of characters; to consciousness reveals their of a “community” thoughts and of characters feelings through through perceptions he dialogue and conveys in the action story Presence Calls attention to Conveys almost Dominates Speaks in his himself as narrator no of his relates his own own voice but through: presence, since experience or, submerges his 1. descriptions he generally as witness, vision into the conveyed in his own gives no long someone else’s character(s) voice and reflecting his description or whose position outside the narrative perspective(s) events of the story; analysis and serves as 2. narrative analysis of does not adopt narrative focus interpretation of different character, incident, and perspectives setting; 3. adoption of perspectives different from his own when he reveals the thoughts of certain characters at close range Reliability Generally reliable Reliable in that Frequently Ranges from because he frequently he is unreliable reliable to “neutral” stands close to the because his unreliable implied author and depending on the knowledge of character(s) others is whose imperfect he reveals and on the presence or absence of affirming “clues” or negating implicit attitudes and values Read the following excerpt and answer the questions that follow. Refer to the chart above as you read. The Function of Point of View The fiction writer’s chief structural resource is point of view—at its most fundamental level, the physical vantage point occupied by the narrator in a story or novel and the device by which the writer establishes the for his fiction. For the writer, point of “authority” view is the basic means of ordering and unifying his material. Once he has decided upon the position and, further, upon the disposition of his narrator (choices that are often partly unconscious), all other ingredients of the work must relate to his decision. For the reader, point of view, by affecting the shape of the story, determines how the story material reaches him and how he perceives the fictional events.
of characters; reveals their thoughts and feelings through dialogue and action to consciousness of a “community” of characters through perceptions he conveys in the story Presence Calls attention to himself as narrator through: 1. descriptions conveyed in his own voice and reflecting his position outside the events of the story; 2. narrative analysis of interpretation of character, incident, and setting; 3. adoption of perspectives different from his own when he reveals the thoughts of certain characters at close range Conveys almost no of his presence, since he generally gives no long description or narrative analysis and does not adopt different perspectives Dominates relates his own experience or, as witness, someone else’s Speaks in his own voice but submerges his vision into the character(s) whose perspective(s) serves as narrative focus Reliability Generally reliable because he frequently stands close to the implied author Reliable in that he is “neutral” Frequently unreliable because his and knowledge of others is imperfect Ranges from reliable to unreliable depending on the character(s) whose he reveals and on the presence or absence of “clues” affirming or negating implicit attitudes and values Read the following excerpt and answer the questions that follow. Refer to the chart above as you read. The Function of Point of View The fiction writer’s chief structural resource is point of view—at its most fundamental level, the physical vantage point occupied by the narrator in a story or novel and the device by which the writer establishes the “authority” for his fiction. For the writer, point of view is the basic means of ordering and unifying his material. Once he has decided upon the position and, further, upon the disposition of his narrator (choices that are often partly unconscious), all other ingredients of the work must relate to his decision. For the reader, point of view, by affecting the shape of the story, determines how the story material reaches him and how he perceives the fictional events.
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