David Haynes: Narration, Narrators, and Edward P. Jones (January 2012)

David Haynes draws from Frederick Reiken’s essay “The Author-Narrator-Character Merge” to focus discussion on the nature of narrative and in particular, on Edward P. Jones’s innovative approach. Haynes outlines possible techniques for orienting a reader, including the management of narrative time, the release of information, summation and judgment, and the modulation of narrative distance. Close readings of Jones’s stories “Old Boys, Old Girls” and “A Rich Man” highlight issues of when and why an author might choose to draw attention to narration, as well as when an appropriate choice might be to render narrative techniques invisible.