Name ______Period _____Date ______
SOAPSTone Analysis
S / Who is the SPEAKER?The voice that tells the story. When students approach a text, they sometimes believe that the author and the speaker of the piece are the same. They fail to realize that the author may choose to write from any number of different points of view or different kinds of characters. In fact, the method of narration and the character of the speaker may be crucial to an understanding of the work. Questions to consider: Who is the voice that is speaking? What do we know about this person? What is his/her background? How do you know this from the text?
O / What is the OCCASION?
The time and place of the piece: the current situation. It is particularly important to understand the context that encouraged the writing to happen, the event or situation that catches the writer’s attention and prompts a response. Questions to consider: What is the time and place? What led to the development of the document? What influences forced the author to write it? What prompted the author to write the piece? How do you know this from the text?
A / Who is the AUDIENCE?
The group of readers to whom this piece is directed. The audience may be one person, a small group, or a large group; it may be a certain person or a certain people. Questions to consider: To whom is the piece directed? What assumptions can you make about the audience? How does the language of the text help understand who the audience is? How do you know this from the text?
P / What is the PURPOSE?
The reason behind the text. This is what the speaker wants his/her audience to get out of the text.Questions to consider: What is the reason for the text? Why was it written? What goal did the author have in mind? How do you know this from the text?
S / What are the SUBJECTS of the piece?
The general topic, content, and ideas contained in the text.State the subjects in a few words or a short phrase.Each text will cover a variety of subjects. Questions to consider: What are the general topics, content, and/or ideas contained in the text. How do you know this from the text? Summarize the big ideas of the text.
Tone / What is the TONE of the piece?
Tone is the attitude of the speaker, which is conveyed through diction, syntax, imagery, and figurative language. Questions to consider: What is the attitude expressed by the speaker? How do you know this? Examine the diction and imagery to show where in the text your answer is supported.
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