This essay will focus on point of view.   “ In the first paragraph, establish the story you™ll discuss (Girl by Jamaica

This essay will focus on point of view.  

– In the first paragraph, establish the story you’ll discuss (Girl by Jamaica Kinnaird) and identify its point of view.  Briefly explain what this point of view entails. If the story is third person, make sure to distinguish between omniscient or limited.  End the first paragraph with your thesis. 

The thesis template is this:

This point of view is necessary to the story because…

The object of this essay is to show why the story has to be told from this point of view and not any other.  How does the point of view connect to an idea or theme in the story?  How does the point of view show some aspect of a characters or characters that another point of view would not allow?  And why is it important that we see that aspect of the character/s?  Essentially, I’m asking you to look for a relationship between content (the story’s subject matter) and form (how the story is written).

The first body paragraph will establish context.  Illustrate the story’s point of view.  If the story is second person, show the narrator speaking to the “you” character.  If the story is third omniscient or third limited, show passages in the text that illustrate this.  Ideally, the quotations you include here should relate to your thesis.

Another two or three body paragraphs should follow.  These paragraphs should directly address your thesis.  Show specific passages in the text that illustrate why this point of view is necessary. How does the story’s point of view reveal something that is important to some idea or theme in the story?  How does it reveal some crucial aspect of the characters? 

You might approach these body paragraphs like this.  In the second body paragraph, introduce an idea or theme that you see in the story; don’t address point of view in this paragraph.  Give quotations from the story where you see this idea expressed most clearly.  Then, in the third body paragraph, show how this idea is articulated through the story’s point of view.  Again, find quotations that are relevant to your point.

In the conclusion, address what would be lost if the story were told from another point view.  If the point of view changed, something would be lost.  Why does the story need whatever would be lost in another point of view?