Tone/Word Choice
Question: Read the following sentence:
"The chilly, misty morning offered a gloomy and ominous backdrop to the old, deserted house."
What word/s most strongly contribute to a negative or foreboding tone?
Gloomy or ominous
Identify the type of figurative language used in the following sentence: "The wind howled its mournful song outside the window."
Personification (giving the non-human wind the human action of "howling" and the human quality of a "song").
An author writes a historical fiction novel about a key event, like the Great Depression, but changes the names of the real people involved. What two deeper purposes is the author likely attempting to achieve besides simply informing or entertaining?
To Humanize the historical experience (making history relatable through character stories) and to Commemorate or Honor the people who lived through that time.
If you are trying to figure out the meaning of an unfamiliar word in a sentence, what strategy are you using when you read the surrounding sentences for clues?
Context Clues
What is the difference between a story's topic (what the story is about) and its theme (the central idea or message)?
The topic is the subject matter (e.g., war, friendship, revenge). The theme is the message or insight the author shares about that topic (e.g., War leads to inevitable loss or True friendship requires sacrifice).
Question: What is the most evident tone in this passage, and which specific words (adjectives or verbs) help establish it?
Passage: "With a hasty glance at the clock, he bolted out the door, shoving the crumpled note into his pocket. He couldn't be late again; the consequences were too severe."
The tone is anxious or urgent. Words like "hasty," "bolted," and the phrase "couldn't be late again; the consequences were too severe" all contribute to this tone.
Explain the meaning of the metaphor in the following sentence: "The library was a cavern of silence, filled with stacks of knowledge."
The metaphor means that the library is a large, enclosed space ("cavern") that is very quiet ("of silence"). The comparison emphasizes the vastness and profound stillness of the library.
Passage: A short story is written about a society that uses social media likes to determine a person's worth, leading to widespread unhappiness and conformity.
Question: What is the author's primary purpose in writing this story, and what is the technical term for using fiction to critique societal problems?
The primary purpose is To Criticize or To Warn (specifically, about the dangers of social media obsession and superficiality). The technical term is Social Commentary (or Satire, if the criticism is delivered through humor/exaggeration).
he UNRWRAP test-taking strategy stands for: Underline, Number, Read for funsies, Write, Read for comprehension, Answer, Prove. What does the W (Write) step typically involve doing?
Write usually involves writing the question/prompt in your own words or writing a short hypothesis/plan next to the question before reading the passage.
Question: Read the following summary:
"A young student spends months studying for a test, sacrificing their free time and sleep, but ultimately fails. They learn that their mental health is more important than a single grade."
What is the main theme conveyed by this summary?
The main theme is that mental health and well-being are more valuable than success or achievement (or, Balance is necessary for success).
Question: A writer is describing a vast, ancient forest. Consider these two options for a sentence:
Option A: The trees were big, and the shadows were dark.
Option B: The gargantuan oaks loomed, casting inscrutable shadows.
Which option (A or B) establishes a more formal and mysterious tone, a
*Double points*: What is the technical term for the difference in word choice between the two?
The technical term for the difference in word choice is diction (or levels of diction). The words "gargantuan" and "inscrutable" are more specific and sophisticated (higher/more formal diction) than "big" and "dark" (simpler/more common diction).
Read the following quote: "I’ve told you to put your phone away a million times!" What is the effect of the hyperbole (exaggeration) in this statement? Does it suggest the speaker is frustrated, playful, or sad?
The effect is to emphasize the speaker's frustration or exasperation. The exaggeration is used to stress how frequently the speaker has made the same request.
A children's story uses talking animals and simple conflicts (like a wise owl guiding a selfish fox) to teach a lesson about sharing and community. If the author's ultimate goal is to educate children on complex moral ideas in an accessible way, what literary device is being used to achieve this purpose?
Allegory (or Fable). This device allows the author to convey a deep, often moral, message using simple characters and events, making the complex idea easily digestible for a younger audience.
You are writing an essay and have to combine information from three separate sources—a poem, a historical article, and an interview—to form a new, unified argument. What key ELA skill is required to successfully combine and relate these diverse sources?
Synthesizing (or Synthesis). This is the skill of taking separate ideas and combining them to form a new, complete whole.
In a story where the main character battles a dishonest corporation for control of their town, the primary external conflict is Person vs. Society. What is a likely theme that could arise from this type of conflict?
A likely theme is that standing up for one's beliefs against powerful forces is necessary (or, Corruption must be challenged or The individual can fight injustice).
Question: How does the tone shift after the word "However," and what is the connotation of the word "secure" in the context of the campsite?
Passage: The explorer, weary but determined, finally reached the summit. The valley below was a magnificent tapestry of green and gold, bathed in the soft, nurturing light of the afternoon sun. However, his joy vanished when he spotted a single plume of smoke rising from what he knew to be his previously secure campsite.
