The Interlopers Group

Question:

mccaa17
mccaa17
Student
High School - 11th Grade

What is the setting of "The Interlopers" and how does the setting contribute to the mood of the story.

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Posted by mccaa17 on Monday August 11, 2008 at 7:26 AM and tagged with mood, setting, the interlopers.

Answers:

  1. badkitty
    badkitty Teacher
    High School - 11th Grade

    The dark forest setting helps create an atmosphere conducive to the plot. Two enemies out to kill each other, darkness and hatred in their hearts. In a forest it is easy to lose one's way, as is has been for these men; bitter enemies feuding over land for three generations. It isn't until they are forced together do they start to see the proverbial forest through the trees. The mood begins to shift as nature intervenes through a bolt of lightening, a flash of light representative of them realizing they have wasted their lives being enemies. This realization becomes strong as each decides when their men come to rescue them, they will save the other first. However, the darkness of the forest wins out over light in the story's ironic ending.

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    Posted by badkitty on Monday August 11, 2008 at 4:09 PM

  2. lizbv
    lizbv Teacher
    High School - 9th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    The setting to the story is the forest over which these two men have laid claim and are fighting over.  Its thick brush and the darkness that it creates are representative of their feud in that the forest, like their feud, is dense and dark and presents a major problem in their lives. The fact that they come face to face in this forest shows how the forest has brought them together, even though initially it is as enemies in a feud.  However, once they are trapped in the forest and are forced to deal with and finally agree to resolve the feud, the forest, which was once a problem, is now the element that is causing them to solve the issue (seen as they are trapped under a tree).

    This setting contributes to the mood of the story in that the depth and darkness of the forest create the sense of danger and foreboding that is present at the beginning. Additionally, the tree that traps the two men mirrors and resonates the conflict in their lives that is bringing them together, namely the feud. This then contributes to the sense of struggle the reader feels.

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    Posted by lizbv on Monday August 11, 2008 at 6:31 PM

  3. ninjacatcher
    ninjacatcher Student
    High School - 10th Grade

    It is in a dark forest in theCarpathians and the darkness helps the mood of the two men finding each other.

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    Posted by ninjacatcher on Thursday October 22, 2009 at 2:33 PM