Download TONE is the attitude a writer takes toward the reader, a subject, or a

H English 10
TONE is the attitude a writer takes toward the reader, a subject, or a character. Tone is conveyed
through a writer’s choice of words and details.
As you read the following examples, identify “clues” that indicate the tone. You must annotate for the
writer/speaker’s use of figurative language, diction, and syntax.
“...the sheep bridge aspen grove was a secret place far from any road, a place only for me and my father.
We visited it to perform the sacred rituals of fly fishing for the native redband trout and to drink from
the spring in the grove using a rusty tin can hanging on a branch for that purpose.” Melvin R. Adams
TONE_______________
“Today’s beauty ideal, strictly enforced by the media, is a person with the same level of body fat as a
paper clip. Turn on your TV, and all you see are men and women who would rather have both eyeballs
removed via corkscrew than eat a slice of pizza. These are genetic mutants: You can see their muscles,
veins, and neck bones almost bursting through their fat-free skin. I don’t know who decided that the
see-through look was attractive; I, personally, have never heard anybody express lust for anybody else’s
internal organs. But we normal humans are constantly exposed to the zero-fat mutants in the media, and
we naturally assume that we’re supposed to look like them. This, of course, is impossible. But we try.
We diet constantly, especially young women, many of whom now start dieting while still in the womb.”
Dave Berry
TONE ________________
“No matter how much Aunt Petunia wailed that Dudley was big-boned and that his poundage was really
puppy fat, and that he was a growing boy who needed plenty of food, the fact remained that the school
outfitters didn’t stock knickerbockers big enough for him anymore. The school nurse had seen what
Aunt Petunia’s eyes...simply refused to see: that far from needing extra nourishment, Dudley had
reached roughly the size and weight of a young killer whale.” J.K.Rowling
TONE________________
“Halfway through shaving, it came-the word for a poem. I should have scribbled it on the mirror with a
soapy finger, or shouted it to my wife in the kitchen, or muttered it to myself till it ran in my head like a
tune. But now it’s gone.” Barriss Mills
TONE__________________
“At length Frodo, groping along the left-hand wall, came suddenly to a void. Almost he fell sideways
into the emptiness. Here was some opening in the rock far wider than any they had yet passed; and out
of it came a reek so foul, and a sense of lurking malice so intense, that Frodo reeled.” J.R.R. Tolkien
TONE____________________
SOME COMMON TONES TO DESCRIBE LITERATURE
LOVE: affectionate, admiring, tender, sentimental, romantic, adoring, passionate,
ecstatic, compassionate
JOYFUL: zealous, fervent, elated, jubilant
HAPPY: merry, gleeful, delighted, cheerful, mirthful, blissful
CALM: serene, tranquil, placid, nostalgic
SAD: solemn, melancholy, sorrowful, lamenting, despairing, regretful, dismal, gloomy,
dejected, grave, morose, sullen, bleak, remorseful, disconsolate, agonized,
depressed, miserable
ANGRY: enraged, outraged, irritated, indignant, vexed, incensed, petulant, bitter, irate,
furious, wrathful, rancorous, hostile, frustrated, exasperated, aggravated, futile
HATEFUL: vengeful, malicious, piqued, loathesome, scornful, contemptuous,
disdainful, jealous, repulsed, resentful, spiteful, disgusted
FEARFUL: timid, apprehensive, anxious, horrified, dismayed, agitated, sinister,
alarmed, uneasy, spooky, appalled, ominous
IRONIC: playful, witty, humorous, sarcastic, caustic, flippant, cynical, mocking, icy,
satiric
LOGICAL: explanatory, instructive, puzzled, curious, pensive, thoughtful, preoccupied,
candid, innocent, frank, sincere, questioning, uncertain, doubting, incredulous, critical,
persuading, coaxing, pleading
PLEASED: peaceful, satisfied, contented, happy, cheerful, pleasant,
PAINFUL: worried, uneasy, troubled, disappointed, annoyed, bored, disgusted,
miserable, cheerless, sulky, pathetic, tragic
PASSIONATE: nervous, hysterical, impulsive, reckless, desperate, fierce, savage,
insane
CONTROLLED: calm, solemn, serious, serene, mild, gentle, nonchalant, cool, wary,
cautious
FRIENDLY: gracious, sympathetic, forgiving, pitying, indulgent, tolerant, soothing,
approving, courteous, confiding
HUMOROUS: comic, amused, playful, hilarious
APATHY: dull, indifferent, resigned, defeated, hopeless, monotonous, sophisticated