The Narrator

The book’s narrator is also its central character and protagonist. She is never identified by name, or specifically by age (which seems to be her mid-thirties). She is, however, clearly defined as an American. She also says she is a journalist, but as a number of characters point out, she does not seem to be doing much reporting. Instead, she actually seems to be more of a prostitute, since the narrative portrays her as being seen as / treated like one – and also portrays her as selling her body and sexuality for money more often than it shows her behaving like a journalist.

Meanwhile, the narrator’s choices, actions, and reactions throughout the book define her as its principal embodiment of its various themes. For example, it is her frequent references to the year and to the circumstances in which she finds herself that evoke the book...