Point of View

Stephenie Meyer tells her novel The Chemist from the third-person, limited-omniscient perspective, with the focus of the narrative surrounding Alex. The third-person narrator allows the reader a passive, observant view, as the narrator gives readers essentially a play-by-play of events as the plot unfolds. However, the narrator confines the narrative to Alex. This means that the only knowledge that readers gain is from Alex. When Kevin leaves for Washington,and when Daniel is out of Alex’s sight, readers do not know where he has gone. Likewise, as Alex and the others are on the run, readers –and Alex –have no idea where the enemy might be. This adds a sense of mystery and suspense to the novel, which underscores the novel’s genre as such. The sense of mystery and suspense helps to compel the reader forward. This also allows the author the latitude...