Beginner Level CARS Passage to Understanding Tone

Session 95

Are you just beginning CARS prep? We take a look at a fundamental passage to understanding tone in CARS passages. The deed is done and what that means.

As always, I’m joined by Jack Westin from JackWestin.com. Check out all their amazing free resources including a free trial session of Jack’s full course to see how it’s like learning from Jack Westin himself.

Listen to this podcast episode with the player above, or keep reading for the highlights and takeaway points.

Link to the article:

https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/cancelling-flannery-oconnor

The deed is done. A week after the decision by Loyola University Maryland to remove Flannery O’Connor’s name from one of its buildings, the cherry-pickers arrived on the school’s bucolic campus in northeast Baltimore and, letter by letter, the name of one of America’s most iconic Catholic writers disappeared from the dormitory that had been known for more than a decade as Flannery O’Connor Hall.

The unnaming was anticlimactic. The campus is empty, not only because it is high summer, but also because of COVID-19. As a result, there were few witnesses. When students arrive back on campus, whenever that might be, few are likely to notice the change, because these days so few undergraduates are devotees of literature. Most are probably unaware of who Flannery O’Connor was and of the books she wrote. She meant little to them before, and will mean less than little after this.

But to a great many people, Flannery O’Connor means a great deal. This has never been more evident to me than now. In the wake of the public statement issued by the university’s president, Rev. Brian Linnane, SJ, explaining that O’Connor’s name would be removed because she does not “reflect Loyola’s Jesuit values,” hundreds of writers, scholars, readers, and admirers of O’Connor’s work have expressed their shock and sorrow to see her repudiated by the university. Many have posed the question, in essays, in emails, and in social-media posts: How is it possible that O’Connor, a devout Catholic who embraced her vocation as a Catholic as passionately as she embraced her vocation as a writer, could be ‘canceled’ by a Catholic university, and, effectively, her own Church?

This question is easier to answer than one might suppose. It’s possible because of an essay published in the June 22 issue of the New Yorker, a magazine not generally sympathetic to Catholic writers, and written by Catholic critic and biographer Paul Elie. In the essay, bearing the incendiary title “How Racist Was Flannery O’Connor?,” Elie replicates passages from a recent book on Flannery O’Connor and race, using them to try to prove that O’Connor was a racist.

[03:35] Paragraph 1, Sentence 1

The deed is done.

Jack says:

The deed is done. We don’t know what deed they’re talking about. But it is done. And that is, that’s a good thing, usually.

[03:46] Paragraph 1, Sentence 2

A week after the decision by Loyola University Maryland to remove Flannery O’Connor’s name from one of its buildings, the cherry-pickers arrived on the school’s bucolic campus in northeast Baltimore and, letter by letter, the name of one of America’s most iconic Catholic writers disappeared from the dormitory that had been known for more than a decade as Flannery O’Connor Hall.

Jack says:

So this is the deed that is being done this, this person’s name has come off of this dormitory. “Bucolic” is a word that throws off 90%-95% of students who read this article. At the end of the day, this is just a characterization of the campus. It pretty much means like farmland, or agrarian or something along the lines. They’re focused on that word. And they just lose sight of what the article is trying to say.

“You don't need to worry about every single word to understand the point the author's trying to make.”Click To Tweet

It has nothing to do with intelligence. It has nothing to do with your comprehension. There may be one or two words, or even five words in the whole passage that you don’t understand. But that shouldn’t derail your confidence.

[08:17] Finding the Tone of the Passage

'When you're starting off a paragraph, you always want to stay as neutral as possible.'Click To Tweet

Stay neutral until you see something that gives you evidence for a positive or negative tone.

Tone is the language you use to express your ideas. It’s the language. The language on the MCAT when it’s extremely positive, or extremely negative is very obvious.

An extremely negative word would be like hate, terrible, abysmal – a word you’re familiar with. A positive tone would be brilliant, incredible, awesome – words we commonly use when we describe things in a positive manner.

When we read this paragraph, it’s subtle. But there is definitely a tone. And being able to catch that tone takes time, experience, and review.

The first sentence doesn’t tell us much about the tone. It could be positive or it could be negative. But if you read the next sentence, it says the cherry-picker. It’s name-calling. Probably, the author does not like these people and the situation.

And when you’re supposed to be looking for tone, most students are worried about the word bucolic. It’s a distraction.

It’s not a good thing to cherry-pick things off letter by letter. The author’s expressing their resentment towards this and trying to show you how painful it really is to them. The name of one of America’s most iconic Catholic writers. And the author is saying iconic because they probably like this person.

The dormitory has been known for more than a decade. So it’s trying to show you how important it was to the campus. So that’s how you pick up the tone – those cues, and those words. Don’t be worried about the words, but be worried about the words you know.

[11:39] Paragraph 2, Sentence 1

The unnaming was anticlimactic.

Jack says:

It means taking the name off wasn’t very eventful, not very exciting.

