JasonWaterfalls

In the CR section of the SAT, there are always one or two questions on the tone of a passage, which I can never seem to establish. What are some ways I can find portions of the passage that explicitly state the tone? Or do I have to look at all of the verbs and adjectives used and infer? Honestly, tone is one of the hardest things for me to get. Any help would be appreciated.

swans004

The passage is never going to directly state the tone. That's why those questions are tough! My best advice is to focus only on the first word of each answer choice before reading the rest of the answer. That first word is often something like "discuss" or "argue" or "educate" - you should know if the author is doing one of those. Once you've ruled out an answer or two, then read the read of the answer choices. Hope that helps a little.

college kid92

Tone is almost never that extreme. Go with the mild word.

crazybandit

the answer to a question about tone usually pertains to what the type of passage is, and what that type generally tries to accomplish

for example, a non-fiction passage's tone is likely to be "analytical" and "neutral" because the point of a non-fiction passage is to make objective statements. the answer is never "indifferent" because that implies subjectivity; it is never some other extreme or plunging-too-far answer

Passage 1 and Passage 2 share a general tone of
(A) affectionate nostalgia
(B) analytical detachment
(C) personal regret
(D) righteous indignation
(E) open hostility

this question was taken from practice test #2 in the 1st edition of the blue book.

the passages were about 18th and 19th century women in England and how the middle-class sought freedom.

the answer is (B) "analytical detachment" because the authors detach themselves and their emotions and personal perspectives in order to analyze history unbiasedly.

the other answer choices imply subjectivity, or personal/extreme matters


The author's attitude toward the majority of people can best be described as
(A) genuinely puzzled
(B) aggressively hostile
(C) solemnly respectful
(D) generally indifferent
(E) condescendingly tolerant

the answer is (E) condescendingly tolerant
the other answer choices are TOO extreme. if by chance there is a question for which the answer contains an adverb as extreme as "aggressively" or an adjective as unfitting as "indifferent" (the passage is about art), the answer would be easy to choose because you would recognize it through the passage. if i typed in caps you would immediately describe my tone as aggressive


of course, you would never answer these questions without reading the passage, but it is a good place to start.

the answer could have been extreme

that being said, always trust the passage and youll understand how the writer approaches his topic


source: http://www.ivyleaguesats.com/index.p...d=97&Itemid=55