Analysis of Point of View in “Sagittarius” The short story “Sagittarius” describes the struggles of a family regarding the physical anomaly of the youngest son, Sebastian, who is half-human, half-horse. This story is written from a unique point of view. As opposed to a more standard first person POV or single third person POV throughout the piece, the story is written from third-person multiple vision. In other words, it consists of many short sections, each written from the POV of one of the four main characters — Isabel, Martin, Kaden, and Sebastian. This choice of POV is powerful and necessary for the story. Multiple-vision POV narrative brings focus to the major differences in the characters’ opinions, and tells the full story despite …show more content…
It doesn’t allow the reader to sit back and told what to think and feel. The reader must piece things together for himself, which can make for an interesting reading experience.” 83
“You’re also limited by the intelligence and vocabulary of the first-person narrator.” 81
“Employing an “outside” narrator allows the write to craft the language in ways that may be implausible coming from the mouth of a first-person narrator.” 86
“Indeed, writers often arrange the perspectives of the point-of-view characters to emphasize their differences.” 87
“In a shorter piece you might find that you don’t have the room to develop numerous point-of-view characters.” 87
“as a general rule you should make distinct transitions between point-of-view characters.” 88
“Third-person multiple vision also provides a wider view, often creating an effect like a collage.” 89
“In a third-person multiple-vision POV, each character’s experience is interesting, but the writer highlights what’s most interesting by juxtaposing the various viewpoints.” 89
“As occurs with first person, the flexibility you gain with multiple viewpoints costs you focus. The reader’s attention and concern are spread more thinly.”