Different perspectives in writing and speech provide distinct moods and tones to relay information to the audience. The four categories of narrative perspective in literature are first person, second person, third person partial, and third person omniscient (Wyile 185). The first person uses the personal pronoun “I” to connect the audience with the narrator intimately, and the third person uses the personal pronouns “he” and “she” to describe the lives of other people through the perspective of an omnipresent narrator. The second person forms a bridge between first and third person, the most common perspectives used in literature.
You are not the kind of guy who would be at a place like this at this time of the morning. But here you are, and you cannot say that the terrain is entirely unfamiliar, although the details are fuzzy. You are at a nightclub talking to a girl with a shaved head. The club is either Heartbreak or the Lizard Lounge. All might come clear if you could just slip into the bathroom and do a little more Bolivian Marching Powder. Then again, it might not. A small voice inside you insists that this epidemic lack of clarity is a result of too much of that already. (McInerney 1)
In the world of prose, readers least often find stories delicately woven with the fine threads of character development interlaced with the strings of plot written in the second person point-of-view. Second person perspective, the you perspective, combines the personal aspect of the first person with the distant tone of the third person (Schofield 13) to create a fuzzy midway narrative voice. The hazy quality of second person narration creates an ideal atmosphere for the narrator and the narratee to develop their identities together.
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...ses the third relationship to tell Jean-Baptiste Clamence’s story in The Fall.
Works Cited
Wyile, Andrea Schwenke. "Expanding The View Of First-Person Narration." Children's Literature In
Education 30.3 (1999): 185-202. Literary Reference Center. Web.
McInerney, Jay. Bright Lights, Big City: A Novel. New York: Vintage, 1987. Print.
Schofield, Dennis. The Second Person: A Point of View? The Function of the Second Person
Pronoun in Narrative Prose Fiction. Diss. Deakin University, Victoria, 1998. Print.
Mildorf, Jarmila. "Second-Person Narration in Literary and Conversational
Storytelling."Storyworlds: A Journal of Narrative Studies 4 (2012): 75-98. Print.
Richardson, Brian. Unnatural Voices: Extreme Narration in Modern and Contemporary Fiction. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 2006. Print.
Camus, Albert, and Justin O'Brien. The Fall. New York: A. A. Knopf, 1956. Print.
"Unit 2: Reading & Writing About Short Fiction." ENGL200: Composition and Literature. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. 49-219. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.
Claudia Rankine uses the second person point of view in Citizen: An American Lyric, and because of this choice it creates some moments that lead the reader to think critically about what is going on. One example of this can be found on page 66 when Rankine writes, “What else to liken yourself to an animal, the ruminant kind?” (Rankine) This quote in the context of the lyric puts the reader into a position where they feel how much words and actions that they think nothing of, can make people of color feel both segregated and alone. Incorporating this point of view into a rhetorical question also forces the reader to think about the problems at hand as if it is directly happening to them. However, Rankine not only uses the word “you” to make her lyric second person, but quite possibly the most moving and memorable moment of the book includes other pronouns of the second person point of view. In a quote that reads, “I they he she we you turn only to discover the encounter to be alien to this place.” (Rankine) Rankine shows that through the use of many different pronouns she is capable of including everyone in the story, thus pulling them in and giving them a sense of involvement is what is happening. This use of “you” and other pronouns is what makes Claudia Rankine’s writing style nearly unmatched in drawing readers in and actually making them care about real world problems. However, point of view is not the only literary tool that Rankine has on showcase is Citizen: An American
In one line, the reader sees from the perspective of the bully, shamelessly berating the fat kid. But, in the next line, the reader is forced to see from the perspective of the fat kid, abused and disregarded. Thus, the author enables conversations between readers by displaying varying perspectives throughout the
A fundamental element of any story is the perspective of the narrator. It guides the point of view from which readers perceive and understand a story and greatly affects how a story is presented. As such, the perspective is crucial in determining how engaging a story is. First person narration, a narrative perspective in which the story is told first hand, has proven highly effective in making a story more compelling to read. Recently, it has become very popular in young adult fiction, as it can allow, when well-executed, for the reader to be better immersed in the story, increased suspense, and insightful reflection on the significance of events taking place. In Claire Battershill’s Circus short story Two Man Luge, first person narration is
Weirob is wright to claim that personal identity cannot consist in the sameness of an immaterial, unobservable soul. (In Perry’s dialogue on personal mortality)
Having each story been written in a third-person narrative form, the reader knows the innermost feelings of the protagonists and watches the main characters change. The reader learns what Brown feels as he thinks to himself, “What a wretch I am to leave her on such an errand!” In “Where Are You Going,” the narrator supplies much of Connie’s feelings, such as in the first paragraph, “she knew she was pretty and that was everything.” However, in Young Goodman Brown, “point of view swings subtly between the narrator and the title character. As a result, readers are privy to Goodman Brown’s deepest, darkest thoughts, while also sharing an objective view of his behavior” (Themes and Construction: Young 2). Point of view of “Young Goodman Brown” contrasts with that of “Where Are You Going” because “This narrative voice stays closely aligned to Connie’s point of view” (Themes and Construction: Where 2). Despite the subtle contrast, both points of view allow the reader to see the changes in Brown and Connie; Brown loses his faith and Connie loses herself. Point of view also affects how the reader sees other chara...
