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Narrating the story through the perspective of the main character is not the only way to tell a story. Sometimes it’s told from the author’s viewpoint. When this occurs, the author is writing in third-person point of view.

A specific kind of third-person point of view is “omniscient”, in which the author is an all-knowing, God-like narrator. Consider this example of third-person omniscient from R. Garcia y Robertson‘s short story “Oxygen Rising”:

“Hey, human, time to earn your pay!” Curled in a feline crouch, a silver comlink clipped to its furry ear, the SuperCat flashed Derek a toothy grin. Tawny fur showed through gaps in the bioconstruct’s body armor, and his oxygen bottle had a special nosepiece to accommodate the saber-tooth upper canines, huge curved fangs whose roots ran back to the eye sockets. This deep in the highlands of Harmonia, even homo smilodon needed bottled air. Cradling a recoilless assault cannon, the SuperCat had small use for ceremony, letting everyone call him Leo.

Derek grunted, getting paid being the least of his worries.

Tags: first-person, narrator, omniscient, point of view, third-person

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Stories don’t have to be told only from the main character’s perspective. Indeed, the story’s author often narrates a story about a character rather be that persona. When this occurs, authors are writing in third-person point of view.

One type of third-person point of view is third-person limited. This is when the narrator tells the story only from the perspective of what the main character can observe and think, but unlike first-person limited, we also observe the main character through the author’s eyes.

Consider this excerpt from Brian Aldiss’ science fiction short story “Not For an Age”:

A bedspring groaned and pinged, mists cleared, Rodney Furnell awoke. From the bathroom next door came the crisp sound of shaving; his son was up. The bed next to his was empty; Valerie, his second wife, was up. Guiltily, Rodney also rose, and performed several timid exercises to flex his backbone. Youth! When it was going it had to be husbanded. He touched his toes.

Notice how we see events unfolding through the eyes of Rodney Furnell, the main character: waking up, the sounds around him, exercising. We do not see the world through the perspective of his son or his second wife. Further, the word "I" never would appear in the piece unless spoken by someone; that's because Rodney isn't telling the story - the author is. The author even offers a small comment, describing Rodney’s exercises as “timid” (certainly Rodney would not describe them as “timid”!).

Third-person limited offers several advantages, including:
n Giving the writer more flexibility than first-person point of view – If the story above were told only from Rodney’s point of view, the author could not offer his perspective on him. The audience no longer would be looking upon the stage that the main character acted but would be standing upon it in the main character’s body.
n Providing a less biased perspective - Stories told in first-person also carry the weight of the main character’s subjective views and perspectives. Sometimes this can make the protagonist less acceptable likeable to a reader who is more enlightened than that character. Third-person limited moves the reader to the usually more enlightened perspective of the author.
n Offering a clear sense of who the reader should identify with and invest in - Stories told only from the main character’s perspective sometimes don’t make that persona the hero but someone whose weaknesses cost him. The author’s insertions in third-person limited show readers how they should view the main character. Because of that, readers often like this point of view.

One danger of third-person limited, however, is that the reader loses a sense of intimacy with the main character. Rather than fully experience the universe with the main character, the reader can feel superior to him. If your goal is to have the reader relate to the main character, this may not be the best choice for your story’s point of view.

You Do It
Write a 250-word piece in third-person limited. How does selecting this point of view shape your approach to the main character? Would a first-person limited point of view work better for the story you wish to tell about this character?

Visit my Web site about writing science fiction, Inventing Reality.
(c) 2008 Rob Bignell

Tags: first-person, main character, narrator, point of view, third-person

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When the main character narrates your story, you’ve selected the first-person point of view. But when the narrator but gives only the cold, hard facts as telling us what people said and did, you have a specific kind of first-person, known as first-person objective.

An excellent example of first-person objective is Jules Verne’s “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea”. The story’s main character/protagonist, Dr. Pierre Aronnax, tells what occurs to him as he goes on an expedition to the ocean and his subsequent capture by Captain Nemo. Here’s an excerpt:

What had he seen? Then, I know not why, the thought of the monster came into my head for the first time! But that voice? The time is past for Jonahs to take refuge in whales' bellies! However, Conseil was towing me again. He raised his head sometimes, looked before us, and uttered a cry of recognition, which was responded to by a voice that came nearer and nearer. I scarcely heard it. My strength was exhausted; my fingers stiffened; my hand afforded me support no longer; my mouth, convulsively opening, filled with salt water. Cold crept over me. I raised my head for the last time, then I sank.

Notice how Arronax sticks to a blow-by-blow, almost detached account of what occurs, even when he is a frightening, perilous situation. “Cold crept over me” suffices where other narrators would be more prosaic in their description. Because of this, first-person objective sometimes is called “detached autobiography”.

Because of this, first-person objective offers a major disadvantage: the detached, objective narration can undercut the intimacy readers feel with the main character. Because of this, characters like Arronax are hardly as memorable as H.G. Wells’ The Time Traveler, who tells his tale in the more congenial first-person limited.

