Chuck Wachtel: Narrative Voice, Beyond Persona (January 1994)

When we talk about voice in fiction we are, in actuality, using a metaphor; and yet very often the most immediate and authoritative aspect of fiction for a reader is the voice that tells the story.  In this lecture, Chuck Wachtel explores and complicates the concept of narrative voice, considering how, having drawn us in, the voice seems to vanish in favor of directly perceived action. He looks at a range of examples and uses of voice in work by William Gass, E.L. Doctorow, Edith Wharton, Henry James, Kafka, and others.