Tone, Style, & Genre
AP Lexicon, Part VIII
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TONE WORDS
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• The author’s attitude toward his material, the audience, or
both.
• The stylistic means by which an author conveys his/her attitude(s)
in a work of literature.
• Tone is an integral part of a work's meaning because it controls
the reader's response which is essential to fully experiencing
literature.
• In order to recognize tonal shift and to interpret complexities
of tone, the reader must be able to make inferences based on an
active reading of the work.
• Tone is easier to determine in spoken language than in written
language. Considering how a work would sound if it were read
aloud can help in identifying an author’s tone.
Tone
What?!
Well, who do they think puts all
their toys under the tree? …
That's... that's ridiculous.
I mean, parents couldn't do that
all in one night. What about
Santa's cookies? I suppose parents
eat them, too?
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Tone
• How the speaker feels,
the speaker’s attitude
Well, you know how
Freshmen are, with
their huge backpacks
and pool passes…
Mood
• How the text is intended
to make the audience feel
• The prevailing
Awww… I
atmosphere
or emotional
feel ashamed
aura ofanda insecure.
work. Setting,
snicker
tone, and
events can
snicker
affect the mood
Juniors and
Freshman
Seniors
Tone vs. Mood
snicker
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• The contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is
really meant, or the difference between what appears to
be and what is actually true.
• All about contrast, difference
• Not coincidence!
• Creates humor or poignancy
Irony
"Irony is a kind of
winking at each other,
as we all understand
the game of meaning
reversal that is being
played.” - Barry
Brummett
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1. verbal irony – when the words literally state the opposite
of the writer’s (or speaker’s) meaning
•
“The muse of poetry / Should not know / The roses / In
manure grow.”
2. situational irony – when events turn out the opposite of
what was expected; when what the characters and readers
think ought to happen is not what does happen
•
“The Gift of the Magi” – husband and wife give up their
prized possessions to buy their spouses accessory for
prized possession
3. dramatic irony – when facts or events are unknown to a
character in a play or piece of fiction but known to the
reader, audience, or other characters in the work.
•
Aladdin: Aladdin and Jasmine – “Sometimes you just feel
so… trapped.”
Three Types of Irony
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Definition
Examples
• From the Greek meaning “to tear
flesh”
• Bitter, caustic language that is
meant to hurt or ridicule someone
or something.
• "Oh, a sarcasm detector.
That’s a really useful
invention!"
(Comic Book Guy, The
Simpsons)
•
It may use irony as a device, but
not all ironic statements are
sarcastic (that is, intended to
ridicule).
• When well done, sarcasm can be
witty and insightful; when poorly
done, it is simply cruel.
Sarcasm
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STYLE
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• An evaluation of the sum of the choices an author
makes in blending diction, syntax, figurative language,
and other literary devices.
• Analyze and describe an author’s personal style and make
judgments on how appropriate it is to the author’s purpose.
• Styles can be called flowery, explicit, succinct, rambling,
bombastic, commonplace, incisive, laconic, etc.
Style
I waited five hours for you. Why is your
coat so big? So, good news... I saw a dog
today. Have you seen a dog? You
probably have. How was school? Was it
fun? Did you get a lot of homework, huh?
Do you have any friends? Do you have a
best friend? Does he have a big coat,
too?
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• Quality of a piece of
writing in which all
the parts contribute to
the development of
the central idea,
theme, or organizing
principle
• Create it in your
writing
• Identify the
organizing principle
and unity of works
you read (Woman
Warrior)
Coherence, Unity
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Definition
Effects
• The movement of a
literary piece from one
point or one section to
another
• Fast paced texts: urgency,
excitement
• Slow paced texts: didactic,
deliberate
• Sometimes creates
juxtapositions
• Three years of silence 
bullying girl in bathroom
• Pacing at the beginning of
Elf
Pacing
• Buddy playing basketball
• Buddy’ jock strap
• Buddy hitting head
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Definition
Examples
• From the Greek, didactic
literally means
“teaching.”
• Didactic texts have the
primary aim of teaching
or instructing, especially
the teaching of moral or
ethical principles.
• “Read not to contradict and
confute; nor to believe and
take for granted; nor to find
talk and discourse; but to
weigh and consider. Some
books are to be tasted,
others to be swallowed, and
some few to be chewed and
digested” – Sir Francis
Bacon
Didactic
THE BEST WAY
TO SPREAD
CHRISTMAS
CHEER IS
SINGING LOUD
FOR ALL TO
HEAR!
