Point of View

The point of view for this book is third person, however, the author uses the real entries of Martha Ballard's diary for her analysis. This creates a feel that the story is actually unfolding while it is read. The analysis delves into Martha's life, but also is used as a basis for the life of a wife in late 18th Century New England.

By giving the reader some of the actual entries, and then analyzing them, the reader is helped to put into perspective how the women of Hallowell dealt with one another, with men, crime, life, death, the economy, and with every situation that would come their way in a lifetime. Martha's diary does not leave out the male side of life, but does not hold much interest in it either. Martha and the author preferred to relay the female side of the population.

The...