Point Of View And Credibility In Helen Keller's The Story Of My Life

Point of View and Credibility

Just like any other autobiography, Keller wrote The Story of My Life in first person point of view, sharing her experiences through her own thoughts and feelings, however, this point of view makes the narrator less credible. In the novel, Keller recounts her early childhood and so forth from memory, making the story less trustworthy since her memory could be false. She could have added some details she wanted to include and forget some details that could have changed the story slightly or immensely, yet Keller is well aware of this problem as before she starts the book she says: “When I try to classify my earliest impressions, I find that fact and fancy look alike across the years that link the past with the

Plus, Keller thoughts are purely based on her imagination of things and on what the people around her tell her, so some situations might have not played out the way she states it. Another point is that her story is an autobiography; everything she shares is just her view on things. Keller does not include other view points in her stories, meaning that she only shared the experiences she wanted to share, not the full story. She may have just included the details that she wanted to incorporate; the ones that make her look good, and excluded the ones that make her seem like a bad individual. When reading the novel, it is acknowledged that there are not many negative issues that Helen shares concerning herself, yet there are numerous positive characteristics that she states, like the fact that she sensed bad for the children at the Perkins Institute for the Blind, making her seem like a kind affectionate individual, which she may be, except there is no confirmation from additional sources. Altogether, Keller’s choice of first person point of view and many other

Throughout the novel, Keller only mentions that Sullivan is her teacher who was instructed to her from the Perkins Institute for the Blind. Very little information is given to the readers about Anne Sullivan; even though, she is also a main character next to Keller. Although readers may not know much about her, Keller mentions that Anne is her teacher; so acknowledging that Anne is a smart woman is easily derived. Plus, Sullivan stayed by Keller’s side throughout the entire story, even with all of Keller’s tantrums. Therefore, it can be recognized that Sullivan is a woman of much patience. All the information that the readers know about Anne is shown in an indirect approach. Moreover, Sullivan’s attitude and personality does not shift throughout the novel, making her a static character. From the moment Anne arrived to Keller’s home, she was gentle, yet strict with Keller, always having enough patience to teach. Anne patience with Keller never ran out, even in Radcliff, when she had to sign everything the professors were saying into Keller’s hand. Overall, Anne Sullivan’s character is an indirectly described flat and static