Narration

The narration in Wetzel's story shifts primarily between the points of view held by Mantini and Carla. The two characters are not telling the story in first person, but the nearly omniscient narrator allows many of their thoughts to be revealed, as well as their outer actions.

In the beginning of the story, for example, the narrator describes a street scene, then narrows the view down to Mantini's as he opens his shop for the day. Finally, Mantini's desire for a "deep, cold winter to curl up in" is revealed, something that cannot be understood simply by looking at him.

In the next scene, the narrator moves a few yards away to where Carla is standing in the street, trying to figure out the location of Mantini's shop. Again, the narration describes the character's outer behavior and then moves in deeper to look at her thoughts: "The foreign...