Assignment #1: Gene is narrating his own story of what happened when he was in high school. How do a. his perspective (1st person narration) and b. the retrospective (looking back and telling a story as if it were the present) influence you as a reader and how does it impact the credibility or integrity of the story being told? (Tom)

I think that the reason John Knowles started the book with Gene narrating his memories from high school is that he wanted the reader to be influenced in a twisted bittersweet way. In the book, Gene is revisiting his old high school, Devon High School, and is remembering all the memories he had, whether they be good or bad. After walking the hallways and the fields, Gene comes across an old tree which he remembers as “the giants of your childhood, whom you encounter years later and find that they are not merely smaller in relation to your growth” (Knowles 14). This quote is a great example of how, during his time there, Gene remembers the tree differently than how he looks on it now. In my opinion, the credibility of the story isn’t compromised but simply more realistic. I also think that if the story continues by being told in a twisted way, the credibility is lost because it is different from its original form (like a game of telephone).

What do you think? Did I forget something?