Where Have You Gone Charming Billy?

The setting and the mood of the passage influence the reader's feeling towards PFC Paul Berlin by making the reader sympathetic. The setting of the exert is during a time of war. The soldiers are quietly moving along with a sense of fear and tiredness about them. The passage says, "...some of them afraid, some of them exhausted from the long night march, some of them looking forward to reaching the sea where they would be safe." This shows how the soldiers had been up all night without rest but they must continue on. The reader then feels sympathetic for the soldiers because they can't rest and they can't return home; they have to go on. It is also a gloomy and solemn mood set up by the author. Words like "slowly in the dark," "single file," and "not talking," are used. This makes us understand the seriousness of the situation. The soldiers take their job seriously and aren't even communicating with one another. The setting and then the mood set us up to view PFC Paul Berlin in this sympathetic way, especially when he starts referring to his childhood. He does this to take his mind off of the real situation at hand and the fear going through his mind. The reader sympathizes with the soldier, wanting him to be able to rest and return home safely.