Tone, Style, and Figurative Language

Tone, style, and figurative language are all ways in which an author expresses him or herself. These are terms that we use as readers to describe the ways in which an author changes the meaning of a passage through specific techniques. It may seem pointless to even care about how an author is writing something, but this kind of analysis is critical in improving your ability to communicate your ideas in clear and creative ways! For this reason, many standardized tests (and classes) will test you on how well you can understand the use of figurative language.

Importantly, you need to understand the ideas of:

1. Mood
2. Tone
3. Point of View
4. Figurative Language: similes, metaphors, hyperboles, imagery, irony, personification, etc.

Many students are already familiar with these terms from their English classes, but let’s take a minute to define each of these clearly.

• Mood - the atmosphere throughout the passage as a result of the author’s choice of words.
• Tone - the author’s attitude and feelings towards a subject as communicated by their word choice.
• Point of View - the position from which the author communicates information or a story, often first or third person.
• Figurative Language - language that does not mean precisely what it says.
  • Simile - a comparison using “like” or “as.”
  • Metaphor - a figure of speech that is not literally true or applicable. For example, “he was a rock star during his class presentation.”
  • Hyperbole - an over exaggeration.
  • Imagery - words and phrases that appeal to the senses.
  • Irony - using words to convey a meaning that is opposite to their literal meaning.
  • Personification - giving nonhuman things human characteristics.

Some questions for tone, style, and figurative language could be phrased as:

• "The overall tone of the passage suggests…"
• "The style of this passage is…"
• "The language in lines 10-15 suggests…"

Consider the following sample passage:

A question that asks about the tone, style, or figurative language of this passage could be:

1. The overall tone of the passage is

(A) one of diffidence and infatuation.
(B) one of veneration and admiration.
(C) one of hostility and playfulness.
(D) one of respect and satire.

The first thing to remember is that tone refers to the author’s attitude towards the subject. This means that we are being asked about the author’s opinion towards the subject matter in the passage.

Since this question asks about the passage as a whole, we must consider how the tone is the same throughout and how it shifts in meaning during the passage.

There are only two paragraphs to analyze in the whole passage:

1. The first paragraph (lines 1-42) introduces Rodin the sculptor as a contemporary Frenchman to Claude Monet and Zola (a great French artist and a great French writer). It describes how Rodin failed out of art school, but studied with great sculptors. Rodin worked harder and worked through difficulty when his sculptures were refused. The tone of the author is most clear when the author states “he has proved a upas tree for lesser artists - he has deflected, or else absorbed them.” This means that the author believes that Rodin is significantly better than every other artist and he has no comparison.
2. The second paragraph praises Rodin’s ability to capture light in his sculptures. In particular, this paragraph focuses on how Rodin wants to leave imperfection in the sculpture so that light can be deformed and play with our expectations. The author states that “Rodin can chisel a smooth nymph, if he so wills, but her flesh will ripple and run in the sunlight.” This shows that the author understands that Rodin is capable of following the rules, but chooses to break them for a greater artistic purpose.

The first paragraph focuses most heavily on how Rodin became an incredible sculptor and is better than any other sculptor of his time.

The second paragraph focuses most heavily on how beautiful Rodin’s sculptures are due to their playing with light.

Both paragraphs have an incredibly positive view on Rodin as a sculptor and artist. Therefore, we are looking for adjectives that mean respect, admiration, and appreciation.

Now, we must find an answer choice which highlights only positive aspects of Rodin:

(A) This is incorrect because diffidence means shyness and infatuation means a short-lived obsessiveness, which are both negative words.
(B) Veneration means great respect or adoration, while admiration means respect and warm approval. Both of these words are incredibly positive and align with the author’s attitude towards the subject matter. This is most likely the correct answer!
(C) Hostility is an incredibly negative word meaning unfriendliness, while playfulness is positive, it also doesn’t really fit. Therefore, C is incorrect as well.
(D) Respect is one of the words that we highlighted earlier, so this could be correct! However, satire is humor that is used to ridicule or criticize others, which this author definitely does not do.

This means that of all the answer choices, only B is correct!

Remember to develop a sense of what all the figurative language terms are and how they present themselves in passages and questions. Figurative language extends well beyond what you are tested on for the ISEE and offers you expressive capabilities in your own language. Be sure to master these concepts now and you’ll be set for high school and beyond!

Practice Questions

Answers to Practice Questions

1. C
2. D
3. C
4. B