Narrator in Story by Lydia Davis (Free Essay Sample)

Lydia Davis is the author of the short story Story and has created a character who is known as the narrator in this essay who worries twenty-four-seven along with difficulties trusting or believing her boyfriend. These trust issues are reasonable considering the truth that her boyfriend constantly lies to her face and she can never really tell the difference between when he is telling the truth and when he is lying. Davis is able to explain in detail the rough relationship between the women and man through the narrator’s point of view in the first person pushing readers to conclude that the boyfriend is not behaving in conscientious or above-board ways, and therefore, according to the narrator, he is in the wrong for being unfaithful (cheating with another girl) and that the love in that particular relationship with his girlfriend was nonexistent.

The narrator’s suspicion in this short story will play a key role in backing her current issue that her boyfriend's actions prove that his love for the narrator was nonexistent. Especially when the narrator continuously asks her boyfriend if his ex-girlfriend was in his house and he would continuously lie and make her believe that he was telling the truth when he said he was home alone at the time his girlfriend originally called. When the narrator said that she “never know[s if her boyfriend was lying or telling the truth], and sometimes just because he says it to [her] over and over again [she becomes] convinced it is the truth because [she refuses to] believe [that] he would repeat a lie so often” (Davis 2). Thanks to the first-person narration in this section, readers can tell that the narrator believed that her boyfriend could not possibly lie that many times in a row to her and eventually started to believe whatever came out of his mouth--or at least wanted to believe it. This also helps readers understand the thoughts and feelings going through the narrator’s head at that moment in time. The narrator also mentions “the fact that [her boyfriend did] not tell [her] the truth all the time [, making her] not sure of his truth at certain times'' (Davis 2). The fact that the narrator could not tell whether or not her boyfriend was telling her the truth only proved that she was in a toxic relationship. This is the main goal of the narrator’s use of first-person rather than in third person where characters' inner thoughts are not taken into account. This text evidence only backs up the claim that writing this story in the first person is the only way to truly feel and understand the narrator’s inner feelings and emotions and understand that her boyfriend was clearly in the wrong for being unfaithful.

The narrator's use of first-person helps explain how she was “afraid that when [she would get to her boyfriend's house she would] see other cars by his house…and that one of them will belong to his old girlfriend” (Davis 2) lets readers know every fear and possible thought storming into the narrator’s head throughout the story. When the narrator mentions and includes her deepest fears and constant thoughts it allows readers to be put into her mindset and gain all of the skepticism and worrying thoughts that she is thinking over on her drive to her boyfriend's house. The narrator also mentions that “the fact that [her boyfriend] does not tell [her] the truth all the time makes [her] not sure of his truth” (Davis 2). Meaning, that the narrator was constantly asking herself if what her boyfriend was telling her was true or not. The use of the first person in these quotes in the narrator’s story shows that the narrator has issues trusting and figuring out what the cold-hearted truth is in her relationship on a daily basis. Without the first-person narration, readers may be confused as to what the narrator’s inner feelings were on her drive and would never know that she was worried. Therefore, the use of the first person in this story is crucial in order for readers to obtain a full understanding and side of the narrator’s story that the use of third person would never be able to accomplish.

The need for readers to fully comprehend that the narrator’s boyfriend was not behaving in a conscientious or above-board way and the use of first-person narration is crucial in this particular story. The narrator has been wronged but was able to express her feelings to her audience and help readers better understand the situation she was constantly put in through the use of her first-person perspective. The lies she had been telling herself were only put in her mind to avoid the heartbreaking and brutal reality that her boyfriend was not a loyal man. Sadly, the narrator knew the truth but wanted to continuously think of the positive (to believe he was a good man) and give him multiple chances to change his unloyal and dishonest ways. Without the input of the first-person narration, readers would never fully grasp the narrator’s inner thoughts and feelings which would have resulted in different viewpoints on the subject expressed in her story. Readers would have also most likely never fully understood the feelings of the narrator if the story were in the third person. This only proves that the use of first-person is two hundred and twelve percent needed and without it, readers would be unable to fully comprehend and have a connection with the narrator’s experience with her unfaithful boyfriend.