1.2

Question 1

What is a personal essay?

Answer 1

A personal essay is told with descriptive details and is similar to a personal story or memoir.
A personal essay always conveys a specific point of view or thesis. The thesis can be explicit, but more often it has to be inferred by the reader.

Question 2

Define mood of an essay.

Answer 2

Is the prevailing emotional feeling of the text (e.g. light, humorous, nostalgic, conservational or sensitive)

Question 3

Define tone of an essay.

Answer 3

Is the writer’s attitude toward the topic or audience (e.g. angry, joyful, thoughtful, tragic and witty)

Question 4

Define the diction of an essay.

Answer 4

Is the actual words the writer chooses that supports the mood and tone.

Question 5

What is the mood of “Step not taken”?

Answer 5

Tense, thoughtful, sensitive

Question 6

What is the tone of “Step not taken”?

Answer 6

Serious, regretful

Question 7

What are the diction words of “Step not taken”?

Answer 7

“A sudden strained gasp…”

“I should have thrown caution to the winds and done the right thing.”

“And that he was alone. All alone.”

“That I was wrong, dreadfully wrong, not to step forward in his time of need.”