The Tone Scale

The Tone Scale — a vital tool for any aspect of life involving one’s fellows — is a scale which shows the successive emotional tones a person can experience.
By “tone” is meant the momentary or continuing emotional state of a person. Emotions such as fear, anger, grief, enthusiasm and others which people experience are shown on this graduated scale.
Skillful use of this scale enables one to both predict and understand human behavior in all its manifestations.
This Tone Scale plots the descending spiral of life from full vitality and consciousness through half-vitality and half-consciousness down to death.
By various calculations about the energy of life, by observation and by test, this Tone Scale is able to give levels of behavior as life declines.
These various levels are common to all men.

When a man is nearly dead, he can be said to be in a chronic apathy. And he behaves in a certain way about other things. This is 0.05 on the Tone Scale.

When a man is chronically in grief about his losses, he is in grief. And he behaves certain ways about many things. This is 0.5 on the scale.

When a person is not yet so low as grief but realizes losses are impending, or is fixed chronically at this level by past losses, he can be said to be in fear. This is around 1.0 on the scale.

An individual who is fighting against threatened losses is in anger. And he manifests other aspects of behavior. This is 1.5.

The person who is merely suspicious that loss may take place or who has become fixed at this level is resentful. He can be said to be in antagonism. This is 2.0 on the scale.

Above antagonism, the situation of a person is not so good that he is enthusiastic, not so bad that he is resentful. He has lost some goals and cannot immediately locate others. He is said to be in boredom, or at 2.5 on the Tone Scale.

At 3.0 on the scale, a person has a conservative, cautious aspect toward life but is reaching his goals.

At 4.0 the individual is enthusiastic, happy and vital.

Very few people are natural 4.0s. A charitable average is probably around 2.8.

You have watched this scale in operation before now. Have you ever seen a child trying to acquire something? At first he is happy. He simply wants something. If refused, he then explains why he wants it. If he fails to get it and did not want it badly, he becomes bored and goes away. But if he wants it badly, he will get antagonistic about it. Then he will become angry. Then, that failing, he may lie about why he wants it. That failing, he goes into grief. And if he is still refused, he finally sinks into apathy and says he doesn’t want it. This is negation.

A child threatened by danger also dwindles down the scale. At first he does not appreciate that the danger is posed at him and he is quite cheerful. Then the danger, let us say it is a dog, starts to approach him. The child sees the danger but still does not believe it is for him and keeps on with his business. But his playthings “bore” him for the moment. He is a little apprehensive and not sure. Then the dog comes nearer. The child “resents him” or shows some antagonism. The dog comes nearer still. The child becomes angry and makes some effort to injure the dog. The dog comes still nearer and is more threatening. The child becomes afraid. Fear unavailing, the child cries. If the dog still threatens him, the child may go into an apathy and simply wait to be bitten.

Every person has a chronic or habitual tone. He or she moves up or down the Tone Scale as he experiences success or failure. These are temporary, or acute, tone levels.

Objects or animals or people which assist survival, as they become inaccessible to the individual, bring him down the Tone Scale.
Objects, animals or people which threaten survival, as they approach the individual, bring him down the Tone Scale.

This scale has a chronic or an acute aspect. A person can be brought down the Tone Scale to a low level for ten minutes and then go back up, or he can be brought down it for ten years and not go back up.
A man who has suffered too many losses, too much pain, tends to become fixed at some lower level of the scale and, with only slight fluctuations, stays there. Then his general and common behavior will be at that level of the Tone Scale.

Just as a 0.5 moment of grief can cause a child to act along the grief band for a short while, so can a 0.5 fixation cause an individual to act 0.5 toward most things in his life.

There is momentary behavior or fixed behavior.

Have you ever met someone who seemed to be always angry about something? You greet him with a friendly, “Good morning.” His response is an angry, “What’s good about it?”

Or someone whose outlook and response to life is a chronic apathy, no matter what is happening around him? The person seems to be in good health, has a loving family and an enviable job, but nothing makes any difference. The person just isn’t interested.

One of the great contributions was the discovery that emotions can be plotted on a scale in an exact ascending, or descending, sequence. This sequence was discovered through observations of many, many people.
Numerical values indicate the relative positions of emotions on the Tone Scale.

Let's look again at every basic tone :

Apathy, at 0.05 on the Tone Scale is a complete withdrawal. The person says, “What’s the use? All is lost.” When a person is chronically upset and immersed in life’s looses, he is in grief. This is at 0.5 — barely above apathy.

When a person is not yet so low, but realizes losses are impending, or is fixed chronically at this level by past losses, he can be said to be in fear. This is at 1.0 on the chart. A person who is fighting against threatened losses is in anger (1.5).

You will find that if you first spot another person's tone level and then match it, or go half a notch higher, that person will generally be more open to communication with you. Thus it is a useful tool for everyone from mothers to managers!

Here is a brief description of some of the more important levels on the tone scale:

0.05 Apathy
Often stares fixedly. Believes that a gargantuan effort will be required to achieve even the smallest effect (which is why the person is in apathy!) and that, therefore, nothing can be done about anything. May feign relatively higher toned states in that the person believes nothing will make any difference to him/her.

