Previous
Style
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
Key Examples in Mrs Dalloway
Tone
Explanation and Analysis:
The narrative tone in Mrs Dalloway is insightful, ruminative, and sprawling. The narration often strikes a delicate balance between perceptively exploring its characters' deepest thoughts and lightly satirizing some of their more ridiculous or self-aggrandizing beliefs. This is especially the case when Richard Dalloway goes to lunch at Lady Bruton's with Hugh Whitbread, since both Lady Whitbread and Hugh Whitbread are rather superficial and self-important. The tone in this scene, therefore, is mocking and humorous, as the novel subtly pokes fun at how self-serious certain people in the upper echelons of British society in the 1920s can be.
