The Tenth of January

Style, in modern writing, represents tone or language of the writing the author presents. In reading The Tenth of January, the style of writing tends to be solemn and a bit depressing. Starting from the beginning, the reader senses sadness when the author describes the city of Lawrence and the people presiding. "For simooms that scorch you and tempests that freeze; for sand-heaps and sand-hillocks and-roads; for men digging sand, for women shaking off sand, for minute boys crawling in sand; for sand in the church-slips and the gingerbread-windows, for sand in your eyes, your nose, your mouth, down your neck, up your sleeves, under your chignon, down your throat; for unexpected corners where tornadoes lie in wait" (Phelps 1). In reading the description, you can, as the reader, feel what the town is made of and how people feel; people's sense of emotions. In reading along, the author describes Aseneth who is a struggling young women for perfection in other peoples eyes. The author goes on to describe her as "her neck and shoulders were closely muffled" (Phelps 2). From the descriptions of the city and the people along with it's main character, the author makes it a slightly sad read just because reading about a character undergoing harsh judgement and other problems creates sympathy among the reader.