1. Narrative Perspective
Point of View

2. First, some basics… Dialogue: Is when the characters speak
It is always in “quotation marks”
Example: “Hello, I’m Jack” said the boy to his new friend.
Narration:
Is when the narrator speaks
Example: “Hello, I’m Jack” said the boy to his new friend.

3. How to Identify Narrators Perspective (POV)
It's about the narrator (who tells the story)
Only the narrator's voice matters
We're not looking at dialogue.
We don't care what characters say.

4. Identifying cont. Signal Words
First Person: I, me, my, ours
Ex: I come into the room.
Second Person: you, your
Ex: You come into the room.
Third Person: he, she, they, them
Ex: Then he/she came into the room.

5. First-Person Narrator is a part of the story (character).
Often uses I or we.
Example: I went home. Tim came over. I couldn't play.

6. Second-Person Usually for instructions
Uses “You”; from “your” perspective
Examples: First, gather your materials. Add 1 cup sugar to flour.

7. Third-Person Narrator usually is not involved. Tells other's stories.
Lots of “He,” “She,” & character names.
Three Types of Third-Person Narration
**Ask yourself: Does the narrator tell the thoughts and feelings of the characters?

8. Third-Person Omniscient
Narrator is all knowing.
Narrator tells thoughts and feelings of more than one character.
Omni = All
Scient = Knowing
Example:
Tim was mad at Shay. He blamed her. Shay knew Tim would be mad, but she wanted to live her life.

9. Third-Person Limited Narrator is limited to one character.
Tells thoughts & feelings of one character
Example:
Tim was mad at Shay. He blamed her. Shay just left without saying anything. She left a note and then left him.

10. Third-Person Objective
Narrator does not reveal any character’s thoughts or feelings.
Only character’s dialogue and actions are narrated.
Example:
Tim slammed the door. He walked upstairs & read a note from Shay. He kicked her trash can & started crying.

11. Now let’s practice! Remember…
Check 1st or 2nd-person before worrying about objective, limited, or omniscient
Ask, “Who’s story is the narrator telling: his, mine, or someone else’s?”
Focus on narration NOT DIALOGUE.
Now let’s practice!

12. The Pendulum Third-person limited
A man named Galileo was once standing in the cathedral of Pisa with a collegue, when he saw a chandelier swaying to and fro. This set him thinking about this motion, and it led to the invention of the pendulum.
Third-person
limited

13. Chicago
The city you know is only about 150 years old. Long ago, before it was a city, people lived in this area. They were Native Americans who lived in Chicago long before it had this name. They were the ones who actually gave it its name. They called the city Checagou, which means wild onions. Every year, it was difficult to live here in the wintertime because it was snowy and extremely cold. There were not even any plants to pick. Then, the first plant that grew was the wild onion. In early spring, the Native Americans would eat it. Therefore, this became the place of the wild onion. No one actually planted it; the onion grew naturally.
Third Person

14. Third-Person Omniscient
Wizard of Oz
The Scarecrow found a tree full of nuts and filled Dorothy’s basket with them, so that she would not be hungry for a long time. She thought this was very kind and thoughtful of the Scarecrow, but she laughed heartily at the awkward way in which the poor creature picked up the nuts. His padded hands were so clumsy that he dropped almost as many as he put in the basket. But the Scarecrow did not mind how long it took him to fill the basket, for it enabled him to keep away from the fire, as he feared a spark might get into his straw and burn him up.
Third-Person Omniscient

15. Ninjas
Remember, any tool that you can use against an enemy may also be used against you. Therefore it is highly recommended that you build a course with your clan to practice keeping your wits about you when something is trying to set you off course. Ninjas train on special courses that really mess with their perception of space, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make your own mini gauntlet to increase your skills in your own backyard.
Second-Person

16. First-Person To Kill a Mockingbird
We lived on the main residential street in town—Atticus, Jem and I, plus Calpurnia our cook. Jem and I found our father satisfactory: he played with us, read to us, and treated us with courteous detachment… Our mother died when I was two, so I never felt her absence. She was a Graham from Montgomery; Atticus met her when he was first elected to the state legislature.
First-Person