Question

There was a steaming mist in all the hollows, and it had roamed in its forlornness up the hill, like an evil spirit, seeking rest and finding none. A clammy and intensely cold mist, it made its slow way through the air in ripples that visibly followed and overspread one another, as the waves of an unwholesome sea might do. It was dense enough to shut out everything from the light of the coach-lamps but these its own workings, and a few yards of road; and the reek of the labouring horses steamed into it, as if they had made it all.

Tone?

Answer 1

The author is portraying a grim tone. There are many negative connotations that contribute to the attitude of this passage, such as “evil”, “unwholesome“ “forlorness“. These words give off a negative tone because they all suggest a dark feeling. The author is trying to describe the attitude and atmosphere of the moment. Using descriptive imagery like “dense enough to shut out everything from the light of the coach lamps” and “a clammy and intensely cold mist”. By using figurative language the author is once again trying to give off an attitude based on how they write the passage.