Narrator and point of view

The short story “Born Again” by Anne Billson is told by a first-person narrator. The narrator of the story is also its main character, Nancy. It is worth keeping in mind that the events are told in retrospect, and in the past tense, which suggests that the narrator has already experienced the events she presents: “So when I awoke that morning with a thumping great hangover, I put it down to the bottle I’d finished off the night before.” (p. 76, ll. 4-6)

One of the features that define the narrator is self-irony, which makes her more approachable. For instance, she is ironic towards herself when she realizes she is screaming in horror: “Someone was screaming. Imagine my embarrassment when I realized that someone was me.” (p. 78, ll. 13-15). 

Furthermore, she is ironic towards herself when she thinks about the reasons she is constantly attacked: “Maybe I’d inherited a fortune without knowing it, or inadver...