Point of View Who is telling the story?

Point of view tells us the NARRATIVE FOCUS of the story Narrative Focus - The character around whom the story moves - we often see only those events which this character witnesses.

First person point of view The person telling the story is one of the characters in the story. It is the “I” point of view. It is the most limited among the types because the narrator can only state what he or she sees, feels, and hears. He or she cannot go into the minds of the other characters.

Second Person Point of View Refers to the use of “you” in explanations or arguments. It is not frequently used. Most second person points of view occur within instructions that are meant to be followed.

Third Person Point of View The person telling the story is not one of the characters in the story. He or she is an outside observer. The reader can only know what one character learns through interaction with other characters or through overheard conversations. The narrator cannot supply the thoughts or feelings of other characters in the story.

Third Person Omniscient T he narrator is not a character in the story, but the events in the story are seen through the eyes of more than one of the characters. The narrator is considered to be “ all knowing ” and cannot only see and hear everything that is happening to all characters in the story, but can also enter their minds and tell the reader what each is thinking and feeling. This is the least limited point of view because the narrator has knowledge of all the characters.

Third person limited or third person objective The person telling the story is not one of the characters in the story. He or she is an outside observer. The reader can only know what one character learns through interaction with other characters or through overheard conversations. The narrator cannot supply the thoughts or feelings of other characters in the story.

Point of View Quiz From “The Elevator” It was an old building with an old elevator-----a very small elevator, with a maximum capacity of three people. Martin, a thin twelve-year-old, felt nervous in it from th efirst day he and his father moved into the apartment. Of course he was always uncomfortable in elevators, afraid that they would fall, but there was something especially unpleasant about this one.

Point of View Quiz From “Raymond’s Run” I don’t have much to do around the house like some girls. My mother does that. And I don’t have to earn my pocket money by hustling; George runs errands for the big boys and sells Christmas cards. And anything else that’s got to get done, my father does. All I have to do in life is mind my brother Raymond, which is enough.

Point of View Quiz From “The Tell-Tale Heart” True!---nervous---very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am! But why will you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my senses---not destroyed---not dulled them. Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily--how calmly I can tell you the whole story.