Point of View

The point of view used in "The Lotus Eaters" by Tatjana Soli is the third-person and omniscient. This point of view works well in the story as there are several components and underlying factors that would not be revealed otherwise. While the first person point of view might have been interesting when coming from the characters, particularly Helen Adams in her early days in Vietnam and various times of culture shock and confusion, the third person point of view conveys the entire story and not just the subjective opinions of the characters. It also permits the reader to take part in the journey and development of each character in the story. Understanding all of the characters, such as Linh and Darrow, helps to round out the story between the new and old characters and how their wartime experiences changed each in various ways.

The point of...