Narrator and point of view

The fairy tale “The Well of the World’s End” was collected by Joseph Jacobs.

The story is narrated in the past tense, with dialogue in the present tense. The third-person narrator intervenes after almost every line of dialogue, providing small details about the characters: “‘Whatever can that be?’ cried the stepmother” (l. 47); “ ‘Go and open the door this instant.’ For she was glad the girl would have to obey a nasty frog.” (ll. 49-50).

The narrator provides insight into some of the character’s thoughts and feelings. For example, we are told that the stepmother plans to get rid of the protagonist – this is illustrated through an insight into her intimate thoughts: “For she thought she would never be able to find the Well of the World’s End, and, if she did, how could she bring home a si...