The third person limited narrator does not know all in the
story, which can make for dramatic irony. By that I mean that the reader might have
insight into the situation or characters that the narrator does not have. I am sure you
have watched a movie in which you wanted to yell to a character, "Look behind you! He
has an axe!"
With the third person limited narration, we
have some unknown person "looking down," but this person cannot see everything going on
or peer into the minds of all the characters. Whether the narrator acknowledges it or
not, he or she has a particular perspective, one which can be used to influence how the
reader makes meaning of the story. What a narrator leaves out can be as important in
shaping a story as what such a narrator includes.
A third
person omniscient narrator affords a greater sweep in a story. This is particularly
effective when one wants to know what people are thinking, not just what they are doing
in the story. This point of view is also useful when a story takes place over a great
period of time or in many places. One person telling the story makes for far smoother
transitions for the reader.
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