Listening to Voice





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Use this Strategy:

Before Reading

During Reading

After Reading

Targeted Reading Skills:

· Questioning the narrator’s or speaker’s assumptions, beliefs, intentions, and bias

· Discriminating between apparent message and hidden agenda

· Interpreting multiple levels of meaning

What is it?

This concept is probably one of the most complex pieces to understand when reading a text; this is due to the interrelationships of so many of the elements that create what we call "a writer's voice." This complexity could cause some people to say that this concept is too difficult for my students to deal with; however, it can be used as a way to pique students’ interest, as a way to intrigue them before they even begin reading a text.

Definition: Voice can be defined as the writer's awareness and effective use of such elements as diction, tone, syntax, unity, coherence and audience to create a clear and distinct "personality of the writer," which emerges as a reader interacts with the text.

To study "voice," and by doing so, develop one's own writer's voice, the distinct elements or building blocks need to be clearly defined for our students. This process should be carefully scaffolded; depending on the grade and skill level, it is not necessary to have your students understand all of the particulars of each of the elements given below before they can begin to interact with a text and “listen to a writer’s voice.” For instance, under Diction, you may only introduce tone; under Tone, you may only use characterization, you may not introduce Syntax until later on; you can then build on these basics as your students’ understanding grows and develops.

Diction refers to a writer's word choice with the following considerations:

denotation / connotation of a word
degree of difficulty or complexity of a word
level of formality of a word
tone of a word (the emotional charge a word carries)

* all of the above will often create a subtext for the text

Tone refers to a writer's ability to create an attitude toward the subject matter of a piece of writing; the tools a writer uses to create tone:

diction
figurative language
characterization
plot
theme

Syntax refers to the arrangement--the ordering, grouping, and placement--of words within a phrase, clause, or sentence. Some considerations:

type of sentence
length of sentence
subtle shifts or abrupt changes in sentence length or patterns
punctuation use
use of repetition
language patterns / rhythm / cadence
how all of the above factors contribute to narrative pace
the use of active and/or passive voice

Unity refers to the idea that all of the ideas in a written piece are relevant and appropriate to the focus. Some considerations include:

each claim (assertion, topic sentence) supports the thesis
each piece of evidence is important and relevant to the focus of the paragraph or the piece of writing as a whole
occasionally, a writer may choose to purposely violate the element of unity for a specific effect (some humorists / satirists will sometimes consciously do this)
it is important to consider what has been omitted from a piece and examine the writer's intent in doing so

Coherence refers to the organization and logic of a piece of writing; some considerations include:

precision and clarity in a thesis and supportive arguments
the arguments ordered in the most effective way for the writer's intent
the sentences and paragraphs "flow smoothly" for the reader; there should not be any abrupt leaps or gaps in the presentation of the ideas or story (unless the writer makes a conscious choice for a specific and appropriate effect)

Audience refers to the writer's awareness of who will be reading his / her piece of writing; some considerations are:

Who are the targeted readers?

How well informed are they on the subject? What does the writer want the reader to learn as a result of this piece?

What first impression is created for the reader and how does the author's voice shape this first impression?

How interested and attentive are they likely to be? Will they resist any of the ideas?

What is the relationship between the writer and the reader? Employee to supervisor? Citizen to citizen? Expert to novice? Scholar to scholar? Student to teacher? Student to student?

How much time will the reader be willing to spend reading?

How sophisticated are the readers in regard to vocabulary and syntax?

Writers do not rank or prioritize these elements of voice; but rather it is how a writer weaves these threads together that create the tapestry of "writer's voice."

What does it look like?

No matter what grade level, one of the best ways to begin and develop an exploration of writer’s voice during the reading process is to begin with very short piece: poetry, short nonfiction or fiction texts, or an excerpt from a longer text that your students are currently reading. At the beginning, the shorter the text and the more powerful the voice, the better. You may want to have your students use the annotation acronym, “DUCATS: the Six Gold Pieces of Writer’s Voice” (Ellis) from the Annotating a Text strategy (see the bottom of that page for other acronyms as well).

Below is the opening page of Jerry Spinelli’s young adult novel, Crash; the page was copied, and students were asked to annotate the text for writer’s voice, specifically targeting diction, tone, syntax and audience.

Click here for a printable version of this model.

How could I use, adapt or differentiate it?

A great way to pique students’ interest in a text before they even begin reading it is to select several passages that have a strong sense of voice and read them aloud. Ask students identify the elements of voice with which they are familiar and make predictions or pose questions based on the selections.
Collect examples that illustrate a clear and strong writer's voice and use an inductive process to have students identify the elements that constitute voice.
After covering the elements of writer's voice, have students find an example of a piece of writing they feel has a strong voice and annotate the piece by highlighting and labeling the words and phrases that contribute to the voice.
Have students choose two characters from the novel they are reading and have them compose a piece of writing in each character's voice.