Hamnet: Flashbacks 1 key example

Flashbacks
Explanation and Analysis—Structure:

O'Farrell structures Hamnet as a series of interwoven timelines, using flashbacks to build emotional depth and narrative tension. The novel alternates between the "present" summer of Hamnet's illness and earlier years tracing Agnes and her husband's courtship, marriage, and family life. These temporal shifts gradually assemble the story's emotional architecture, revealing secrets and motivations only when their impact will be most profound.