Point of View

The poem is written primarily from the second person point of view. Throughout the text, the speaker uses the second person singular pronoun in order to address their “friend,” who can also be taken to be the reader of the poem (1). As such, the use of the second person point of view works to engage the reader with the poem. Rather the speaker describing a personal experience or some third-hand account of an event, the second person point of view creates the impression that the speaker is speaking directly to the reader. This is important for a poem such as “The Tables Turned,” which possesses a strong moral lesson that the poet wants the reader to take seriously. Furthermore, the poem is written in the present tense, which gives it an even stronger sense of urgency.

The point of view of the speaker is also...