Mood
Middlesex
by Jeffrey Eugenides
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Middlesex: Mood 1 key example

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

Key Examples in Middlesex

Book 1: An Immodest Proposal
Explanation and Analysis:

In Middlesex, the contrast between the narrator's tone and the reality of a scene frequently generates a rapid mood shift, moving from immediate anxiety or grimness (or another emotion) to something more contemplative, or musing (in line with a historical/satirical perspective). 

Note the following example of one such mood discrepancy, from Chapter 3:

At sea, sailors would mistake the rising smoke for a gigantic mountain range. In the country they were heading for, America, the burning of Smyrna made the front pages for a day or two, before being bumped off by the Hall-Mills murder case (the body of Hall, a Protestant minister, had been found with that of Miss Mills, an attractive choir member) and the opening of the World Series.