Question

NARRATIVE POINT OF VIEW
DIRECTIONS: Read the following passage. Then, answer the questions.
After school, I met up with Felix and a few other friends at the skate park. Felix is my best
friend, and we have both been trying to learn this new skateboarding trick for a few weeks.
Anyway, last night, as I was skating home from Felix’s house, I finally pulled off the trick! I was
sure that Felix would be happy for me, so I thought about texting him that night to tell him. But
then I thought that it would be more fun to just show him the next day.
So, today, I rolled up at the skate park and said, “Hey Felix, check this out.” I tried and landed
the trick on the first try. He nodded without smiling or showing excitement and said, “Nice, Josh.
You nailed it.” Felix has always been a quiet person who doesn’t show much emotion, so I have
always had trouble reading him—whether he is happy or sad or excited or whatever. This time
was no different. I had no idea if he was excited for me or was maybe a little jealous that I got the
trick before he did. Or maybe he thought I was trying to show off? I wasn’t sure if I should ask him
about it.
1. From which point of view is the passage told? How can you tell?
2. Is the narrator a character in the passage? How can you tell?
3. How does the passage’s point of view affect what readers know about the characters’
thoughts and feelings?
4. From which point of view would the story need to be written for readers to know Felix’s
thoughts and feelings? Explain.
5. How does the narrative point of view used in this passage help readers identify with the
narrator and the potential conflict he faces?

Answer 1

1. First-person point of view. You can tell because the narrator uses first-person pronouns (“I,” “me,” “my”) and tells the story from his own perspective.

2. Yes — the narrator is a character in the passage. The narrator participates in the events (skates, lands the trick, speaks) and is even addressed by name (“Nice, Josh”), showing he’s one of the people in the scene.

3. The first-person POV gives readers direct access to the narrator’s thoughts and feelings (his excitement about landing the trick, his decision not to text, his uncertainty about Felix). It limits readers’ access to other characters’ inner states: we only see Felix’s words and body language, not his thoughts, so readers must interpret Felix’s feelings through the narrator’s perceptions and possible biases.

4. To know Felix’s thoughts and feelings, the story would need to be told from Felix’s perspective (first-person Felix) or by an omniscient narrator. A third-person limited told from Felix’s point of view would reveal his inner thoughts; a third-person omniscient narrator could reveal both Felix’s and the original narrator’s thoughts.

5. The first-person POV creates intimacy with the narrator, so readers experience his excitement and confusion firsthand (“I finally pulled off the trick,” “I had no idea if he was excited…”). That closeness makes his worry about Felix’s reaction feel immediate and relatable, and the limited perspective heightens the conflict—readers share his uncertainty and must infer Felix’s motives just as he does.