Compare the ways in which the settings of A Hero and Red Room create the mood and atmosphere of their story.
In ‘A Hero’ a few distinct moods are created by the different places Swami finds himself in. We know from the name Swami that he is from another culture. Swami ‘sleeps in the passage’ which would again be associated with a less privileged society than our own. It is apparent to the reader that this story is set in Asia with animals like ‘tigers’ and ‘scorpions’ described in the story.
The story opens with Swami’s father reading the newspaper; he tells Swami of a boy who has ‘courage’ and that courage is very important; so father decides that Swami should prove how courageous he is by sleeping in the office. The moment Swami hears this, the mood changes to a ‘frightful’ one. This is because he has always slept next to his grandmother and sleeping alone in the ‘dusty’ office is a scary prospect. As soon as Swami realises that the matter was ‘beyond his control’ the mood becomes tense as Swami realises he has no control of his fate. Swami is so worried about the prospect of having to sleep alone that he tries to persuade his father by telling him that he will sleep alone ‘next month’; ‘Swami pleaded’ with his father to let him sleep in the passage. In contrast the passage has a mood of security and warmth provided by the love of his ‘grandmother’. This place is where Swami hides from his father. This mood is disturbed when his father forces him to move and he has to go to the sleep in the office. The setting of the office creates fear. There are many contributing factors which make it a scary place. For swami it is the unknown; he imagines there are ‘scorpions’ behind the books. Swami had heard stories of his friends being taken away by the ‘devil’ which bring intense fear into his mind, though he finds a small amount of comfort in hiding underneath the bench. The ‘dusty’ office seems to be neglected which makes the place seem cold and frightening especially to a young boy. As Swami is sleeping his dreams and thoughts reflect his apprehension and as he hears something moving the mood becomes one of outright panic! Swami grabs what he fears and attacks it, he faces his fear and ultimately this leads to relief for him. As the story comes to a close Swami is congratulated for stopping the burglar who he attacked, especially at the school where there is a buoyant and festive mood, and ultimately there is relief that he can go and sleep back in the passage ‘beside his granny’.
