Monday, April 11, 2011
Shift in Narration
In part one of Beloved, the narration is told is mostly 3rd person point of view, so we get to see into the minds of most of the main characters and hear their thoughts. Included in these characters is Sethe, who seems to show a very isolated or shy side in most of part one. The audience is never able to really know Sethe's thoughts, we only get to see her actions and details that the author gives us in part one. Because of this, the reader must come up with their own assumptions of how Sethe really feels during this part of the book. Now that the book is told in first person point of view, we are able to really see Sethe's inner feelings and we can see the compassionate and caring side of her. We see how much Sethe really cares for Beloved as if she were her own daughter. If the story were to still be told in third person narration, we would not be able to see this side of Sethe; the fact that part two of the book includes first person point of view gives us the opportunity to relate to the character of Sethe more and uncover new ideas as we read.
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I agree that the section of Sethe provides very interesting insight into her character that is not seen through the regular third person narration throughout the book.
ReplyDeleteYeah I feel that Morrison purposely intended to wait until Section II to switch to first person, as to give the reader a chance to form their own ideas about the character. After these ideas are formed, she then dives deep inside the character and tells the story from their points of view.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your view of Sethe's character and her isolated thoughts. I also like your idea that the reader must come up with their own assumptions about how Sethe really feels. First-person narration definitely let's the reader know, first-hand, how the character feels and not from a third person's views...which can be completely fictitious.
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