Reading: Recognizing Author's Tone, Purpose & Attitude
B2 Lesson 2: Recognizing Subtle Variations in Tone
Listen to the examples in this lesson.
Before You Read 🧠
Key Vocabulary (Click 🔊)
These words are essential for discussing this topic.
Beyond "Happy" or "Sad": The B2 Tone Spectrum
At an A2 level, you learn "happy" or "sad." At B2, you must see the small, important differences. The same topic can have many different tones.
OBJECTIVE / NEUTRAL
"The restaurant serves 300 customers daily and has been open for 10 years."
(This is just a fact. There is no feeling.)
NOSTALGIC (Subtle Tone)
"The restaurant, with its faded red sign, still serves the same delicious beef noodle soup I remember from my childhood."
(The words "faded," "still serves," and "I remember" create a warm, positive feeling about the past.)
How to Find the Tone: Clues to Look For 🕵️
The author's choice of verbs and adjectives is the biggest clue.
- Weak: "He walked into the room."
- Strong: "He strolled into the room." (implies he is relaxed, confident)
- Strong: "He stomped into the room." (implies he is angry)
Words have positive, negative, or neutral feelings. Ask if the author chose a word with a "good" or "bad" feeling.
- Positive: "He is very affordable." (Good)
- Negative: "He is very cheap." (Bad)
- Negative: "He is arrogant." (Bad)
- Positive: "He is confident." (Good)
Punctuation, especially quotation marks, can show that the author means the *opposite*.
- Sincere: "His new idea was great!" (He thinks it's great)
- Sarcastic: "His 'great' new idea failed in two days." (He thinks it was a bad idea)
Practice Recognizing Tone 🎯
Practice Quiz: Identify the Tone
Read the short passage, then choose the best word to describe the author's tone. Click "Check Answers" when you're done.
1. "The 'innovative' new menu at the restaurant featured the same old fried rice, just with a new, much higher price."
What is the author's tone?
2. "While the company report claims 100% success, the data seems... selective. More independent research is definitely needed before we celebrate."
What is the author's tone?
3. "The author described her childhood village in detail, remembering the dusty red roads and the sweet, heavy smell of mangoes after the first rain."
What is the author's tone?
Key Vocabulary Reference (Click 🔊)
- Tone The author's general feeling or attitude (e.g., sarcastic, nostalgic, critical).
- Diction The author's specific choice of words.
- Connotation The positive or negative feeling a word suggests.
- Sarcastic Meaning the opposite of what you say. (e.g., Calling a bad idea "great").
- Skeptical Not convinced; having doubts or questions.
- Nostalgic Feeling happy, positive, or sad when remembering the past.
- Critical Finding fault or judging something negatively.
- Objective Based on facts, with no feelings or opinions.
Your Reading Mission ⭐
Become a Tone Detective
Your mission is to find subtle tone in the real world.
- Find an English-language review of a movie, restaurant, or product.
- Read the review and decide the author's true tone (e.g., `Enthusiastic`, `Politely Critical`, `Deeply Disappointed`, `Sarcastic`).
- Identify 3-4 specific words or phrases ("diction clues") that helped you decide.
Example: If a review says, "The sauce was a forgettable, watery mess," the words "forgettable" and "watery" show a critical tone.