Point of View

Allen uses a mixture of first and third person perspectives, occasionally utilizing both in the same story. In "Examining Psychic Phenomena" for example, each case is narrated by Dr. Twelge, who relays events in third person. The doctor, however, allows breaks in his narrative to accommodate the first person accounts of witnesses. This creates a mingling of perspective that lends a sense of credibility, reinforcing the idea that the reader is hearing the "whole story."

Allen prefers the third person omniscient perspective. His narrators, who are often themselves characters, speak with the authoritative voice of someone outside and beyond the context of a given story. There is a sense that Dr. Twelge, before he puts pen to page, is in possession of all the facts. He owns the history of his cases. The doctor therefore doesn't tell the story from the perspective of someone who is...