Thursday, November 7, 2013

What is the point of view of the short story "Poison"?

Roald Dahl writes "Poison" in first person point of view--a character in the story tells the story.  Readers know this from the beginning because the story opens with Timber's words,



"It must have been around midnight when I drove home, and as I approached the gates of the bungalow."



For this particular story, first person works extremely well because the narrator, Timber, is a friend of Harry (the character upon whom the plot and theme are centered). Timber witnesses objectively for the reader the interaction between Harry and Dr. Ganderbai, and allows the reader to interpret how poorly Harry treats the doctor because of his own racism.

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