Four Elements of Style:

Diction
Syntax
Tone
Point of View
 Diction: Word Choice

The difference between the right

word and almost the right word is
like the difference between
lightning and the lightning bug.
Mark Twain
 Diction: Word Choice

A study of diction is the analysis of

how a writer uses language for a
distinct purpose and effect, including
WORD CHOICE and FIGURES OF
SPEECH.
 Ways to describe diction

informal vs. formal

general vs. specific
colloquial
slang
jargon
monosyllabic vs. polysyllabic
denotative vs. connotative
euphonious vs. cacophonous
abstract vs. concrete
 Ways to Characterize Diction
Informal Formal
(personal writing) (academic or literary writing)

Bug Germ
Folks Relatives
Job Position
Kid Child
Boss Superior
Get across Communicate
Ex. He is two fries short of a Happy Meal. (slang=highly informal)
Hes crazy. (informal)
Hes schizophrenic or insane. (formal)
 Examples:
The respite from study was devoted to a sojourn
at the ancestral mansion. (formal and artificial)
I spent my vacation at the house of my
grandparents. (informal and natural)

I endeavored to peruse the volume. (formal and

artificial)
I tried to read the book. (informal and natural)
 Take it another step

Colloquialconversational language
Dialect-is there dialect?
Slanghighly informal and not appropriate for
most writing
Jargonthe special language of a profession or
group (lawyer or teacher talk, medical terminology,
technical words) that is usually formal
 Ways to Characterize Diction
General Specific
Look Gaze, stare, peer, ogle
Walk Stride, slink, trot, shuffle
Sit Slump, squat. Lounge
Cry Weep, sob, bawl
Throw Hurl, pitch, toss, flip
Dog Black Labrador retriever
Boy Tall lanky boy
Ex. The dishes fell to the floor with a loud noise (crashed or clattered).
He walked along slowly (ambled, sauntered).
He looked at her in an angry way (glowered, glared).
 Ways to Characterize Diction
Monosyllabic (Anglo-Saxon-think of the
Germans who brought us the English language-
kill and grunt story-curse words)-one syllable

Polysyllabic (Latinate/Greek-think of
Renaissance and beautiful words and adjectives)-
many syllables

The more polysyllabic words, the more difficult

the text
 Ways to Characterize Diction
Denotative Connotative
(Referential-dictionary) (Emotive-emotional)
Public servant Bureaucrat
Financier Speculator
Law Officer Cop
Legislative consultant Lobbyist
Investigator Spy
Soldier of fortune Hired kill
 Ways to Characterize Diction
Euphonious Cacophonous
(Pleasant Sounding) (Harsh Sounding)
Through the their loud songs
drizzling rain on bang and grate nerves
the steamy street of the wretched
breaks the morning listeners
sun
Pus
Liquid infection
Pee
Tinkle
insect
Butterfly
 Diction Review
Are the words monosyllabic or
polysyllabic?
Is the diction formal or informal? Which
one? Colloquial (conversational)? Slang
(highly informal)? Jargon (the special
language of a certain group or profession)?
Is the language concrete or abstract?
Is there a change in the level of diction in the
passage?
 Words to Describe Tone
Pedantic Poetic Vulgar
Euphemistic Moralistic Scholarly
Pretentious Insipid
Slang
Sensuous Precise
Idiomatic
Exact Learned
Cultured Esoteric
Picturesque
Plain Symbolic
Trite
Literal Simple Obscure
Colloquial Complex Bombastic
Artificial Figurative Grotesque
Detached
 Tone passage from Ruth McKennys
A Loud Sneer for Our Feathered Friends

We refused to get out of the bed when the bugle

blew in the morning, we fought against scrubbing
our teeth in public to music, we sneered when the
flag was ceremoniously lowered at sunset, we
avoided doing a good deed a day, we complained
loudly about the foodand we bought some
chalk and wrote all over the Recreation Cabin,
We hate Camp Hiwah.
How does the author establish the negative attitude
the campers have toward Camp Hiwah?
Does sentence structure also contribute to tone?
 Tone Passage from James Ramsey Ullmans Kilimanjaro
It has been called the House of God. It has been
called the High One. The Cold One. The White
One. On close acquaintance by climbers, it has
been called a variety of names rather less
printable. But to the world at large it is
Kilimanjaro, the apex of Africa and one of the
great mountains on the earth.

What is the authors attitude toward Kilimanjaro?

How does the sentence structure help establish this
tone?
 Tone Review
What seems to be the speakers
attitude in the passage?
Is more than one attitude or point of
view expressed?
Does the passage have a noticeable
emotional mood or atmosphere?
What effect does tone have on the
reader?
 Point of View
First Person
Narrator uses first person pronouns (I, my, mine, we,
our, us, etc.
Access to the narrators consciousness
Story is told through the eyes of main character
(protagonist), minor character, or outside observer
Narrator is reliable when observer is used, but may not
be reliable when told by a character. The narrator may
be nave or biased
 Point of View
Third Person Omniscient (all knowing)
Third person pronouns (he, she) mostly
Access to consciousness of more than one character, perhaps all
Story seen through eyes of an outside observer
Reliable as implied authors voice

Third Person Limited Omniscient

Third person pronouns (he, she) mostly
Access to consciousness of one character
Story seen through eyes of an outside observer, protagonist, or
minor character whose presence dominates
Reliable when observer is used, less reliable when character used
or when narrator intrudes or comments
 Point of View
2nd person:

Directions
You will see
You should
Activity: Read The Rattler.
(p. 103 notebook)
Analyze elements such as
diction, syntax, point of view,
and tone.