Narrator and point of view

The short story “Compassion Circuit” by John Wyndham is narrated by an third-person narrator. This is indicated by the way in which the narrator talks about the characters through the use of personal pronouns such as “she” (l. 1), “he” (l. 27), or “it” (l. 68).

Most of the time, the narrator follows Janet’s perspective and knows what she thinks or feels:

Janet had been perfectly well aware for some time that her friends regarded her as a nitwit or worse for wearing herself out with looking after a house which a robot would be able to keep spick and span with a few hours’ work a day. She had also known that it irritated George to come home each evening to a wife who had tired herself out by unnecessary work. (ll. 8-12)

There are also instances in which the narrator follows George’s perspective, like in the following example: “George had to be satisfied with that, but he left the hospital feeling a little better for the sight of the quiet smile on Janet’s lips as she slept.” (ll. 278-279)

When...