Narrator and point of view

The short story “Beyond the Pale” by Rudyard Kipling is a third-person narrative. The narrator is outside the story and conveys it as an observer: “This is the story of a man who wilfully stepped beyond the safe limits of decent every-day society, and paid for it heavily” (ll. 9-10). However, the narrator is not an objective storyteller and often voices his opinion directly. For example, he mentions “A man should, whatever happens, keep to his own caste, race and breed.” (l. 5) or that “No Englishman should be able to translate object-letters.” (ll. 56-57). This highlights his disapproval of Trejago’s knowledge of Indian culture, and of his relationship with Bisesa. From the beginning, he is critical of the main character, mentioning that “He knew too much in the first instance” (l. 11) and warning readers against having relationships outside their caste or race like Trejago did.

At one point, the n...