Eric's View

Authors Note: This essay shows how the story could change if the point of view was different. The book I used was The bystander by James Preller.

In The Bystander, by James Preller a boy named Eric moves to a new city where he had no friends.  He never knew his dad because, at a young age, his father abandoned him and his mother. The author wrote the book in Eric’s point of view. In his perspective a lot of events show confusion and even rage about his new school and his dad.

The story Bystander is in  Eric’s point of view. From this perspective, a lot of events and characters that are described in a way that creates confusion against Griffin, Eric’s friend. As the reader progresses they start to begin to hate or have anger against Griffin, like when they had the huge fight at the cemetery. A major event shows happiness in the reader as Eric moves on and shows he’s not afraid.

One way that Eric’s point of view influences the reader's interpretation is the perspective  about griffin. He was nice as a friend until he snapped. Griffin was starting to bully Eric for no reason. They both got in bad fight in the middle of the book. Eric’s point of view shows the readers Eric’s life and first person. You as a reader would have a different emotion against Griffin if it was his story.

However, the reader would feel a lot differently about the major fight in the graveyard, if the novel was written in the point of view of Griffin. For instance, the reader wouldn't think he was the bad guy at school. The reader would show sorrow and even love for griffin about his life. Griffin was nice to hang out with and even outgoing. They might show his father being mean and a jerk for beating him up and showing no love to his only son. As the reader goes on they would hate and be disgusted to be Eric. He would seem weak, ugly, and a nerd with no life. The fight in the graveyard was for a cause, to show who was boss around school.   

As you can see, the point of view of a story forces the reader to see just one side of an event or topic. In The bystander , the narrator's perspective makes the reader change many emotions about Griffin if the point of view was his. The narrator's point of view shows Eric is good and that griffin was bad and a bully.