Explain how to identify the speaker's tone in a passage and provide two strategies to cite textual evidence for tone.

Explain how to identify the speaker's tone in a passage and provide two strategies to cite textual evidence for tone.

• A. Tone is the author’s attitude toward subject or reader; strategies: track diction, imagery, and details; then quote lines with page/line citations.
• B. Tone is the setting's mood; strategies: count syllables and meter.
• C. Tone is the narrator's physical health; strategies: measure pacing.
• D. Tone is the plot's main conflict; strategies: summarize events.

Answer: (C)

Tone is the author's attitude toward the subject or the reader, conveyed through the choice of words and the details the writer emphasizes. To identify it, start with the language itself: the connotations of the diction, the images invoked, and which details are highlighted or ignored reveal how the author feels about the topic. Two solid strategies for citing textual evidence include: first, track diction, imagery, and details and quote specific lines that show the attitude—note the exact phrases that carry positive or negative connotations and provide page/line citations to support the tone you infer. Second, examine sentence structure and rhythm—the length, punctuation, and emphasis of sentences shape the mood; point to lines where the cadence or punctuation underlines the tone and quote those lines to back up your conclusion.

Tone is the author's attitude toward the subject or the reader, conveyed through the choice of words and the details the writer emphasizes. To identify it, start with the language itself: the connotations of the diction, the images invoked, and which details are highlighted or ignored reveal how the author feels about the topic.

Two solid strategies for citing textual evidence include: first, track diction, imagery, and details and quote specific lines that show the attitude—note the exact phrases that carry positive or negative connotations and provide page/line citations to support the tone you infer. Second, examine sentence structure and rhythm—the length, punctuation, and emphasis of sentences shape the mood; point to lines where the cadence or punctuation underlines the tone and quote those lines to back up your conclusion.