Point of View

The novel is told from the perspective of an omniscient narrator, in third person using past tense. This is a most comfortable point of view for the reader. This perspective is critical for two important reasons. First, only an omniscient narrator can give the reader access to all the warring elements, and there are many. Second, none of the main characters could provide a reliable, unbiased report of the novel's events. That said, it is worth noting that much of the story's action is filtered through the mind of Jack Brigance. For example, when Jake's house burns to the ground, the reader views the event more from Jake's vantage point than from that of the Klan or law enforcement. Readers come to know Ellen Roark and Carla Brigance more from the way Jake sees them than from a truly objective position. Rufus Buckley might very well...