Point of view
Narrative point of view:
- refers to the perspective from which the story is told
- determines what the reader 'sees' or learns within a story
- establishes the relationship between the narrator (the storyteller) and the characters within the story.
The different types of narrative point of view are outlined below.
First person point of view:
- is when the story is told by one of the characters within the story
- is identified by the use of the pronouns I, me, my, myself, mine, our, we, us, ourselves.
I woke up suddenly and looked around the room. It was not my bedroom and I struggled to recall where I was. A snore from the other side of the room and the sound of a rooster crowing outside reminded me that I was at my uncle's farm. I felt a twinge of homesickness and thought about my family. I pulled on my dressing gown and, sliding on my slippers, scurried across the bare floorboards to my cousin's bed.
"Wake up," I whispered. I watched my cousin Casey, who groaned and pulled the doona over her head. Outside I heard my uncle getting ready to feed the cattle.
Writing a story from the first person point of view will place limitations on what can be seen, heard, felt or experienced. Why do you think this is the case?
The limitations of a first person point of view
Second person point of view:
- is not commonly used
- addresses the reader directly as 'you', such as when giving instructions.
Third person point of view:
- creates distance between the narrator and the characters
- uses the personal pronouns he, she, himself, herself, they, them, him, her, their
- positions the narrator outside the action of the story, allowing events to be seen from a distance
- allows movement between settings and access to the thoughts and feelings of different characters
- allows the author to show what is happening from a number of different angles.
There are different types of third person narration. Before you read about these you need to understand what the word 'omniscient' means.
Third person omniscient point of view:
- provides an all-knowing, all-seeing perspective
- allows access to more than one character's thoughts and feelings
- allows for switching between settings.
Kate woke up suddenly and looked around the room. It was not her bedroom and she struggled to recall where she was. A snore from the other side of the room and the sound of a rooster crowing outside reminded her that she was at her uncle's farm. She pulled on her dressing gown and sliding on her slippers scurried across the bare floorboards to her cousin's bed.
"Wake up," she whispered. Coming out of a deep sleep, cousin Casey groaned, thinking, "Go away, it's only just daylight." Her head said "Get up!" but her body said "Snuggle under the doona for just a bit longer."
In the yard outside Uncle Bob rubbed his cold hands together and cast a critical eye over his herd of Hereford cattle.
"All looking good today, ladies." Inside Aunty Irene pulled on her boots and considered taking her horse for a morning ride.
Third person limited omniscient
This point of view:
- positions the narrator outside of the story
- limits the perspective, usually to one character
- restricts what can be seen, felt and understood by the reader.
How would the passage above be different if written using a limited omniscient point of view? Rewrite it so that only one character's thoughts, feelings and location are described.
Third person objective
This point of view:
- does not reveal the thoughts and feelings of the characters
- leaves it up to the reader to make inferences from the actions of the characters
- allows for little or no intrusion (or direct/indirect comment) by the author.
Writers such as Ernest Hemingway use the third person objective to allow readers to make their own judgement about characters and their actions.
For a diagram which represents point of view, open the link below.
To revise point of view go to the link below and follow the instructions.
1 Type 'narrative point of view' into the search bar at the top of the page. Open the search result titled 'Narrative Point of View' by 'mrturnersenglish'.
2. Explore some of the other links to consolidate your understanding of narrative point of view.
Write two paragraphs about 'school', one using the first person and the other using a third person omniscient point of view.
