Who is the narrator, can she or he read minds, and, more importantly, can we trust her or him?
Third Person Omniscient
The narrator in "Sweat" is in smack in the middle of the hot, sweaty action of the story. While she obviously knows central Florida locals and their way of life, her voice is starkly different from that of the characters.
This gives us a mixture of clear, formal narration with colloquial dialogue that reads just like a convo between real-life people. We think it's nothing short of genius. If "Sweat" were only written in formal language, it'd be drier than Florida summer grass; if it were pages of central 'Floridy' folk chatting with their thick slang, we'd probably go crazy.
With a straightforward narrator we get observations like this:
Delia's habitual meekness seemed to slip from her shoulders like a blown scarf. She was on her feet; her poor little body, her bare knuckly hands bravely defying the strapping hulk before her. (17)
And with the characters, we get dialogue like this:
Ah swear dat eight-rock couldn't kiss a sardine can Ah done throwed out de back do' 'way las' yeah. (36)
Mixed together, this literary concoction transports us to a different time and place, leaving us illuminated, breathless and sticky from the sweat.