1. The Elements of VOICE
• Diction
• Detail
• Imagery
• Syntax
• Tone

2. - is the writer’s choice of words. It is the foundation
Elements of VOICE:
DICTION
- is the writer’s choice of words. It is the foundation
of voice, and contributes to all other elements.
EX:
Art is the antidote that can call us back from the edge of numbness . . .
~ Barbara Kingsolver, High Tide in Tucson

3. Develops a topic with facts, observations, incidents.
Elements of VOICE:
DETAIL
Develops a topic with facts, observations, incidents.
EX:
Until I returned to Cuba, I never realized how many blues exist. The aquamarines near the shoreline, the azures of deeper waters, the eggshell blues beneath my grandmother’s eyes, the fragile indigos tracking her hands . . .
~ Cristina Garcia, Dreaming in Cuban

4. - is the verbal representation of sense experience.
Elements of VOICE:
IMAGERY
- is the verbal representation of sense experience.
EX:
All the hedges are singing with yellow birds!
A boy runs by with lemons in his hands.
~ Rita Dove, “Notes from a Tunisian Journal”

5. Elements of VOICE:
SYNTAX
– is the grammatical structure of a sentence, controlling its focus and pace
EX:
The seven years’ difference in our ages lay between us like a chasm: I wondered if these years would ever operate between us as a bridge.
~ James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues”

6. an expression of attitude. Tone gives “personality” to voice.
Elements of VOICE:
TONE
an expression of attitude. Tone gives “personality” to voice.
EX:
Every hotshot in town wanted to be next to the astronaut . . .If you were one of the seven greatest pilots and seven bravest men in America, then obviously you must be fascinating to listen to.
~ Tom Wolfe, The Right Stuff