T EN S TEPS TO A DVANCED R EADING John Langan © 2009 Townsend Press

Chapter Seven: Purpose and Tone The purpose of this newspaper photo is to inform us of the return of American soldiers killed in Iraq. The tone of the photo is one of solemnity, reverence, and respect.

Part of reading critically is being aware of an author’s purpose and tone. Purpose — the author’s reason for writing Tone — the expression of the author’s attitude and feeling about a subject PURPOSE AND TONE

PURPOSE To inform — to give information about a subject. Three common purposes (reasons for writing) are To persuade — to convince the reader to agree with the author’s point of view on a subject. To entertain — to amuse and delight; to appeal to the reader’s senses and imagination.

PURPOSE The cover and title of anything you read often suggest the author’s primary purpose. What do you think is the main purpose of each of these books? Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain

PURPOSE The cover and title of anything you read often suggest the author’s primary purpose. What do you think is the main purpose of each of these books? Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain

PURPOSE The typical American gobbles three burgers and four orders of fries every week. Toss in the pizzas, the popcorn, the sugary breakfast cereals, the sodas, the snack cakes, candy bars, ice cream and everything else we eat in lieu of real food in this society, and your body is like an eighteen-wheeler roaring down a high-fat highway straight to obesity and an early grave. Fast food is bad food. It’s loaded with bad stuff like fat and sugar and sodium. It’s packed with chemicals that are in there to make it taste and smell and feel like it’s real food. What it lacks is vitamins, minerals, fiber, all the stuff you really need. Read the paragraph below and decide what the author’s purpose is. Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain

PURPOSE The author wants to persuade us that we should not indulge in fast food by describing how bad it is for us. Explanation Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain The typical American gobbles three burgers and four orders of fries every week. Toss in the pizzas, the popcorn, the sugary breakfast cereals, the sodas, the snack cakes, candy bars, ice cream and everything else we eat in lieu of real food in this society, and your body is like an eighteen-wheeler roaring down a high-fat highway straight to obesity and an early grave. Fast food is bad food. It’s loaded with bad stuff like fat and sugar and sodium. It’s packed with chemicals that are in there to make it taste and smell and feel like it’s real food. What it lacks is vitamins, minerals, fiber, all the stuff you really need.

PURPOSE I don’t know which is harder, taking my body to the doctor or my car to the garage. Both worry me. I’m always afraid they’ll find something I didn’t know about. The only advantage of taking my body to the doctor over taking my car to the garage is that the doctor never asks me to leave it overnight. Read the paragraph below and decide what the author’s purpose is. Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain

PURPOSE The author’s purpose is to entertain with playful and exaggerated details. (Clearly, the doctor is not going to ask the writer to leave his body overnight!) Explanation Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain I don’t know which is harder, taking my body to the doctor or my car to the garage. Both worry me. I’m always afraid they’ll find something I didn’t know about. The only advantage of taking my body to the doctor over taking my car to the garage is that the doctor never asks me to leave it overnight.

PURPOSE Read the paragraph below and decide what the author’s purpose is. Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain Personal contact is necessary for common cold viruses to spread. The viruses must get into the nose, where they can infect the nasal membranes. Inhaling contaminated droplets produced when someone else coughs or sneezes may be one way to catch a cold. Cold viruses can remain infective even if they are outside the body for a few hours. Therefore, you can also catch a cold if you handle something that is contaminated with a cold virus—for example, the doorknob of a classroom or a restroom door—and then scratch your nose or rub your eyes with your contaminated fingers. The cold viruses can reach your nose when you rub your eyes because the virus can be passed down the tear ducts that go from the eyes into the nasal cavities.

PURPOSE The author’s purpose is to inform the reader about how cold viruses spread by presenting facts about the kinds of personal contact that can lead to infection. Explanation Primary purpose: A. to inform B. to persuade C. to entertain Personal contact is necessary for common cold viruses to spread. The viruses must get into the nose, where they can infect the nasal membranes. Inhaling contaminated droplets produced when someone else coughs or sneezes may be one way to catch a cold. Cold viruses can remain infective even if they are outside the body for a few hours. Therefore, you can also catch a cold if you handle something that is contaminated with a cold virus—for example, the doorknob of a classroom or a restroom door—and then scratch your nose or rub your eyes with your contaminated fingers. The cold viruses can reach your nose when you rub your eyes because the virus can be passed down the tear ducts that go from the eyes into the nasal cavities.

