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Definition of Tone
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical or mournful, praising or critical, and so on. For instance... read full definition
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical or mournful, praising or critical... read full definition
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical... read full definition
Tone
Explanation and Analysis:
The tone of “A&P” shifts back and forth between sarcastic and earnest. Sammy—the narrator of the story, and therefore the tone-setter—clearly resents having to work as a clerk at the A&P. His narration features several bitter remarks about the shoppers at the store—they are, in his mind, “sheep,” “houseslaves,” and “pigs in a chute.” He also resents his boss Lengel, a “pretty dreary” man who Sammy sarcastically describes as viewing himself as “head lifeguard” of the “big dune” of the A&P.
In between Sammy’s sarcastic and biting descriptions of most of the people around him, he uses an earnest, almost reverent tone when describing the trio of teen girls who enter the store wearing only their bathing suits. He is most in awe of the leader of the group, who he refers to as “Queenie” and describes as “cute” and “more than pretty.” At one point he notes that she has a longer-than-normal neck before stating that he didn’t mind because “the longer her neck was, the more of her there was"—a very earnest statement that captures his desire for her.
The following passage—which features Sammy lusting after Queenie—demonstrates how Updike weaves the sarcastic and earnest tones together:
She kept her eyes moving across the racks, and stopped, and turned so slow it made my stomach rub the inside of my apron, and buzzed to the other two, who kind of huddled against her for relief, and then they all-three of them went up the cat-and-dog-food-breakfast-cereal-macaroni-rice-raisins-seasonings-spreads-spaghetti-soft-drinks-crackers-and-cookies aisle.
This passage opens with a more earnest and romantic tone, as seen in Sammy’s description of Queenie “turn[ing] so slow it made [his] stomach rub the inside of [his] apron,” before shifting into a more ironic tone with the description of the “cat-and-dog-food-breakfast-cereal-macaroni-rice-raisins-seasonings-spreads-spaghetti-soft-drinks-crackers-and-cookies aisle.” The juxtaposition of young love (or lust) alongside the mundane (and not-so-sexy) items on the shelves at the A&P creates a simultaneously tender and humorous tone.
Related Themes:
