Introduction to Tone

Introduction to Tone

​What is tone?

​Tone is: the author’s attitude or feeling about the subject that he/she writes about.

Objective tone...

​An objective tone is neutral and impartial. This tone is matter-of-fact, and unbiased. It avoids words that describe emotions, judgements, and thoughts. Objective tone avoids pronouns and is more formal.

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A textbook is a good example of a text written in an objective tone.

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Ex. The experiment yielded results that disproved the initial hypothesis.

​Subjective tone...

​Subjective tone is personal, emotional, informal, and describes senses,, emotions, opinions, and experiences. It can also be biased and informal.

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Subjective writing also uses pronouns such as I, me, my, and myself.

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Ex. We were disappointed that the experiment didn’t prove something we so strongly believed was true.

Just to remember... ​

​tone is HOW the writer says it

​HOW does the author show you his/her tone?

-Character dialogue

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-​Internal monologue

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​-Diction (word choice)

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​Let's Practice! Read the below passage.

​Why do these things always happen to me? Brad wondered. First, I forget an important meeting, and nobody reminds me until it’s over. Then, my boss dumps a big project on my desk and wants it done by yesterday. And to top everything off, I leave my wallet on the bus.

Poll

Why do these things always happen to me? Brad wondered. First, I forget an important meeting, and nobody reminds me until it’s over. Then, my boss dumps a big project on my desk and wants it done by yesterday. And to top everything off, I leave my wallet on the bus.

How does the author feel about their day?

• It is the best day ever!

• Eh, could be worse.

• Everything that could go wrong, is going wrong.

Open Ended

Why do these things always happen to me? Brad wondered. First, I forget an important meeting, and nobody reminds me until it’s over. Then, my boss dumps a big project on my desk and wants it done by yesterday. And to top everything off, I leave my wallet on the bus.

What helps you understand how the author feels?

​Consider the following..

​"If I could give you one thing in life I would give you the ability to see yourself through my eyes, only then would you realize how special you are to me.”  -Anonymous

Poll

​"If I could give you one thing in life I would give you the ability to see yourself through my eyes, only then would you realize how special you are to me.”  -Anonymous

How does the author FEEL about this subject?

• The author is mad at their significant other.

• The author thinks they are okay.

• The author loves their significant other very much.

​Denotation + Connotation of author’s diction = TONE

​Denotation: literal meaning of the word

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Connotation: Common associations that people make with words (positive, negative, or neutral) 

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Example Word: Gray

Denotation: Color of any shade between the colors of black and white 

Connotation: Negative (Gloom, Sadness, Old Age)

Open Ended

When you think of the word HOME, what images and other words come to mind?

​Denotation of HOME

​The dictionary defintion is:

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the place where one lives permanently, especially as a member of a family or household.

​Connotation of HOME

An emotional association of HOME could be:

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​Family

​Security

​Love

​Safety

​Comfort

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​Postive, Negative, and Neutral Connotations

​Words can have a positive, neutral, or negative connotation based on personal experiences.

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​Let's look at the word "laugh" for a second.

​The denotation of laugh is: make the spontaneous sounds and movements of the face and body that are the instinctive expressions of lively amusement and sometimes also of contempt or derision.

​Example connotations for LAUGH based on personal experiences.

​POSTIVE:

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​Giggle

​Chortle

​Snort

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​NEGATIVE:

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​​Snicker

​Guffaw

​Cackle

​Crow

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​NEUTRAL:

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Laugh

​Chuckle