MOOD AND TONE

Mood—the feeling you get when reading a piece of text

Word choice Setting characters

Suspenseful Eerie Relaxing Uplifting Hopeful Joyous Foreboding Nostalgic Sentimental Determined Contemplative Calm irate Gloomy ominous Violent Haunting Hopeless Sympathetic Thankful Thoughtful Warm Welcoming Silly dark Playful Peaceful Depressed Dreary Apprehensive Anxious Indifferent Annoyed Tense Terrifying threatening

The wind howled like a wolf, the thunder rolled, and the lightning drew zigzag lines across the sky. With the sights and sounds of the thunderstorm cloaking his room, Charlie awoke from his night’s sleep. As he peeked out from under the covers, a dark, shifting shadow appeared on the wall of his room.

Tone—an author’s attitude towards a subject Tone—an author’s attitude towards a subject **How an author says something

Forceful Sarcastic Didactic Hostile Impatient Direct Humorous Admiring Adoring Casual Formal Playful serious Bitter Condescending Positive Negative Proud Reflective Encouraging Friendly Disrespectful Mocking skeptical Derogatory Pensive Straight-forward Suspicious Threatening Grave Uneasy Uncertain frantic

“But I feel peaceful. Your success in the ring this morning was, to a small degree, my success. Your future is assured. You will live, secure and safe, Wilbur. Nothing can harm you now. These autumn days will shorten and grow cold. The leaves will shake loose from the trees and fall. Christmas will come, and the snows of winter. You will live to enjoy the beauty of the frozen world, for you mean a great deal to Zuckerman and he will not harm you, ever. Winter will pass, the days will lengthen, the ice will melt in the pasture pond. The song sparrow will return and sing, the frogs will awake, the warm wind will blow again. All these sights and sounds and smells will be yours to enjoy, Wilbur—this lovely world, these precious days…”