Sometimes a writer may blend two or even three purposes. In such cases, focus on the author’s primary purpose. Ask yourself, “What is the author’s main idea?” PURPOSE

TONE A writer’s tone reveals the attitude he or she has toward a subject. Tone is expressed through the words and details the writer selects.

TONE Below are three statements by students of a demanding teacher. Notice the differences in tone. She’s tough, but she’s also really good. I’ve learned more from her than I’ve learned from any other teacher. Tone: Fair, objective Yeah, I love her. Just like I love sleeping on a bed of nails or having bamboo slivers pushed under my fingernails. Tone: Sarcastic I might as well stop going to class now. I’m never going to understand the material. It’s hopeless. Tone: Pessimistic

TONE Here is another statement by a student of the demanding teacher. How would you describe the tone? She hates students, that’s all there is to it. I can’t wait until I’m out of her class.

Tone: bitter, angry TONE Here is another statement by a student of the demanding teacher. How would you describe the tone? She hates students, that’s all there is to it. I can’t wait until I’m out of her class.

Pages 261 to 263 in your textbook list more than eighty words that describe tone. TONE

What is the tone of each of the following statements? Wal-Mart is a fact of life. It’s going to hurt some people, but at least we’ll be able to buy a lot of things at lower prices. The tone is: A. indignant B. pleading C. accepting TONE Wal-Mart may create an economic underclass in our town. Its employees aren’t paid enough to live on, and they have very poor benefits. The tone is: A. optimistic B. worried C. threatening

What is the tone of each of the following statements? The writer’s concerns that Wal-Mart’s low wages and benefits may have a negative economic effect on the town suggests a worried tone. Explanation The writer’s statement that “Wal-Mart is a fact of life” indicates acceptance, as does her effort to balance the negative aspects with the benefit of lower prices. Explanation TONE Wal-Mart is a fact of life. It’s going to hurt some people, but at least we’ll be able to buy a lot of things at lower prices. The tone is: A. indignant B. pleading C. accepting Wal-Mart may create an economic underclass in our town. Its employees aren’t paid enough to live on, and they have very poor benefits. The tone is: A. optimistic B. worried C. threatening

A Note on Irony and Sarcasm One commonly used tone is irony. Irony involves a contrast between expectations and reality. TONE

Sarcasm is a form of verbal irony. In the three examples below, notice the contrast between what is said and what is actually meant. —A friend asks how you like your new boss. You reply, “He’s great. It’s refreshing to work for someone who has half my I.Q.” —You break up with your girlfriend, who becomes hysterical and slaps you. You say to yourself afterward, “I think she took that well.” —An instructor has an extremely cold, businesslike manner. You tell a classmate, “I really like the warmth and concern she shows her students.” Examples A Note on Irony and Sarcasm TONE

Irony also refers to situations that involve a contrast between what is expected or intended and what actually happens. In the two examples below, notice how what actually happens is contrary to what is expected or intended. —While fastening his seat belt to keep himself safe, a man loses control of his car and crashes. —Ludwig van Beethoven, perhaps the greatest composer who ever lived, became totally deaf and could not hear his own music. Examples A Note on Irony and Sarcasm TONE

What is the irony in the sign that a communication workshop will be “sometime tonight in a room upstairs”? A Note on Irony and Sarcasm TONE Frank and Ernest © by Thaves. All rights reserved.

What is the irony in the sign that a communication workshop will be “sometime tonight in a room upstairs”? A Note on Irony and Sarcasm TONE Frank and Ernest © by Thaves. All rights reserved. Explanation The irony is that the sign advertising a communication workshop fails to communicate just when and where the workshop will be.

CHAPTER REVIEW In this chapter, you learned that part of reading critically is to do the following: Be aware of an author’s purpose: the reason he or she writes. Three common purposes are to inform, to persuade, and to entertain. Be aware of tone—the expression of the author’s attitude and feeling about the subject. A writer’s tone might be objective—the case in most textbook writing—or it might be lighthearted, sympathetic, angry, affectionate, respectful, or any of the other tones shown on pages 261–263. One important tone to recognize is irony: saying one thing but meaning the opposite. The next chapter—Chapter 8—will explain another part of reading critically: recognizing an author’s point and evaluating the support for that point.