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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
Main Story
Explanation and Analysis:
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" combines gothic horror and comedy to produce a tale whose mood is simultaneously spooky and lighthearted. Knickerbocker opens the story by gently mocking the husbands of Tarry Town for their “inveterate propensity […] to linger about the village tavern on market days,” then transitions into a description of the eerie Sleepy Hollow, its supernatural atmosphere, and its ghostly inhabitants. He performs a similar mood-based bait-and-switch when he introduces his central character, Ichabod Crane. Knickerbocker’s physical description of Ichabod is comical, but his account of the phantoms that Ichabod encounters on his evening walk home is legitimately unnerving.
Related Themes:
