How essential is the setting to the story? could the story have taken place anywhere else? animal farm?

The setting of a story is really important. The characters in the story would maybe have different personalities or routines and habits. For example, if you grew up in France, you would most likely speak french and adopt their culture. While if you grew up in America, you'd speak english and have the american culture instead of the french one. But in ways, it also depends on how involved the setting is in the story.

Examine the title and any blurbs included before the body of the text.

Pay close attention to the opening and closing paragraphs.

What is the topic?

Explanation:

To “determine a central idea” of a text means to figure out the author's main point or message about a topic.