Final answer:
The tone of a poem is the emotional and intellectual stance conveyed through the author's choice of words, structure, and rhetorical devices. It can range from conversational to inquisitive and shifts throughout the poem, playing a crucial role in shaping the reader’s emotional response and interpretation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The tone of a poem deeply affects its emotional resonance and can be gleaned from careful analysis of word choice, word order, rhetorical devices, and overall voice. In order to determine the tone of a piece, readers must pay close attention to the linguistic cues provided by the author.
For example, an informal and conversational tone might be created through the use of rhetorical questions and phrases like “Let's look at,” inviting the reader into a dialogue with the text. Poets like Walt Whitman revolutionized English poetry by breaking free from traditional meter and rhyme, which once acted as a trust system between poet and reader. Now, tone often serves as the substitute that connects the reader to the poet's voice.
The use of concrete words and the speaker's attitude, as shown through word choice, can produce a connection with the reader, whether the tone is sincere, inquisitive, or serious.
The tone can shift within just a few lines or within different sections of a poem, thus affecting the reader’s understanding and interpretation. Literary devices such as rhetorical questions and introspective inquires like “-or was it the coldness?-” often convey a speaker's own exploration of thoughts and feelings, deepening the emotional layers of the text.
Moreover, when comparing tones, as in contrasting elegies, the differences in tone can shed light on varying insights and historical contexts that influence a poem. Understanding the speaker's attitude towards subjects within the poem helps in recognizing the tone, whether it’s the description of an event as happy or dark, or the perception regarding parental responsibilities.