Who is the narrator, can she or he read minds, and, more importantly, can we trust her or him?
First Person (Peripheral Narrator)
We wouldn't blame you if you thought that this was a third person narrator. Most of the time The Prince And The Pauper is told in a way that is virtually indistinguishable from third person. It seems like there is an uninvolved narrator who can dip into the thoughts of any of the characters at will.
But there is just one difference that changes everything: the narrator uses the word "I." That immediately lets us know that the narrator is someone telling us the story of Tom and Edward. In other words, what we've really got here is a first-person narrator in disguise.
Sometimes the effect that has is pretty funny, since the narrator has, you know, Mark Twain's sense of humor. For example: "Half a dozen attendants sprang forward to—I don't know what; interfere, no doubt" (3.13). And sometimes the narrator directly steals from someone else in order to fill in the gaps of their knowledge.
Mark Twain writes as if he's sitting in front of you telling a story. The story he's telling isn't about him at all, but he takes on the role of a 16th-century narrator and throws in interjections whenever it suits him. It's storytelling, really—just in print.
One thing to always keep in mind while reading a first-person narrative is that it's probably totally biased. That lends an entirely different layer of meaning to The Prince and the Pauper. What attitude do you think the narrator has towards poor people? What about rich people?