Point of View

"Runaway" is written from the third person perspective as it tells the story of Carla, Clark, and Sylvia. It would seem, at the beginning of the story, that the point of view is limited strictly to Carla: readers are privy to Carla's thoughts as she worries about Sylvia's return and assesses her husband's reaction. Then, about a third of the way through the story, the perspective shifts to present readers with Sylvia's thoughts instead. Ultimately, the story allows readers to experience the events from two different perspectives, a structure that relates back to the story's focus on perception and understanding who people truly are. Readers are able to see Sylvia's perception of Carla shift as she learns more about her situation, and similarly, they experience Carla's indecision over whether to stay with Clark. By alternating between a focus on Carla's perspective and Sylvia's perspective, the...