Point of View

Flannery O’Connor tells her novel “The Violent Bear It Away” from the third-person omniscient perspective. The novel is told in this way for at least two primary reasons. First, the third-person perspective allows O’Connor to relate the story from the points of view of Tarwater and Rayber, focusing on one or the other where needed. While the reader is fully aware of the actions and thoughts of both Tarwater and Rayber, neither is fully aware of the other. This omniscience affords the reader the ability to understand things the way they truly are, rather than be subjected to the personal opinions and points of view of Tarwater and Rayber. The objectivity of the narrator further allows the reader to draw independent conclusions and opinions about the novel, apart from Rayber and Tarwater.

Setting

Flannery O'Connor sets her novel "The Violent Bear It Away...