Sean Brown

Name: _____________________ Period: _______

CL SE ANALYZING TONE & MOOD

READING WITHIN A TEXT p. 1

Essential Terms

Tone: author’s attitude Mood: response or

or feelings toward the emotions created in the
audience and subject. reader of the text.

For common terms used to For common terms used to

describe tone, see appendix #1 describe mood, see appendix #2

Diction: Imagery: Fig. Lang.: Syntax

Choice of Use of Language Arrangement
words and language that that intends of words and
phrases for appeals to to differ from phrases for
an intended five physical the literal sentence
effect senses meaning structure

Analyzing Diction – Word Choice

Denotative Meaning Connotative Meaning
The literal meaning of a word, or dictionary The feelings or associations the audience
definition. Excludes imagination or has about a word. Impact can be
emotional response. negative/neutral/positive.

Example Denotation Example Connotation

The phrase: “You are a dog” literally In context of saying, “You are a dog.” to
translates, “You are a canine.” Canine is the another person, you imply negatively that
literal def. of “dog” they are ugly or dirty.

When analyzing diction, look for patterns within the connotations found within the
words used in the text. These patterns develop the tone and mood of the text.
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 Name: _____________________ Period: _______

CL SE ANALYZING TONE & MOOD

READING WITHIN A TEXT p. 1

Analyzing Mood and Tone Exercise

Follow the questions and guidelines below to analyze the text to identify its mood and tone
Your guidepost stands out like a tenfold beacon in the night: Duty, Honor, Country.
You are the leaven which binds together the entire fabric of our national system of defense. From your ranks come the great
captains who hold the Nation's destiny in their hands the moment the war tocsin sounds.
The long gray line has never failed us. Were you to do so, a million ghosts in olive drab, in brown khaki, in blue and gray,
would rise from their white crosses, thundering those magic words: Duty, Honor, Country.
This does not mean that you are warmongers. On the contrary, the soldier above all other people prays for peace, for he
must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war. But always in our ears ring the ominous words of Plato, that
wisest of all philosophers: "Only the dead have seen the end of war."
The shadows are lengthening for me. The twilight is here. My days of old have vanished - tone and tints. They have gone
glimmering through the dreams of things that were. Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears and coaxed
and caressed by the smiles of yesterday. I listen then, but with thirsty ear, for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing
reveille, of far drums beating the long roll.
In my dreams I hear again the crash of guns, the rattle of musketry, the strange, mournful mutter of the battlefield. But in
the evening of my memory I come back to West Point. Always there echoes and re-echoes: Duty, Honor, Country.
Today marks my final roll call with you. But I want you to know that when I cross the river, my last conscious thoughts will be
of the Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.
I bid you farewell. General Douglas MacArthur (Address to West Point)
ANALYZE DICTION
While reading the text, highlight red at least 10 words that have strong connotations and place them in the chart to help
identify the connotative pattern of the text.

Positive Connotation Negative Connotation

Duty, Honor, Country, Great, Magic, Witching, mournful, twilight, ominous

Wisest, Peace, twilight, glimmering,
wondrous, beauty, caressed

Is the overall connotative pattern positive, negative, or mixed? Explain:

I_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
feel as if most of the connotations were positive. The author is describing how much he loved West Point Academy.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Choose 3 of the most powerful words from the list and explain how they reveal the speaker and impact audience.

Word Speaker’s Tone Audience’s Mood

The mood of the audience is a sense of admiration for General
Duty His tone is as if he still has an obligation to West Point
Douglass McArthur
His tone is almost sad, as if he is slowly forgetting what he It makes that audience feel almost sorry for him because he is losing such
Glimmering
remembered. important memories
He uses the word wondrous but then also talks about being watered
Wondrous The word wondrous is meant to inspire awe in the reader
in tears, which makes it seem as if they are bittersweet memories.

