Word Choice Shows the Author's Feelings

Words with strong positive or negative feelings reveal how an author wants you to feel.

Many words have similar meanings but different feelings attached. Compare 'thin' and 'skinny', or 'curious' and 'nosy'. Authors choose carefully, and their choices reveal their attitude and purpose. Positive words make readers feel good about something; negative words push the other way. Look at two descriptions of the same old house.

Version 1: 'The cozy cottage had a charming, weathered porch and a garden full of wildflowers. ' Version 2: 'The cramped shack had a sagging, rotting porch and a yard choked with weeds. ' The facts are similar: small house, old porch, lots of plants. But version 1 makes you want to visit, and version 2 makes you want to run.

When you notice strong word choices, ask: 'How does the author want me to feel, and why? ' That often leads straight to the purpose.

• 1Similar words can carry different feelings.
• 2Positive and negative words reveal attitude.
• 3Ask how the author wants you to feel, and why.