Previous
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
Mood
Explanation and Analysis:
The mood of “Sonny’s Blues” is, as the title suggests, a mournful one. The narrator has navigated a series of losses over the course of his life (his parents and two-year-old daughter have all died; he lost contact with his brother Sonny for years) and, though the story is centered on his reunion with the now-clean (formerly drug-addicted) Sonny, the mood is deeply morose. The following passage—which comes near the beginning of the story, after the narrator finds out Sonny is back in prison—captures this melancholic mood:
A great block of ice got settled in my belly and kept melting there slowly all day long, while I taught my classes algebra. It was a special kind of ice. It kept melting, sending trickles of ice water all up and down my veins, but it never got less. Sometimes it hardened and seemed to expand until I felt my guts were going to come spilling out or that I was going to choke or scream.
Here the narrator describes feeling like there was “a great block of ice” in his stomach that “melt[ed] there slowly all day long” and that “trickle[d] ice water all up and down [his] veins.” The feelings became so extreme that he felt like his “guts were going to come spilling out.” All of these descriptions communicate to readers how deeply painful it is for the narrator to hear that his brother has been locked up again, contributing to the mournful and despairing mood of the story.
Though the story does not end on an overtly uplifting note, the mood does shift slightly at the end when the narrator goes to watch Sonny perform jazz at a club and has a moment of emotional catharsis. Rather than trying to control all of his feelings until he “choke[s] or scream[s],” he is finally able to cry and access a sense of freedom in the process.
Related Themes:
