Point of View

In terms of narrative point of view, the key point to note and consider is how perspectives frequently shift – from Jacob’s first-person narration (i.e. the visit to the clinic and the journals), to third-person narration of an omniscient narrator (i.e. the conversations between Satan and his “guests”), to both third and first-person narration in the three short stories (third in “The Boy…,” first in “The Drone” and “The Cage…”). This shifting of perspective is one of several ways in which the author has given the book a sense of collage, with its four narrative lines defined by particular voice.

In terms of thematic point of view, each of those four narrative lines (the visit to the clinic, the journals, the conversations with Satan, the short stories) is primarily anchored in the novel’s primary theme – its consideration of the power and value...