0.5 Grief
People at this level of the tone scale, when not actually crying, have eyes that are typically downcast. Looks for reminders of a better time and often talks about loss. The environment seems overwhelming.

1.0 Fear
Eyes nervously flit from one thing to another, and rarely, if ever, concentrate on the person with whom they are communicating. Tends to squirm, avoid answering questions and make any excuse rather than be put in a position where they are at effect.

1.1 Covert Hostility
Perhaps not as common a level of the tone scale, however, it is an important one to be able to spot when you do encounter it.
Initial impression may be one of cheerfulness - however, this is merely because the person has their anger suppressed. The person is a really a 'stab in the back' merchant. If accused of creating bad effects the person will claim his/her intention was good. Gives the impression of complying with the wishes of ohers, while holding a destructive intent.

1.5 Anger
Typically stares at you. Must avoid becoming an effect by destroying. Asserts 'truth' liberally, but favours, distorts and even manufactures 'facts' which make self right and others wrong.

2.0 Antagonism
Can just about tolerate others creating an effect on him/her, but is resentful of it. In conversations and at work, tends to act in the direction 'batting the motion' back. Threatens others through the use of criticism.

2.5 Boredom
Capable of receiving pleasant effects from others, but doesn't like too much activity. No compulsion to do anything about anything, but no action either. Tends to indulge in safe, polite conversation (e.g. talks about the weather). A "Ho Hum" level of the tone scale.

3.0 Conservatism
Believes that the status quo should be preserved. Respects the privacy of others. Doesn't like to stand out from the crowd. Will resist efforts to change, but contribute to those which uphold the norm. Will typically look at you in conversations, but look away if you look at him/her (avoids staring).

4.0 Enthusiasm
Significant ability to create effects on others, but is not under compulsion to do so. Can both accept and create change. During a conversation the person will look at you and not flinch from eye contact.

Basic Tone Scale

Each level in the basic tone scale can be determined by direct observation. Each emotional tone has a number of characteristics visible in appearance and behavior.
The tone scale can be applied to individuals, to businesses, to groups, to nations, etc.

An individual will have a chronic tone. That is the tone that is characteristic for his general outlook on life.
He will have an immediate emotional tone. Good news or events will bring him up the scale. Bad news or events will bring him down the scale. He will have a different emotional reaction to different spheres of life. His good friends, his interests, and his hobbies will put him in a good mood. Detested jobs, chores, and detested people will probably put him on a much lower level.

During a normal day, you may find the person go through many different emotional tones, depending on whom he meets and what he faces.

Here are some observable characteristics on the most important levels:

Basic Tone Scale

4.0 Enthusiasm
3.3 Strong Interest
3.0 Conservatism
2.5 Boredom
2.0 Antagonism
1.8 Pain
1.5 Anger
1.2 No Sympathy
1.1 Covert Hostility
1.0 Fear
0.9 Sympathy
0.8 Propitiation
0.5 Grief
0.375 Making Amends
0.05 Apathy
0.0 Being a Body (Death)

Observing the Obvious

The Tone Scale is an extremely useful tool to help predict the characteristics and behavior of a person. But to do this well you must be able to recognize a person’s position on the scale at a glance.

The Tone Scale is very easy to apply on a casual basis for some acute tone. “He was on a 1.5 kick last night.” Sure, he turned red as a beet and threw a book at your head. Simple.
She breaks into sobs, and grabs for the Kleenex, easily recognizable as grief.
But how about a person’s chronic tone level? This can be masked by a thin veneer of social training and responses. Such is called a social tone. It is neither chronic, nor acute, but is a reflection of the person’s social education and mannerisms adopted to present himself to others. How sharp and how certain are you about that? Take a person that you are familiar with. What, exactly, is his chronic tone?

The art of observing the obvious is strenuously neglected in our society at this time. Pity. It’s the only way you ever see anything; you observe the obvious. You look at the is-ness of something, at what is actually there. Fortunately for us, the ability to observe the obvious is not in any sense “inborn” or mystical. But it is being taught.

You can get a good tip on chronic tone from what a person does with his eyes. At apathy, he will give the appearance of looking fixedly, for minutes on end, at a particular object. The only thing is, he doesn’t see it. He isn’t aware of the object at all. If you dropped a bag over his head, the focus of his eyes would probably remain the same.

Moving up to grief, the person does look “downcast.” A person in chronic grief tends to focus his eyes down in the direction of the floor a good bit. In the lower ranges of grief, his attention will be fairly fixed, as in apathy. As he starts moving up into the fear band, you get the focus shifting around, but still directed downward.

At fear itself, the very obvious characteristic is that the person can’t look at you. People are too dangerous to look at. He’s supposedly talking to you, but he’s looking over in left field. Then he glances at your feet briefly, then over your head (you get the impression a plane’s passing over), but now he’s looking back over his shoulder. Flick, flick, flick. In short, he’ll look anywhere but at you.

Then, in the lower band of anger, he will look away from you, deliberately. He looks away from you. A little further up the line and he’ll look directly at you all right, but not very pleasantly. He wants to locate you-as a target.

