Voice Lesson – Diction – Lesson
4
Consider:
The man sighed hugely.
n E. Annie Proulx, The Shipping News
Questions:
- What does it mean to sigh hugely?
- How would the meaning of the sentence change if it were rewritten as
The man sighed loudly.
Apply:
Fill in the blank below with an adverb:
The man coughed ________________________.
Your adverb should make the cough
express an attitude. For example, the cough could express contempt, desperation,
or propriety. Do not state the attitude. Instead, let the adverb imply it.
____________________________________________________
Voice Lesson – Diction
Consider:
Meanwhile, the United States Army, thirsting for revenge, was prowling the country north and west of
the Black Hills,
killing Indians wherever they could be found.
n Dee Brown, Bury my Heart at Wounded
Knee
Questions:
- What are the connotations of thirsting? What feelings are evoked by this
diction?
- What are the connotations of prowling? What kind of animals prowl? What attitude toward the U.S.
army does this diction convey?
Apply:
Use an eating or drinking verb in a sentence
which expresses anger about a parking ticket. Do not use the verb to literally
express eating or drinking. Instead, express your anger through the verb. Use Brown’s sentence as a model.
