The Narrative 'Mistake'

[asher553]

I'm working on a third reading of Toni Morrison's 'Jazz', and I realized there was something nagging at me about the book. The story seemingly has a "mistake" in the narration, and I realized I was reminded of Agnon's story 'In the Heart of the Seas', which also seems to include an error by the narrator. In both cases (the second shot that's never fired, the tenth man who's named but not counted), the author is pointing us toward a more sublime truth.