PERRINE’S CHAPTER FIVE

POINT OF VIEW

POINT OF VIEW

• Point of View is who tells the story and how it gets told.
• Omniscient
• Third Person Limited (Major or Minor)
• First Person (Major or Minor)
• Objective

OMNISCIENT

• Third person narrator (not part of the story) whose knowledge and prerogatives (power or rights) are unlimited.
• They go wherever they wish.
• They peer into the hearts and minds of any character at any time.
• They know all.
• They reveal as much or as little as they please.
• Most flexible POV that allows the writer a wider scope
• Provides breadth and depth.

THIRD PERSON LIMITED

• Told by a third person narrator (not part of the story), but from the viewpoint of one character in the story.
• See the story through the mind and eyes of one character.
• Readers never leave the side of that one character.
• Will show no direct knowledge of the other characters’ thoughts.
• Can be a major or minor character.
• Let’s reader see what that character does or does not find note-worthy.
• Can reveal biases or limitations in the point of view. (Miss Brill)

FIRST PERSON

• The narrator is one of the characters in the story.
• Can be major or minor character.
• Can use multiple characters.
• Can reveal biases and limitations of the character (How I Met My Husband)

OBJECTIVE

• Narrator is like a “roving camera” that can present what is seen and heard, but CAN NOT get into the characters’ heads.
• Readers must infer what the characters think and feel (Hills Like White Elephants????).

IMPORTANCE OF POINT OF VIEW

• Readers must ask if the events are being interpreted by a narrator or a character.
• If it’s a character, does the character’s personality and mind affect the interpretation? (Miss Brill)
• Readers must decide if the character’s interpretation is distorted by ignorance, stupidity or self-deception.
• The author may choose a specific point of view to conceal certain information until the end. (Miss Brill)