What is the main difference between major details and minor details on supporting details by reading a passage?

Answer 1

For me minor details are the nuts and bolts of the paragraph. For instance, the nuts and bolts of how to make a peanut butter sandwich include the actual instructions of making it. (First, get out two slices of bread; Second, get out the peanut butter etc.) The major detail in this is actually the product of the instructions- the completed peanut butter sandwich which sums up the whole paragraph and the main theme. For a novel - I will go back to Ship of Fools by Katherine Anne Porter- the minor details are the people on the ship do foolish things and what foolish things these people do. However, from my point of view, the main point of the story is foolish people stay foolish. Since most of these foolish people exhibited some hint of being able to change -just not in the scope of the book- then I disagree with the book's premise. In textbooks- like the one I'm reading now on Medieval Music History - all of the dates, people and music facts are the nuts and bolts. However, the over arching point is how music changed from the 4th century all the way to the 14th. I hope this helps:).