Still, first-person limited offers a number of advantages. First, it creates a sense that the narrator is more reliable. A risk of first-person limited is that the narrator may come off as unreliable (and a few “sequels” to Wells’ story often present The Time Traveler as an obsessed, borderline madman). Secondly, first-person objective allows for a unique narrative voice that some readers find appealing. The tough guy character, for example, often is memorable, especially to male readers, because he represents American culture’s ideal of maleness. Because of this, first-person objective is a great voice to use if parodying the tough guy.

You Do It
Look back at one of the piece you wrote for the “Inciting Incident” entry. Rewrite the piece so that it is in first-person objective. How does this change the feel and flow of the story? Is it a more appropriate perspective than the one you originally chose? Why or why not?

Visit my Web site about writing science fiction, Inventing Reality.
(c) 2008 Rob Bignell

 

Tags: first-person limited, main character, narrator, point of view, protagonist

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A story can be told from several different viewpoints. When the main character narrates his own experiences and observations, the author is using “first person limited” point of view.

This viewpoint is autobiographical in nature. It’s “limited” because the narrator only can tell what he perceives, not what other characters see, hear or think.

Consider this example from Ann Aguirre’s novel “Grimpsace”:

My AI asks, “Lights on, Sirantha Jax?”

Such a polite Unit spy. The fragging thing reports everything I do, every time I roll over, probably every time I take a piss.”

We only know the world from the narrator’s perspective. We have no idea what the AI is “thinking” about the narrator, the humans its serves or of its duties.

There are several advantages to using first person limited:
n Immediacy - Since the story is told as the main character makes observations, the reader in turn observes the story’s world as the same moment that the character does. This helps keep a strong flow of dramatic tension.
n Identification- This point of view typically makes identifying with the character easier for readers. They have a greater feeling of intimacy with him.
n Distinctive voice - Often a unique narrative voice is possible, which can make story more interesting to reader. In “Grimspace,” for example, the reader gains a strong sense of Jax’s anger at being incarcerated when she directly tells the tale. If told from a more objective viewpoint, however, some of the anger would be lost, and Jax would be a far less distinct - and hence interesting – character: “Lights on, Sirantha Jax?” her AI asked. Jax cursed at the AI in her mind, thought about how reported everything she did, every time she rolled over, probably every time she took a piss.”
n Control - The author arguably can better control flow of narrative when it is first person limited. Because only one character’s perspective is told, the pace of what happens to that character primarily affects the story’s flow.
n Conversational - This viewpoint often sounds more conversational in tone. This allows for use of slang, jargon offbeat expressions, as in the novel and movie “A Clockwork Orange”.
n Awareness - This perspective sometimes is used because it allows for characters who are naïve, evil or mistaken to reveal their flaws even though they haven’t grown or changed during the story. Because the author can control the narrative flow, he can point out, via the narrator’s errors in observation, that a character fault exists. Readers picking up on this error find themselves contemplating if they themselves possess this fault.

Depending on the story you’re telling, first-person limited can be ill-suited. A few disadvantages of using this point of view include:

n The unreliability of the narrator can be problematic - Since the narrator could be lying or distorting events, the reader may not identify with or understand that character.

n Any action not directly involving the narrator can’t be told - This can be limiting for an author. Who may need to show how other characters react to an event with more depth or objectivity than the narrator’s perception of those characters can offer.

n Threats to the main character can seem less dramatic - The reader knows in advance that the narrator will survive, and a dead narrator can’t tell a story, after all.

n The main character typically can’t describe himself - When the narrator does, he runs the risk of sounding obnoxious, or the passage can sound forced.

Tags: main character, narrator, pointof view

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Every story is told from someone’s perspective. This someone is known as the viewpoint character.

For example, in “The Matrix” movie series, the story is seen through the perspective of Neo, the tales’ hero. In the short story Thomas F. Monteleone’s “Present Perfect”, it’s the magazine editor William Rutherford. Usually the story’s hero is the viewpoint character. Sometimes this character is referred to as the “POV character”. 

The viewpoint character does not have to be the story’s main character - or even a character in the story, however.

How do you decide who will be the viewpoint character? Ask yourself which character:
n Faces key decisions that must be shown in the story? - You must show how these choices are arrived at to move along your plot, so this character is a good choice to be the viewpoint character.
n Makes the best observer? - Sometimes the main character facing significant choices doesn’t have the ability to make the right decision; in such a story, your viewpoint character is showing how the main character made the wrong call.
n Serves as a surrogate for the author? - This character usually is the author living a fantasy. Making him the viewpoint character can result in a melodramatic story.
n Serves as a surrogate for reader? - Serves as a surrogate for reader? This character probably is the best viewpoint character as it is the one who readers can identify with.

Tags: character, narrator, point of view

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