Question

Difficulty: MediumTracking Point of View Shifts

Read the following passage:

We had been digging in the dry heat of the valley for six weeks, our brushes clearing away centuries of sand from what we hoped was the outer wall of the library. My fingers were raw, and my colleagues' silent frustration was palpable as we found nothing but shattered pottery. I wondered if the critics in London had been correct to call our expedition a fool's errand.

Then, the sand shifted.

Dr. Evelyn Vance knelt by the trench, her breath catching as the corner of a clay tablet emerged. In that moment, she was no longer thinking of the university board or the dwindling grant money. She saw only the faint, wedge-shaped impressions of cuneiform, surviving in the dark for three millennia. Here was the voice of a temple scribe, recording the grain harvests of a forgotten king. 'We have it,' she whispered, her voice trembling. 'Call the surveyor.'

To the local guides watching from the ridge, the sudden flurry of movement below was just another incomprehensible ritual of the foreign scholars. They observed the scientists huddled over the dirt like beetles, oblivious to the gathering storm clouds on the horizon.

Match each quotation from the passage on the left to the narrative point of view or perspective it represents on the right.

  • "I wondered if the critics in London had been correct to call our expedition a fool's errand."First-person narrative voice of a participating member of the excavation team.
  • "In that moment, she was no longer thinking of the university board or the dwindling grant money."Third-person limited focus on Dr. Evelyn Vance's internal thoughts and immediate experience.
  • "They observed the scientists huddled over the dirt like beetles, oblivious to the gathering storm clouds on the horizon."Third-person detached observation of the excavation site from the viewpoint of external onlookers.

Answer

Match the first-person quote ('I wondered...') to the participating team member's voice; the third-person internal quote ('In that moment...') to Dr. Vance's limited perspective; and the external observer quote ('They observed...') to the detached perspective of the local guides.
The correct pairings accurately track the three distinct points of view in the text: the first-person narrator who participates in the excavation, the shift to third-person limited access to Dr. Vance's thoughts, and the final shift to the detached perspective of the local guides observing from the ridge.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the first quote for pronouns and point of view indicators.
The pronouns 'I' and 'our' establish a first-person narrator who is directly involved in the action of the dig.
Identifying first-person pronouns helps isolate participant narration from third-person perspectives.
2
Analyze the second quote for focalization and perspective shifts.
The narrative shifts to focus exclusively on Dr. Vance's inner motivations and thoughts in the third person ('she').
This establishes a third-person limited perspective focused on a single character's internal state.
3
Analyze the third quote for the final perspective shift.
The narrative shifts to describe the actions of the scientists from the viewpoint of the local guides watching from a distance.
This establishes a detached third-person perspective that views the excavation group externally.

Key Concept

Tracking narrative shifts in point of view and focalization across a text.
Rate this question