The Effect of Narrative Style in "The Man Who Thought Himself a Woman" Gianna Rufo College

Narration style plays a significant role in the way an audience receives and interprets a story. An intrusive narrator can manipulate a reader’s understanding of a specific character or event based on the narrator’s personal biases and imposed judgement. The narrator of “The Man Who Thought Himself a Woman” is opinionated and critical of the story’s characters. The story has a different effect due to the intrusive narrator’s biases. Japhet, the tale’s main character, is denied any sympathy from the narrator and is painted as an oddity through the narrator’s choice of language. The audience lacks a deeper understanding of Japhet’s internal struggle due to the narrator’s superficial characterization of Japhet, which is harmful to the effect of the story. The insensitivity and implicit bias of the narrator of “The Man Who Thought Himself a Woman” reinforces societal gender norms and provides negative representation of individuals that redefine their gender identity by painting Japhet as a spectacle.

The narrator portrays Japhet as an odd character and an outcast from the very beginning. This representation of them predisposes the reader to be judgmental of the character and perceive Japhet’s gender expression as strange. The first...