In this story, Max Barry writes about an incredibly different yet strangely realistic and plausible topic. What makes the novel so strange, however, is not the topic itself, but more the viewpoint from which it is presented and relayed across the page. From anyone else but Dr. Nuemman’s point of view, this would be a simple tale of a scientist who screwed up, got his leg chopped off, got a prosthetic, made it better, became obsessed with improving the human body, and worked in this field before meeting his eventual demise. Yet this is not the case. Barry writes “I hesitated. She seemed convincing. But then again, I was an extraordinarily poor judge of people” and from this it is immediately obvious that, without it, so much less would be understood of Dr. Nuemann’s reaction (Barry 152). It is exactly this insight that is spread throughout the whole novel and thus provides the reader with a heightened knowledge of the main characters thoughts and emotions. This allows for an entirely new story to be created around the simple step by step progression that is the backbone of the novel. Therefore, if this story were not written in this point of view, the reader would be excluded from the opportunity to understand the true life of Dr. Charles Nuemann and not just the series of events that have taken place. Because this story is told through the eye of the beholder, a new element and understanding is brought forth that develops this odd storyline into a work that draws emotion, intrigue, and imagination that is created just by tapping into the thoughts of Dr. Charles
In this story, Max Barry writes about an incredibly different yet strangely realistic and plausible topic. What makes the novel so strange, however, is not the topic itself, but more the viewpoint from which it is presented and relayed across the page. From anyone else but Dr. Nuemman’s point of view, this would be a simple tale of a scientist who screwed up, got his leg chopped off, got a prosthetic, made it better, became obsessed with improving the human body, and worked in this field before meeting his eventual demise. Yet this is not the case. Barry writes “I hesitated. She seemed convincing. But then again, I was an extraordinarily poor judge of people” and from this it is immediately obvious that, without it, so much less would be understood of Dr. Nuemann’s reaction (Barry 152). It is exactly this insight that is spread throughout the whole novel and thus provides the reader with a heightened knowledge of the main characters thoughts and emotions. This allows for an entirely new story to be created around the simple step by step progression that is the backbone of the novel. Therefore, if this story were not written in this point of view, the reader would be excluded from the opportunity to understand the true life of Dr. Charles Nuemann and not just the series of events that have taken place. Because this story is told through the eye of the beholder, a new element and understanding is brought forth that develops this odd storyline into a work that draws emotion, intrigue, and imagination that is created just by tapping into the thoughts of Dr. Charles