PowerPoint Document Version
EILAND'S ONLINE ENGLISH CLASSES

Walking Fingers courtesy of Janet Preslar, FrActivity

Point of View

POINT OF VIEW

• The narrator's viewpoint
• Establishes the "voice" of the narrator
  Can have a profound effect on our perception of plot, character and theme

POINTS OF VIEW

• First person narrative
• Second person narrative
• Third person narrative
  • Omniscient
  • Limited Omniscient
  • Objective

FIRST PERSON NARRATIVE

• Sometimes uses "I" as main character
• Uses "I" when referring to speaker, who is often , but not necessarily, an actor in the story
• Can only reveal what the narrator/character thinks or believes
• Unreliable for unbiased truth, but may inadvertently reveal true nature of the narrator
• Rarely objective
• Often deceptive

THIRD PERSON NARRATIVE

• Focus is character other than narrator
• Narrator is not a character at all -- doesn't refer to "I"
• Used most often
• Creates feeling of lack of bias - even if it's not
• Often Omniscient or at least Limited Omniscient

OMNISCIENT

• Knows all
• Often slips from one character to another to give a broader insight into each character's viewpoint
• Can be unbiased when it hides nothing
• Can be cumbersome and is, actually, rarely used
• Used mostly with Third person narrative

LIMITED OMNISCIENT

• Selective as to what is revealed and what is not
• Usually focuses on one character
• Can be purposely deceptive to enable author to have "surprise" ending
• Most often used in first and third person presentations
• Can be unbiased, but often is not

OBJECTIVE

• Mostly third person
• Often gives NO directly presented thoughts or perspectives of characters
• Acts like a movie camera -- reader is limited to what characters say and do
• Tries to present an unbiased tone -- no clearly identified heroes, no villains