Narrative WritingChoosing a

Point of view

When you read a story, the narrator—the person or voice telling the story—controls everything you know about the characters and events.

The Narrator

Narration keeps a story moving, filling in details and description between dialogue. The narrator speaks from several points of view.

A writer’s choice of a narrator determines the point of view of the story—the vantage point from which the story is told.

The three main points of view are• omniscient• first person• third person limited

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The Narrator

A first-person narrator• is a character in the story• uses first-person pronouns

such as I and me• tells us only what he or she

thinks and experiences

A first-person narrator is sometimes called a persona.

First-Person Point of View

Always question whether a first-person narrator is credible, or can be trusted.

An unreliable narrator is biased and does not (or cannot) tell the truth.

First-Person Point of View

How can youtell this is a first-person narrator?

Do you think this narrator’s opinion of the music is reliable? Why or why not?

First-Person Point of ViewQuick CheckOh, man! Just as I was finally dozing off, he starts playing that stupid saxophone. I’ve already been fired from one job because I fell asleep on the night shift. Now it’s going to happen again. I don’t know which sounds worse, that tone-deaf saxophonist or that yowling dog. I’m going to call the police.

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He uses the pronoun I and tells only his own thoughts and feelings.

How can youtell this is a first-person narrator?

First-Person Point of ViewQuick CheckOh, man! Just as I was finally dozing off, he starts playing that stupid saxophone. I’ve already been fired from one job because I fell asleep on the night shift. Now it’s going to happen again. I don’t know which sounds worse, that tone-deaf saxophonist or that yowling dog. I’m going to call the police.

Do you think this narrator’s opinion of the music is reliable? Why or why not?

No. He’s probably too concerned about getting sleep to enjoy music.

First-Person Point of ViewQuick CheckOh, man! Just as I was finally dozing off, he starts playing that stupid saxophone. I’ve already been fired from one job because I fell asleep on the night shift. Now it’s going to happen again. I don’t know which sounds worse, that tone-deaf saxophonist or that yowling dog. I’m going to call the police.

Now, choose a character from your narrative and write a brief story event told from that character’s point of view for your story.

When the omniscient point of view is used, the narrator

• is not a character in the story

• knows all

• can tell us everything about every character

Omniscient Point of View

How can youtell this is an omniscient narrator?

Omniscient Point of ViewQuick CheckOne day a young woman looked out her apartment window and saw a man playing a saxophone. “Cool,” she thought as she swayed to his tune. A big brown dog joined the man and howled along with the music.

Then a man in pajamas yelled from another window, complaining that the noise woke him up and he was going to call the police. This man, who worked the night shift and had to sleep all day, liked cats better than dogs anyway. The young saxophonist left.

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The narrator isn’t a character in the story. The narrator knows what multiple characters are doing, thinking, and feeling.

How can youtell this is an omniscient narrator?

Omniscient Point of ViewQuick CheckOne day a young woman looked out her apartment window and saw a man playing a saxophone. “Cool,” she thought as she swayed to his tune. A big brown dog joined the man and howled along with the music.

Then a man in pajamas yelled from another window, complaining that the noise woke him up and he was going to call the police. This man, who worked the night shift and had to sleep all day, liked cats better than dogs anyway. The young saxophonist left.

When the third-person-limited point of view is used, the narrator

• uses third-person pronouns (he, she, they)

Third-Person-Limited Point of View

• gives one character’s thoughts and reactions

• tells little about other characters

How can you tell this is a third-person-limited narrator?

What is this narrator’s reaction to the dog? to the yelling man?

Third-Person-Limited Point of ViewQuick Check

He found a good spot in front of Park View Apartments and started playing soulfully on his sax. He wanted an audience and needed money. After one song, he spotted a cute girl at a window, applauding madly. A dog howled with the music, but the sax player let him stay, hoping the dog might attract some donations. Then he heard a man yelling about calling the police—clearly not a music lover.

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How can you tell this is a third-person-limited narrator?

The story is told from the sax player’s vantage point using the pronoun he. We don’t know what other characters are thinking.

Third-Person-Limited Point of View

Quick CheckHe found a good spot in front of Park View Apartments and started playing soulfully on his sax. He wanted an audience and needed money. After one song, he spotted a cute girl at a window, applauding madly. A dog howled with the music, but the sax player let him stay, hoping the dog might attract some donations. Then he heard a man yelling about calling the police—clearly not a music lover.

What is this narrator’s reaction to the dog? to the yelling man?

He thinks the dog can help him. He thinks the man hates music.

Third-Person-Limited Point of View

Quick CheckHe found a good spot in front of Park View Apartments and started playing soulfully on his sax. He wanted an audience and needed money. After one song, he spotted a cute girl at a window, applauding madly. A dog howled with the music, but the sax player let him stay, hoping the dog might attract some donations. Then he heard a man yelling about calling the police—clearly not a music lover.

Now, decide between 3rd person limited and 3rd person omniscient. Then, write a brief story event for your story from that point of view for your story.

Developing Your NarrativeCharacters

Characters•The people or animals in short stories,

novels, and plays.▫The protagonist is the central character.▫The antagonist is his/her opponent.

•Major characters include the protagonist, the antagonist, and other characters who have a large role in the story.

