The Lady With The Dog Point Of View

The different uses of point of view in a short story can influence how the reader interprets the text. For example, the short story "Cathedral" incorporates the use of first person. First person point of view is when a narrator conveys an experience from their own perspective. By choosing to use first person narrative, the author allows the reader to gain a concise understanding of how the narrator is thinking and feeling. First person narrative is often used because it allows the reader to better understand the context of the text and the story becomes more intimate for the reader. On the other hand, the short story, "The Lady with the Dog" integrates the use of third person limited narrative. Third person limited narrative is used when authors …show more content…
In the beginning of the story, we learn that Gurov has many affairs because of his troubled marriage. As the plot develops, Gurov meets a young and naive woman named Anna while vacationing in Yalta. Anna and Gurov have an affair together, which leads to Gurov becoming emotionally invested with her. The story is told through Gurov and his emotional instability is especially accentuated. "But more than a month passed, real winter had come, and everything was still clear in his memory as though he had parted with Anna Sergeyeva only the day before. And his memories glowed more and more vividly" (Chekhov 272). Once Gurov and Anna part, he finds it difficult to move on from her. The third person narrative allows the audience to see the turmoil in this affair through the perspective of Gurov. Although Anna plays an important role in the development of this story, we do not fully understand her perspective of the affair. The audience is however, able to interpret that Anna is feeling guilty from her affair. Overall, despite the fact that we can understand Gurov's emotional attachment to Anna, it is difficult for the reader to understand how Anna is thinking and feeling. By using third person narrative, the narrator provides the audience with a look into the …show more content…
A problem that typically arises when third person limited, and first-person perspectives are used, is that the reader will only have limited knowledge on how other characters perceive events within the story. A disadvantage that is more common with first person is that the narrator can be unreliable and biased. Without having an outside point of view, the story can be interpreted inaccurately. Also, third person limited perspective only provides the reader with a small glimpse of the narrators' thoughts. Although first person and third person limited points of view have some disadvantages, they are the most common perspectives