When it comes to telling stories, whether real or fictional, it’s not just about the world being described and the events taking place in it. The way in which the figure of the narrator is used is also crucial, even when the narrator does not seem to be part of the narrative itself.

In this article we will see what are the main types of narrators in different works of literature that tell stories, and how choosing one or another has an effect on the psychological impact these works cause.

The different types of narrators, and their characteristics

Human beings are characterized, among other things, by creating stories, narratives. These stories go far beyond the world of entertainment, as you might think if we had in mind the concept of what literature is, and only concentrated on the best-selling novels. They offer a way to interpret reality .

So, stopping to learn more about the main types of storyteller is not a frivolity, as this choice is part of the creative process of explaining something. Each one of them gives a different whole to the story. Let’s look at a classification of these categories when it comes to storytelling, going from first-person narrators to second-person narrators and finally to third-person narrators.

1. First-person narrative

This type of narrator is very common, and serves to imprint a realistic and experiential tone to the story being told. It is assumed that the person who tells the story was there when everything happened , so we assume that the universe in which it happens is the same as the one in which the narrator is in the present, so it is subject to the same rules, approximately.

Moreover, the fact that everything is narrated in the first person allows us to have more information about this character, who, although he doesn’t have to be the main character, is usually important in the story, even if it is to help build the rest of the characters through the interaction of the first one with the second ones, seeing how their personalities affect each other .

In turn, this category can be divided into other types of storytellers. They are as follows.

1.1. Witness narrative

In these cases, the character who plays the role of the narrator does not act as the main character, but as a person close to the main character who attends the main events that articulate the story.

It is a very useful type of narrator when you want to show the personality of the protagonist , as well as his personal evolution and his narrative arc, in a subtle way, suggesting more than describing in a direct way, since you do not have access to the real thoughts of that character. However, it is also possible to adopt a more impersonal style, as if everything were made up of reports.

Examples of this type of narrator are John Watson in the novels of Sherlock Holmes or Nick Carraway in The Great Gatsby .

1.2. Leading Narrator

This is probably the most popular and used type of first-person narrator, as it is also one of the most intuitive and simple: the story is explained from the point of view of the person who has to go through the main story arc, just as we would in real life if we explained something that happened to us .

However, many nuances can be used when using this resource. For example, telling about what is happening in the present allows the audience to be immersed in the story.

1.3. Narrator in flow of thoughts

This is a very little used type of storyteller, as it tries to describe literally someone’s thoughts, as they emerge into consciousness . Therefore, everything is explained in real time, the present being the reference moment.

The different narrators of William Faulkner’s The Noise and the Rage are an example of this.

2. Second Person Narrator

This type of narrator is characterized by explaining a story to a specific person. It can be presented in an epistolary format, as if it were all composed of letters addressed to one person, or as if it were a real dialogue in which basically one person speaks and the other listens, sometimes pretending to answer questions asked by the listener .

3. Third-Person Narrator

Finally, in the third-person narrator, who explains the story to us, it is characterized by not participating at all, or participating as little as possible, in the course of the story . It can be divided into two categories.

3.1. Omniscient Narrator

One of the most widely used types of storyteller. It is spoken from the point of view of an entity totally alien to the plane of reality in which everything that is explained occurs, as if he were a kind of god who has access to all the information at once, even to the mental states of all the characters , in a direct way.

It should be borne in mind that although it is possible to describe reliably what each character thinks and feels, for reasons of coherence and quality of narration, one avoids passing from one mind to another in a chaotic way, and instead chooses to focus the attention on one character and on what happens around him.

The novel The Breakfast of the Champions , by Kurt Vonnegut, combines this type of narration with that of the witness narrator, for example. Something similar happens in Niebla , by Miguel de Unamuno.

3.2. Observer Narrator

It is similar to the previous one, but in this case you do not have direct access to all the information about what is happening. However, the narrator is involved as little as possible in what happens , both physically and psychologically. He tries to be neutral and objective.