The choices an author makes of what perspective the story is written in or the narrative devices that are used can impact the meaning of the text. In the story, The Things They Carried by Tim O 'Brien, he uses different point of views and he uses both 1rst and 3rd person. In the story, The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe he uses allegory, metaphors, and he places the events in chronological order. These choices by the authors of both stories affect how the reader interprets the story. First, The story The Things They Carried is written in different points of view of the same story of what happened in Vietnam. In the chapter, “Speaking of Courage” it states, “The war was over and there was no place in particular to go. Norman Bowker followed the tar road on its seven mile loop around the lake, then he started all over again, driving slowly, feeling safe inside his father’s big Chevy, now and then looking out on the lake to watch the boats and water-skiers and scenery”(page 131, O’Brien). This chapter is written in third person to show how the character felt and it shows the actions the character took based on those feelings. In the chapter, “Notes” it states “‘Speaking of Courage’ was written in 1975 at the suggestion of Norman Bowker, who 3 years later hanged himself in the locker room of a ymca in his hometown in central Iowa”(page 149, O’Brien). The chapter “Notes” is written in first person to show the emotional impact on the character and to show the