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Roberto Martin
Per 3
10-23-14
The world can be perceived in a number of ways and no one man or woman has the same perception of the world. This difference can be expressed through the writing of two Native Americans, N.S Momaday and D. Brown. Both of the writers use diction, imagery, and tone. However, they used them completely differently and conveyed different descriptions from two completely similar landscapes. Diction is the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing. Both writers were able to use diction effectively to show their different perceptions. “To look upon that landscape in the early morning, with the sun at your back, is to lose the sense of proportion. Your imagination comes to life, and this, you think is where Creation was begun.” Momdays diction is very descriptive and passionate showing a love and appreciation for the land. Conversely, Browns passage contained less detail which made his landscape seem less detailed and less important. “The herds were gone, replaced by an endless desolation of bones and skulls and rotting hooves… Many had to return to their reservation to keep from starving.” The words Brown uses give the readers a sense of the desolate and worthless land that he is creating with his words. Imagery is visually descriptive or figurative language. “There are green belts along the rivers and creeks.” The greater detail in Momaday’s passage gives the audience a visual image that helps create of sense of beauty. The audience is able to see what a beautiful land the plains are. Similarly, it is just as simple to imagine the land of Brown’s passage. “Day after day the sun baked the dry earth drier, the streams stopped running” Browns lack of detail caused the readers to imagine a land of nothingness and a land of disgusting worthlessness. Both of the writers used imagery in a way to accurately depict their perceptions of the world around them. Tone is the general character or attitude of a piece of

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