•Minor characters have a smaller role in the story.

Characterization•The way in which an author reveals the traits

of characters to his/her audience.▫Direct characterization is a method where the

author tells his readers about the character.▫Indirect characterization require the reader

to infer facts about the character’s traits. Indirect methods of characterization include the

character’s: Actions Words A physical description Thoughts The thoughts, actions, and words of other

characters.

Characterization Methods• A. The author

directly tells the reader about the character

• B. The character’s physical appearance is described.

• C. The characters thoughts, actions, or words are recorded.

• D. The thoughts, actions, or words of another character reveal something about the character being developed.

• 1. All the crew respected and even obeyed him. He had a way of talking to each, and doing everybody some particular service. (spoken by the story’s protagonist)

• 2. He was a very silent man by custom. (stated as part of the narration)

• 3. When I got back with the basin, the doctor had already ripped up the captain’s sleeve, and exposed his great sinewy arm. It was tattooed in several places.

• 4. But he broke in cursing the doctor, in a feeble voice, but heartily. “Doctors is all swabs,” he said; “and that doctor there, why, what do he know about seafaring men?”

Characterization Methods• A. The author

directly tells the reader about the character

• B. The character’s physical appearance is described.

• C. The characters thoughts, actions, or words are recorded.

• D. The thoughts, actions, or words of another character reveal something about the character being developed.

• 1. All the crew respected and even obeyed him. He had a way of talking to each, and doing everybody some particular service. (spoken by the story’s protagonist)

• 2. He was a very silent man by custom. (stated as part of the narration)

• 3. When I got back with the basin, the doctor had already ripped up the captain’s sleeve, and exposed his great sinewy arm. It was tattooed in several places.

• 4. But he broke in cursing the doctor, in a feeble voice, but heartily. “Doctors is all swabs,” he said; “and that doctor there, why, what do he know about seafaring men?”

Characterization Methods• A. The author

directly tells the reader about the character

• B. The character’s physical appearance is described.

• C. The characters thoughts, actions, or words are recorded.

• D. The thoughts, actions, or words of another character reveal something about the character being developed.

• 1. All the crew respected and even obeyed him. He had a way of talking to each, and doing everybody some particular service. (spoken by the story’s protagonist)

• 2. He was a very silent man by custom. (stated as part of the narration)

• 3. When I got back with the basin, the doctor had already ripped up the captain’s sleeve, and exposed his great sinewy arm. It was tattooed in several places.

• 4. But he broke in cursing the doctor, in a feeble voice, but heartily. “Doctors is all swabs,” he said; “and that doctor there, why, what do he know about seafaring men?”

Characterization Methods• A. The author directly

tells the reader about the character

• B. The character’s physical appearance is described.

• C. The characters thoughts, actions, or words are recorded.

• D. The thoughts, actions, or words of another character reveal something about the character being developed.

• 1. All the crew respected and even obeyed him. He had a way of talking to each, and doing everybody some particular service. (spoken by the story’s protagonist)

• 2. He was a very silent man by custom. (stated as part of the narration)

• 3. When I got back with the basin, the doctor had already ripped up the captain’s sleeve, and exposed his great sinewy arm. It was tattooed in several places.

• 4. But he broke in cursing the doctor, in a feeble voice, but heartily. “Doctors is all swabs,” he said; “and that doctor there, why, what do he know about seafaring men?”

Characterization Methods• A. The author directly

tells the reader about the character

• B. The character’s physical appearance is described.

• C. The characters thoughts, actions, or words are recorded.

• D. The thoughts, actions, or words of another character reveal something about the character being developed.

• 1. All the crew respected and even obeyed him. He had a way of talking to each, and doing everybody some particular service. (spoken by the story’s protagonist)

• 2. He was a very silent man by custom. (stated as part of the narration)

• 3. When I got back with the basin, the doctor had already ripped up the captain’s sleeve, and exposed his great sinewy arm. It was tattooed in several places.

• 4. But he broke in cursing the doctor, in a feeble voice, but heartily. “Doctors is all swabs,” he said; “and that doctor there, why, what do he know about seafaring men?”

CHARACTERSIt is impossible to have a successful story

without characters• Here is an example of how central

characters are.

Trev has a disgusting habit. He collects cockroaches. He calls them his ‘Pet Dinosaurs’ and he loves them. He stores them in little plastic bottles and feeds them food scraps. Now that wouldn’t be a problem, except for one thing – Trev doesn’t do this in the safety of his own home – he does it at school.

One day, when……

Character development

• Your characters must look and sound ‘real’ or credible

•Characters should move a story along – they need to have a specific role

•Interactions between characters should be believable

•There needs to be a purpose to any character traits given

•MOTIVATION IS WHAT DRIVES A CHARACTER TO ACT THE WAYS HE /SHE DOES.

Plan Your Story’s Characters•Think of details about your characters until

they seem real to you.•Use narrative and descriptive strategies to

make them come alive for your audience.▫Detailed physical descriptions help readers

visualize the characters.▫Instead of simply describing your characters’

personalities or motivations, however, try to reveal them through specific actions, relevant dialogue (that matches the situation), and the reactions of other characters.

•Open Your Google Classroom and complete the Point of View and Developing Characters Tasks.