"Sorrow-Acre" is told from a consistent third person, or "he said/she said," point of view, and from a strikingly even narrative distance. The narrator is partially omniscient; that is, she can tell the reader what Adam and Sophie-Magdalena are thinking when the alternative would be unwieldy. (Imagine, for example, how awkward It would appear If Sophie-Magdalena had to say everything she thinks aloud to herself or someone else). But generally the narrator prefers to present narrative commentary ("the low, undulating Danish landscape was silent'"; "a young man walked'") and report speech. At the same time, this narrator clearly has a personality distinct from the personalities of the story's characters, and seems to view the characters with occasional irony and complete detachment. The narrative voice, not to be confused with the.....
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