Point of View

Last Night at the Telegraph Club is written in the third person and the past tense, primarily from Lily’s point of view. This type of narration has the effect of allowing the reader a continual intimate glimpse into Lily’s world as she undergoes crucial changes in her life and learns about herself and her sexuality. It also gives the reader a sense of the closed nature of Lily’s world: Until her friendship with Kath results in visits to the Telegraph Club, Lily’s social circle is mostly limited to her Chinatown childhood friends and her family. Most of her understanding of the world outside of her community comes from books, magazines, and other forms of media. Through descriptions and direct excerpts of material — such as The Exploration of Space by Arthur C. Clarke, a Collier's article about Mars, and a newspaper article...