Point of View

Margaret Atwood tells her novel “The Heart Goes Last” from the third-person limited-omniscient perspective. This is done for at least two reasons. First, the third-person narrator acts as a unifying voice between the characters of Stan and Charmaine so that the reader may understand the actions, thoughts, and feelings of each character at the same time. Usually, an entire chapter is devoted to either Stan or Charmaine, so the reader is able to jump back and forth between both characters thanks to the common narrative voice. Secondly, the limited-omniscient aspect of the novel means that the reader only learns about things as either the narrator is willing to reveal them, or as Stan or Charmaine figure them out. This adds to the suspense, drama, and mystery of the novel as step by step, the true nature of the Positron Project is uncovered.

Language and Meaning