Point of View

Throughout the novel, Cosby employs the third-person limited perspective to create a dual sense of both intimacy and distance between Titus and the reader. In All the Sinners Bleed, Cosby’s chosen point of view allows the reader access into many of Titus’ thoughts and emotions. Cosby divulges some of the most personal aspects of Titus’ internal life; in an early example, Titus thinks of his current and former girlfriends and notes, “Say what you will about her, but Kellie never had a problem with [sexual] aggression. In fact, she craved it. If she had been in his bed last night…” (84). Here, Cosby’s third-person limited narration draws the reader close to Titus by explicitly stating the doubt and uncertainty that Titus feels in his relationship with Darlene. At other points, however, the third-person perspective fails to create the intimacy between character and reader that...