Setting is the place and time of the story. The setting enhances the mood or atmosphere. Details of climate, geographical information, and so on are all part of the setting. Many stories, shows, films, and games rely heavily on setting for their narratives. Often a story could not take place outside of its specific setting.

Setting

Consider how these settings might be the backbone of a story in any genre...

Point of View

Point of view refers to the narrator’s relation to the fictional world of the story, and to the minds of the characters.

Physical Point of View

Tells us where the author is

situated in order to have a view of

the action. (Is the author a character in the

story?)

Emotional Point of View is another term for the Mood or Atmosphere. This is the emotion that the author wants to create in the reader. The Tone of a story refers to the attitude which the writer brings to his/her work.

Mental Point of View refers to the way in which the story is told. It involves such questions as: Who tells the story? How much is he/she allowed to know?

To what extent does the author

look inside his characters and report their

thoughts and feelings?

When we speak of point of view in a story, it is usually the mental point of view we are referring to.

Point of View - Options First-Person Point of View You see everything through the character’s eyes, hear their thoughts, and share their emotions. (ie: “I ran around the corner, fearing what I’d see..”)

Third-Person Point of View You see everything through the character’s eyes, hear their thoughts, and share their emotions, however their voice is not the one you hear, but the narrator’s. (ie: “She smiled sweetly, but inwardly was seething with rage..”)

Objective or Omniscient Point of View You see everything from a God-like perspective. Sometimes knowing all, sometimes only watching.

Point of View – More Specifics First-Person Point of View

Omniscient Point of View

Limited Omniscient Point of View

Objective Point of View

Refer to your charts....

First-Person Point of View Definition

- The story told using “I” - Major or Minor character tells the story

Advantages - The story seems more realistic - The reader is closer to the action of the story

Disadvantages - The author can’t explain or interpret the story except as the character

Omniscient Point of View Definition

- Story told using he/she (3rd person) - The narrator is all-knowing - He/she can interpret and comment on character behaviour

Advantages - Very flexible - Gives the author the most possibilities for telling the story.

Disadvantages - Reader is separated from the story. - Can be confusing because you can see events from any/every character and point of view.

Limited Omniscient Point of View Definition

- Story told using he/she (3rd person)... but from the point of view of one character - Knows everything about that one character - Knows only what other characters choose to reveal

Advantages - Looks at the world through the eyes of one character, and is more realistic that the omniscient point of view. - Not as confusing

Disadvantages - The reader can see events and characters only through one character’s eyes.

Objective Point of View Definition

- The author is like a video camera - Can only record what is seen and heard - Cannot go into the mind of any character

Advantages - Provides the most action - Reader has to make his/her own interpretation

Disadvantages - Relies heavily on action and dialogue - Narrator can’t interpret anything.

Short Story:

“The Cask of Amontillado”

By Edgar Allen Poe