Point of View in Fiction

Which is a clue that a passage is written in first-person point of view?

• The use of I, me, or we

• The use of he, she, it, or they

• The use of you

Read the passage.

No one knew where Pepper was. He usually waits patiently for school to get out. His routine is always the same. He sits at the backdoor, waiting for someone to come home and play with him. Things definitely weren't right. I was starting to get worried when I remembered that Mom took him to the groomer today.

Which sentence indicates that the passage is written in a first-person point of view?

• No one knew where Pepper was.

• He usually waits patiently for school to get out.

• I was starting to get worried when I remembered that Mom took him to the groomer today.

• Things definitely weren't right.

Which is a clue that indicates a passage is written in a third-person point of view?

• The use of I, me, or we

• The use of he, she, it, or they

• The use of you

Read the passage.

Selena said she would be waiting out front with the car at 9 p.m. Where could she be? The longer Isabel waited for her friend to pick her up, the more nervous she became. It couldn't be a worse night to be standing outside alone. A storm was moving in, and the wind was beginning to rustle the trees, making everything seem spookier than it already was.

From which point of view is the passage written?

• First-person

• Limited third person

• Omniscient third person

Which of the following is written from the third-person point of view?

• Corey and Vanessa live two blocks from one another.

• We have lived two blocks from each other since we were kids.

• I have been friends with Corey since middle school.

• Corey lives on Washington Street, two blocks from where I live.

Which type of narrator has full knowledge of all characters, rather than just one character?

• third person limited

• naiive first person

• third person omniscient

Which of the following statements is true?

• A narrator is a speaker or a character who tells a story.

• A narrator never takes part in the action of the story.

• A narrator is usually the protagonist of the story.

Millie is reading a book that is written in the third-person omniscient point of view. How does this point of view affect her experience as a reader?

• She may feel more sympathetic to the narrator who is telling the story.

• She will have insight into only one character’s thoughts and feelings.

• She may have a better understanding of the text, since she has insight to every character’s thoughts and feelings.

Read the passage.

Miguel and Joseph walked into the principal’s office. Miguel’s palms were sweating; he was nervous. Joseph was pale and trembling, as if he had just seen a ghost.

From which point of view is the passage written?

• first-person point of view

• third-person limited point of view

• third-person omniscient point of view

What might be the author’s purpose for writing in first-person point of view?

• to reveal all the characters’ thoughts and feelings

• to enable the character to share thoughts with the reader directly

• to give the reader more information than the character has