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Metaphors
Definition of Mood
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect of a piece of writing... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes... read full definition
Mood
Explanation and Analysis:
The mood throughout The Handmaid's Tale is both unsettling and bleak, signifying a theocratic America wherein evangelical Christianity is taken to its furthest possible extreme. This mood is heightened through Offred's narration. Not only does she frequently and vocally despair at her current predicament, she actively chooses to remember the past and communicate this remembrance to the reader. The act of remembering and mourning the past forms a thematic through-line in The Handmaid's Tale, maintaining a more somber, contemplative mood throughout.
Offred's cognitive dissonance also impacts mood in The Handmaid's Tale: she oscillates between hope and love, when remembering the past, and despair, when recalling the present. As a result of these understandable mood swings, the reader must too oscillate between extremes of emotion, juggling what Offred herself must juggle. Frequently, Offred will follow a retelling of a positive memory with a complaint, frustration, or trauma connected to the present. Her current situation colors the very act of remembrance.
The frequency of memory and recollection in the narrative, relative to real-time plot development, also colors the narrative's mood. Offred dissociates as a means of survival. As a reader, one feels an accompanying mood of disconnect or detachment from present events.
Related Themes:
