Tone.

Hello everyone and welcome to another #theorythursday. Last week I talked about who the antagonist in the story is, so check that out if you haven’t already. 

Today I am going to be talking about the tone of a work. 

So let’s dive into Theory Thursday. 

What is tone? 

If I am talking about the tone of a particular work, I am referring to what mood I think the author is trying to put across based on certain choices they make. The tone of a work can also refer to how the text makes the reader feel. Many things impact the tone of a work, for example the writer’s word choice is very important because certain words can make us react differently. 

For example, if I were to say that I dislike something, I think that gives off a very different tone compared to if I were to say that something disgusts me. Dislike and disgust are two very different things, disgust is a much stronger emotion so if I were to use stronger word choices then the tone will be much more intense. 

Why is tone important? 

Tone, like all aspects of literary theory, is important because having an understanding of tone will only enhance your reading experience, and if one is discussing a work then it is important to be able to articulate what sort of tone you think the author was trying to establish. The tone of a piece can also be open to interpretation because you may base your opinion on the piece’s tone on how the piece made you feel. If a piece made you sad, or moved you in some way, then you may suggest that the author was presenting a tone that was sad and poignant, and you could suggest that the author’s intention was to move readers. 

This has been Theory Thursday. I hope you all enjoyed it. Happy Friday Eve. 

Kate xo.