First Person— The old woman laughs sharply and tells me that she is grateful for my kindness and that the girl will show me to my room. I’m thinking about the salary of four thousand pesos, and how the work should be pleasant because I like these jobs of careful research that don’t include physical effort or going from one place to another or meeting people I don’t want to meet. I’m thinking about this as I follow her out of the room, and I discover that I’ve got to follow her with my ears instead of my eyes: I follow the rustle of her skirt, the rustle of taffeta, and I’m anxious now to look into her eyes again. I climb the stairs behind that sound in the darkness and I’m still unused to the obscurity. I remember it must be about six in the afternoon, and the flood of light surprises me when Aura opens the door to my bedroom— another door without a latch— and steps aside to tell me: “This is your room. We’ll expect you for supper in an hour”.
Third Person— The old woman laughs sharply and tells him that she is grateful for his kindness and that the girl will show him to his room. He thinks about the salary of four thousand pesos, and how the work should be pleasant because he likes these jobs of careful research that don’t include physical effort or going from one place to another or meeting people that he doesn’t want to meet. He’s thinking about this as he follows the girl out of the room, and he discovers that he’s got to follow her with his ears instead of his eyes: he follows the rustle of her skirt, the rustle of taffeta, and he’s anxious now to look into her eyes again. He climbs the stairs behind that sound in the darkness and he’s still unused to the obscurity. He remembers it must be about six in the afternoon, and the flood of light surprises him when Aura opens the door to his bedroom— another door without a latch— and steps aside to tell him: “This is your room. We’ll expect you for supper in an hour”.
It was definitely more difficult to translate the text into third person point of view than first due to having to change not only the “you’s” but also often the word after.
- Aly Yoon
The difference between the first, second, and third person can affect the way something seems. In Aura, it is written in the second person. This helps you put yourself into the story so that it is easy to paint that picture in your head of what is going on. For example when the book says, “You remember it must be about six in the afternoon, and the flood of light surprises you when Aura opens the door”, the second person form of writing easily allows you to picture the light coming from the room. But once Aly translated the writing to third person, it made the whole process a little more difficult. Other phrases like, “he thinks about the salary of four thousand pesos, and how the work should be pleasant because he likes these jobs”, are harder to allow yourself to put inside the book and feel what they’re going through.
- Preston Cheung
5 responses so far ↓
j.devine // May 12th 2017 at 8:46 am
I agree with Preston in saying that the change in perspective alters the whole story. The story shifts along with the perspective, and this gives me a better understanding as to why the story is written in the second person. Just like Preston says, the second person puts the reader into the story. But the first and third person perspectives take away that personal effect that the second person contributes. Although the changes are subtle, they make a huge difference in the way I process what is going on. When actions are done to myself versus to third person “him” or to first person”me”, it takes away from the mysteriousness of the story because I am not as connected to the plot line.
s.domosi // May 12th 2017 at 10:56 am
A specific line that caught my attention in the translation of the paragraph by Aly was “I remember it must be about six in the afternoon, and the flood of light surprises me when Aura opens the door to my bedroom” versus the third person point of view “He remembers it must be about six in the afternoon, and the flood of light surprises him when Aura opens the door to his bedroom.” When I read the paragraph in the first person point of view, I actually feel the emotion of being surprised by the flood of light, but when I read it in the third person, my eyes float right over the sentence. The tense of a work can make a world of a difference to the reader.
sh125650 // May 12th 2017 at 11:12 am
I agree with Preston said the second person view gives us a better understanding of the whole story. When you first start reading the novel the second person narration sounds like someone is giving you instructions. The second person experiences as you actually feel its happening to you and also helps us understand the development of main character. Brings the reader to a present state of mystery, while taking the reader on a journey through stream of consciousness.
k.parkinson1 // May 12th 2017 at 11:16 am
Preston you make some interesting points between the second person and third person. With the second person the reader is able to have more of a connection with the story and characters. It’s like they are in the story themselves. Whilst with the third person the reader might not be able to make a connection and their emotions are different.
j.guzman3 // May 12th 2017 at 11:33 am
Authors have their own way of telling a story; a certain way to portray their story to an audience. In Aura by Carlos Fuentes, it is written in the second person. This helps the reader immerse themselves to the story so that it is easy to illustrate what’s happening. I agree with Aly, when the book says, “the second person form of writing easily allows you to picture the light coming from the room.” And that “writing to third person, it made the whole process a little more difficult”. I can say that this is because second person explains the event with a familiarity that draws the listener. First person can be thought of as a happy medium; providing both familiarity but disconnect as well
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