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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 of “Kabuliwala” is lighthearted for most of the story, with an emotionally wrenching conclusion. While there are some ups and downs in the first two-thirds of the narrative—such as the narrator’s wife feeling suspicious of Rahamat’s friendship with their daughter Mini and Rahamat being arrested and imprisoned for stabbing a customer who refused to pay his debts—the narrator reports on these events in an even-keeled way. While he enjoyed watching Rahamat and Mini’s relationship flourish (against his wife’s wishes), he was not overly emotional when watching the kabuliwala being taken away.
The mood of the story becomes much more emotional near the end, when the narrator reckons with two painful experiences at once: letting go of his daughter on her wedding day (as she prepares to leave their home and start her own family) and learning from Rahamat—who has just been released from prison—that he has a daughter of his own in Afghanistan who he has missed out on building a relationship with over the past ten or so years.
This second experience is deeply emotional for the narrator, as he realizes that Rahamat’s closeness with Mini was a replacement for the closeness he longed for with his own daughter, Parvati. Rahamat reveals that he has a daughter by showing the narrator a small handprint of Parvati’s that he carried in his pocket for over a decade away from home. The narrator has a big revelation in this moment, noting, “I understood then that he was as I am, that he was a father just as I am a father.” The story closes on this emotional note, with the narrator feeling the deep connection between himself and Rahamat, despite their ethnic and class differences.
Related Themes:
