\Words such as "feverishly and startlingly", "panting dripping mouths", "real", "smell", and "grass" effectively establish a dark mood in the text, using intense, sensorial imagery to convey foreboding and unease.
The words that help establish the dark mood readers feel in paragraph 30 are "feverishly and startlingly", "panting dripping mouths", and to some extent, "real", "smell", and "grass". These words contribute to an intense, sensorial experience that brings the dark and perhaps foreboding atmosphere of the scene to life.
While the phrase "an exquisite French tapestry" might stand in contrast by conjuring an image of beauty and refinement, the combination of the other terms provides a strong counterpoint that can overshadow this imagery, suggesting a dichotomy or tension within the scene.
Looking at various examples of descriptive imagery, we can see how authors use specific words to draw readers into different scenes and moods.
In vivid descriptions that paint a picture or set a tone, words that evoke the senses—such as audio (e.g., "wind whistled"), visual (e.g., "glistening in the hot August afternoon sun"), olfactory (e.g., "spicy-scented needles"), tactile (e.g., "clammy with the breath of crowded human beings"), and even gustatory elements—immerse the reader.
Phrases like "feverishly and startlingly" or "panting dripping mouths" blend tactile, olfactory, and auditory imagery to elicit a particularly visceral dark mood by suggesting overheated, desperate, or animalistic qualities, amplifying the sensation of unease or menace in the narrative.