Point of View

Author's Note:  In the song "Little Talks", by Monsters of Men, there are two points of view. There's a wife. And her dead husband, as a ghost. Although, since the husband is slightly over-powered, I found him more intriguing to write about. That being said, this is a short response to show my understanding of POV.

The only way to tell the whole story is to hear both sides, both points of view, from both people.  This being said, the point of view, of which a story is told, truly influences its reader. Is the narrator unreliable? Or telling the truth? How many details are you given? "Little Talks", by Monsters of Men is a perfect example, of two sides being told, two points of view, from both people.

The Widow.

She lives alone, in a big, empty house, ever since her husband died. Often thinking thoughts like, "The stairs creep as you sleep, it’s keeping me awake". At this part of the song, her point of view tells the reader that she is alone, that her husband deserted her, and she is trying to communicate with him, yet he only sleeps. She is frantic and frustrated. But she doesn’t know that her husband truly does care, making her an unreliable narrator, with a swayed point of view.

The Dead Husband.

He sees her, franticly living on her own, and tries to comfort her. When she speaks of the stairs creaking, he hears her and responds saying, "It’s the house telling you to close your eyes". He truly wishes for her to sleep in peace, yet she hasn’t ever heard him, since he has passed. Only he knows both points of view, seeing as he is constantly trying to prove his presence to his wife. He is the reliable narrator, the one who knows both opinions, both stories. His point of view comes after examining the pieces.

Both characters sung about in "Little Talks" have a unique point of view, based from the husband's death. But if the husband's voice wasn’t heard, it would leave the listener to believe the wife was truly abandoned. Although, if the wife's point of view was removed, the husband would seem insane, making him unreliable.

Truly, the story's point of view, affects the reader.

Short Scene:

Mom says the house is empty. Ever since Dad died. But it's full. I'm here. Well, every Friday at least. My job requires a lot of attention. And no one else ever cares to stop by. It's probably because they couldn’t handle seeing her, in the state she's in. She's just so, um, frantic. I mean just two days ago I went to check on her, and she was in her bed. Just lying there, with no sense of emotion running through her face. I asked her how she was doing, and she said she heard noises. And felt as if someone was trying to contact her. Someone. Someone who's dead. If only I could tell her, it was dad. If only I could tell her how much he hates seeing her upset, and going crazy. But I cannot. I simply can't tell her I'm a medium.  That dad was spoken to me. That his presence remains in the house. That he tries to communicate with her. That he wishes to see her, but only when it's time for a "ship to carry her to shore". Dad had always liked metaphors. Anyway. It would only make her state worse. Make her think, she isn't special enough to hear her husband. Make herself fall asleep forever. I couldn’t be responsible for that. So I carry the burden. I carry it. I see mom crazy, and unable to sleep. But my dad does too. And it hurts him as well.