ToneTone

The attitude a writer takes The attitude a writer takes towards a subject or towards a subject or

character character

The purpose:The purpose:

Reciting poetry, and listening to others recite it, can train our

“emotional intelligence.”

Poetry and TonePoetry and ToneMost poems tell a “narrative of

emotions”: that is, they move through a series of

moods and tones of voice, arranged in a particular order to tell a particular

emotional story. Even when thepoem seems like a simple series of

images, and even when we can’t say exactly what events took place in thepoem, there is usually an emotional

drama playing out from the beginning of the poem, through the middle,

and into the end, as the poem tries to arrive at some emotional resolution.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

In this lesson, students will have opportunities to:• Listen to poems being recited, with an ear to how

the performer has adopted different tones of voice over the course of the performance

• Mark, visually, where and when those shifts of tone occurred

• Use a rich and varied tone vocabulary to name each shift in tone, looking up words they do not know

• Practice “mapping” a poem on their own, in a precise and nuanced way

• Write instructions to a classmate on how he or she should recite the poem, with evidence to support why this series of tones of voice is correct

Tone and “Jenny”Tone and “Jenny”

Look at the “tone map” of “Jenny Kissed Me” below. In the left column is the poem, divided into sections according to where the tone might shift. Note that tone shifts may be the same as the poem’s lines, stanzas, or sentences, but shifts in tone may also take place in shorter units, such as phrase by phrase. In the right column are names for the tone of voice one might hear in the poem, and therefore try to convey in performance.

Jenny Kissed Me Jenny Kissed Me by James Leigh Huntby James Leigh Hunt

SECTION TONEJenny kissed me when we met, Fond reminiscenceJumping from the chair she sat in; Amused,

affectionateTime, you thief, Still amused (by Time, not

Jenny),who love to get but growing A little wary, a little

scornfulSweets into your list,Put that in! DisdainfulSay I’m weary, ShruggingSay I’m sad, Candid, a little sadSay that health and wealth have missed me, Lightly

regretfulSay I’m growing old, Real regretBut add, Rallying, InsistentJenny kissed me. Marveling, contented

“The World Is Too Much With Us”

by William Wordsworth

Working in pairs, mark where the shifts in tone seem to occur, and next to the poem draft a “tone map” of the poem using the tone list.

The world is too much with us; late and soon,The world is too much with us; late and soon,Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;Little we see in Nature that is ours;Little we see in Nature that is ours;We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon,This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon,The winds that will be howling at all hours,The winds that will be howling at all hours,And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers,And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers,For this, for everything, we are out of tune;For this, for everything, we are out of tune;It moves us not.--Great God! I'd rather beIt moves us not.--Great God! I'd rather beA Pagan A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn; (1)suckled in a creed outworn; (1)So might I, standing on this pleasant So might I, standing on this pleasant lea, (2)lea, (2)Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;Have sight of Have sight of Proteus (3)Proteus (3) rising from the sea; rising from the sea;Or hear old Or hear old Triton (4)Triton (4) blow his wreathed horn. blow his wreathed horn.

(1) Brought up in an outdated religion. (2) Meadow. (1) Brought up in an outdated religion. (2) Meadow. (3) Greek sea god capable of taking many shapes. (3) Greek sea god capable of taking many shapes. (4) Another sea god, often depicted as trumpeting on a shell.(4) Another sea god, often depicted as trumpeting on a shell.

Final Tone Exercises - OneFinal Tone Exercises - One1. Choose a poem to recite from and format it as a

two-column “map.” Before you perform the poem, tell your classmates the series of tones you wish to convey. After the recitation, students should respond by telling the performer whether he or she was successful at conveying those tones, and also whether they think that the tone for any section or sections was incorrect—and if so, why, and what it ought to be.

Final Tone Exercises - TwoFinal Tone Exercises - Two

2. Choose a poem to recite and then exchange it with a classmate. Prepare a two-column “map” of the poem and write a short essay describing the tones of voice that the performer should convey, with an explanation for each. Tomorrow, pair up, exchange maps and essays, and recite one another’s poems. Students will then give each other feedback on what seemed right or unsuccessful in both the essay and in the performances.