This document discusses tone in literature and how to identify an author's tone. It defines tone as the author's attitude toward the subject. Tone is revealed through the language and word choices used. Two short passages are analyzed to demonstrate how tone can be inferred from descriptive words that create a feeling. Students are provided with a list of common tone words to expand their vocabulary. The document encourages practicing identifying tone and concludes with a short activity and quiz.

1. Tone
…to support the author’s purpose

2. Objectives
 Understand and recognize tone in a
literature

3. Take 30 Seconds…
 If you were to tell a student “watch your
tone”, or “that tone is not appropriate” or
“don’t use that tone with me”… what are
you really referring to?
– Write your answer in your journal or on a
sheet of paper. You will need to show this to
the teacher.

4. TONE
TONE is simply the author’s attitude
toward the subject.
-You may want to write this definition on your
handout/journal/paper.
You can recognize the tone/attitude by the
language/word choices the author uses.
Their language will reveal their
perspective/opinion (that is, whether it is
positive/negative) about the subject.
Tone must be inferred through the use of
descriptive words.

5. Tone Example #1
The girls were playing in the pond, splashing each other
and trying to catch fish with their hands. They were having
fun, but kept looking over their shoulders at the looming
forest. The long grass of the field kept moving and they sort
of felt like they were being watched… About a half hour
passed and still the girls kept checking the field for
movements. It seemed like a pair of dark eyes was on
them. They even considered going back inside, but that
would mean homework time. So they continued splashing,
but with caution now. Their eyes hardly left the field.
What is the overall tone of this passage?
What words helped you to figure out the tone?
- Write your answer in your journal/paper.

6. TONE
 A possible tone of this passage is
ominous, suggesting a little bit of fear
or foreboding.
 Words like "caution, dark, and looming“
lead readers to the tone.

7. TONE EXAMPLE #2
Finally, one of the girls pointed to the grass and
giggled. "Meow!" A cat sat on the edge of the
field and licked its paw. They did indeed have
company. The girls ran over to the cat and pet
his belly. They laughed and the cat sauntered
back to the field.
What is the overall tone of this passage?
What words helped you to figure out the tone?
- Write your answer in your journal or paper.

8. TONE
 The tone of this passage is
happy/playful as there was a
successful, happy resolution to the
problem. Words like, “belly” and
“giggled” were used.

9. TONE
Identifying the TONE is all about knowing
the definitions of many descriptive
vocabulary words. Without this large
vocabulary, it’s difficult to describe outside
of “good” and “bad.”
For reference, you are receiving a handout
with a list of common tone/mood words to
help expand your vocabulary.

10. TONE
So, let’s TONE our brain muscles with
some words of tone.
 Bitter
 Serious
 Witty
 Playful
 Tender
 Sympathetic
 Haunting
 Mysterious
 Suspenseful
 Tasteful/distasteful
 Nonchalant
 Angry
 Attached/Detached
 Innocent
 Poignant
 Compassionate
 Humorous
 Gore-y

11. Tone: “A Gift in His Shoes”
Donovan and Larry were early for baseball
practice. They decided to run up and down the
bleachers to exercise before the rest of the team
arrived.
Larry was first to the top. He whispered to
Donovan, “Look over there.” He pointed to a man
sleeping on the highest, narrow bench of the
bleachers. His pants and shirt were faded, worn,
and too large for his thin frame. One big toe stuck
out of a huge hole in his sock. His scraped-up
shoes sat a few feet away.
Donovan whispered, “We should help him out.
Let’s hide something good in his shoes. Then,
when he wakes up, he will have a nice surprise.”

12. Tone: “A Gift in His Shoes”
How would you describe the tone [attitude]
of this author? Write your answer down.
a. Angry
b. Detached
c. Sympathetic
Evidence?

13. NOW WHAT
Complete the Tone Activity given to you.

14. Let’s test your knowledge
1. The tone of a story is…
a) the attitude b)the emotional feeling created
c) always happy d) none of the above

15. Let’s test your knowledge-
ANSWERS
 On the bottom of your practice handout, use
the blank space to answer the following
questions.
1. The tone of a story is…
a) the attitude (the author has towards a subject)