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 Name: _____________________ Period: _______

CL SE ANALYZING TONE & MOOD

READING WITHIN A TEXT p. 2

Analyzing Mood and Tone Exercise

ANALYZE IMAGERY AND FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Identify 2 uses of imagery within the passage. Provide evidence from text.
Type Evidence From Text

Auditory "the strange, mournful mutter of the battlefield."

Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears and coaxed
Tactile
and caressed by the smiles of yesterday.

Identify 2 uses of figurative language in the passage. Provide evidence from the text.

Type Evidence From Text

Simile "Your guidepost stands out like a tenfold beacon in the night"
"But with thirsty ear, for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing
Metaphor
reveille, of far drums beating the long roll."
Describe the mood: Awe as well as sympathy

Describe the tone: Wistful

ANALYZE USE OF SYNTAX

IdentifyType
forms of syntax displayed in the text. Evidence From Text
Type: ________________:InEvidence:
my dreams I hear again the crash of guns, the rattle of musketry, the strange, mournful mutter of
______________________________________________________________________
Compound Complex
Type: ________________:theEvidence:
battlefield.
______________________________________________________________________
But I want you to know that when I cross the river, my last conscious thoughts will be
Compound Complex
Type: ________________: Evidence: ______________________________________________________________________
of the Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.

EXPLAIN THE GENERAL MOOD AND TONE

In a few sentences explain how the author’s tone within the text.
The author's tone is wistful and regretful, as if he is going to miss West Point Academy. He
capitalizes on the tone by talking about how he listens with thirsty ear.
In a few sentences explain how the mood created by the text.
The mood created by the text is one of upmost respect. I respected the man for his service and his
willingness to go back into the service.

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 WRITING ANALYZING TONE & MOOD
WITHIN A TEXT
EXERCISE
Analyzing Mood Writing Exercise
PROMPT: In this excerpt from Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s address to West Point, the speaker develops
a strong tone. Using relevant quotations and insightful commentary, write a paragraph in which you
explain how the speaker uses patterns of diction, imagery, figurative language, or syntax to create
the mood of the text.
Use this model paragraph and sentence starters as a guide. Write your paragraph on the following page.
(For the purposes of this paragraph use diction and choose 1 other from list within the prompt)

General MacArthur creates a _____________________ mood through distinct patterns of diction and
________________________. Words such as ___________________ and _________________(CD),
build this emotion within audience because _______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________(CM).
The words _____________________ and ___________________(CD) continue to fashion the mood of
the text because _____________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________(CM).
MacArthur’s use of __________________________ when he states, “__________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________(CD)”,
further develops the mood of _______________________ since it ____________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________(CM).
MacArthur maintains this mood through use of _________________________ within the statement,
“__________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________(CD).”
This creates the mood as it _____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________.

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 WRITING ANALYZING TONE & MOOD
WITHIN A TEXT
EXERCISE
Analyzing Mood Writing Exercise
PROMPT: In this excerpt from Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s address to West Point, the speaker develops
a strong tone. Using relevant quotations and insightful commentary, write a paragraph in which you
explain how the speaker uses patterns of diction, imagery, figurative language, or syntax to create
the mood of the text.
Use the model paragraph and sentence starters as a guide. Write your paragraph below.
(For the purposes of this paragraph use diction and choose 1 other from list within the prompt)

General MacArthur creates a respectful tone through distinct patterns of diction and his use of figurative language.
Words such as wondrous and beauty build this emotion in the reader because they show how even though the
conditions weren't ideal, MacArthur sees West Point as wondrous and beautiful. The words twilight and mournful
continue to fashion the mood because they allow the reader to see that while MacArthur is old, he regrets having to
leave, creating the pretense that if it weren't for age, he'd still be there. MacArthur's use of figurative language when
he states, "Your guidepost stands out like a tenfold beacon in the night," shows how he feels about the role of a West
Point Soldier. MacArthur continues the fabrication of the mood with the statement, "But in
the evening of my memory I come back to West Point. Always there echoes and re-echoes: Duty, Honor, Country."
This statement allows the reader once again to catch a glimpse of how MacArthur sees West Point. This creates the
mood as it combines with everything in the speech by making us not only proud to have such a man to have attended
West Point but also making us respectful of him at the same time. It can reasonably be argued that there are more
than one moods in this paragraph. With the same evidence, it can be reasoned that the tone of this paragraph is
wistful, or resigned. He has accepted the fact that he is too old to be a soldier, so now he guides the future in his path
.

