Narrator and point of view

The narrator of the short story “Renaude” by Charlotte Bondy is Clara, who is also the story’s main character. Here, we will present Clara’s point of view and the way in which she relates to what happens to her.

Clara is a subjective first-person narrator. Generally, first-person narrators tend to be subjective because they analyse what happens to them through the lens of their own thoughts and feelings, being unable to detach themselves from the events. In Clara’s case, her subjectivity makes her come across as idealistic and dreamy: “I love the way she pronounces my name. Claw-ra, drawing it out like it’s something important and precious.” (ll. 17-18).

As a narrator, Clara has a limited point of view regarding the events that happen to her. She does not know that Mischa is going to offer her a significant present or that the two of them will...