Narrator and point of view

The short story “At the Clinic” by Sally Rooney is told by a third-person narrator. The narrator follows Marianne and Connell closely, shifting from one perspective to another. 

Connell’s perspective helps readers see his point of view and shows that he is rather superficial in his relationship with women:

He has taken the morning off work to drive Marianne to the appointment, which he hasn’t told her. He’s doing it partly out of guilt. A week previously Marianne gave him head in his apartment and complained afterwards that her jaw hurt, and he was like, do you have to complain about everything all the time? Then they argued. They were both a little drunk.

Marianne’s perspective shows that she had a different take on the events that happened t...