A Well Lighted Place Point Of View
While reading “A Well Lighted Place” by Earnest Hemingway it begins as a third person limited point of view. The interactions between the characters are just a documented interaction between an old man, and old waiter, and a young waiter. Later in the story it turns into Third person omniscient, and details are given on why the characters act out in the way that they do. If the reader was to have this information delivered to them from a different point of view it would drastically alter and bias the reader’s opinion. Interactions would not be as detailed and set out for the reader, and they would become partial to a particular character if told from their own first person point of view. Some examples of a different point of views are as follows:
“No, it is not,” agreed the waiter with a wife. He did not wish to be unjust. He was only in a hurry” (Hemingway, 2013). If this were told from first the first person perspective of the old waiter, the reader would have to conclude through the young waiter’s actions that he was not being unruly or rude. This would allow false conclusions to be drawn about the young waiter, and the reader could become biased against him through the entire story.
"The barman looked at him but did not answer. It was too late at night for conversation” (Hemingway, 2013). If the story were written from the old waiter’s point of view, the reader would again be left with the option of deciding the reasoning of the barman to not speak about the event. The story being told from third person omniscient allows the reader to be given important details as to not end at a biased opinion of characters. The overall message could be altered from a cycle of life or watching the different stages of our lives, to a more unpleased rude interaction of people without much reasoning.
“No, it is not,” agreed the waiter with a wife. He did not wish to be unjust. He was only in a hurry” (Hemingway, 2013). If this were told from first the first person perspective of the old waiter, the reader would have to conclude through the young waiter’s actions that he was not being unruly or rude. This would allow false conclusions to be drawn about the young waiter, and the reader could become biased against him through the entire story.
"The barman looked at him but did not answer. It was too late at night for conversation” (Hemingway, 2013). If the story were written from the old waiter’s point of view, the reader would again be left with the option of deciding the reasoning of the barman to not speak about the event. The story being told from third person omniscient allows the reader to be given important details as to not end at a biased opinion of characters. The overall message could be altered from a cycle of life or watching the different stages of our lives, to a more unpleased rude interaction of people without much reasoning.