#4th pov

[finemeal]

watching them grow

Summary: Before there was us, there was one. There was I. Even though I was not technically the first, I was the origin of us.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen

Fandom: Batman - All Media Types

Characters: Damian Wayne's Pets, Damian Wayne, Batfamily Members (DCU)

Additional Tags: Batkids Age Reversal, Haunting Heroes Who Wrote That? (Danny Phantom and DCU), The Author Regrets Everything, POV Multiple, POV Outsider, POV Fourth Person, Canonical Character Death, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Time Skips, Cassandra Cain is Red Hood

[finemealcreates]

4th POV

Hello! I've semi-recently discovered 4th POV, written a fic in it, and said I would explain what exactly 4th POV is. This is me finally living up to that promise. Strap in, it's both more and less complicated than you might think.

4th POV is when you describe something that is very similar to 1st and 3rd POV. You're discussing multiple characters (using pronouns that you most likely would use with 3rd POV) while using the viewpoint of those characters (as is most common with 1st POV). Basically, you get the intimacy that you typically get from the 1st POV while also getting to group characters together (representing multiple voices at the same time) like in 3rd POV.[2]

There are multiple benefits to writing 4th POV, such as setting a specific mood, portraying a groups thoughts, or broadening character's voices.[2]

Just like other POV's, 4th point of view isn't just one thing. There are multiple types of 4th POV. At the current moment in time, there are "collective" and "indefinite" types. Most commonly, you'll find yourself reading the collective type of 4th POV than the indefinite, but we'll discuss both in this post.[1]

The collective...

4th POV is when you're telling the story from multiple POV's but as if it's one entity. That's when you'll typically see the use of "us, we, ours" etc. And while this is similar to 1st POV, the difference is that in 4th POV you never use "I" or "me" or anything indicating a singular entity.[1]

This is a great option when you're wishing to tell a horror novel (think hive mind), critiquing social norms/larger institutions, or even if you just want to demonstrate how close a group of people are. "A Rose for Emily" by William Faulkner utilizes 4th POV to tell the story from an entire town's POV. "The Virgin Suicides" by Jeffrey Eugenides is also written in 4th POV to show a group of teenage boys.[3]

Another way to think about collective POV is that there are multiple narrators, but they are telling the story as one.[4] This could be from the perspective of a research team all taking notes, a couple telling a story together.[5] The important thing to remember is: there is no singular pronoun usage. That would make it 1st POV (plural) in most cases.[1]

Some examples...

For the collective would be:

1st POV: "We ran out into the rain without even stopping to put on shoes. I tripped on a tree root in my excitement, and the others got ahead of me. But soon enough, we were splashing around in the park."[1]

4th POV: "We ran out into the rain without even stopping to put on shoes. One of us tripped on a tree root, straggling behind. But soon enough, we were all together again, splashing around in the park."[1]

Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi: "The first time our mother came for us, we screamed. We were three and she was a snake, coiled up on the tile in the bathroom, waiting."[2]

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides: "They were short, round-buttocked in denim, with roundish cheeks that recalled that same dorsal softness. Whenever we got a glimpse, their faces looked indecently revealed, as though we were used to seeing women in veils."[3]

A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner: "We believed she had to do that. We remembered all the young men her father had driven away, and we knew that with nothing left, she would have to cling to that which had robbed her, as people will."[5]

The indefinite...

While this might be more used in grammar or scholarly writing, it is not as common in storytelling. It's more often used to avoid using passive voices or for generalizations. Words such as "one, someone, anybody" etc.[1]

Basically, the indefinite 4th POV only uses ... indefinite pronouns. That's why it's not very commonly utilized for storytelling as it's not as engaging and can cause a bit of separation between the reader and the story. It can be a bit awkward to use for story's the entire time, but it has some specific uses if you wish to utilize them.[5]

Some examples...

“If they're not careful, someone could break a leg on that thing!”[1]

“One should never leave one's elbows on the table while eating.”[1]

Or, if you wish to avoid the passive voice, you can write: “Someone can ride that bike now,” instead of, “That bike can be ridden now.”[1]

"One is in disbelief when waking up to find no car in the driveway. Someone stole it during the night, which now means a day one loses making reports to the police and insurance company."[5]

Conclusion...

There are multiple ways to write 4th POV, and multiple reasons you would utilize it. I would recommend trying it in small doses to get a feel for it, and decide if this POV is right for the story you're trying to tell. It might even just be a fun writing exercise to get you trying something new!

Either way, I hope this explains it well and why it's such a specific (and not very common) POV you can use in your writing. If you wish to explore more articles or people discussing and explaining 4th POV, I have also listed my sources below.

Happy reading and writing!

Sources: [1][2][3][4][5]

[spicyvampire]

Great and Tyme being worried about each other

4MINUTES (2024) EP. 5

[sparxyv]

WIP tag game!

thank you @myokk , @syaolaurant and @simpforblindguy for tagging me! i have so many WIPs anyways so this is perfect for me LOL

starting out strong with amit 🙏🙏

this one has been in the works for SO long hahah.. i'm finally working on it

SUPER rough draft right here but i thought it'd be funny to show how messy the sketches i start with are 💀!

no pressure tags (so sorry if anyone i tag has already done this 😅): @dom1re @choccy-milky @the-ozzie @trappezoider @4ever2000lover @keri-mcberry @dwightschrute11 @iatnen

[im-a-hat]

So Wind just climbed up into the air and then disappeared. What now?

First

[ruelin024]

POV: Sans heard your GENOCIDE Plans from the "Other Side."

(SAVING Papyrus Last Second.)

Transparent (Sans holdin' the inner frame):

Transparent (Sans hangin' on the window frame):

[ex1ledbrethren]

3 days and i've already got both interludes finished, one at 7k the other at 4k

i lied i actually am a living typewriter lmfao

[myreia]

— v. raison d'être

It was never going to last. They knew it from the beginning, all of them. Their time in the First was temporary, fleeting. For some, that would have been enough to give pause, to keep distance. For them, it made these moments all the more precious—even when it was difficult, even when it was unfair. Ryne knows they are both proud of her. That will never change, even when they live in separate worlds. It is a bittersweet thing to say goodbye, to close one chapter and begin the next. But change is necessary, a fundamental aspect of life. There is no sense in clinging to the past when the future—with all its countless possibilities—lies ahead. There is no looking back. Only forwards.

[painless-innit-colourful]

being a multi-pov viewer of the life series is having the intro video memorised by the time you're done with ep 1

[clownsnake]

I’m on episode 71 of the orv webtoon. so he’s literally just been dissociating this whole time huh

[kayakischaotic]

curiosity

[emotionally-charged-arson]

1871 (14 y/o) Daniel and parallel profiles for the chat. Don’t think I’ve ever drawn a face in side view that good, let alone a TEENAGER.

[ambersky0319]

How was I not aware the red queen series was 5 books long

when tf did that fifth book come out

[pommemybeloved]

Also a little catch up

Team BOLAS?!!??!? (Red) have pretty much given up on trying to win and are thought to be the cursed team since everyone just keeps dying and they don’t have 4 of their members there. So the wins might just be between Blue and Green

[slimeciclecock]

slimariana are so funny because they'll have canon sex 6 times on 4 separate occasions and they'll be dressed differently each time

[sophistired18]

as I wrote this I realized it's Kuroo's birthday tmr 😭😭