Setting and narrator

Here, we discuss the setting and narrator of the short story “Walking the Dog” by Bernard MacLaverty.

Setting

“Walking the Dog” is set in Ireland, somewhere on the Lisburn Road in Belfast (p. 2, l. 35) during The Troubles, which refers to armed conflicts in Northern Ireland.

Physical setting

The physical setting presents a winter’s night with the action spanning over less than a half-hour. The surroundings are depicted in detail, paying attention to both the geographical area and the overall atmosphere:

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Social setting

The social setting is also very important because it shows how the conflict over whether Northern Ireland should be a part of the UK or Ireland had shaped people.

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Narrator

The short story “Walking the Dog” by Bernard MacLaverty is a third-person account of a narrator who is not part of the action. However, the storyteller takes on the perspective of the main character, John, and presents the events from his point of view:

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