Please use your Attitude Word handout pg. 59 to determine the tone of the following passages. More than one tone might apply.
Next, choose either passage 1 or 4 and apply the Close Reading techniques you learned from the video. Write a well written paragraph on your analysis.
1. "...I don't miss them now - don't get me wrong. But I do, just sometimes, miss the time when the place I called home had so much wrong with it that what kept it from falling apart was the joke all around it. And I do, just sometimes, miss my state of mind, an easier dimension then, that allowed me to laugh at the thought of gigantic, mutant roaches living in my linen closet..."
2. "Jim Foxx, who convinced millions of the benefits of exercise in his book running, died a few months ago while jogging in Vermont."
3. "They sued him on trumped-up charges and convicted him in a kangaroo court, and they burned his home to the ground while the fire department stood around watching the flames consume the night. Was this justice? No. It was racism."
4. "I returned to Rainy Mountain in July. My grandmother had died in the spring, and I wanted to be at her grave... My grandmother had a reverence for the sun, a holy regard that is now all but gone out of mankind... I remember her most at prayer. She was the strength of the family. She had at last succeeded to that holy ground."
1. Mocking, matter-of-fact
ReplyDelete2. Comical
3. Accusatory
4. Sentimental, reminiscent, spiritual
Passage 4:
The author of this passage uses a reverent tone when describing his deceased grandmother. He shows the reader the values and priorities his grandmother had for the spiritual by saying, “my grandmother had a reverence for the sun, a holy regard that is now all but gone out of mankind.” It is clear that the he appreciated the rare and disappearing values his grandmother adhered to. His grandmother’s strong faith is revealed when he describes remembering “her most at prayer.” The author clearly respects his grandmother and, by calling her the “strength of the family”, alludes to the entire family acknowledging her wisdom. Finally, the author reviles that he shares the same beliefs as his grandmother by referencing her succession into holy ground; this statement infers that the author believes in ‘holy ground” and the spiritual nuances throughout the passage. Overall, the author uses a sentimental and reminiscent tone to convey the deep and influential impact his grandmother had on his and others lives.
Tone answers 1 and 2 are incorrect. See if you can figure them out. Ask yourself, "If the author were telling me this story, what tone of voice would they be speaking in, how would I describe their attitude"?
DeleteYour essay is excellent. I'm guessing you meant to use reveals instead of reviles.
1. facetious, mocking, derision
ReplyDelete2. ironic, mirthful
3. incredulous, indignant
4. reminiscent, reverent, spirtual
Passage 4
The speaker in this passage returns to his grandmother's grave and recalled certain things he remembered the most about her. His tone of reminisce is shown throughout the passage as a whole. He revisits his grandmother's grave in order to have some memory of her now that she is no longer here. The author speaks of his grandmother's reverence for the sun and that she was the strength of the family. In these statements, he has a tone of reverence for the grandmother herself. The author and his family honored and respected the grandmother so much because she was the strength of the family. He also highlights the facts that mankind no longer holds a holy regard for the sun like his grandmother does. This shows his reverence for her and the rare qualities she possessed. In the last line of the passage, the author's tone is spiritual because he believes that his grandmother has now succeeded to the holy ground. This shows that he doesn't believe that his grandmother is now completely gone, but rather has continued on to a life elsewhere.
You got 2-4 correct. You explain well how the content reveals the tone of reverence, but how does the use of specific words, "diction", reveal the tone? On AP tests, unless specifically asked, be careful to stay away from summarizing events in the story.
Delete1. Reminiscent, disdainful, contemplative
ReplyDelete2. Matter-of-fact, ironic
3. Disgusted, outraged, indignant
4. Reverent, meditative
The narrator of the passage is reminiscing about their childhood home and putting emphasis on the differences between their present life and their previous one. They obviously came from a poorer family by the description of their house—“home had so much wrong with it” and “falling apart”—but did not know anything was wrong until they had grown into adulthood and reflected on it from a different perspective. Indeed, the narrator says, “…my state of mind, an easier dimension then,” stating that their perspective on life and their situation was incredibly simple, much more so than the narrator’s of the present. Rather than horror and disgust, they can think of massive cockroaches or of their dilapidated house, and joke and laugh about them. While they do not miss the circumstances inspiring them, the narrator does envy heir younger self for their uncomplicated, optimistic view of the world.
All of your tone responses are correct. Excellent job! Great essay.
Delete