Narrator and point of view

The short story “The Park” by James Matthews is told entirely in the past tense by a limited third-person narrator.

Narration is mostly focused on the main character’s perspective: “He walked reluctantly past the see-saw, consoling himself with pushing at one end to send it wacking on the grass.” (ll. 306-307). However, we also get some glimpses into the mind of the park attendant: “All his feelings urged him to leave the boy alone, to let him continue to enjoy himself. But the fear that someone might see them hardened him” (ll. 337-338). 

The narrator is reliable, presenting events and actions in an objective and detached way: “He spat out the particles of clay clinging to the lining of his lips, eyes searching for an object to throw at the boys separated from him by the railings.” (ll. 13-14)

Narration is mostly explicit, as actions are clearly described as the...