Tone Shift: The tone shifts from reverent, peaceful, or admiring (before "However") to alarmed, disturbed, or disappointed (after "However").
Connotation of "secure": It connotes that the campsite was previously safe, protected, or free from danger, implying that its safety has now been threatened.
Question: An oxymoron is a combination of two contradictory words (e.g., jumbo shrimp). Identify the oxymoron in the sentence below, and explain why the speaker might choose this phrase to describe the action.
Sentence: "The shy student offered a loud whisper to his friend, trying to share a secret without the teacher hearing."
The oxymoron is "loud whisper." The speaker chose this phrase to show the tension between the need to keep the secret quiet ("whisper") and the need to be heard over the noise or across a short distance ("loud"). It means the whisper was just barely audible but stronger than a typical whisper.
A poet writes a series of poems describing the quiet suffering and eventual perseverance of people rebuilding their lives after a natural disaster. The poems are not asking for money or criticizing the government. What is the author's primary, often emotional, purpose in writing these poems?
To Evoke Empathy (to make the reader feel compassion and understanding for the victims) and to Inspire the reader by showing human resilience (or To Reflect on the human condition).
Explain the difference between Tone and Mood by identifying which one relates to the author's attitude and which one relates to the reader's feeling.
Tone is the author's attitude toward the subject or audience (e.g., serious, humorous, critical).
Mood is the reader's feeling or the atmosphere created by the literature (e.g., suspenseful, joyful, depressing).
If an author explicitly states the moral or message of the story (e.g., "The boy finally understood that greed only leads to loneliness"), is this usually considered stronger writing than a theme that is implicit (suggested through characters' actions)? Explain your reasoning.
No. Generally, an implicit theme is considered stronger or more sophisticated writing. When a theme is implicit, the author shows the message through actions, dialogue, and consequences, forcing the reader to interpret the meaning. An explicit theme can sound too simplistic or like a lecture.
Question: This passage has a complex, dual tone. What are the two contrasting tones at play, and what specific word choice creates each one?
Passage: The old librarian, with her spectacles perched on her nose and a firm, unyielding grip on the stack of overdue books, surveyed the room. Her mouth was set in a thin line, yet a faint, almost imperceptible twinkle occasionally animated her eyes as she watched the children eagerly selecting their summer reads.
Tone 1: Strict, Stern, or Austere. Created by words like "firm," "unyielding," and the description of her mouth as a "thin line."
Tone 2: Warm, Amused, or Affectionate. Created by the words "faint," "imperceptible twinkle," and the phrase "eagerly selecting their summer reads."
Passage: "The runner was exhausted, her legs pumping furiously but gaining no ground. She felt as though she were trying to swim through warm, thick molasses, each movement requiring a punishing, sluggish effort."
Question: The passage uses an extended simile. What specific feeling or idea does the comparison to "molasses" convey about the runner's experience?
*Double Points*what is the difference between a simile and a metaphor?
Conveyed Idea: The comparison conveys a feeling of extreme difficulty, slow motion, and resistance. It illustrates that the runner's effort is not effective and her movement is being slowed down by an invisible force.
Difference: A simile is a direct comparison between two unlike things using the words "like" or "as." A metaphor is a direct statement that one thing is another thing (without using "like" or "as").
A memoir begins with a lighthearted, nostalgic description of a writer's childhood home. However, halfway through, the tone shifts drastically to one of bitter disappointment as the writer details how the town's industry failed and the home fell into ruin.
Question: What are the two distinct purposes the author achieves by creating this sharp contrast in tone, and why is this technique often more impactful than starting with the unhappy tone?
To Establish Value/Loss: The lighthearted, nostalgic opening serves to establish the beauty and happiness that was lost, which increases the impact of the tragedy.
To Lament/Mourn: The disappointed tone serves to lament the loss or criticize the causes of the town's decline.
You read a passage that says, "Sarah held a tattered, old photograph to her chest as she boarded the train, never looking back at the empty house."
What can you infer about Sarah's situation, and what is the textual evidence that supports your inference?
Inference: Sarah is leaving permanently, likely feeling sad or nostalgic, and the photograph represents a cherished memory or person she's leaving behind.
Textual Evidence: The evidence includes her "never looking back," boarding a "train" (suggesting long-distance travel), and holding a "tattered, old photograph" to her chest.
Passage: A character who refuses to share their food during a famine eventually loses all their friends, and when they finally need help, no one is there for them.
Question: What is the universal theme presented in this passage
*Double Points*: Which literary device, often related to the character's final situation, supports this theme?
Universal Theme: The universal theme is Selfishness leads to isolation (or, You reap what you sow or Kindness is rewarded).
Literary Device: The device is often situational irony (or poetic justice). It is ironic that the character who hoarded resources eventually faces the ultimate resource deficit—social support—which is the direct result of their own earlier actions.