Analyzing an Author’s Style Part 1 Diction Pace Tone Figures of Speech

Sounds boring. Sell me on it. Analyzing (breaking down) an author’s style means to NAME what that author does. We cannot compare unless we can define. We cannot evaluate unless we can compare. We cannot know or understand or form real conclusions unless we can compare.

Sounds boring. Sell me on it. Review: Tell me about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s speaking STYLE. ____________________________ Tell me about Donald Trump’s speaking style. Tell me about President Obama’s speaking style. How are they different and why does it matter?

Sounds boring. Sell me on it. Not there yet? Forget English for a minute, and think for a few minutes about a coach or a team’s STYLE of play at any level in any sport. Write a few quick bullet notes about how one can ANALYZE a team’s or a coach’s style.

Our elements of analysis Diction: the patterns of word choice used by an author to create mood and atmosphere in a text Formal, informal, colloquial, playful, cerebral, eloquent, poetic, et cetera Sentence Structure: types used, length, patterns emerging, interruptions, fragments Expansive or Economic?

Read the following excerpt from a short story “The School” by Donald Barthelme: “And the trees all died. They were orange trees. I don’t know why they died, they just died. Something wrong with the soil possibly or maybe the stuff we got from the nursery wasn’t the best. We complained about it. So we’ve got thirty kids there, each kid had his or her own little tree to plant and we’ve got these thirty dead trees. All these kids looking at these little brown sticks, it was depressing.”

Read the following example from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” How are these two passages different in terms of diction?

Our elements of analysis Pace: Essentially the “speed” with which the narrative proceeds Is there a focus on description (setting, atmosphere, character)? This often leads to a slower text. Is there a focus on plot or movement? This often leads to a faster text.

Our elements of analysis Tone: Yes, I know that this is review for all of you. Tone is generally the author’s attitude about the content of a literary work and the mood she/he creates to help deliver that attitude. Does the author seem: sarcastic? Aggressive? Wistful? Pessimistic? In love? Philosophically detached? Hopeful? Ironic? Bitter? (And so on...)

Our elements of analysis Figures of Speech: Are there any metaphors, similes, or symbols? Are there any other uses of figurative language (personification, metonymy, and so on)? Word Color / Sound: This overlaps with diction How much does the language call attention to or depend on the quality of its sound, e.g. through alliteration, assonance, consonance, dissonance, rhythm, unusual word choice, and so on?

Review 1.Diction Word choice (color / sound too) Sentence structure Expansive or economic 2.Pace Fast or slow depending on focus 3.Tone Break out the adjectives to define the writer’s attitude 4.Figures of Speech Metaphor, simile, or symbols