Lamb to the Slaughter
by Roald Dahl

Lamb to the Slaughter: Tone 1 key example

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 “Lamb to the Slaughter” is a surprisingly lighthearted one given the subject matter. Dahl toes the line between humor and horror, often landing on the side of humor, as seen in the following passage (which comes after Mary impulsively hits Patrick on the head with a frozen leg of lamb):

The violence of the crash, the noise, the small table overturning, helped bring her out of her shock. She came out slowly, feeling cold and surprised, and she stood for a while blinking at the body, still holding the ridiculous piece of meat tight with both hands.

All right, she told herself. So I've killed him.