Perspectives

To engage in a broader conversation about “A Place in the Sun” by Joanne Harris, we recommend that you also consider the literary period when it was written, as well as similar works.

Literary period

Published in 2006, the short story fits the literary movement we call Postmodernism which defines most of literature published starting with the 1960s. Postmodernist works can be recognised through themes, context, and narrative techniques.

You may note that the short story “A Place in The Sun” explores the themes of impossible beauty standards and social segregation in an alternate or futuristic reality built as an exaggeration of modern society. In terms of narrative techniques, “A Place in the Sun” uses fragmentation (the events are not strictly chronological) and irony, which are typical features for postmodernist writers. The sto...