Narrator and point of view

The short story “Tin Man” by Jennifer Kerslake is told from the point of view of a first-person narrator, who is also the main character. The narrator is a nine-year-old child who recently lost her mother and is struggling to fit in at school. Therefore, most of the events are influenced by her experiences, and we only have access to her opinions on the other characters, especially her father.

The narrator’s relationship with her father is central to the short story. From the start, the narrator presents her honest, but biased opinion of her father’s ability to make her a costume for the school play: “As soon as I set eyes on the silver knit, I know he won’t be able to do it.” The narrator’s doubt of her father will continue throughout the short story, leading the readers to believe that the father will, indeed, not be able to make a costume for the narrator, and the narrator will probably be hum...