[11:53] Paragraph 2, Sentence 2

The campus is empty, not only because it is high summer, but also because of COVID-19.

Jack says:

It’s setting up something to talk about with this.

[12:34] Paragraph 2, Sentences 3-4

As a result, there were few witnesses. When students arrive back on campus, whenever that might be, few are likely to notice the change, because these days so few undergraduates are devotees of literature.

Jack says:

The author is just painting this picture of how students don’t even read literature.

[13:13] Paragraph 2, Sentence 5

Most are probably unaware of who Flannery O’Connor was and of the books she wrote.

Jack says:

The author is again painting this picture of students being unaware.

[13:27] Paragraph 2, Sentence 5

She meant little to them before, and will mean less than little after this.

Jack says:

So this author is playing the tone that they’re going to forget who Flannery O’Connor was. They didn’t even know who she was, to begin with. And now they’re not going to even know even more. Maybe the author feels she’s under-appreciated and this hurts the author.

This is just a conversation. You’re just reading someone else’s point of view.

“It's very important in medicine to connect, to have good bedside manner with your patients, so this is no different when you read this article.”Click To Tweet

As you’re listening to this author, imagine they are your patient one day. Imagine they are saying things to you that they care dearly about. And all it takes is just that respect, paying attention to the author.

Pay attention to what the author is saying. When you focus on that one word, you don’t know. And when you focus on your score, you’re distracting yourself from your job.

It all comes from the first paragraph. When you read the first paragraph, chances are, the second paragraph is easier for you. But when you don’t read the first paragraph, you’re not going to read the second paragraph with the same vigor and attitude. So if you’re not paying attention early on, it’s not going to go well.

[15:39] Paragraph 3, Sentence 1

But to a great many people, Flannery O’Connor means a great deal.

Jack says:

Now, we’re seeing the opposite side.

[15:51] Paragraph 3, Sentence 2

This has never been more evident to me than now.

Jack says:

The author is saying that this Flannery O’Connor meant a great deal to a lot of people and the author is seeing that.

[16:14] Paragraph 3, Sentence 3

In the wake of the public statement issued by the university’s president, Rev. Brian Linnane, SJ, explaining that O’Connor’s name would be removed because she does not “reflect Loyola’s Jesuit values,” hundreds of writers, scholars, readers, and admirers of O’Connor’s work have expressed their shock and sorrow to see her repudiated by the university.

Jack says:

The author is giving us evidence. When they announced that they were going to take off the name, hundreds of writers, scholars, and readers express their shock and sorrow. So it’s all consistent with what we thought. The tone was negative. The author probably doesn’t like this.

[17:18] Paragraph 3, Sentence 4

Many have posed the question, in essays, in emails, and in social-media posts: How is it possible that O’Connor, a devout Catholic who embraced her vocation as a Catholic as passionately as she embraced her vocation as a writer, could be ‘canceled’ by a Catholic university, and, effectively, her own Church?

Jack says:

We’re given a little backstory here. And that how could this be possible if she was this great of a person?

[18:08] Paragraph 4, Sentence 1

This question is easier to answer than one might suppose.

Jack says:

The author here is setting us up for something that gives us some insight.

[18:17] Paragraph 4, Sentence 2

It’s possible because of an essay published in the June 22 issue of the New Yorker, a magazine not generally sympathetic to Catholic writers, and written by Catholic critic and biographer Paul Elie.

Jack says:

The article is written by a Catholic critic. It’s interesting to point out that O’Connor was actually a Catholic.

[18:53] Paragraph 4, Sentence 3

In the essay, bearing the incendiary title “How Racist Was Flannery O’Connor?,” Elie replicates passages from a recent book on Flannery O’Connor and race, using them to try to prove that O’Connor was a racist.

Jack says:

This is cancel culture at its finest. We have this Catholic critic putting together some pieces of work from Flannery O’Connor trying to make her look like a racist or showing that she was a racist according to him.

[19:28] Main Idea

We don’t know exactly where the author is headed. But based on just this so far, we can figure out a couple of things. The author doesn’t like the fact that O’Connor’s name has been removed.

But the author has started to point to evidence. Now, we don’t know if this evidence is going to be verified by the author or refuted verified – meaning either the author will accept it or the author will reject it.

Those are things we have to think about the MCAT tests you on that. They’ll test you on whether something has been validated or it’s something that is rejected because it’s not credible.

These are clues. Maybe the author will change their whole perspective on this. And that’s one way the author will do this to capture your attention. The author will start off by making something a big deal for the sake of it, making it important to you and making it something worthwhile to read. It’s a big deal when someone’s name is taken off a building, at least for the author. It’s a big deal when this person’s name has been there for 10 years. You just have to keep reading, and it will clear it up.

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You don’t need to understand a lot to get most of the questions. You just have to be able to find that big picture. If you get that big picture on the MCAT, they’ll reward you and give you those points.