Point of View

The story is told from in the first person, present tense, from the perspective of the narrator who is never named. The narrator’s lack of name is symbolic of the extent to which her identity as a mother has taken over her entire perspective on the world, leaving nothing else of note about her personality to the extent that not even her name is deemed to be a relevant part of her story.

Reflecting the centrality of motherhood to the narrative, the narrator’s point of view is mainly concerned with the welfare of baby Z. For example, when Z first smiles, the narrator notes: “Z has learned to smile. He has cracked with it. The smiles built up inside him, R and me smiling madly into his face until he couldn’t hold it any more. It cracked and out came his smile...