Point of View

The point of view of this novel is first person. The main character, Jacob, is also the main narrator and the entire novel is seen through his eyes. Although the novel shifts in time, Jacob is the narrator both as a young man and an elderly man. During the periods in which Jacob is an elderly man, much of the narration is seen through Jacob's thoughts and emotions, with some dialogue between Jacob and the nurses around him. When Jacob is younger, there is more action in the narration, symbolizing the differences in physical worlds of these two settings, while still showing a great deal of Jacob's inner thoughts and emotions. These inner thoughts and emotions tend to remain the same no matter Jacob's age, showing the reader that Jacob is essentially the same man, whether an invalid in an assisted-living center or a young man...