What is the author's tone in Evita: The Real Life of Eva Peron by Nicholas Fraser?

The tone of Evita: The Real Life of Eva Peron is complex, and seems somewhat tragic on the whole. While Evita had many triumphs in her life, it was very short, a mere thirty-three years. Further, many of Evita's major life decisions were made with little information and sometimes under duress or pressure from others, like Peron. In many ways, her life was not always a happy one. The tone reflects these facts. For instance, Evita's total loyalty to Peron, while somewhat romantic, manifests a sad tone when it is mentioned because Evita's love for her husband was identified with the political agenda of obedience to a fascist dictator.

The tone is also somewhat negative because Evita has been largely a positive cultural symbol, associated with good things, not bad ones. As a result, when the authors expose myths, Evita is desanctified and in some ways this has a sad element as well. But perhaps the greatest tragedy, the darkest language, is used when Evita's death is covered. She contracted uterine cancer at a young age and died a painful death. Her illness seems to have caused her to make a number of insane speeches that were later used to justify political violence. And after her death, the tone of the book remains tragic, as her body was embalmed in a disgusting way and fought over as an object of political struggle. In the end, she becomes an almost silly cultural symbol in the nineties.

However, the book has real moments of triumph and inspiration, such as when Evita is engaged in her great works of compassion; and the tone reflects this in those passages.