Finding Tone

With a hastily cut-out image of "Dumbo" taped to my shirt, I stood to begin the class debate.

"Good afternoon. Today, I will be representing the affermative side of the resolve 'Current immigration laws should be enforced.'
Let me first begin by saying what a fine president we have in office today..."

By this point, the advantage of my class, as well as my opponent was starting to giggle. How can that be? If we look literally at the situation, I was displaying an elephant (symbol of the republican party) on my outfit and was only starting the introduction of the debate. The key to making that situation funny was the tone. Now, I am by no means a republican, but was assigned to represent the 'conservative' side of an argument for class. So, when speaking of our republican president, I did so with over exaggerated fondness. The tone of my presentation was in no way serious or in agreement with the resolve.

When reading a piece of literature, you must determine what the tone of the piece is, in order to fully appreciate it. Understanding how to identify tone, and how it may change throughout a piece, will help you not only get an 'A' in AP literature, but allow you to have a more memorable experience and develop a deeper bond with that which you read.

Here is my interpretation of 'tone' from three poem.

"The Telephone" by Robert Frost:

"When I was just as far as I could walk
From here today,
There was an hour
All still
When leaning with my head against a flower
I heard you talk.
Don't say I didn't, for I heard you say--
You spoke from that flower on the windowsill--
Do you remember what it was you said?"

"First tell me what it was you thought you heard."

"Having found the flower and driven a bee away,
I leaned my head,
And holding by the stalk,
I listened and I thought I caught the word--
What was it? Did you call me by my name?
Or did you say--
Someone said 'Come'--I heard it as I bowed."

"I may have thought as much, but not aloud."

"Well, so I came."

Here is a piece that goes from being very confident in its tone at the beginning, to what seems a little desperate and unsure, but the overall tone of the piece is hopeful. The lead speaker of the poem may have stumbled in his confidence, the energy of the poem remains hopeful at the end.
"..When leaning with my head against a flower, I heard you talk. Don't say I didn't..." This line shows the main speaker's confident attitude

"The Flea" by John Donne:

MARK but this flea, and mark in this,
How little that which thou deniest me is ;
It suck'd me first, and now sucks thee,
And in this flea our two bloods mingled be.
Thou know'st that this cannot be said
A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead ;
Yet this enjoys before it woo,
And pamper'd swells with one blood made of two ;
And this, alas ! is more than we would do.

O stay, three lives in one flea spare,
Where we almost, yea, more than married are.
This flea is you and I, and this
Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is.
Though parents grudge, and you, we're met,
And cloister'd in these living walls of jet.
Though use make you apt to kill me,
Let not to that self-murder added be,
And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.

Cruel and sudden, hast thou since
Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence?
Wherein could this flea guilty be,
Except in that drop which it suck'd from thee?
Yet thou triumph'st, and say'st that thou
Find'st not thyself nor me the weaker now.
' Tis true ; then learn how false fears be ;
Just so much honour, when thou yield'st to me,
Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee.