Why are pronouns used in this way in Nalo Hopkinson's "Shift"?

Question

I just read the short story "Shift" by Nalo Hopkinson, which is [freely available online](http://www.nightmare-magazine.com/fiction/shift/). It's a modern, Caribbean-themed story inspired by Shakespeare's *The Tempest*.One thing which confused me on the first reading was the use of pronouns. The story starts off written in the second person:> “Did you sleep well?” she asks, and you make sure that your face is fixed into a dreamy smile as you open your eyes into the morning after.But then, not long after this, there are some paragraphs written in the first person:> She tell me say I must call her Scylla, or Charybdis.I didn't notice this pronoun switch at first, and when I did, I foolishly assumed it was an inconsistency in the writing. Turns out Nalo Hopkinson is a much better writer than that: for the paragraphs in second person, "you" refers to Caliban, while Ariel is "she"; for those in first person, "I" refers to Ariel, while Caliban is "he", and "you" is used to address the readers.**My question is: why switch pronouns in this way?** It's confusing on a first read - you only slowly realise that there's more than one viewpoint character - although it's all perfectly consistent once you figure out the pronoun scheme and treat the two types of paragraph separately. What does this stylistic choice add to the story?

Answer 1

As you consider the question you've asked, you might want to look at Shakespeare's original play and note differences. Those differences, not just in pronoun shifts, but also in the content of the works, are a clue to the answer to your question. Also think about the title she chooses. Why? What is it pointing toward?