Atmosphere through the detailed language of the snow falling on the cedarsThe snow falling on the cedars, by David Guterson, is a story moving. The death of a fisherman, Carl Heine, on the island of San Piedro, turns into a murder trial against Japanese American Kabuo Miyamoto. Additionally, an interracial childhood romance between Ishmael Chambers and Hatsue Miyamoto moves through time and the story of Japanese internment during World War II unfolds within the framework of the romance. David Guterson creates atmosphere in the early chapters through detailed language. The story takes place on an island in the Pacific where the society is very small and the fishing community is very important to the islanders. Guterson uses the sea, weather, and landscape to describe many features in the early chapters; this creates connections between the setting and the story. The use of flashbacks creates an interesting aspect in the novel. Guterson presents the characters in very detailed portraits; this allows the reader to have a clear identity of each. Tension is created in the courtroom because of the prejudiced language and Guterson creates atmosphere in all the courtroom scenes. Kabuo Miyamoto is portrayed as a criminal from the start of the murder trial; the reader already has the impression that he is guilty of the murder of Carl Heine. “….his stillness suggested a disdain for the proceedings”, this shows how Kabuo feels aversion towards the trial and creates a static atmosphere for the upcoming trial. Kabuo also shows that he has no respect for the court as, "...he sat proudly upright with rigid grace", and he does not recognize anything that is happening, "...doesn't didn’t seem moved at all.” Throughout the detailed description of the opening scene of the courtroom, we can see that the atmosphere is very tense and creates a feeling of suffocation: "It was a place of dark simplicity and with gray tints. Kabuo Miyamoto appears to the reader as a sensitive person who approaches this murder trial with serenity. David Guterson shows that Kabuo was depressed while "exiled in the county jail for seventy-seven days - the latter part of September, all of October, and all of November, the first week of December ". Here, Guterson lengthens the description of the length of time he has been in prison and creates a sense of boredom for Kabuo. The weather and maritime descriptions that Guterson uses to depict and describe many scenes are essential because they represent the San Piedro way of life..