Then, at boredom, you get the eyes wandering around again, but not frantically as in fear. Also, he won’t be avoiding looking at you. He’ll include you among the things he looks at.

Owlet wrote:

What a person does with his eyes can help you spot his position on the Tone Scale.

Hmmm, interesting, maybe it's because almost people confront by eyes

Owlet wrote:

Objects or animals or people which assist survival, as they become inaccessible to the individual, bring him down the Tone Scale.

ahaa, every loss bring person down the Tone Scale, right?
And when person feels or just think that he (she) could lose somethings it brings him (her) down the Tone Scale too.

right...

Red owl wrote:

Hmmm, interesting, maybe it's because almost people confront by eyes

you are too smart!!!

Owlet wrote:

Red owl wrote:

Hmmm, interesting, maybe it's because almost people confront by eyes

you are too smart!!!

I'm just trying to understand everything better

Owlet wrote:

Basic Tone Scale
4.0 Enthusiasm
3.3 Strong Interest
3.0 Conservatism
2.5 Boredom
2.0 Antagonism
1.8 Pain
1.5 Anger
1.2 No Sympathy
1.1 Covert Hostility
1.0 Fear
0.9 Sympathy
0.8 Propitiation
0.5 Grief
0.375 Making Amends
0.05 Apathy
0.0 Being a Body (Death)

I found some pics

For those members of this forum salute you!
Its really mó english fairly poor. - if you will understand my speech hardly, ok? Agree with yours any correction.
Russion is native for me, but this topic an English, so cornered ...

My question is apropos pics, that Red owl:) found: for the first time in one's life looking such fine arts by Tone Scale ... Maybe I'm back number, but me interested in any case, what its sourse? Many thanks

Red owl wrote:

Owlet wrote:

Red owl wrote:

Hmmm, interesting, maybe it's because almost people confront by eyes

you are too smart!!!

I'm just trying to understand everything better

If you want to understand everything better you can read Science of Survival book, that goes over every tone level closely.

Beside emotions in Science of Survival you can also find other characteristics like health state, sexual activities, dealing with truth, activity level and so on for each level of the tone scale.
These descriptions are very detailed, e.g. persons at tone level 1.5 (chronic anger) are prone to arthritis, people at tone level 1.1 (covert hostility) are inclined to sexual perversity and homosexuality.
So you can use something else to detect person's tone level, not only eyes. I guess eyes are just immediately available.

There is a correlation between body odor, bodily substances, and one's position on the Tone Scale. You can use body odor instead of eyes. :

The body is normally sweet-smelling down to 2.0 but begins to exude chronically certain unpleasant effluvia from 2.0 down. Individuals from 2.0 down commonly have bad breath. Their feet may have a considerable odour. The musk glands are very active. The sweat has a peculiar smell. Sexual organs emit a repelling odour. And various body exhaust functions are not under very good control.
Any slightly or greatly repulsive physical odour from an individual indicates a tone scale position below 2.0. It is amusing to note that in the Orient wives are commonly selected by the sweetness of their perspiration. This is a very reliable test for position on the tone scale. People who are temporarily suppressed below 2.0 commonly have bad breath.

Science of Survival says:

There is only one answer for the handling of people from 2.0 down on the tone scale, and it has nothing to do with reasoning with them or listening to their justifications of their acts. It is to raise them on the Tone Scale.
Adders are safe bedmates compared to people on the lower bands of the tone scale.

Welcome to the discussion Ican.

I understand it is difficult for you to communicate in English. But we have The Tone Scale topic in Russian.
Red owl can post the pictures there also and we can move discussion about them over there…

40.0 Serenity of beingness
30.0 Postulates
22.0 Games
20.0 Action
8.0 Exhilaration
6.0 Aesthetic
4.0 Enthusiasm
3.5 Cheerfulness
3.3 Strong interest
3.0 Conservatism
2.9 Mild interest
2.8 Contented
2.6 Disinterested
2.5 Boredom
2.4 Monotony
2.0 Antagonism
1.9 Hostility
1.8 Pain
1.5 Anger
1.4 Hate
1.3 Resentment
1.2 No sympathy
1.15 Unexpressed resentment
1.1 Covert hostility
1.02 Anxiety
1.0 Fear
0.98 Despair
0.96 Terror
0.94 Numb
0.9 Sympathy
0.8 Propitiation
0.5 Grief
0.375 Making amends
0.3 Undeserving
0.2 Self-abasement
0.1 Victim
0.07 Hopeless
0.05 Apathy
0.03 Useless
0.01 Dying
0.0 Body death
- 0.01 Pity
- 0.02 Shame
- 0.07 Accountable
- 1.0 Blame
- 1.3 Regret
- 1.5 Controlling bodies
- 2.2 Protecting bodies
- 3.0 Owning bodies
- 3.5 Approval from bodies
- 4.0 Needing bodies
- 5.0 Worshipping bodies
- 6.0 Sacrifice
- 8.0 Hiding
-10.0 Being objects
-20.0 Being nothing
-30.0 Can't hide
-40.0 Total failure