Point of View

"In the Company of the Courtesan" is told through the eyes of Bucino, the dwarf who tells of his life with the courtesan Fiammetta. As the story is told through the first-person perspective, the reader sees the events unfold as Bucino sees them. Interestingly, Dunant does not choose to share the character's identity with us or even his gender until mid-way through the first lengthy chapter. Thus, the reader begins the book expecting a traditional narrative and is surprised to identify with a character who would usually be dubbed an outsider. Similarly, Bucino can be seen as a mostly reliable narrator as far as the events of the story are concerned: he describes things with passion and intensity, though we believe his version of the tale. Nevertheless, this does provide a one-sided view of the action, and other characters' responses are the only hints we have...