Point of View

The narrative primarily unfolds from the parallel points of view of its two central characters, Ralph Truitt and Catherine Land. Most of the time, that point of view shifts from chapter to chapter, not necessarily alternatively but frequently there are sections in which narrative focus stays longer with one than with the other. For example, the entirety of Section 2 focuses almost entirely on Catherine's viewpoint. There are occasional diversions into the point of view of other characters, most notably Antonio. This takes place often in the aforementioned Section 2, but also in the latter chapters of Section 3 in which Antonio's reactions to being back in his childhood home and to his father's overtures of relationship are examined in considerable detail. This sense of shifting point of view, of similar intensity of observation between the two main characters, reinforces the idea that they are in many ways co-protagonists...