Voice Lessons by Nancy Dean

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Voice LessonsbyNancy Dean
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Voice

• The unique expression of the authors personality
• The fingerprint of a persons language
• The color and texture of communication

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Understanding voiceGives an appreciation for the
richness of language and a deeper understanding
of writing, especially difficult literature
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One goal of this course to help you develop a
personal voice, a distinctive writing style.To
do so, you must first learn to recognize voice
and analyze its elements.
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Through voice we come to know authors.
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By exploring voice we learn to wield language.
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Five elements of voice diction, detail, imagery,
syntax and tone
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Diction (word choice) is the foundation of voice
and contributes to all of its elements.
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Detail (facts, observations, and incidents) is
used to develop a topic, shaping and seasoning
voice.
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Imagery (verbal representation of sense
experience) brings the immediacy of sensory
experience to writing and gives voice a
distinctive quality.
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Syntax (grammatical sentence structure) controls
verbal pacing and focus.
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Tone (expression of attitude) gives voice its
distinctive personality.
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Diction Refers to the authors choice of words
the basic tools used to create the color and
texture of written work. They reflect and
determine the level of formality They shape the
readers perceptions.
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Diction reflects the writers vision and steers
the readers thought.
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When reading serious literature, dont skip words
you dont know. Its like wearing earplugs at a
symphony To understand voice you must hear and
feel their effects.
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Effective voice is shaped by words that are
clear, concrete and exact.
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Good writers avoid words like pretty, nice and
bad. Instead they use words that create a
specific effect. A coat isnt torn, its
tattered. The U.S. Army doesnt want revenge,
it is thirsting for revenge.
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Specific diction brings the reader into the
scene, enabling full participation in the
writers world.
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Diction depends on topic, purpose and occasion.
Topic often determines specificity and
sophistication of diction.
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For example, in a computer article web
interface, quaternary code.In a magazine for
Irish musicians slip jig, hornpipe, mazurka.
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The writers purpose partly determines
dictionWords chosen to impart a particular
effect on the reader reflect and sustain the
writers purpose.
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Example if the purpose is to inform,
straightforward dictionis used.If the purpose
is to entertain, a reader expects words used in
ironic, playful or unexpected ways.
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Diction also depends on the occasion As with
clothes, the level of formality influences
appropriate choices. Formal diction (for
scholarly writing, serious prose, poetry)
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Informal diction the norm in expository essays,
newspaper writing, fiction.Colloquial diction
and slang create a mood or capture a particular
historic or regional dialect
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Appropriateness of diction is determined by the
norms of society.
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Connotation (the meaning suggested by a word
and Denotation (the literal meaning of a word)
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When a writer calls a character slender, the word
evokes a different feeling from calling the
character gaunt.
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A words power to produce a strong reaction in
the reader lies mainly in its connotative
meaning.
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Finally, diction can impart freshness and
originality to writing.Words used in surprising
or unusual ways make us rethink what is known and
re-examine meaning.
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Good writers often opt for complexity rather than
simplicity, multiple meanings rather than
precision.
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Thus, diction, the foundation of voice, shapes a
readers thinking while guiding reader insight
into the authors idiosyncratic expression of
thought the writers voice.
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Art is the antidote that can call us back from
the edge of numbness, restoring the ability to
feel for another.Barbara Kingsolver, High Tide
in Tucson
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By using the word antidote, what does the author
imply about the inability to feel for another?
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If we changed the word antidote to gift, what
effect would it have on the meaning of the
sentence?
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Activity Write a sentence using a medical term
to characterize art.
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As I watched, the sun broke weakly through,
brightened the rich red of the fawns, and kindled
their white spots.E.B. White, Twins, Poems
and Sketches of E.B. White
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What kind of flame does kindled imply? How does
this verb suit the purpose of the sentence?
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Would the sentence be strengthened or weakened by
changing the sun broke weakly through to the sun
burst through? Explain the effect this change
would have on the use of the verb kindled.
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What are some action verbs that demonstrate the
effects of sunlight?
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An aged man is but a paltry thingA tattered
coat upon a stick - W.B. Yeats, Sailing to
Byzantium
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What picture is created by the use of the word
tattered?
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By understanding the connotations of the word
tattered, what do we understand about the
personas attitude toward an aged man?
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List three adjectives that can be used to
describe a pair of shoes. Each adjective should
connote a different feeling about the shoes.
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Dean, Nancy. Voice Lessons Classroom Activities
to Teach Diction, Detail, Imagery, and Tone.
Gainesville, Florida Maupin House, 2000.