Third Grade English: Reading Comprehension: Literature - Point of View: First vs. Third Person
Point of view is the perspective, lens, or vantage point from which an author chooses to tell a story, determining what information, emotions, and events are revealed to the reader. When an author writes from the first-person point of view, you experience the adventure through the eyes and private feelings of a narrator who is directly inside the story. When an author uses the third-person point of view, an outside narrator tells the story, offering a broader view of multiple characters and settings. In this chapter, you will master the pronoun clues that unlock point of view, analyze how a narrator's perspective shapes what you know, and learn how stories change when the perspective shifts.
What Is Point of View?
Imagine you are attending a school soccer game. If the goalie tells the story of the game, she will describe the thud of the soccer ball against her gloves, her racing heartbeat when a forward ran toward the net, and her dusty knees. But if a spectator sitting in the top row of the bleachers tells the story, he will describe the entire field, the referee waving a flag, and the cheering crowd. The game was the same, but the point of view changed everything!
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| POINT OF VIEW COMPARISON |
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| FIRST-PERSON POINT OF VIEW |
| - The narrator is a character INSIDE the story. |
| - Uses pronouns: I, me, my, we, us, our. |
| - The reader knows the narrator's private thoughts. |
| - Limited: We cannot see what other characters think. |
| |
| THIRD-PERSON POINT OF VIEW |
| - The narrator is an OUTSIDE observer. |
| - Uses pronouns: he, she, it, they, them, their, names. |
| - Can observe multiple characters across different places. |
| - Can be Third-Person Limited or Third-Person Omniscient. |
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The Pronoun Fingerprint Test
The quickest way to identify point of view is to examine the pronouns the narrator uses outside of spoken dialogue.
- Warning: Do not count pronouns inside quotation marks! Characters use "I" and "me" when they speak out loud in both first and third person. Look only at the narration sentences.
First-Person Point of View: Up Close and Personal
In first-person narration, the narrator is right in the center of the action.
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| FIRST-PERSON PRONOUN ROSTER |
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| Singular : I, me, my, mine, myself |
| Plural : We, us, our, ours, ourselves |
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Advantages of First-Person Point of View
- Emotional Intimacy: You feel like you are whispering inside the narrator's brain. You feel their fear, excitement, embarrassment, and joy firsthand.
- Mystery and Suspense: Because the narrator only knows what they can personally see, hear, or experience, you share their surprises and puzzles.
Limitations of First-Person Point of View
- Subjective Bias: The narrator might misunderstand someone else's intentions. For example, the narrator might think, "Julian glared at me because he hates me," when in reality, Julian was simply squinting because the sun was in his eyes!
Third-Person Point of View: The Outside Observer
In third-person narration, the voice telling the story does not belong to a character inside the plot. The narrator hovers above the action like a camera.
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| THIRD-PERSON PRONOUN ROSTER |
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| Singular : he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its |
| Plural : they, them, their, theirs |
| Names : Sarah, Captain Miller, the dragon |
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Third-Person Limited vs. Third-Person Omniscient
In third grade, you will encounter two main flavors of third-person narration:
- Third-Person Limited: The narrator stays outside the story but zooms in closely on the thoughts and feelings of just one specific character.
- Third-Person Omniscient ("All-Knowing"): The narrator sees and knows everything, jumping into the minds and hearts of multiple characters across different settings.
Side-by-Side Comparison: The Same Scene Told Two Ways
Notice how the tone, intimacy, and details change completely when the exact same event is narrated from two different points of view.
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| FIRST-PERSON VERSION |
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| "My stomach churned as I walked onto the auditorium stage. |
| The bright spotlight blinded my eyes, and for a terrifying |
| three seconds, every word of my speech vanished from my |
| brain. I clutched my cue cards until my knuckles turned |
| white, praying nobody noticed my shaking knees." |
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| THIRD-PERSON VERSION |
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| "David stepped onto the auditorium stage as the audience |
| quieted down. The spotlight cast his shadow against the |
| velvet curtain. He gripped his cue cards tightly in both |
| hands, took a deep breath, and cleared his throat before |
| delivering the opening line of his speech." |
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Analyzing the Difference
In the first-person version, we feel the visceral physical sensations: churning stomach, blinded eyes, terrifying memory blank, white knuckles. In the third-person version, we view David objectively from the perspective of an audience member watching a dignified young speaker take the stage.
How Point of View Influences the Reader
An author's choice of point of view controls how you judge characters and events.
- If a story is told from the point of view of the Big Bad Wolf (like the famous book The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs!), the wolf claims he was simply trying to borrow a cup of sugar for his dear grandmother's birthday cake and had a bad cold that caused him to sneeze the houses down!
- Point of view determines who gets your sympathy. When you hear only one side of an argument, you naturally tend to root for that narrator. Active readers always ask: "Would another character see this situation differently?"
Practice Exercises and Review
Test your mastery of point of view with these exercises.
Exercise 1: Identify the Point of View
Read each excerpt and determine whether it is First Person or Third Person.
1. "We packed our sleeping bags, loaded the canoe onto the roof rack, and set off before sunrise."
2. "Captain Alvarez scanned the horizon through her brass telescope. A dark line of storm clouds was gathering to the north."
3. "'I will never eat another Brussels sprout as long as I live!' declared Timothy as he crossed his arms."
4. "I could smell the warm cinnamon rolls baking in the kitchen long before my alarm clock rang."
Exercise 2: Pronoun Detective Work
Why is sentence 3 in Exercise 1 written in third-person point of view, even though the word "I" appears in the sentence?
Answer Key and Explanations
- Exercise 1:
- First Person (narrator uses "We", "our").
- Third Person (narrator uses "Captain Alvarez", "her").
- Third Person (narrator is outside; "I" only appears inside dialogue quotation marks).
- First Person (narrator uses "I", "my").
- Exercise 2: In sentence 3, "I" is spoken aloud inside quotation marks by Timothy. Outside the quotation marks, the narrator refers to Timothy in the third person ("declared Timothy", "he crossed his arms"). Therefore, the story's narrator is an outside observer.