-
Annotated by:
- Glass, Guy
- Date of entry: Jan-30-2018
- Last revised: Jan-30-2018
Summary
Spy of the First
Person is a short semi-autobiographical narrative about a man with a
debilitating condition. He spends most
of his time sitting in a wheelchair on his porch, goes for tests to the Arizona
campus of the Mayo Clinic, and has a “handicapped sign hanging from the
rearview mirror of his car” (p. 15).
The man’s illness is unnamed, but we learn that his motor
skills are grossly impaired: “His hands and arms don’t work much. He uses his legs, his knees, his thighs, to
bring his arms and hands to his face in order to be able to eat his cheese and
crackers” (ibid).
The story is told from various, shifting points of view. At times we are in the head of the protagonist. At other times, the perspective is that of a nosy neighbor who peers at the sick man through binoculars, hence the book’s title. There is a parallel narrative about an elderly couple and the wife’s gradual decline in health. The Southwest plays such an important role here one might even say that it too is a character.
There are also frequent shifts of tense. It is not always clear whether we are in the past or present. We alternate between the central character’s fantasies, memories, and observations. The effect of intertwining voices and tenses is reinforced by the brevity of the chapters, many no longer than a paragraph. The overall impression is that while he may no longer have full control over his body, the man has retained an active (one might say overactive) mind.
Spy of the First Person concludes as the man’s children take him to a Mexican restaurant. The vivid description of a meal shared with his loved ones provides a sharp contrast to the inner thoughts that provide the bulk of this book.
The story is told from various, shifting points of view. At times we are in the head of the protagonist. At other times, the perspective is that of a nosy neighbor who peers at the sick man through binoculars, hence the book’s title. There is a parallel narrative about an elderly couple and the wife’s gradual decline in health. The Southwest plays such an important role here one might even say that it too is a character.
There are also frequent shifts of tense. It is not always clear whether we are in the past or present. We alternate between the central character’s fantasies, memories, and observations. The effect of intertwining voices and tenses is reinforced by the brevity of the chapters, many no longer than a paragraph. The overall impression is that while he may no longer have full control over his body, the man has retained an active (one might say overactive) mind.
Spy of the First Person concludes as the man’s children take him to a Mexican restaurant. The vivid description of a meal shared with his loved ones provides a sharp contrast to the inner thoughts that provide the bulk of this book.
Publisher
Alfred A. Knopf
Place Published
New York
Edition
2017
Page Count
82
Commentary
This book is an unsentimental yet moving, exquisitely observed illness narrative written by a master. An author who was known throughout his career for dealing with difficult themes, Shepard did not flinch from them even in the face of death.