Point of View

Jo is the protagonist of the novel. However, Jo and Bethie's individual impressions of particular events are both afforded equal importance in the narrative. This egalitarian approach is possible because the omniscient narrator observes both sisters closely. The narrator often provides each sister's thoughts and feelings about a particular event, such as Jo's marriage or Bethie's multiple sexual assaults. The narrator never privileges one sister's interpretation of a particular event over the other sister's.

Though there are many characters in the novel, other characters' thoughts and feelings are only relevant insofar as they influence Jo and Bethie's actions. For example, what is most significant about their mother, Sarah's, adherence to feminine gender norms is how her expectations affect her daughters' behavior. Because the reader knows Jo will die prematurely, how the events of the plot form whom Jo becomes is more important than the events...