What Is Tone?

Have you ever told someone, ‘It’s not what you said but the way you said it’? Have you ever listened to a teenager utter words that, on the surface, seem perfectly innocent but in a way that makes you boiling mad? If so, you already know a lot about tone.

Tone expresses an author’s attitude toward his or her subject. In works of fiction, authors use tone to draw readers into stories, to arouse their emotions and interest and to guide their reactions to particular characters, plots and settings.

Types of Tone

An author’s tone is either objective or subjective. An objective tone, which is usually used for non-fiction writing, is neutral and factual. A subjective tone, on the other hand, expresses opinions, feelings and judgments and is usually used in fiction or in pieces that relate an author’s personal experiences.

A subjective tone can be any human emotion or attitude. Some possible tones include compassionate, serious, humorous, sentimental, suspenseful, nostalgic, comfortable, optimistic, pessimistic, critical, rejoicing, inquisitive, thoughtful, carefree, adventurous, intense and moralizing. This list doesn’t even come close to exhausting an author’s options when it comes to tone. Just think of how many different attitudes a person can take toward any given subject!

The Tools of Tone

Authors use several different tools to create and communicate their tone.

• They choose specific words to express the emotions they want to portray. For instance, an author who wants to describe a man walking through a graveyard might select the word ‘prowl’ to describe the man’s actions instead of the word ‘stroll,’ which paints a less-sinister picture.
• Authors arrange their words in a particular way to help communicate their tone. Notice the difference between ‘Bang! The door slammed shut,’ and ‘The door slammed shut with a bang.’ The former presents a more startling and intense tone than the latter.
• Details and imagery also help authors convey their attitudes toward their subjects. An author might, for instance, describe a black cat with glowing green eyes who slinks through the house on a mission known only to herself, or the author might write about a black cat lazily lounging in a sunbeam with eyes half closed. The first description presents a suspenseful tone while the second paints a comfortable, cozy picture.
• Figurative language, which compares dissimilar things to make a literary point, assists authors in communicating their tone. For instance, an author might describe a surprised child as having eyes as big as dinner plates. This kind of language creates a humorous tone while a description of a surprised child hiding behind her mother is more serious in tone.

The reader’s job is to identify an author’s tone by using the clues left by the author’s word choice and arrangement, details and imagery and figurative language.

Tone Practice

Let’s practice identifying an author’s tone by examining a few writing samples. In each one, the author describes the same room but uses a different tone to create and communicate a different attitude or emotion. Your answer choices for this exercise are ‘suspenseful,’ ‘humorous,’ ‘nostalgic’ and ‘critical.’

1. The bright room’s cozy nooks, slightly shabby furnishings and numerous knickknacks reminded the man of his grandmother’s home, where he had spent many happy hours.

• Which of the four tones did you select? If you said nostalgic, you’re right. Notice how the author added the detail about the man spending many happy hours at his grandmother’s house.

2. The first thing he noticed when he walked into the room was the shabby furniture that looked like it had seen better days. He squinted against the bright light pouring through the windows, unblocked by curtains, and frowned at the knickknacks scattered randomly throughout the room.

• The author is using a critical tone here. Pay special attention to word choices like ‘frowned’ and ‘seen better days.’

3. He edged his way into the room, unsure what he might discover. The shabby furnishings took on a slightly sinister air, and he wondered what might be hiding behind them. Even the numerous knickknacks seemed a bit threatening as he approached, as if they might jump out at him suddenly. The bright light glaring through the windows did nothing to ease his apprehension; in fact, it seemed to be trying to blind him.

• Did you answer suspenseful for this one? If so, you are correct. The author uses interesting imagery and a bit of figurative language to ramp up the suspense.

4. Half-blinded by the bright light beaming through the windows, he tripped into the room, bounced off of several pieces of shabby furniture, knocked a few knickknacks off their resting places and finally landed on the floor with a loud plunk.

• This sample is, of course, humorous. The author uses vivid words and details to pull a laugh out the reader.

Lesson Summary

Let’s review. Tone expresses an author’s attitude toward his or her subject. In works of fiction, authors use tone to draw readers into stories, to arouse their emotions and interest and to guide their reactions to particular characters, plots and settings.

An author’s tone is either objective or subjective. An objective tone is neutral and factual, while a subjective tone expresses opinions, feelings and judgments. Works of fiction typically use a subjective tone that can be any human emotion or attitude.

Authors use several different tools to create and communicate their tone. They choose specific words, arrange their words in a particular way, select appropriate details and imagery and employ figurative language, which compares dissimilar things to make a literary point. Readers must identify an author’s tone by using the clues left by the author’s word choice and arrangement, details and imagery and figurative language.

Now that you know something about tone, see if you can identify the author’s attitude and emotions in your favorite stories and books.