Structure

The short story “Born of Man and Woman” by Richard Matheson is structured in the form of a journal. The child writes six journal entries, but it is rather difficult to assess whether the story’s structure is chronological or not. While the first four entries are marked X, XX, XXX and XXXX, the fifth entry is marked “XXX” (p. 185, l. 21) and the sixth entry is marked “X” (p. 185, l. 37). This could indicate the events might not be taking place in chronological order.

The beginning introduces the main character, who is also the narrator. The narrative hook attracts the readers (p. 183, l. 1), who become curious about the language and metaphors used by the narrator. A foreshadowing element is introduced when the child’s father hints that the child is physically deformed: “And also mother he said. Mother so pretty and me decent enough. Look at you he ...