What is the author's tone in The World's Great Speeches by Lewis Copeland?

The tone of the speeches including in this book range from light to serious and promising to threatening. Since the book is a series of speeches from various speakers, it is appropriate that the tone change from one speech to another. Most of the lighter speeches are included in the "Informal Speeches" section where humorist Samuel L. Clemens, better known as author Mark Twain, offers after-dinner speeches that include his take on how New England weather is contrived and the importance of babies. Also included in this section is a speech by an attorney who touts the importance of dogs as man's best friend, winning his case at least partly because of this argument. These speeches are only slightly less formal than the speeches presented in formal settings. Among those more formal speeches are those to governmental bodies and to the people of nations, including several inaugural addresses. The tones of these cover an array of emotions, from pleas for support to admonishments for wrongdoing. The reader will likely identify with at least some of these, though there will undoubtedly be some that strike a chord of insin