Conveying a Purpose by the Use of Tone free essay sample

The tone of an essay reveals to readers who the author and gives them a sense of the writers personality. Tone tells the reader why the author is writing about their chosen subject. Both Barry and Pollitt are comparing the differences in men and women but their reasons for it and outlook about it vary greatly. Barry seems to celebrate these differences and make light of them while Pollitt explores the causes and effects of the differences. Katha Pollitt’s is most effective at revealing herself and her views through the tone of her essay. Tone can be set from the first sentence written or a single word used in one incidence in a paper. The words one chooses, voice inflection, pitch, or slang expressions determine how people interpret the intent of verbal conversation; tone does the same for writing. Tone lets the reader know if the writer intends to be humorous or serious, casual or formal. We will write a custom essay sample on Conveying a Purpose by the Use of Tone or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The words an author chooses to use in their writing leads the reader to make decisions about the writer’s attitude toward their subject. Pollitt says â€Å"The Cut and Style Barbie styling head, for example, a grotesque object. Her use of the word grotesque makes a strong statement about her feelings toward this toy for girls. Throughout her essay Katha Pollitt takes a stand on her subject, she creates her tone in the first paragraph and builds on it throughout her essay. In Katha Pollitt’s essay, Why Boys Don’t Play with Dolls she opens with the following line; â€Å"It’s 28 years since the founding of NOW, and boys still like trucks and girls still like dolls. † The title, with the use of contractions, suggests something other than formal writing and lends to the tone of her writing. After reading the opening sentence she seems put off and perhaps even disgusted and sarcastic in her tone. Pollitt maintains this throughout her essay. She uses phrases like â€Å"we don’t need†, â€Å"It hasn’t even†, â€Å"I’m at a† and â€Å"just don’t understand†. Pollitt’s continuing use of contractions was a good technique. It allowed the essay to speak to the everyman or more correctly the everywoman. If she had chosen to write in a formal tone this same essay would read as a mere rant by a feminist, leftist with a hidden agenda instead of being able to maintain the disguise of nothing more than an informative essay published in the New York Times. In the Dave Barry’s essay, Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out, he begins to set the tone of his writing from the first sentence as well. Barry begins his writing with, â€Å"The primary difference between men and women is that women can see extremely small quantities of dirt. † Right away the reader assumes the essay is about the differences in men and women. Since women do not actually have the ability to see extremely small quantities of dirt due to genetic makeup, the reader can assume a humorous tone is in use. Although both essays are about differences in the sexes each rely on differing styles to convey contrary tones in them. While Barry conveys a light, fun tone to his essay Pollitt desires to make a point on something she feels passionate about. These skilled writers speak to their intended audiences by establishing a tone in their essays allowing readers to make an emotional connection. Both essays could possible appeal to both men and women but the target audience is more like be women in Pollitt’s essay. The first sentence of Pollitt’s essay even references the organization NOW, NOW stands for the National Organization for Women. According to the organizations website, NOW is an organization â€Å"dedicated to making legal, political, social and economic change in our society in order to achieve our goal, which is to eliminate sexism and end all oppression. † By referring to NOW in her essay, right away she begins to establish a tone. Although the essay’s aim is to inform it is more likely to fuel debate for the readers unlike Barry’s writing. Each author is successful in knowing who their target audiences are and the tone of each essay helps the authors achieve their goals. Each writer revealed their personalities but there is no question after reading Why Boys Don’t Play with Dolls, what Pollitt’s position is on her topic. Barry’s writing is effective and does reveal his humorous outlook on male/female issues but Pollitt leaves no doubt, she sees no humor in the difference she only seeks to prove outside influences determine those differences. It is easy to read Dave Barry and be entertained and amused and perhaps never think of his essay again. Katha Pollitt’s writing is not as easily forgotten. Whether the readers are inspired or annoyed by what they have read, chances are they remember it.