Point of View Point of view is the perspective from which a work is told. Most basically, there are three different points of view: first person, second person, and third person. First Person In first person point of view the narrator relays the story to the reader as a first-hand account. The narrator was an observer or participant in the story and is now relaying what he or she actually saw, heard, and felt. In first person point of view, personal pronouns are used (e.g. I, me, we, us, etc.). In fiction prose, first person is often thought to be the most powerful way to tell a story. It provides a closeness between the action and the narrator. The narrator can directly relay the thoughts and feelings he had at the time of the action. Therefore, readers are truly inspired when Huck Finn finally proclaims, All right then, Ill go to hell. He says this in his own voice rather that having that message relayed through a detached narrator. For non-fiction essays, first person is generally to be avoided. First person often makes rhetoric seem colloquial and biased. Rhetorical compositions should read like textbooks in that they should be written from an impartial third person perspective. Examples Moby-Dick by Herman Melville is told from the first-person perspective of Ishmael, a common sailor aboard Ahabs Pequod. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov is told as a jail-house confession from the perspective of Humbert Humbert, its first-person narrator. Second Person In second person point of view, the narrator or writer addresses the reader as you. Second person is generally to be avoided altogether. A composition that relies heavily on second person ends up sounding preachy and offensive. Example Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad is a story within a story, told by Charles Marlow. Because Marlow is actually telling the story to the crew of a small ship, he uses the pronoun you very often as he speaks to them directly. In effect, the reader of the novella gets the sense that Marlow is speaking directly to him or her. In The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Anson Heinlein, Mannie seems to speak directly to the reader as if he were conversing with an old friend. Third Person In third person point of view, a detached narrator tells the story in an objective manner. No first-person or second-person pronouns are used (i.e. I, me, we, you, us, etc.). Third person point of view generally comes in three varieties: Omniscient An omniscient narrator tells a story with complete and unrestricted knowledge. An omniscient narrator knows the internal thoughts and feelings of every character involved in the narrative. This type of narrator can move freely between different geographic locations. The narrator can divulge simultaneous events that are happening at multiple locations separated by vast distances. Omniscient narrators can also move freely in time, relaying past, present, and future events. Example In Old Man and the Sea, Earnest Hemingway relays the internal thoughts and emotions of Santiago struggling against a marlin at sea. Limited Third person limited point of view occurs when a narrator filters her story through the perspective of only one character. The narrator can still convey that characters internal thoughts and feelings, but all other characters must be developed through the viewpoint of the central character. Example In James Joyces The Dead, the narrative is limited to the perspective, thoughts, and emotions of Gabriel Conroy. Objective - In third person objective point of view, a narrator has the freedom to move in space and time, but he can only relay action and dialogue, forgoing the ability to delve into characters thoughts and feelings. Third person objective point of view is much like the perspective of most films where a camera records the action and dialogue of the story, but there is no intruding narrative voice and no editorializing, just the facts. Example Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy is told from the objective perspective of The Kid whose internal thoughts and emotions are never divulged in an omniscient way.
Posted on: Sat, 12 Jul 2014 10:59:20 +0000
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