Date of Award
Spring 1970
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
English
Abstract
The purpose of this thesis is to examine the unique role of the peripheral narrator in Moby-Dick, Heart of Darkness and The Great Gatsby. Each narrator's point of view is unique in that, though he is a character within the story, his participation in the action is restricted by his peripheral status which allows him to witness and evaluate the other characters, particularly the protagonlst. The distinguishing characteristic of this narrative frame necessitated by the use of such a narrator is that the author surrenders his omniscience regarding his other characters by letting his narrator tell the reader only what he as an observer legitimately discovers. The reader has available to him the thoughts, feelings and perceptions of the witness-narrator who views the story from what may be called the wandering periphery.
Recommended Citation
Leiken, Erana, "The role of the peripheral narrator in Moby-Dick, Heart of darkness and The Great Gatsby" (1970). Master's Theses. 315.
https://scholarship.richmond.edu/masters-theses/315