Point of View

A majority of the works are presented in third person omniscient. This is a particularly accurate viewpoint when setting is of great importance to the story. Third person allows Cheever to give the reader great insight into the sights and sounds of the city and to develop a sense of personality and vision regarding each character.

There are some cases in which the third person is the only plausible choice, such as "The Sutton Place Story", where the author relates the experiences of Deborah Tennyson, the little girl, and that of her housekeeper, parents, and friends. The reader gets a solid picture of Deborah's precociousness and attempts to get the attention of her parents.

The use of the third person is crucial in the story titled, "The Worm in the Apple." This point of view, lends a great deal of humor to the piece as the...