The elements of literature are the common structural elements that should be included in every story. The elements of literature are Characters, Setting, Narrator, Perspective/Point of view, Plot, Conflict/Problem, Mood, and Theme. Good writers make sure each element is included in the stories that they write to make them interesting and understandable. Good readers learn to recognize each of the elements to understand the meaning or the moral of the story. These elements create the foundation of good stories and if they are missing, the story will feel incomplete and unsatisfying. Also, it will not be very entertaining for the readers.
Mood
Mood refers to the emotional atmosphere that a piece of literature creates for the reader. The mood of a story or animated feature film can evoke a wide range of feelings from joy to despair. It shapes the reader's emotional response and enhances the overall experience of the literary work. Unlike tone, which expresses the author’s attitude, mood evokes an emotional response in the reader. It’s about how writing makes you feel, not what the author thinks.
Mood is established through various techniques such as descriptive language, setting, tone, and imagery. In other words, it can be expressed through visual effects, background artwork, the appearance and names of the characters, in the presence of villains, music, and character dialogue or the figurative language that is used in the story.
A story or screenplay can also have more than one mood. For example, Disney’s animated feature film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) has at least two very different moods. On the one hand, it starts out as a happy, carefree, playful and lighthearted film. However, there are also feelings of suspense, danger, and sadness as viewers are introduced to the Evil Queen who tries to destroy Snow White due to her feelings of jealousy. The good that is exemplified in Snow White contrasts with the evil of the Queen and is a classic theme that creates contrasting moods in the story.
The Disney animated film Cinderella (1950) is also an example of a story with more than one mood. The story begins with viewers feeling sad and possibly even hurt by the way that Cinderella’s stepsisters treat her when they make her do all the cooking and cleaning at home. However, the story changes to give the feeling of hope and optimism when Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother magically makes it possible for her to enjoy the ball with the Prince without her stepsisters knowing. The mood briefly becomes suspenseful when she must leave the ball earlier than she wanted to and viewers are faced with the thought that Cinderella might not ever see the Prince again. The story ends with a joyful, celebratory mood when Cinderella is found to be the only one able to fit the glass slipper and live with the Prince happily ever after.
Those examples show us how the feelings we experience as viewers of the films gives us the different moods of those stories. Mood is also different from the theme o a story. A theme in a story is a meaning, message or moral of the story. A mood is how the story makes the reader or the viewer feel as they experience reading a story or watching a film.
Also, the type of story lets us know about the story’s plot. To describe a story as a coming-of-age story, or a comedy, tragedy, or action drama is to describe the plot of a story. The plot is an element of literature that lets you know what the story is about. For example, The Lion King is an animated coming-of-age film about how a young lion cub is tricked into believing he has to leave home to live in exile because he was responsible for the death of his father. It includes themes such as family, friendship, jealousy, and death. However, the moods of the story or the feelings we have as viewers of the animated film include majestic, happy, carefree, suspenseful, dangerous, tragically sad, and celebratory.
Other examples of moods are as follows: Happy and carefree as is noticed in the Disney animated short film Steamboat Willie
Mystery, fear and foreboding like in the cartoon television series Scooby Doo, Where Are You?
Playful and funny like in episodes of Sponge Bob Square Pants animated television series
Action and adventure as often noticed in episodes of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series
Playful and innocent as noticed in the animated television series Alvin and the Chipmunks
Suspense, fear and horror like in the cartoon television series Courage the Cowardly Dog
How Mood is Expressed
As was stated previously, the mood of a story can be expressed through visual effects, background artwork, the appearance and names of the characters, in the presence of villains, music, and character dialogue or the figurative language that is used in the story.
Visual Effects
The Batman animated cartoon series has a dark and suspenseful mood. This is obvious in how the settings and the background artwork looks in the series. Gotham City is dark and there is a lot of criminal activity.
This background scene from the animated film The Lion King (1994) expresses a mood of wonder, majesty and a serious sense of pride.
Characters
The physical appearances of the characters can express the mood in a story.
Mickey Mouse’s playful dog Pluto, the dwarfs in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Jiminy Cricket in Disney’s Pinocchio (1940), Thumper in Disney’s Bambi (1942), the silly Smurfs, and the gargoyles in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) all express playful, fun and humorous moods in those stories.
The presence of a villain can also be a way that a writer expresses the mood of a story. The mood of a story can change according to how the character looks, the description of the character and his/her powers or what is considered to be “wrong” with the individual, and/or what their purpose is in the story – to take over the world, to destroy a group of characters, etc. Examples of villains that make this possible are as follows:
The Evil Queen in Disney’s animated film Cinderella (1950)
Gargamel in The Smurfs animated cartoon series
The Joker in Batman the Animated Series
Cruella de Vil in Disney’s One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)
The Grinch in Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! television special
Skeletor in He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon series
Scar in The Lion King (1994)
Dr. Facilier in Disney’s animated film The Princess and the Frog (2009)
Music
Music in an animated film or television series can be used to express the mood of the story. A fast-paced or upbeat song can make the viewers feel happy and playful. A song in which you hear very few instruments can be made to sound like someone is being sneaky or doing something suspicious. A slow, quiet song can create a sad or more serious mood and possibly even a feeling of danger.
This scene from the Tom and Jerry cartoon series by Hanna-Barbera Productions lets you hear an example of how the music gives an indication of the mood of the story. The music seems to get quieter and simpler when Jerry does something sneaky or mischievous. You can only hear a few instruments at these times. The music gets louder when Tom sees Jerry or realizes he is around him and doing something to try to upset him.
The introduction of the cartoon series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe expresses the feelings of power and strength.
The song “Hakuma Matata” in Disney’s The Lion King (1994) expresses moods of being carefree and happy.
The song “Let It Go” featured in the animated film Frozen (2013) expresses the moods of sadness because she longs to be closer to her sister and other people, self-acceptance, freedom, and triumph.
Although it was not animated, the introduction to the Wonder Woman television series also gives us an example of how music can express the mood of a show. The music expresses an energetic, powerful, optimistic, and patriotic mood for the show.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a 2018 American animated superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Miles Morales/Spider-Man, produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation in association with Marvel Entertainment, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing. It was the first animated film in the Spider-Man franchise. Inspired by the Amazing Spider-Man, it is about how a new Spider-Man joins other Spider-People from various parallel universes to save his universe from Kingpin. The film was released on December 14, 2018, and grossed $384.3 million worldwide against a $90 million budget. It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. A sequel, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, was released in 2023. A third film, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, and a spin-off film focused on female Spider-related characters are in development, with a television series being considered.
Your Assignment
You must watch the animated film Spider Man: Into the Spider Verse (2018) to best be able to complete this assignment. After reading through this lesson about Mood as an element of literature in animation, answer the following questions about this film based on what you have learned.
- What is(are) the Setting(s) in the film?
- Who are the Characters in the film?
- What is the Conflict/Problem in the film?
- From what Point of View/Perspective is the story written?
- What are the Themes in the film?
- What are the Moods in the film?
Have fun learning!
(Sources – Film Colossus, Literary Devices, Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia)