and differences. Students write an analytical paragraph using a TEEL format, referencing the AI’s response.

As a final step, pairs peer review each other’s work using a checklist focused on textual evidence and clarity. Use Google Docs or Microsoft Word for drafting. This task strengthens cross-cultural understanding and prepares students for comparative essays.

Got ideas on different ways to use this prompt? Share them with the class in the comments below!

Also, if you liked this, you'll love the thousands of subject-specific prompts in our books section!