What's an undertone? What's an overtone?

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>>9233499
>What's an undertone?
they had big hit in the 70s with teenage kicks mate

>>9233499
I decided to have a friendly foot-race with a coworker today. I ended up beating him by nearly 2 full seconds. He met with me after the finish and after catching my breath I said,
>"I'm surprised you're a slow runner, Jamal."
--overtone--
>"Um, yeah. I'm sorry, I guess."
--undertone--

>>9233567
I don't get it.

>>9233499
http://learnersdictionary.com/qa/undertone-and-overtone

The overtone is the racism you deliberately put in, while an undertone is the racism your professor finds without you realizing that it's there.

>>9233706
How does a reader tell the difference?

>>9233717
Overtones are detected easily, since they're overt and intended to be noticed.

Undertones are only discovered through close analysis, thought sometimes they have to be coaxed into appearance with Magic. While daunting for beginners, this is a skill that can be readily acquired by virtually anyone for only a few thousand dollars at a university. Undertones can only be observed via literary theory.

Unfortunately, things are not always that simple. If you believe that you are unable to detect systemic racism in a text, or are having prolonged bouts of uncertainty as to the presence of race or gender bias in a text, it is possible that you may be a racist yourself and an unconscious member of the racist, sexist, fascist, anti-gay, anti-choice, pro-bad things Establishment. In that case, consult your local literature department immediately and ask to speak with an advisor.

>>9233755
Will do. Thanks.

>>9233672
If I said the first thing, it's a racist overtone because it's glaring. If I said the second thing, it's an undertone because it doesn't seem apparently racist, but is.

>>9233510
wunaholderwunaholdertyte