Fiction Essay

The significant role of a narrator in literary works often goes unnoticed by many readers. The type and tone of the narrator in a story plays a big part in declaring the theme of the story. Moreover, the way the narrator portrays the story and its theme has a strong effect on the way readers perceive the story. The role of a narrator includes deciding how a reader might be involved in regards to the story’s events. In William Faulkner’s short story titled A Rose for Emily and Ghassan Kanafani’s narrative titled The Land of Sad Oranges, the narrators play a vital role by drawing the reader into the story, declaring the involvement of the reader, and directing what the reader will attend to throughout the story. One of the arguably most important roles of a narrator is drawing the reader into the story and keeping them engrossed throughout. In A Rose for Emily, the narrator contributes to the depth of story by remaining unknown to the reader. The narrator speaks using “we” and “us”, acting as a combined and representative voice of the townspeople in Emily’s town. However, towards the end of the story, the narrator says “They waited until Miss Emily was decently in the ground before they opened it” when referring to the knocking down of the door to Emily’s mysterious room. The narrator uses “they” in this context, singling him or herself out from the townspeople for a moment. This anonymity behind the narrator’s identity and association with Emily adds an element of mystery and suspense to the story, which helps maintain the reader’s attention to the story and its events. On the other hand, in The Land of Sad Oranges, while the immediate identity of the narrator is unknown, it is known that he or she is a relative to the main characters of the story, most likely a cousin. The narrator gives the reader a clear illustration of the unfolding of events throughout the story, with minimal elements of mystery and anonymity.