Ya Hear?

I said what I meant, and I meant what I said.

When we were learning about literature in high school with that most wonderful of all teachers, Eunice Kim, we learned about something called 'tone'. In literature, in writing, how can the tone of something be described? Is it sarcastic? Humorous, mysterious, creepy? According to a short essay on Literary Tone by Karen Bernardo, Tone may be a "difficult literary concept to describe, but not at all difficult to recognize. It refers to the attitude with which the writer approaches his work."

We are all aware of a the situation a few months ago when certain readers misunderstood the tone of this blog and took it to mean something it absolutely did not. How could one describe the tone of "Dolly in Poland"? I am not sure myself. At times sarcastic, ridiculous, humorous, and with an underlying attempt to show what I see and feel as I really saw and felt it, first hand. If I was shocked by something, I try to use shocking language to portray the situation so that the reader might feel just as I felt.

But it seems that the playful sarcasm is what is most misunderstood. People love to take words and twist them- make them mean what they want, look for hidden meanings, etc. My poetry is absolutely drenched with hidden meanings, but my blog? Absolutely not.

Perhaps it can be said that in general, when a woman speaks, she is not honestly communicating her true thoughts and feelings. The gender itself is mostly to blame for this, since women love to play mind games with men and continually expect them to guess true feelings and intentions based on hints. For example:

Man: What would you like to do tonight, Honey?
Woman: Oh, nothing, I guess.

What she really meant is: "Of course I would like to do something, but for once I would like for you to think of it on your own. Be a man!" The clue she gave was the "I guess" leaving room for him to catch on that she was not dead set on 'nothing', but she was certainly not going to admit it. Furthermore, if you, the man, could not pick up on such an 'obvious' hint, what good are you anyway?

For the sake of space, more examples will not be given, but it is hoped that the reader catches the drift. How wicked are woman! How unfortunate for men! But more unfortunate yet for the independent, self actualized woman who actually speaks her feelings and thoughts in truth, plainly, and is not taken seriously. Such a woman can say "I am not interested in dating or having any kind of romantic relationship" and men will take this to mean "hot diggady dog, she love me long time." The woman, however, is quite unsuspecting of this. She has stated her case, clearly and many times, and believes she is having normal relationships, treating all friends alike- male or female, doesn't matter. This includes visiting, talking on the phone, meeting in person and doing leisure activities, eye contact, and healthy BMA approved physical contact (save this polish cultural kissing, which is only even on the cheek unless some szalony individual tries to steal a taste of lip (but of couse he never can)).

Oh the horror to discover she has once again been misunderstood and her actions have been mistaken to mean something more than intended!

Refer to the first line: I said what I meant, and I meant what I said. Is it the woman's fault for being misunderstood? Maybe some people need to refresh their skills or identifying literary tone, verbal tone, or truth at all for that matter.