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Definition
Examples
• The multiple meanings,
either intentional or
unintentional, of a word,
phrase, sentence, or
passage.
• “I can't tell you how
much I enjoyed meeting
your husband.”
• The speaker’s stand in the
“Whiskey Speech”
Ambiguity
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Definition
• Uses long complicated
sentences, elaborate
figures of speech,
parallelism, uncommon
allusions, and diction
You have a very pretty face!
You should be on a Christmas
card!
Ornate
Example
“Of Mans First Disobedience, and the Fruit
Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal taste
Brought Death into the World, and all our
woe,
With loss of Eden, till one greater Man
Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat,
Sing Heav'nly Muse, that on the secret top
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire
That Shepherd, who first taught the chosen
Seed,
In the Beginning how the Heav'ns and Earth
Rose out of Chaos…” – John Milton
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Definition
Examples
• Songlike; characterized
by emotions, subjectivity,
and imagination
• “She said I would grow up a
wife and a slave…
…
The call would come from a
bird that flew over our
roof… The bird would cross
the sun and lift into the
mountains… there parting
the mist briefly that swirled
opaque again…
…
My American life has been
such a disappointment.”
Lyrical
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Definition
Examples
• The quality or state of
appearing to be true
• When art attempts to
reflect reality
• Kingston’s depiction of
the conditions inside the
family’s laundry, as
opposed to her
descriptions of Ts’ai
Yen’s lifestyle.
Verisimilitude
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Definition
Terms
• The emotional nod
created by the entirety of
a literary work
• “I had tried to get out of that
cabin many a time, but I
couldn't find no way. There
warn't a window to it big
enough for a dog to get
through. I couldn't get up
the chimbly; it was too
narrow. The door was thick,
solid oak slabs.” – Mark
Twain
• setting
• the author’s choice of
objects that are described
• weather
• Frequently atmosphere
foreshadows events or
creates a mood.
Atmosphere
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GENRES
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• The major category into which
a literary work fits.
• Basic divisions of literature are
prose, poetry, and drama.
• Prose can be divided into fiction
(novels and short stories) or nonfiction
(essays, biographies, autobiographies,
etc.).
• In prose the printer determines the length
of the line; in poetry, the poet determines
the length of the line.
• Poetry can be divided into lyric,
dramatic, narrative, epic, etc.
• Drama can be divided into tragedy,
comedy, melodrama, farce, etc.
Genre
• On the AP language exam,
expect the majority of the
passages to be from the
following genres:
autobiography, biography,
memoirs, diaries, criticism,
essays, and journalistic,
political, scientific, and nature
writing.
• There is very rarely, but
occasionally, fiction or poetry.
• generic conventions – This
term describes traditions for
each genre.
We Elves try to stick
to the four basic
food groups: Candy,
candy canes, candy
corns and syrup.
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• A symbolic story
• Symbol – something that
represents itself and something
else
• A story that can be read on two
levels
• The allegorical meaning usually
deals with moral truth or a
generalization about human
existence.
• Example: Pilgrim’s Progress
Allegory
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Definition
• This term literally
means “sermon,” but
more informally, it
can include any
serious talk, speech,
or lecture involving
moral or spiritual
advice.
Homily
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• The telling of a story
or an account of an
event or series of
events.
• Your job is to
determine why the
speaker chose to use
the narrative form.
Narrative
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• A work that closely imitates the style or
content of another with the specific aim
of comic effect and/or ridicule.
• It exploits peculiarities of an author’s
expression (propensity to use too many
parentheses, certain favorite words, etc.)
Parody
• Well-written parody offers
enlightenment about the
original, but poorly written
parody offers only
ineffectual imitation.
• Usually an audience must
grasp literary allusion and
understand the work being
parodied in order to fully
appreciate the nuances of 23
the newer work.
• A work that targets human
vices and follies or social
institutions and conventions
for reform or ridicule.
• Satire is best seen as a style
of writing rather than a
purpose for writing.
• Often humorous, is thought
provoking and insightful
about the human condition.
Satire
Satirical devices: irony,
wit, parody, caricature,
hyperbole, understatement,
and sarcasm.
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• Romantic
• Includes
remote/imaginative
instances
• Coincidences
• Gothic
• Includes medieval,
wild, or mysterious
elements
• Often dark or macabre
• Realism
• Presentation of details
of actual life
I passed through the
seven levels of the Candy
Cane forest, through the
sea of swirly twirly gum
drops, and then I walked
through the Lincoln
Tunnel.
Common Genres
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