Point of View

While John le Carré uses a limited third-person perspective through most of the novel, he occasionally turns to the first-person perspective to reproduce characters’ direct thoughts. In chapters centering on the storyline in East Anglia, le Carré focuses on Julian Lawndsley. The reader follows Julian as he interacts with other characters and, intermittently, narrates his own thoughts. The same applies to Stewart Proctor in the alternate chapters. In this way, the reader most directly occupies the narrative perspectives of Julian and Proctor. The limited third-person perspective, which does not fully grant access to all of Julian and Proctor’s thoughts, aligns the reader with these characters yet allows her to maintain the position of narrative detective. This choice works well in a novel about espionage and mystery; just as Julian and Proctor attempt to piece together the truth about Edward Avon, the reader attempts to...