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CL SE
READING
Common Words To Describe Tone
POSITIVE TONE
admiring adoring
affectionate appreciative
approving bemused
benevolent blithe calm
casual celebratory cheerful
comforting comic
compassionate
complimentary conciliatory
confident contented
delightful earnest ebullient
ecstatic effusive elated
empathetic encouraging
euphoric excited
exhilarated expectant
facetious fervent flippant
forthright friendly funny
gleeful gushy happy
hilarious hopeful humorous
interested introspective
jovial joyful laudatory light
lively mirthful modest
nostalgic optimistic
passionate placid playful
poignant proud reassuring
reflective relaxed respectful
reverent romantic sanguine
scholarly self-assured
sentimental serene silly
sprightly straightforward
sympathetic tender tranquil
whimsical wistful worshipful
zealous
Name: _____________________ Period: _______
ANALYZING TONE & MOOD
WITHIN A TEXT appendix 1
NEUTRAL TONE NEGATIVE TONE
commanding direct hostile impatient
impartial indirect meditative incredulous indifferent
objective questioning indignant inflammatory
speculative unambiguous insecure insolent irreverent
unconcerned understated lethargic melancholy
NEGATIVE TONE mischievous miserable
mocking mournful nervous
abhorring acerbic ominous outraged paranoid
ambiguous ambivalent pathetic patronizing
angry annoyed antagonistic pedantic pensive
anxious apathetic pessimistic pretentious
apprehensive belligerent psychotic resigned reticent
bewildered biting bitter sarcastic sardonic scornful
blunt bossy cold conceited self-deprecating selfish
condescending confused serious severe sinister
contemptuous curt cynical skeptical sly solemn
demanding depressed somber stern stolid
derisive derogatory stressful strident suspicious
desolate despairing tense threatening tragic
desperate detached uncertain uneasy unfriendly
diabolic disappointed unsympathetic upset
disliking disrespectful
violent wry
doubtful embarrassed
enraged evasive fatalistic
fearful forceful foreboding
frantic frightened frustrated
furious gloomy grave
greedy grim harsh haughty
holier-than-thou hopeless
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CL SE
READING
Common Words To Describe Mood
POSITIVE MOOD
amused awed bouncy
calm cheerful chipper
confident
contemplative content
determined dignified
dreamy ecstatic
empowered energetic
enlightened enthralled
excited exhilarated
flirty giddy grateful
harmonious hopeful
hyper idyllic joyous
jubilant liberating light-
hearted loving mellow
nostalgic optimistic
passionate peaceful
playful pleased
refreshed rejuvenated
relaxed relieved
satiated satisfied
sentimental silly
surprised sympathetic
thankful thoughtful
touched trustful
vivacious warm
welcoming
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Name: _____________________ Period: _______
ANALYZING TONE & MOOD
WITHIN A TEXT appendix 2
NEGATIVE MOOD
aggravated annoyed anxious
apathetic apprehensive
barren brooding cold
confining confused cranky
crushed cynical depressed
desolate disappointed
discontented distressed
drained dreary embarrassed
enraged envious exhausted
fatalistic foreboding frustrated
futile gloomy grumpy haunting
heartbroken hopeless hostile
indifferent infuriated insidious
intimidated irate irritated
jealous lethargic lonely
melancholic merciless moody
morose nauseated nervous
nightmarish numb
overwhelmed painful pensive
pessimistic predatory rejected
restless scared serious sick
somber stressed suspenseful
tense terrifying threatening
uncomfortable vengeful
violent worried