What you'll learn
How writers use setting to create mood and support meaning.
Setting and atmosphere
- Setting: the time and place of a text.
- Atmosphere/mood: the feeling created, often through imagery, weather, light and detail (pathetic fallacy).
- Setting can reflect character or theme and build tension.
Analysing
- Ask how descriptive choices create a particular atmosphere and why.
Exam tips
- Analyse specific descriptive words, not just 'the setting'.
- Link setting to mood, character or theme.
Common mistakes
- Describing the setting without analysing its effect.
- Ignoring how atmosphere shifts.