American Pastoral

by Philip Roth

American Pastoral: Tone 1 key example

Definition of Tone

The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical or mournful, praising or critical, and so on. For instance... read full definition
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical or mournful, praising or critical... read full definition
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical... read full definition
Tone
Explanation and Analysis:

The tone in American Pastoral is at times intense, at times nostalgic, and at times playful. These various tonal layers are related to the narrator's decisive presence in the beginning of the story. Although Nathan Zuckerman recedes into the background before Part 1 ends—never again to return as a character in the narrative—he makes his identity as well as his aims for telling the story very clear before this disappearance.