Do Now -

Respond to the following prompts in a well composed sentence or two in your notebook/binder:

How does the perspective (point of view) a story is told from affect the reader?

When you read a scary, creepy, or tense story, what makes it feel that way?

ELEMENTS OF FICTIONLesson Six – Mood and Narrative Perspective

Mood and Tone

The “feeling” of a story; its dominant tone or atmosphere.

Most stories have a predominating mood, one that is consistent, however shifts in mood can be used as important story points, or to change the pace (example: comic relief in Romeo and Juliet)

Mood is created by the author’s diction (word choice), descriptions, characterization, and is often strongly influenced by or connected to the setting.

The narrative perspective, or Point of View a story is told from can also influence the mood the author is trying to create.

Point of View All stories are told from a “Point of View”, the vantage point

from which the writer is telling their story. There are 4 kinds of POV’s

1st Person: Story told from the perspective of one character in their own words (Uses “I, me, we, etc.”)

2nd Person: Story is told to the reader as if they were the character (Uses “You”)

3rd Person Limited: Story is told from a characters point of view by a narrator whose knowledge is limited to that of the main character. The narrator is not the main character. (Uses “He, she, they, etc.)

3rd Person Omniscient: Story is told by an all knowing narrator who has access to the knowledge and thoughts of any character in the story at any time. The narrator is not the main character. (Uses “He, she, they, etc.)

Exit Question…

Based on the criteria we discussed, quickly respond on your exit slip to the following…

What word or words would you use to describe the mood of “The Sniper”?

What Point of View (1st person, 2nd person, 3rd person limited, 3rd person omniscient) do you believe The Sniper is written from?