Atmosphere through Detailed Language in Snow Falling On Cedars :: Snow Falling Cedars Essays

Atmosphere through Detailed Language in Snow Falling On Cedars Snow Falling On Cedars, by David Guterson, is an emotional story. The death of a fisherman, Carl Heine, on San Piedro Island, turns into a murder trial for Japanese American, Kabuo Miyamoto. Also an inter-racial childhood romance between Ishmael Chambers and Hatsue Miyamoto shifts back and forth in time and the World War II Japanese Internment story unfolds as part of the romance. David Guterson creates atmosphere in the opening chapters through detailed language. The story is set on a pacific island where society is very small and the fishing community is very important to islanders. Guterson uses the sea, weather and landscape to describe many features in the opening chapters; this creates links between the setting and story. The use of flashbacks creates an interesting aspect to the novel. Guterson introduces the characters in very detailed portraits; this enables the reader to have a clear identity of each one. Tension is created in the courtroom through prejudice language and Guterson creates an atmospheric feeling to all court scenes. Kabuo Miyamoto is described as a criminal from the beginning of the murder trial; already the reader gets the impression that he is guilty for murdering Carl Heine. "†¦.his stillness suggested a disdain for the proceedings", this shows how Kabuo is feeling a dislike towards the trial, and creates a static atmosphere for the trial ahead. Kabuo also shows that he has no respect for the court as, "†¦.he sat proudly upright with a rigid grace", and he does not acknowledge anything that is going on, "†¦did not appear moved at all". Throughout the detailed description of the opening court room scene we can see that the atmosphere is very tense, and creates a feeling of suffocation, "It was a place of gray-hued and bleak simplicity". Kabuo Miyamoto comes across to the reader as a sensitive individual who is taking this murder trial in his stride. David Guterson shows that Kabuo was depressed whilst, "been exhiled in the county jail for seventy seven days - the last part of September, all of October and all of November, the first week in December", here Guterson lengthens the description of how long he was in jail for and creates a sense of boredom for Kabuo. The weather and sea descriptions that Guterson uses to represent and describe many scenes, are essential as they represent the San Piedro way of life.