Blog Topic #2: Diction

John Knowles creates a shift in tone from friendly and loving to military-like and aggressive through his use of diction. Once Gene convinces himself that Phineas has the goal of undermining his intelligence so that Phineas with be better than him, the tone of the novel if transformed. When talking about his studies and his efforts to become the head of the class, Gene’s inner dialogue is full of military-like diction. Gene describes Phineas’ studying habits as his “new attacks” that are “emergency measures to save himself” (55).  Knowles employs such diction in order to manifest Gene’s feelings towards Phineas and create the underlying tone. His use of words such as “attack” and “emergency” paint Phineas as the enemy fighting Gene. This also reinforces one of the major themes of the novel, the negative effects of war on the home front. Gene goes on to say that in response to Phineas’ attacks he “redoubled his effort” (55). The diction used by Knowles portrays Gene as a general getting ready to attack his opponent at will and not at all as a best friend. Through diction, Knowles creates the military-like tone apparent in Gene’s thoughts.