OBJECTIVES: What is Tone? What is Mood? How are Tone and Mood Effective in Writing?

Tone and Mood

WHAT IS MOOD?  Mood is the general atmosphere created by the author’s words.  It is the feeling the reader gets from reading those words.  It may be the same, or it may change from situation to situation.

Tone and Mood We are comfortable identifying a person’s mood through his/her facial expressions, body language, etc. Look at the following pictures; what “moods” do you think the subjects are feeling?

Now look at these next pictures… What do you think is each speaker’s tone?

 Did you find yourself using some of the same words to describe the “mood” pictures and the “tone” pictures?  That’s okay. It works that way in literature as well. Sometimes you will read a text with a similar mood and tone, and sometimes the tone will be quite different from the mood and vice versa….

Let’s explore the differences in tone and mood…

Both tone and mood can be identified by one-word descriptors… Admiring Hilarious Angry Joyful Calm Blunt Nervous Silly Sympathetic Selfish Frustrated Unfriendly Violent Here are some common tone words: Here are some common mood words: Amused Jealous Lonely Annoyed Calm Grateful Sick Hyper Warm Selfish Frustrated Unfriendly Violent

Both tone and mood can be identified by one-word descriptors… Admiring Hilarious Angry Joyful Calm Blunt Nervous Silly Sympathetic Selfish Frustrated Unfriendly Violent Here are some common tone words: Here are some common mood words: Amused Jealous Lonely Annoyed Calm Grateful Sick Hyper Warm Selfish Frustrated Unfriendly Violent

“Don’t you use that tone of voice with me!” Has anyone ever said to you, "Don't use that tone of voice with me?" Your tone can change the meaning of what you say. Tone can turn a statement like, " You're a big help!" into a genuine compliment or a cruel sarcastic remark. It depends on the context of the story.

Think about the following sentence: Don’t use that tone with me!  Which definition do you think best fits tone? a) The feeling the reader gets him/herself from reading the author’s writing. b) The author’s attitude toward their writing (i.e., the characters or the situation) and/or the audience

Think about the following sentence: Don’t use that tone with me!  Which definition do you think best fits tone? a) The feeling the reader gets him/herself from reading the author’s writing. b) The author’s attitude toward their writing; what they THINK about their subject.

Think about the following sentence: I am not in a good mood!  Which definition do you think best fits mood? a) the author’s attitude toward their writing (i.e., the characters or the situation) and/or the audience b) The feeling the reader gets him/herself from reading the author’s writing.

Think about the following sentence: I am not in a good mood!  Which definition do you think best fits mood? a) the author’s attitude toward their writing (i.e., the characters or the situation) and/or the audience b) The feeling the reader gets from reading the author’s writing.

More on tone and mood….  Mood is the general, overall feeling that is conveyed to the reader.  Some synonyms for “mood” could be “atmosphere” or “ambiance”  To help identify the mood, imagine that you are all of a sudden in the story, or painting, or whatever piece of artwork. How would it feel to be part of the scene?  Tone is usually more specific to a certain event, character, or idea.  To help identify the tone, try to figure out how the author feels about what he/she is writing about.

 Tone: The writer’s attitude towards the subject of the piece, the audience, and self. Also known as, the way feelings are expressed.  Conveyed through the use of:  Diction (the words that the author uses in his/her writing)  Point of View (the author’s view and how it affects his/her writing)  Syntax (the arrangement of words to create sentences)  And, the author’s level of formality (how formal or informal is the piece?)

Important Tone Words  Accusatory : charging of wrong doing  Bitter : exhibiting strong animosity as a result of pain or grief  Critical : finding fault  Earnest : intense, a sincere state of mind  Intimate : very familiar  Matter-of-fact : accepting of conditions; not fanciful or emotional  Optimistic : hopeful, cheerful  Reverent : treating a subject with honor and respect  Reflective : illustrating innermost thoughts and emotions  Sarcastic: sneering, caustic  Sincere : without deceit or pretense; genuine  Solemn : deeply earnest, tending toward sad reflection

“Girl, you’re in a mood!”  Mood: emotion evoked by a text.  Writers use many devices to create the mood in a text:  Dialogue (language between the characters)  Setting (where/when the story takes place, who the characters are, etc.)  Plot (the rise and fall of action and events throughout the piece)

Important Mood Words  The following are examples of moods that a text can cause the reader to feel:  Suspense  Lonely  Happy  Angry  Anxious  Tense  Suspicious  Excited  Depressed  Scared  Disgusted

Tone vs. Mood Venn Diagram Tone Mood Similarities Conveyed by an emotion or emotions through words The way a reader feels about a piece (the reader’s mood) can be determined through facial expressions, gestures and in the tone (the way the author expresses his/her feelings throughout the piece) of voice used. Tone is the attitude that an author takes toward the audience, the subject, or the character. Tone is conveyed through the author's words and details. Use context clues to help determine the tone. Author sets the tone through words. Possible tones are as numerous as the number of possible emotions a human being can have. Emotions that you (the reader) feel while you are reading a piece. Some pieces of literature make you feel sad, angry or happy. Often, a writer creates the mood at the beginning of a piece and then carries that same mood throughout the whole piece. SOMETIMES the mood will change as characters or plot changes.

