6. In the story “A House for Us” by Etidal Osman, the author shifts from present to past tense halfway through the story, effectively depersonalizing the conflict between the children and allowing it to portray a larger conflict between countries. In the beginning, the author uses present tense. This part of the story is the part when it is peaceful and safe and the two children are friendly with each other. The use of present tense extends until Rami mentions how Bethlehem is the Lord’s city, which is when the author first uses past tense to describe how the narrator “was sitting next to you on the large sofa…” (Osman 152). The fact that the past tense is used right as conflict develops between the children is no coincidence, since these two
