Point of View

The novel is written from an unnamed narrator's first person point of view. In the novel's first section, "The Cast," the narrator identifies herself as follows: "Myself: Austrian passport, issued by the Ministry of the Interior. Official Austrian I.D. Eyes—br., Hair—blnd.; born in Klagenfurt; some dates follow and a profession (crossed out twice and written over); addresses (crossed out three times); above which in clear block letters: Ungargasse 6, Vienna III" (3, 4). Though the narrator includes herself within her cast of characters, and devotes narrative space to providing details about herself, her character is elusive and enigmatic. Her inability to exactly define who she is, where she is from, who she has been, and what she wants for the future, dictates the ways in which she approaches her narrative account. Indeed, the novel's central conflicts and tensions are directly inspired by the narrator's fraught...