Examples of Tone  I’d rather stay here and wait, than go into that dark room.  The sentence above suggests that the speaker is scared.  The sun is shining brightly in the meadow, let’s go out and play!  The sentence above suggests that the speaker is happy or excited.  I called my friend at their house, her brother said she’s not home, but I heard her voice come over the line.  The sentence suggests that the speaker is suspicious.

Examples of Mood  The night was dark and stormy.  The sentence gives you a scary ‘mood’ (or feeling).  The man kicked and threw the poor cat out of his house.  The sentence gives you a feeling of anger, or pity towards the cat.  There was plenty of food, and the music was playing. Everybody was having a good time.  The sentence gives you a mood (or feeling) of happiness and fun.

Now that you’ve got the theory down… We’re going to practice with real world examples!!!!

Real World Examples: Poetry “Wren” Oh, that cat! So sweet in the day and when the sun goes away my cat, she plays! All through the night, walking across my back as I try to sleep, and that cat attacks! And when she wakes me up, the first time, the third time, or the fifteenth, I dream of throwing her down the stairs, out the windows or shipping her off to nearly anywhere that isn’t my bedroom. Oh Wren, I do not love thee so late at night Can’t you understand I want to sleep tight? I am going to go to bed now and if you don’t wake me up, I promise not to feed you to my dog.

Real World Examples: Art

Real World Examples: Poetry “We Real Cool” Gwendolyn Brooks We real cool. We Left school. We Lurk late. We Strike straight. We Sing sin. We Thin gin. We Jazz June. We Die soon.

Real World Examples: Art

Real World Examples: Passage Excerpt From Black Boy, by Richard Wright That night in my rented room, while letting the hot water run over my can of pork and beans in the sink, I opened A Book of Prefaces and began to read. I was jarred and shocked by the style, the clear, clean, sweeping sentences. Why did he write like that? And how did one write like that? I pictured the man as a raging demon, slashing with his pen, consumed with hate, denouncing everything American, extolling everything European or German, laughing at the weaknesses of people, mocking God, authority. What was this? I stood up, trying to realize what reality lay behind the meaning of the words... Yes, this man was fighting, fighting with words. He was using words as a weapon, using them as one would use a club. Could words be weapons? Well, yes, for here they were. Then, maybe, perhaps, I could use them as a weapon? No. It frightened me. I read on and what amazed me was not what he said, but how on earth anybody had the courage to say it....

Words That Describe Mood Fanciful Melancholy Frightening Mysterious Frustrating Romantic Gloomy Sentimental Happy Sorrowful Joyful Suspenseful

Watch this movie trailer  EE&feature=related EE&feature=related  Watching film evokes certain emotions and feelings from the viewer with the images, music, dialogue, etc. In the same way, writing evokes responses from the reader with the choice of words and writing style. Watching film evokes certain emotions and feelings from the viewer with the images, music, dialogue, etc. In the same way, writing evokes responses from the reader with the choice of words and writing style.  The tone and mood of your writing is determined by the words you use, and your writing style. The tone and mood of your writing is determined by the words you use, and your writing style.

What is the Mood?  In the next six slides, try to guess the mood that the image creates.

MOOD/Frightening

MOOD/Fun

MOOD/Happy

MOOD/Frustrated

MOOD/ROMANTIC

MOOD/Melancholy

Tone and Mood Watch out! Tone and mood are similar!  Tone is the author’s attitude toward the writing (his characters, the situation) and the readers.  A work of writing can have more than one tone.  An example of tone could be both serious and humorous.  Tone is set by the setting, choice of vocabulary and other details.

What is the TONE? Watch the video clip. Choose 3 words to describe the tone. A-U

Watch it Again!  Now watch the same video images that are edited and with different music. Has the tone changed?

Words That Describe Tone  Amused Humorous Pessimistic Angry Informal Playful Cheerful Ironic Pompous Horror Light Sad Clear Matter-of-fact Serious Formal Resigned Suspicious Gloomy Optimistic Witty

Tone? Mood?  Bouncing through the door, Alara lit up the room with a joyous glow on her face as she told her parents of her exam scores.

Tone? Mood?  She huddled in the corner, clutching her tattered blanket and shaking convulsively, as she feverishly searched the room for the unknown dangers that awaited her.

Tone? Mood?  Bursting through the door, the flustered mother screamed uncontrollably at the innocent teacher who gave her child an F.

Tone? Mood?  He cautiously glanced back as he heard his relentless pursuers, then hurriedly walked on, jumping at the slightest sound of a leaf crackling under his own foot.

 Gently smiling, the mother tenderly tucked the covers up around the child’s neck, and carefully, quietly, left the room making sure to leave a comforting ray of light shining through the opened door should the child wake.

Tone? Mood?  The laughing wind skipped through the village, teasing trees until they danced with anger and cajoling the grass into fighting itself, blade slapping blade, as the silly dog with golfball eyes and flopping, slobbery tongue bounded across the lawn.

The Road Not Taken Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim Because it was grassy and wanted wear, Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I marked the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.

The Road Not Taken Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim Because it was grassy and wanted wear, Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I marked the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.