What mood does the author create at beginning of story Marigolds?

At the beginning of Eugenia Collier's "Marigolds," the author creates a mood of oppressive poverty, boredom, and simmering discontent. The descriptions of Lizabeth's impoverished surroundings – the dilapidated houses, the dust, the lack of opportunities – establish a sense of bleakness and despair. The children's idleness and aimless destructive actions contribute to a feeling of stagnation and pent-up frustration. The overall atmosphere is one of heavy, suffocating hopelessness.