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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
Book 1, Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis:
The Price family are white Americans, originally from the American South. Their rough transition to a rural African village generates a persistent ironic tone throughout the book when their assumptions are upset or challenged. For instance, Adah notes wryly in Book 1 that Nathan's attempts to bring practical items to the Congo backfired:
His hammer turned out to be a waste of two or three good pounds, because there appear to be no nails in the mud-and-thatch town of Kilanga. [...] Leah in her earnest way helped him scout around for a project, but alas he found nothing worth pounding at, anywhere.
Just like Nathan brought the useless hammer because he assumed the Congo would have nails, the Prices bring other assumptions and beliefs to Africa that they either alter over the course of the novel or stubbornly cling to. Their racism, their trust in the American government, their belief in Evangelical Christianity, and their consumerism all clash with their experiences in the Congo.
This frequent ironic tone is, nevertheless, sincere about one thing: Americans should question what they think they know, especially about other countries and cultures. Through her narrators, Kingsolver frequently writes in a shocked and despairing tone when describing the reality of the world inside and outside America. Orleanna, Leah, and Adah all express their betrayal as they learn that formerly trusted authorities and institutions, especially the American government, have misled outsiders and undermined the Congo's attempts at self-determination. As these characters grapple with their former ignorance, and as they question whether they are complicit in their government's mistakes, the tone of the novel becomes grimly reflective. For instance, Orleanna, whose narration is retrospective, opens the novel in Book 1 by implicating herself in imperialism:
You’ll say I walked across Africa with my wrists unshackled, and now I am one more soul walking free in a white skin, wearing some thread of the stolen goods: cotton or diamonds, freedom at the very least, prosperity. Some of us know how we came by our fortune, and some of us don’t, but we wear it all the same. There’s only one question worth asking now: How do we aim to live with it?
The tone of the novel can vary depending on which character is narrating. Rachel's sections are often ironically funny when she confuses words or uses American slang, but she also lacks the empathy and insightfulness the other narrators often have. Orleanna's chapters have a sad, regretful, and troubled tone. Leah is hopeful and energetic in tone. Ruth May's narration is childish and also hopeful, and sometimes she does not understand the significance of the events she relays. Adah narrates with puns and palindromes, sarcasm, irony, and bitterness.
Related Themes:
