Read this excerpt from "The Spirit of Alcatraz." As the months passed, the occupation began to lose some of its momentum, and se
veral occupiers left the island to return to school or family life. Things became more difficult when the government cut off phone service to the island, followed by electrical power and fresh water. Finally, on June 11, 1971, a large force of government agents arrived on Alcatraz and removed the last fifteen people – six men, four women, and five children. After nineteen months, the occupation was over. Which word best describes the tone of this excerpt? casual
scientific
humorous
factual
The appropriate answer is D. factual. Tone gives readers the writer's attitude towards the subject which he or she authors. Tone conveys the feelings of the writer. The tone of this excerpt is factual because it is recorded and can be proved to be true. A casual tone would show familiarity and possibly use colloquial terms, while a humorous tone would possibly have jokes or a play on words. A scientific tone would show evidence of research, data collection, a hypothesis and analysis of data in the piece.
