Depends on How You Look At It

By Vitora

I slid around the trees, trying to ignore the branches that dug into my flesh. Through the pounding rain, I could see her; lightning flashed, illuminating her form for a brief moment. In that space of time that seemed drawn out for eternity, I saw her features. They chilled me.

You slide around the trees, trying to ignore the branches that dig into your flesh. Through the pounding rain, you can see her; lightning flashes, illuminating her form for a brief moment. In that space of time that seems drawn out for eternity, you see her features. They chill you.

Mark slid around the trees, trying to ignore the branches that dug into his flesh. Through the pounding rain, he could see her; lightning flashed, illuminating her form for a brief moment. In that space of time that seemed drawn out for eternity, he saw her features. They chilled him.

There’s something unique about all three of these paragraphs, and yet their content is essentially the same. What’s the difference? Point of view.

The first could easily be used in a short story, the voice or style of which could be focusing on emotions. This is known as first person.

The second might be found on a website, as sort of an introduction, a setting of the scene. This is called second person.

The third is the most commonly used point of view, and is found in most novels and short stories. This is known as third person.

Point of view is often a no-brainer; third person is chosen for the ease it lends for description, or first person for the ability it gives the writer to describe feelings in a powerful way. Second person is usually ignored, because it is confusing and awkward. All three have their place in writing, though, and sometimes it’s difficult to choose the one that’s just right for your prose.

So how do you decide? Well, first you have to think about your focus. Are you leaning towards the emotional side of things? In this case, go with first person. Have you created an intricate world that you’re dying to describe in full detail? Use third person. If you’re writing the introduction to a website, or even an unconventional short story, you may want to try your hand at second person for a unique feel (just don’t do an entire novel’s worth—it’d get on everyone’s nerves).

If your focus doesn’t present a solution, look next at your characters. Some characters are simply made for first person, because they’re the personal, introverted type and to describe them in third person would cause the reader to lose sight of their true self, as there are so many hidden emotions. On the other hand, a stone-faced, indifferent warrior isn’t going to need first person, and so third person will allow his surroundings—as well as a limited number of emotions of other characters—to be portrayed, therefore placing him in a realistic situation.

There are, of course, exceptions to both of these generalities; perhaps that indifferent warrior isn’t so indifferent on the inside, in which case it would make an excellent story by allowing the reader to eavesdrop on his intimate and true thoughts. Or maybe that emotional character would better be seen through the eyes of an impartial third person narrator, so that the reactions of characters around her can be considered as well.

Let me explain. When writing in third person, an author sets him or herself up to peer momentarily into the minds of more than one character—examples being the hero (obviously), the villain (excellent for behind-the-scenes reader knowledge of evil plans to take over the world, which often increases enjoyment of the story), the sidekick, or even that townsperson who watched them leave the village and has a jewel of wisdom or humor to share in their thoughts. It is allowed, then, to have anyone think anything when writing with the third person point of view, and this brings great freedom for the author.

It doesn’t, however, give opportunity to bring to life the emotions we humans cling so tightly to, one of the traits that seperate us from the monkeys and dolphins and other intelligent animals. In first person, the narrator’s pain is felt more deeply, as are their other emotions. Now, that’s not to say that emotions can’t be expressed at all in third person, but it’s more difficult.

And don’t forget that you can use more than one point of view in a story—literally. When one of your characters is relating an incident, they will often do what normal people do in real life: tell their tale in first person. So if you find that third person comes more easily to you, but you want some practice with first person as well, you can use this clever method of combining the two points of view.

Finally, some questions to ask yourself before you get started on any new story which will help you choose a point of view:

1. Who are my characters? Are they full of emotion (a), or would life inside their head be pretty bland (b)? (a=First person, b=Third person)

2. What is my story? Is this a journey involving more than one character (a), or only one individual (b)? (a=Third person, b=First person)

3. Do I want the reader to know of my villain’s plans? (yes=Third person, no=First person)

4. Will a secondary character become crucial throughout the story? (yes=Third person, no=First person)

5. Do the events of the story concern only my main character? (yes=First person, no=Third person)

6. Can I even stand to write in first person (a)? Third person (b)? (a=Third person, b=First person)

7. Who is my audience comprised of—an older age group (a) or a younger one (b)? (a=First person or third person, b=Third person only)

These are, of course, only guidelines to help you; as the author, you ultimately make the decisions. Hopefully you’ll find a point of view

that is right for you and that helps your writing to flow out onto the paper (or Word document) easily.