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Perspective is basically how a character experiences and interprets their world. In this blog, I want to explain perspective through its use in our everyday life and then explore how the concept is creatively implemented in work!
Perspective is Everywhere:
Perspective can be hard to grasp because it is so subjective. It varies just a bit for every being on Earth, as every being on Earth sees the world a bit differently. It is the end result of one’s lifetime of experiences, including upbringing, family/friends, hometown, and more.
Differing perspective is the backbone for all forms of discourse.
For example, two friends in college (A and B) are going to a party at another person’s house. These friends have different perspectives of how this party could go due to previous experiences with the homeowner.
Friend A is super excited about the party. They perceive the homeowner as a nice guy since they are in the same study group. He helps her out with problems and buys donuts. Overall, what a guy! She appreciates people who help others, a value that connects to her more positive view of the man.
However, Friend B’s perspective varies. She considers the guy a sleaze, as she has seen him cheat on exams to get better scores. She hates people who fail to showcase proper academic integrity. This philosophy and exposure to elements that friend A would not have known influence B’s perspective.
Of course, we are not here to recite college drama. This hypothetical situation shows perspective can vary wildly between characters concerning specific ideas or issues. How you can apply perspective in writing also varies! Let’s explore this application through perspective’s use in literature.
William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying: Nuance Through Perspective
My apologies in advance. Faulkner is a difficult writer. My happiest memory with the author was when my English professor pulled a Southern accent in an impersonation. Faulkner tends to be experimental, pushing how literature functions, and this includes perspective.
As I Lay Dying hinges upon multiple perspectives presented through divided chapters within a large cast. They range from religious housewives to young boys to even a dead woman in a casket. These are people with immense histories that are rarely referenced. Instead, their attitudes are carefully drawn from more mundane interactions, specifically through their comments on other characters.
This is seen in the character Darl. The values of other characters emerge from how they perceive this man, considering him either insane or a good, reliable individual. In this way, Faulkner uses perspective to add nuance and unreliability to his work. The reader is never sure who to trust because the views can vary wildly, and perspective also sheds light on the characters narrating at a given point, the belief systems and exposures that lend to their opinions.
Ultimately, I’d recommend considering how perspective can add nuance to the worlds you create. Multiple perspectives represent different experiences, so by recalling various experiences, a more diverse understanding of the world can be presented.
Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson: Perspective as Personality
Aside from enhancing nuance within your text, perspective—a character’s understanding of the world—lends to compelling narration. One can observe the world through a character’s eyes, and those observations are tinged with the character’s perspective. Even if not for a thematic purpose like Faulkner, perspective can still build characterization by utilizing backstory to color a character’s voice.
An example of perspective strengthening character lies in a series of works that Faulkner could never surpass, Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series. The perspective present in the titular protagonist is iconic to the saga’s readers. His signature “Persass,” as the fandom dubs it, traces to his youthful cynicism.
The reader is endeared to Percy because of how he views the world, making humorous remarks about the obstacles he faces which springs from disillusionment translated to dark humor. Percy’s perspective is engineered to be endearing, offering an intimate glimpse into himself and thus the world around him.
Ultimately, in your work, consider the experiences and perspective of your character and how those can play out into some novel narration and characterization. As established, perspective means everyone sees the world a bit differently.
A Final Takeaway:
The most important thing to remember about perspective is that it is NOT point-of-view, a mistake I even made when researching for this piece. Point-of-view is how an author chooses to tell their story, while perspective lies within the text and characters. When thinking of perspective, think of characters, their experiences, and their world. Ultimately, I hope this overview helped, and I hope you will continue to explore perspective through your work! Until next time.
About the Author:
Zach Terrillion (He/They) is a rising third year at Oberlin College with a major in English and minor in creative writing. He can be found in his free time engaging in discourse through PowerPoint nights with friends, binging cartoons, or meandering for hours on end in the local used bookstore or museum.