Gilbert King presents the happenings of the Groveland Trail
in a third person view. This is primarily interesting, because in a trial, each
witness tells his or her own personalized account of the incident at question.
During a trial, there is a tremendous amount of uncertainty onto what exactly
happened, and thus, each viewpoint is uniquely biased. Therefore, when
discussing a book that details the events leading up to a trial, the
perspective of the narrator is an incredibly important element to consider. The
viewpoint from which the author chooses to tell the story has significant
ramifications on the accuracy of the story and its believability.
Gilbert King’s extensive research and meticulous citation
sufficiently cover this issue. In compiling a variety of different sources on
the Groveland Trail, King is able to construct a balanced historical account of
the incident. It allows him to establish a clear viewpoint from which he can
tell the progression of events leading up the trial in Groveland.
Gilbert King chooses to represent these events linearly and
definitively. He establishes a constant overseeing voice of truth. As a result,
before the trial actually takes place, the reader has an accurate account of
the incident in question. This establishes dramatic irony later in the book,
where the reader knows the exact happenings of a trial, but no legal consensus
has come about yet, creating suspense.
A third person narrator, like the one Gilbert King utilizes, allows for the reader to gain an accurate historical account of the incident, experience the confusion of the people involved in the trial through dramatic irony, and follow a readable linear progression. Since the reader has a voice of truth to look to, Gilbert King gains the trust of the reader, so that the reader is not constantly questioning the validity of the arguments he presents.
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