The document discusses different points of view in short stories including objective point of view where the narrator is a detached observer, first person point of view where the narrator participates in the story but may not be reliable, and third person point of view where the narrator can either have a limited view of one character's thoughts and feelings or be omniscient and know everything about all characters.

1. Point of View in a Short Story

2. Objective Point of View
In the objective point of view, the writer tells
what happens without stating more than
can be inferred from the story's action and
dialogue.
The narrator never tells the reader anything
about what the characters thinks or feels,
and remains a detached observer of the
story.

3. First Person Point of View
In the first person point of view, the narrator
participates in the action of the story.
When reading stories in the first person,
you need to realize that what the narrator
is recounting might not be the objective
truth. You should question the
trustworthiness of the narrators account of
the events of the story.

4. Third Person Point of View
In the third person point of view the
narrator does not participate in the action
of the story as one of the characters, but
lets us know exactly how the characters
think and feel. We learn about the
characters through this outside voice.
There are two different types of point of
view; limited and Omniscient.

5. Third Person Limited
A third person narrator whose knowledge is
limited to one character, either major or
minor, has a limited point of view. It is
limited to the one character with whom
the story is being told through.

6. Third Person Omniscient
A third person narrator who knows
everything about all the characters is all-
knowing, or omniscient. The reader knows
about the thoughts and feelings of all the
characters in the story.

7. As you read a piece of fiction think
about these things:
• How does the point of view affect your
responses to the characters?
• How is your response influenced by how
much the narrator knows and how
objective he or she is?
• First person narrators are not always
trustworthy. It is up to you to determine
what is the truth and what is not.