The mood of Sons and Lovers is generally contemplative and solemn. Lawrence establishes mood primarily through figurative language and detailed, descriptive imagery, usually of the surrounding landscape or setting characters find themselves in. In the below passage from Chapter 6, for example, Lawrence uses vivid imagery to evoke grief and despair in the reader when Paul and the rest of his family wait for William's coffin to arrive:
Paul went to the bay window and looked out. The ash tree stood monstrous and black in front of the wide darkness. It was a faintly luminous night [...] There was the noise of the wheels. Outside in the darkness of the street below, Paul could see horses and a black vehicle, one lamp and a few pale faces then some men, all miners in their shirt sleeves, seemed to struggle in the obscurity. The yellow lamp of the carriage shone alone down in the black road.
Most of the adjectives in the passage are used to describe light and color, drawing the reader's attention to these qualities. Notice how lightness and darkness are juxtaposed throughout the passage. Dark colors such as black typically represent the unconscious, death, or suffering. The presence of light, on the other hand, usually symbolizes life, knowledge, or wisdom. The presence of both lightness and darkness in the passage reflects the presence of both life and death in the scene. Lawrence's use of descriptive language is in keeping with the drama of the moment; William's death comes as a horrific shock to the Morel family, a tragedy that nearly kills Mrs. Morel.
In Chapter 14, as Paul's mother grows increasingly ill and Paul witnesses her suffering, Lawrence uses color, imagery, and repetition to create a sense of sorrow and grief in the reader and foreshadow Mrs. Morel's death:
Paul heard his father’s heavy footsteps go thudding over the deadening snow. Miners called in the streets as they tramped in gangs to work [...] Perhaps the snow was bluer [...] The snow was growing blue [...] The world was waking. A grey deathly dawn crept over the snow.
Lawrence uses visual and auditory imagery to make Paul's psychological and emotional experience all the more vivid to the reader. The repetition of the word "snow," as well as the repeated sound of Walter Morel's footsteps, emphasizes the snow's relentlessness, and evokes a sense of dullness and flatness. The repetition of the letter d in the phrase "grey deathly dawn," like the ticking of a clock, expresses the intense impending grief Paul experiences once his mother dies. Moreover, Lawrence pointedly uses the color grey to describe the dawn, grey representing death or something that has grown lifeless in appearance.
The mood of Sons and Lovers is generally contemplative and solemn. Lawrence establishes mood primarily through figurative language and detailed, descriptive imagery, usually of the surrounding landscape or setting characters find themselves in. In the below passage from Chapter 6, for example, Lawrence uses vivid imagery to evoke grief and despair in the reader when Paul and the rest of his family wait for William's coffin to arrive:
Paul went to the bay window and looked out. The ash tree stood monstrous and black in front of the wide darkness. It was a faintly luminous night [...] There was the noise of the wheels. Outside in the darkness of the street below, Paul could see horses and a black vehicle, one lamp and a few pale faces then some men, all miners in their shirt sleeves, seemed to struggle in the obscurity. The yellow lamp of the carriage shone alone down in the black road.
Most of the adjectives in the passage are used to describe light and color, drawing the reader's attention to these qualities. Notice how lightness and darkness are juxtaposed throughout the passage. Dark colors such as black typically represent the unconscious, death, or suffering. The presence of light, on the other hand, usually symbolizes life, knowledge, or wisdom. The presence of both lightness and darkness in the passage reflects the presence of both life and death in the scene. Lawrence's use of descriptive language is in keeping with the drama of the moment; William's death comes as a horrific shock to the Morel family, a tragedy that nearly kills Mrs. Morel.
In Chapter 14, as Paul's mother grows increasingly ill and Paul witnesses her suffering, Lawrence uses color, imagery, and repetition to create a sense of sorrow and grief in the reader and foreshadow Mrs. Morel's death:
Paul heard his father’s heavy footsteps go thudding over the deadening snow. Miners called in the streets as they tramped in gangs to work [...] Perhaps the snow was bluer [...] The snow was growing blue [...] The world was waking. A grey deathly dawn crept over the snow.
Lawrence uses visual and auditory imagery to make Paul's psychological and emotional experience all the more vivid to the reader. The repetition of the word "snow," as well as the repeated sound of Walter Morel's footsteps, emphasizes the snow's relentlessness, and evokes a sense of dullness and flatness. The repetition of the letter d in the phrase "grey deathly dawn," like the ticking of a clock, expresses the intense impending grief Paul experiences once his mother dies. Moreover, Lawrence pointedly uses the color grey to describe the dawn, grey representing death or something that has grown lifeless in appearance.
