What is it?
The author's point-of-view concentrates on the vantage point of the speaker, or "teller", of the story or poem.
1st person: the speaker is a character in the story or poem and tells it from his/her perspective (uses "I")
3rd person limited: the speaker is not part of the story, but tells about the other characters. He or she limits information to what one character sees and feels.
3rd person omniscient: the speaker is not part of the story, but is able to "know" and describe what all characters are thinking.
A second person point of view is a story that is told from the perspective of "you." It is much less common than first and third. Do you remember children's books like the "Animorphs" series or the "Choose Your Own Adventure" tales? They went something like this: "You turn, and standing there before you is a wolf. You have to decide to approach it or run away."
Here's a handy key for you:
First person: I
Second person : You
Third Person: He, She, They
[adapted from definitions found at http://www.enotes.com/literary-terms/q-and-a/what-second-person-point-view-2208
and http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/2715.html ]
Examples of Point of View
The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud: The author uses both third person and first person point of view. Nathaniel, the young magician, is told about in third person. Those chapters alternate with chapters that are told in first person, from the point of view of Bartimaeus, a powerful spirit (djinni). The latter are my favorite chapters, since Bartimaeus has such a fun sense of humor.
The Castle of Llyr by Lloyd Alexander: "Eilonwy of the red-gold hair . . . was leaving Caer Dallben. Dallben himself had so ordered it; and though Taran's heart was suddenly and strangely heavy, he knew there was no gainsaying the old enchanter's words."
This is from a third-person point of view, but just from this selection we don't know enough to determine whether it is third person limited or third person omniscient.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle: "It was a dark and stormy night. In her attic bedroom Margaret Murry, wrapped in an old patchwork quilt, sat on the foot of her bed and watched the trees tossing in the frenzied lashing of the wind. Behind the clouds scudded frantically across the sky. . . ."
"She wasn't usually afraid of weather. --It's not just the weather, she thought. -- It's the weather on top of everything else. On top of me. On top of Meg Murry doing everything wrong."
That quote, as is the quote before it from The Castle of Lyr, is from the exposition of the book -- the beginning part that introduces the setting, characters, and basic situation. Both are third person, and again, just from reading this much, we don't yet know if it is third person limited or third person omniscient.
The Teacher's Funeral by Richard Peck: "If your teacher has to die, August isn't a bad time of year for it. You know August. The corn is earring. The tomatoes are ripening on the vine. The clover's in full bloom. There's a little less evening now, and that's a warning . You want to live every day twice over because you'll be back in the jailhouse of school before the end of the month.
"Then our teacher, Miss Myrt Arbuckle, hauled off and died. It was like a miracle, though she must have been forty. You should have seen my kid brother's face. It looked like Lloyd was hearing the music of the spheres. Being ten that summer, he was even more willing to believe in miracles than I was."
This one is first person. Though it uses the words "your" and "you," the story is not about you. The narrator is telling his own story -- a story he is in.
Examples of Point of View:
first person: (I, me, my, mine, our, us, we)
When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and ride home.
and
"Sure," I said tiredly, "we're young and innocent."
and
Two-Bit messed up his hair, "Sorry kid," he said, "I forgot."
second person: (you, your, yours)
When you stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, you had only two things on your mind: Paul Newman and ride home.
and
"Sure," you said tiredly, "we're young and innocent."
and
Two-Bit messed up his hair, "Sorry kid," he said, "I forgot."
third person: (he, she, his, hers, theirs, him, her, the main character's name)
When he stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, Ponyboy had only two things on his mind: Paul Newman and ride home.
and
"Sure," Ponyboy [or he] said tiredly, "we're young and innocent."
and
Two-Bit messed up his hair, "Sorry kid," he said, "I forgot."
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Utah State Core
Reading: Literature Standard 6
Analyze how an author develops and contrasts the points of view of different characters or narrators in a text.
[Use passages from the text as evidence.]
develop
contrast
point of view
character/narrator
http://www.thebeginningwriter.com/2012/03/look-at-different-types-of-point-of.html
