Tone & Mood

How can you tell what the tone or mood of a piece of writing is?

• The author will tell you in the introduction what they are.

• Your teacher will tell you. They know everything about everything.

• You have to find out for yourself by looking at the pictures the author chose.

• You have to find out for yourself by looking at the words the author chose.

What is the difference between the tone and the mood of a piece of writing?

• The tone is how the author feels about the writing, the mood is how the reader is supposed to feel.

• The tone is how the reader feels about the writing, the mood is how the author is supposed to feel.

• The tone is how the reader feels about the characters, the mood is how they feel about the plot.

• The tone and the mood are not different, but we use tone for non-fiction and mood for fiction.

“Benny and Maddie stopped at each carnival game booth, but the sad, tired people operating the games didn’t even look at them. Also, the prizes were all old and Benny thought they should be washed. Maddie suggested they try the rides, but after seeing the slow, empty roller coasters, they decided to just go home instead.”

This author’s tone is negative. What words are clues that tell you this?

• Benny, Maddie, people

• game, ride, home

• sad, old, empty

• operating, washed, go

“Callie and Manuel grip their ping pong paddles with white knuckles. Heavy beads of sweat run down their faces. The whole class watches, but the only sound in the room is Callie and Manuel’s gritting teeth. Match point. The final serve will decide the winner. The audience holds their breath.”

White knuckles, beads of sweat, gritting teeth, holds breath; these words tell us the mood is ____.

• negative

• tense

• sad

• spooky

Read passage #1: “The foolish boy ignored his parents, and broke into the abandoned house anyway. He carelessly wandered around the run-down hallways and danger-filled rooms.”

Read passage to #2 to compare: “The brave boy discovered a way into the crumbling house and went in. The dark halls were full of cobwebs and rotten floor boards, but he had to press on. What if his cat was in danger?”

How are they different?

• The tones are different. The first is positive, the second is negative.

• The tones are different. The first is negative, the second is positive.

If you were writing a story and wanted the mood to be lonely, which of these words would best help you do that?

• dark, mysterious, dusty, creaking, hanging, forgotten, shadow, somewhere in the distance

• bright, twinkling, giggle, sigh, soft, warm, friendly, without a care

• echo, vast, empty, faceless, ignore, unfamiliar, lost, no one, quiet, so far away

• shout, hot, sweat, dash, push, tight, loud, pressed, confined, struggled to move forward

Which of these passages best fits this description: Has a neutral tone.

• The girl picked up the book. She looked around, saw no one, then walked away.

• The girl snatched the book off the floor. She made sure no one was watching and snuck away.

• The curious girl examined the book. No one was around, so she decided to keep it safe.

• None of the above.