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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
Prologue
Explanation and Analysis:
The mood of Invisible Man is both frustrated and mirthful. The unnamed narrator has a highly cynical worldview due to his experiences of oppression, exploitation, and betrayal at the hands of various institutions and organizations, from the university he attends on a scholarship to the political party that he joins after his expulsion. However, his deep feelings of frustration are often accompanied by a strong feeling of mirthful amusement. In the prologue of the novel, for example, he describes his experience of beating up a white man who insulted him in the street:
He lay there, moaning on the asphalt; a man almost killed by a phantom. It unnerved me. I was both disgusted and ashamed. I was like a drunken man myself, wavering about on weakened legs. Then I was amused: Something in this man’s thick head had sprung out and beaten him within an inch of his life. I began to laugh at this crazy discovery. Would he have awakened at the point of death? Would Death himself have freed him for wakeful living? But I didn’t linger. I ran away into the dark, laughing so hard I feared I might rupture myself.
Related Themes:
