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Point of View

© Sue Reichard

One of the most critical determinations a writer must make is to determine from whose point of view the story will be told. When writing for children this is an extremely important factor.

The rules for point of view in children's writing are:

1. There should be only one viewpoint character.

2. The viewpoint character's story should be told in the first person or in the third person.

3. Never use an omiscient author for the very youngest readers.

The writer determines point of view when the decision is made as to who is to be the narrator and how much the narrator is to know.

One point of view to consider is first person. This is used when the story is told in first personI. The reader lives, acts, feels and thinks the story as the protagonist experiences it. One advantage to the first person point of view is its ability to pull the reader into the story. The disadvantage to this point of view is the I clearly has limitations to predict and has limitations of vocabulary and word usage are restricted to the storytellers age and experiences.

A second possibility is the omniscient point of view. The writer tells the story in third person, he, she or they. The third person narrator is all knowing or omniscient.

The narrator can reveal every detail of plot, thought or feeling in the past, present or future. The writer may use the device of flashback or foreshadowing when the point of view is presented by the omniscient narrator.

Sometimes a writer will use a limited omniscient point of view. This style chooses to view the action through the eyes of one character, sometimes even several characters and to report that characters thoughts. This style was used by Laura Ingalls Wilder in her Little House books.

When using the objective point of view the writer does not enter the minds of the characters at all. The action does all the talking as the drama unfolds. Characters reveal themselves through their dialogue. This point of view draws on the readers imagination and prior knowledge. The writer is responsible to describe and report action so a child can understand the story. An example of this point of view would be Allan W. Eckert's Incident at Hawk's Hill. Actions are observed, but thoughts are not known to the reader.

Point of view is an important literary element when writing for children. Understanding of character and story are dependent upon a writer choosing the correct point of view for his reading audience.