Point of View

The novel is written using third person narration. Throughout the novel, Brown uses omniscient narration. This gives the novel a unique tone, since the author is a true traditional storyteller. He is able to jump from place to place and describe events both "from above" and from within any of the characters. Most traditional storytelling is narrated in this way and the author is linking his novel to these oral traditions by making this choice of narration and point of view. This style of narration is different from much contemporary writing, which allows us to hear the story from the viewpoint of one character (or at least a limited number of characters). It also allows us to enter into the story through a limited number of perspectives. The author's choice of point of view makes for a novel that can cover a lot of ground. Between...