Previous
Style
Definition of Tone
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical or mournful, praising or critical, and so on. For instance... read full definition
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical or mournful, praising or critical... read full definition
The tone of a piece of writing is its general character or attitude, which might be cheerful or depressive, sarcastic or sincere, comical... read full definition
Tone
Explanation and Analysis:
Much like his grandmother Naomi, Saul is a dynamic storyteller. As the first-person protagonist of the book, his voice shifts in sync with the peaks and valleys of his life. Saul begins with a weary register: “I don’t give a shit about [setting myself free from the bottle]. But if it means getting out of this place quicker, then telling my story is what I will do,” he explains in the novel’s opening pages. But this grudging cynicism melts into poignance as he unravels the layers of his past. Saul settles into a reflective stance, and in a way that foregrounds awe: “The river wound serpentine, radiant in the light of the northern moon,” he writes while thinking back to his nights on Gods Lake. On the makeshift rink outside St. Jerome’s, he describes how he “floated out onto a snow-white stage in a soliloquy of grace and motion.” Saul's tone gradually transitions to one of wonder and appreciation for the world around him.
Indian sustains this introspective spirit, even as he struggles with alcoholism and comes to face the devastating truths of his abuse. Saul lashes out and drinks, but he shares them all to the reader with a sense of self-awareness. “I couldn’t run the risk of someone knowing me, because I couldn’t take the risk of knowing myself,” he explains. By the time he returns to Gods Lake, Indian writes with a new sense of poise. “I didn’t want to be haunted. I’d lived that way for far too long as it was,” he explains—marking a moment in which his initial cynicism and sorrow have transformed into deeper self-knowledge.