...g “you” like second person. That leaves third person. I know it’s not third person omniscient, because the narrator doesn’t know, or can’t reveal the thoughts of more than one character.
When writing literature, authors will adapt points of view to mold the perceptions of their readers. Three points of view that authors use to draw readers into their works of fiction are the limited perspective, the first-person perspective, and the objective perspective. Three stories will be examined and critiqued for their use of these narrative techniques. Of the three perspectives that will be examined, the first-person perspective is the most useful for sharing the authors’ vision.
Monday’s reading (the first chapter of the book by Jonathan Haidt), explores a number of the themes we’ve been discussing thus far regarding personal identity, such as consciousness, the nature of mind, split brain research, etc.
A narrative is specified to amuse, to attract, and grasp a reader’s attention. The types of narratives are fictitious, real or unification or both. However, they may consist of folk tale stories, mysteries, science fiction; romances, horror stories, adventure stories, fables, myths and legends, historical narratives, ballads, slice of life, and personal experience (“Narrative,” 2008). Therefore, narrative text has five shared elements. These are setting, characters, plot, theme, and vocabulary (“Narrative and Informational Text,” 2008). Narrative literature is originally written to communicate a story. Therefore, narrative literature that is written in an excellent way will have conflicts and can discuss shared aspects of human occurrence.
Ross, Steven M. ""Voice" in Narrative Texts: The Example of As I Lay Dying." PMLA94.2 (1979): 300-10. JSTOR. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.
What is personal identity? This question has been asked and debated by philosophers for centuries. The problem of personal identity is determining what conditions and qualities are necessary and sufficient for a person to exist as the same being at one time as another. Some think personal identity is physical, taking a materialistic perspective believing that bodily continuity or physicality is what makes a person a person with the view that even mental things are caused by some kind of physical occurrence. Others take a more idealist approach with the belief that mental continuity is the sole factor in establishing personal identity holding that physical things are just reflections of the mind. One more perspective on personal identity and the one I will attempt to explain and defend in this paper is that personal identity requires both physical and psychological continuity; my argument is as follows:
A person’s identity is shaped by many different aspects. Family, culture, friends, personal interests and surrounding environments are all factors that tend to help shape a person’s identity. Some factors may have more of an influence than others and some may not have any influence at all. As a person grows up in a family, they are influenced by many aspects of their life. Family and culture may influence a person’s sense of responsibilities, ethics and morals, tastes in music, humor and sports, and many other aspects of life. Friends and surrounding environments may influence a person’s taste in clothing, music, speech, and social activities. Personal interests are what truly set individuals apart. An individual is not a puppet on the string of their puppet-master, nor a chess piece on their master’s game board, individuals choose their own paths in life. They accomplish, or strive to accomplish, goals that they have set for themselves throughout their lifetime. Individuals are different from any other individual in the world because they live their own life rather than following a crowd of puppets. A person’s identity is defined by what shaped it in the first place, why they chose to be who they are, and what makes them different from everybody else in the world. I feel that I have developed most of my identity from my own dreams, fantasies, friends, and idols.
Different writing styles present different tone and emotion. For example, a story about being in the war has more negative emotion than a story of a child being in her bedroom. Also, a story about a child makes the reader feel more relaxed and has an easier environment than a woman who is trying to be independent, which could encourage others to be independent themselves. Furthermore, when we analyze literature, we can find out that different authors have different writing styles. For instance, an adult could see a child’s visions, a war victim could talk positively while recalling her memories, and a person can be straightforward while chasing full independence.
Breaking down point of view in stories can be helpful in determining the central idea, as the two concepts typically support one another. An author such as O’Connor has the ability when writing narrative to use whichever point of view they feel best portrays the story they are telling in the way they would like readers to understand it. By including and excluding certain bits of information, the author can present the story the way they choose, with the option to leave as many or as few subtle or obvious details within the narration as they would like to reveal to