Reading Comprehension : Tone

Tones

A tone is the attitude of the author towards the central idea.Since it is the author's attitude the tone to a large extent depends on the mood of the author.

Tones can be classified as follows :

• Positive
• Negative
• Neutral

Neutral tone :  is also called as an unbiased , objective or disinterested tone.
[please note there is a difference between disinterested and uninterested ; the former refers to neutral while the latter refers to not interested]
ambivalence : The coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings, such as love and hate, toward a person, object, or idea
dispassionate : Devoid of or unaffected by passion

Positive tones : here are a few of them :

• positive : when the author feels good about the present situation
• optimistic : when this feel good factor is for the future than the tone is optimistic
• guarded optimism
• advisory : [The world can learn a lot from the example of Switzerland , go small , decentralize]
• euphemistic : a subtle way of saying something harsh [ A gossip is nothing but merely exchanging information]
• motivational
• didactic :  Intended to instruct [eg. the kind of tone the author's have in self improvement books]
• moralistic
• pedagogic : Characterized by a narrow, often ostentatious concern for book learning and formal rules
• assertive
• passionate
• nostalgic
• surprise
• critical appreciation

Negative :

• Paradox : it is opposite fo what one expects to happen [All great truths begin as blasphemies]
• scepticism : unsure [Even the most die hard Indian would be wearied by the current stream of flattering news on India in the English press,especially when he realises how much of the current euphoria may be due to the good monsoons we have had this year.]
• pessimism : the tendency to expect the worst and see the worst in all things [We have seen too much defeatism, too much pessimism, too much of a negative approach]
• condescending : Displaying a patronizingly superior attitude [eg. The independent investor's desire to play individual stocks may well worry some market veterans, but that smacks a little of Wall Street's usual condescending attitude toward small investors]
• flippant : Marked by disrespectful levity or casualness
• superficial / artificial
• acerbic : bitter
• caustic : bitter
• harshly critical
• indignation : Anger aroused by something unjust
• agony
• irony : The use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning

eg. Woman: I started riding these trains in the forties. Those days a man would give up his seat for a woman. Now we're liberated and we have to stand.Elaine: It's ironic.
Woman: What's ironic?
Elaine: This, that we've come all this way, we have made all this progress, but you know we've lost the little things, the niceties.
Woman: No, I mean what does ironic mean?
Elaine: Oh.

• pungent : to the point , sharp
• prosaic : Lacking in imagination and spirit
• exaggeration
• cynical : a person who believes the worst about everyone [He is a cynic – he thinks no-one is really unselfish]
• disparaging : To reduce in esteem or rank
• sardonic : Scornfully or cynically mocking
• spiteful : malicious
• rude
• scathing :  Harmful or painful
• critical
• shock
• sophistry : A plausible but misleading or fallacious argument [eg. The Pachuria committee was accused of sophistry.]
• acidic

Humour
facetious : Playfully jocular; humorous
satire : A literary work in which human vice or folly is attacked through irony, derision, or wit [serials like 'Office Office' , R.K.Laxman is a satirist]
sarcastic [Because America's 'vital national interest' were not considered imperiled by mere genocide ,senior US officials did not give genocide the moral attention it warranted.]
witty : characterized by clever humour or wit
mocking : To treat with ridicule or contempt
tongue in check :
banter : Good-humored, playful conversation
spoof : A gentle satirical imitation

The list would continue ..........