Point of View And Narrative Voice

Point of View Point of view is the perspective that one has while looking at something In literature, the narrator of our story provides us with a point of view on a certain series of events

Types of Narrators First Person Second Person Third Person Omniscient Limited Objective

First Person Narrative Narrator is involved in the events taking place The narrator will use I or we when describing thoughts, feelings, actions, etc We cannot always trust a first person narrative to be true because the narrator may be biased.

Second Person Narrative The narrator is not a character in the story, but more of an instructional guide Uses you when describing thoughts, feelings, actions, etc. Most commonly seen in manuals, instructions, or self-help materials

Third Person The narrator is usually not involved in what is going on, and is outside of the action Uses he or she when describing thoughts, feelings, actions, etc. Three types of Third Person Narrative: Omniscient Limited Objective

Third Person Omniscient This type of narrator is removed from the story Has an all-knowing or God-like quality Can tell the reader the thoughts and feelings of multiple characters

Third Person Limited Narrator is still outside of the characters involved in the action Gives us detailed information on the thoughts and feelings of one specific character

Third Person Objective Removed from the characters involved in the action Cannot tell us the thoughts or feelings of any character Actions and dialogue are the only things narrated  need to make inferences to figure out how the character feels

How do I identify what type of narrative? Start by looking for “I” or “we” If yes  First Person If no  Look for “you” -If yes  Second Person If no  Look for “he” or “she” -Ask yourself if you have acces to thoughts or feelings -If no  Third Person Objective -If yes  How many character’s thoughts and feelings? -If 1  Third Person Limited -If More than 1  Third Person Omniscient