Why Tone is so Important in Literary Works
The Revolutionary Tone of Literature
When writing any form of literature the tone is very important. To convey a specific message, one would have to use a specific tone. The way to establish tone is through word usage. Some words have more of an effect than others. The tone of a writer is very important because it gets the message conveyed. Tone helps the reader to feel emotion, think, and explore new ideas. Literature is a way to change the world through the minds of people, and tone plays a major role in gathering emotions.
Conveying the tone is very powerful because it captivates the mind and the Literature itself is a form of mind control over readers. Writers often target emotions, and they often chose strong a powerful words to get into the minds of readers. Langston Hughes simply uses the word “too.” Normally when a person uses the word “too” it is to include something or someone. In Hughes case it was to include the black race into Walt Whitman’s poems I hear America singing.
Hughes word choice makes readers see that black people are also a great part of America. His diction alone makes readers think about things and society at that time. If he would have used a less somber words his work would not have much effect on readers. He sets the tone with his word choice, and it was successfully conveyed to readers. Tone makes literature revolutionary. It captures the minds of people and digs into their emotions promoting a change of both mind and heart. When the hearts and minds of people are changed, that means that literature has effectively done what it was meant to do. Literature would not be as effective if it was not for tone.
Many have heard the quote “It is not what you say, but how you say it.” This quote alone gives you an idea of how effective tone is. When reading a poem the writer uses words that can alter the entire perception of a certain topic. The diction used usually conveys the tone of the writer. Tone is the emotion given by the writer to the audience. In Walt Whitman’s poem “I hear America Sinning” his tone gives readers a pride in America. However “I, Too Sing America” by Langston Hughes makes those same prideful Americans ashamed. A writer has the ability to make a normally jovial poem, and change it into a very sad and somber poem using tone. Tone makes the unbelievable to the believable. Literature is meant to alter the mind and tone helps to get readers thinking. The tone of literature allows readers to look at things from a different angle. It helps readers become more knowledgeable about what the author is trying to inform them of. When a person began to look at things differently, and explore new ideas revolutionary things began to happen. People began to change, and society starts to change because of literature and the tone that was established through it.
If the author uses strong diction his literature will have more of an impact on readers. The word choice is what makes the tone. Tone is the voice behind literature it gives literature the strength to get into people’s minds and change their way of thinking. Tone helps literature accomplish its main goal of changing people’s mindset. Tone captivates the emotions and helps readers relate emotionally to the overall point and message of a piece of literature. Without tone literature would not have be as effective in sparking revolutionary ideas into the minds and hearts of people.
