Tone In The Flowers And Everyday Use

The mood and tone to any well written story is essential, and without both devices, a story would not be as engaging as it could be. Often in stories, mood and tone are developed by diction, or the word choice that the author uses to help the readers define the feelings and emotions of the characters and the story itself. The short stories that Alice Walker wrote use a massive amount of diction to represent and further all the moods and tone that appears in her stories. Without diction, the mood and tone would not be as easily identified, or even created. Therefore, the mood and tone of the short stories "The Flowers" and "Everyday Use" are developed by the contribution of diction.
Incorporated in both short stories, "The Flowers" and
Stated from page one, "The air held a keenness that made her nose twitch. The harvesting of the corn and cotton, peanuts and squash, made each day a golden surprise that caused excited little tremors to run up her jaws." (Walker 1). This quote from the short story illustrates how the word choice uplifts the story and allows the mood to appeal to be such a joyful and light-hearted story. This type of diction is also found in the story "Everyday Use". To develop the mood of the story, Mama's unique phrases full of diction are the key tool to distinguishing the mood. "In real life I am a large, big boned woman with rough, man working hands." (Walker 1). These types of phrases are found numerous times in the story. Mama's word choice keeps the mood of the story uplifting, even when there is tension between characters. Furthermore, in "The Flowers", as the story continues and reaches its climax, readers can find the mood turning into a more upsetting and gloomy feeling. "It seemed gloomy in the little cove in which she found herself. The air was damp, the silence close and deep." (Walker 1). This quote is placed right before the climax of the story, and with the word choice, the mood begins to slightly change. In addition, "It was only
Diction allows each story to have its own different way of portrayal, as well as allowing the readers to have all sorts of feelings throughout the story. If there was no diction in stories, the readers would be unable to have specific emotions to the characters or any factors written. In both stories, diction lends to all the ups and downs, and all the feelings and change in character moments. The mood and tone is an essential piece to the writing, and diction only helps the mood and tone come off the