When writing a book or a short story, you will be faced with an important decision about which point of view you will write your piece from. You have a number of options – first person POV, second person POV, third person POV, or the one we will be talking about today, fourth person point of view.
Although it’s not the most popular narration type, when used correctly it can significantly elevate your story, add an interesting angle to it and improve the emotional effectiveness of the story you’re trying to tell. So, what is fourth person point of view? And how does it look?
What Is 4th Person Point of View?
In the fourth person point of view, the story is told through the perspective of a whole group rather than a single individual, using the pronouns “we” and “us”.
Depending on the genre, the characters don’t have to be people – you can talk about a group of animals, a group of robots, a group of ghosts, etc. While it might not be a new invention, it is definitely not a common one.
How Does Fourth Person POV Differ from First Person Plural POV?
That is a very important question, as a first person point of view can also use “we” / “us” pronouns – so how do you differentiate between them?
Well, it’s actually quite simple, as even though the first person POV can talk about what characters did as a group, they continue to stick to one character’s thoughts and feelings. So, while you can say for example:
I called Anna over to discuss the plan. We didn’t know what to expect when we entered the party, so we needed to form a plan in case anything went south. The smell of smoke from the cigarettes was absolutely atrocious, but what else could you expect from this kind of location.
This is just a simple example of a section written using first person point of view. Although you can see the “we” pronouns, we are still limited to the character’s head and their thoughts and feelings. We don’t know if Anna knows more than we do about the party or if she too finds the smell of cigarettes atrocious. You still have a single-character narrator.
In the fourth person point of view, that doesn’t happen – narration always involves a group of characters.
Although distinguishing between the two might seem complicated at first, we will show you a few examples later on of stories being told in this point of view.
Advantages of Fourth Person Point of View
Considering using a fourth person point of view but not sure if it’s a good idea? 4th person POV has a number of advantages, including:
- Allows you to show the ideas and thoughts of a whole group or “the establishment.” If your book or short story involves “group think” or “the establishment”, then using a fourth person point of view might be exactly what you need to portray it, as it allows you to show the perspective of many people at once.
- Creates a sense of shared experience. By using a fourth person point of view and allowing the reader to experience the story through the perspective of a collective “we”, you can foster a sense of shared experience and community.
- Allows for a better representation of group dynamics. When using a fourth person point of view, you are focusing on the group and their, often complex, relationships with each other rather than one character’s relationships with other group members.
- Is more emotionally effective than other types of point of view. Using a fourth person point of view is a great idea when you try to show the reader the importance of the events you’re talking about in your work. As it uses a collective voice, it affects the reader’s emotions more, showing that the events are not only limited to one person but happen to many.
- Can help you create a sense of distance. Depending on the type of story you’re writing, using a fourth person point of view can help you create a sort of distance between the reader and the group, bringing a sense of mystery and dissociation. This is especially useful in dystopian fiction, as the reader will feel like an outside observer, creating unease.
Disadvantages of Fourth Person Point of View
Unfortunately, using this type of narration also has its cons:
- It can make identifying with a character difficult. Part of the reason why so many people love reading is because they find themselves in the characters – they are relatable and go through similar experiences, which makes them connect with them. A fourth person point of view, which focuses on a group of people, can make it harder.
- It’s not a common narration type. As a fourth person point of view is not a standard type of narration, using it can make potential readers wary of giving your book a chance. In addition, depending on whether using it is necessary to tell the story or if it’s just a stylistic choice, writing in fourth person point of view can limit your publishing options, as some literary agents and publishing companies might have reservations about whether the book will sell.
Examples of Fourth Person POV
Our grandmothers refuse canes. Our brothers dress in wifebeaters. We all sit on stoops made of brick. The Italian boys with their shaved heads zoom by on bikes, staring, their laughter harsh as their shiny gold chains.
Our grandparents weed their gardens and our brothers smoke their cigarettes and, in time, stronger substances we cannot recognize. Whose scent makes our heads pulse. Our brothers, who ride on bikes, lifting their front wheels high into the air.
Excerpt from Daphne Palasi Andreades, Brown Girls
Once we have a father, but our father dies without us noticing.
It’s wrong to say that we don’t notice. We are just absorbed in ourselves, that afternoon when he dies. Unseasonable heat. We squabble, as usual. Mother comes out on the terrace and puts a stop to it by raising her hand, a swift motion against the sky. Then we spend some time lying down with lengths of muslin over our faces, trying not to scream, and so he dies with none of us women bearing witness, none of us accompanying him.
Excerpt from Sophie Mackintosh, The Water Cure
It is known where we come from, but no one much cares about things like that anymore. We think, Why bother? Except for a lucky few, everyone is from someplace, but that someplace, it turns out, is gone. You can search it, you can find pix or vids that show what the place last looked like, in our case a gravel-colored town of stoop-shouldered buildings on a riverbank in China, shorn hills in the distance. Rooftops a mess of wires and junk. The river tea-still, a swath of black. And blunting it all is a haze that you can almost smell, a smell, you think, you don’t want to breathe in.
So what does it matter if the town was razed one day, after our people were trucked out? What difference does it make that there’s almost nothing there now? It was on the other side of the world, which might as well be a light-year away. Though probably it was mourned when it was thriving. People are funny that way; even the most miserable kind of circumstance can inspire a genuine throb of nostalgia.
Excerpt from Chang-Rae Lee, On a Full Sea
We had long thought of them as a tableau, Miss Emily a slender figure in white in the background, her father a spraddled silhouette in the foreground, his back to her and clutching a horsewhip, the two of them framed by the back-flung front door. So when she got to be thirty and was still single, we were not pleased exactly, but vindicated; even with insanity in the family she wouldn’t have turned down all of her chances if they had really materialized.
Excerpt from William Faukner, A Rose for Emily
Should You Be Writing in Fourth Person Point of View?
After reading all this, you might be asking yourself, “Should I be using a 4th person point of view?”. Well, we’re not going to sugarcoat it – writing in fourth person is hard. It requires practice. However, the end results might definitely be worth it. As it’s not that common of a narrative, if it suits your story and genre, it can end up being the best decision you can make for your work and help you stand out from the crowd.
Tips on Writing Fourth Person Point of View
If you’re set on using fourth person POV in your work, here are some tips that might help you prepare for it.
Start Slow
As mentioned, writing from a fourth person point of view is harder than writing in first or third person. That’s why you shouldn’t jump into deep waters first. Instead, if your goal is to write a novel using this type of narration, try writing a short story first to become more comfortable with writing this way.
If you want to start working on a bigger piece right away, however, you should still start smaller by writing just a few chapters. Once you’re done, give what you wrote to someone else for review. While you might be tempted to give it to your family and friends, we would actually suggest giving it to an outside person. The reason is simple – those close to you might and most likely will have a bias, even if they’re not conscious of it. By giving it to someone who does not know you on a personal level, you can get honest feedback.
Try to Avoid Overusing “We”
This is true for all types of narration, not only fourth person. Try to limit the amount of times you use the pronouns, especially within the same paragraph, as it can quickly become repetitive – go for a more creative description instead.
The Bottom Line
A fourth person point of view can be a good choice for books that are trying to portray a story about a group of characters rather than just one individual. While not the easiest to master, it can be very beneficial depending on the message you’re trying to convey through your work.
However, the point of view is just one thing – there are many others to consider when writing a book, including the plot (and plot twists), characters, scenery, etc. Plus, there’s also work that needs to be done after – such as editing. Thankfully, with Voxtury’s online editor, editing a book has never been easier.
In the meantime, don’t hesitate to browse through our book writing section for more useful information!
