Emotive Language

Emotive language is where the author uses words or phrases to make the reader feel a particular emotion. When we discuss emotive language, we have to make sure that we identify the correct emotion. For example using phrases like, "The author uses emotive language language to make the reader feel sympathetic" or "The author uses emotive language to make the reader feel angry about the issue."

Think about what emotion you get from the following sentences:

1. "Poor, defenseless teenagers are being left homeless to fend for themselves."
2. "Big high-street companies are once again avoiding paying huge amounts of tax, while struggling families are having their benefits cut."
3. "Sink into our serene, luxury spas this spring and feel your worries melt away with the snow."

Although you may have used different words to express each emotion, the emotions that the author has tried to present are as follows: 1) Sympathy and guilt, 2) Anger or a sense of 'injustice', and 3) Relaxation and well-being.

A good range of vocabulary (word choice) is useful when talking about emotive language, because simply saying 'happy' or 'sad' can sometimes make it hard to follow up with a good, detailed explanation. Whereas, if you said the text is trying to make the reader feel "excited", "nervous", or "relaxed", this gives you much more to talk about in your explanation.

The author uses emotive language in the phrase, "Poor, defenseless teenagers are being left homeless to fend for themselves." By describing them as "defenseless" and in such a horrible situation, the writer is trying to make the reader feel sympathy and sadness towards the homeless teenagers. This may be to encourage the reader to act on these feelings and maybe consider donating to the charity that the writer is writing about.