#narration

[shyjusticewarrior]

Batman: The Brave and the Bold #19, Robin (2021) #5

[cow-in-the-sunset]

I have seen one too many posts calling Katniss an unreliable narrator so I think we need to re-learn what an unreliable narrator is in storytelling.

So what is the definition of an unreliable narrator?

That is a narrator that actively lies to the audience, or, whose credibility has been compromised. That usually means twisting the truth so it fits their narrative via exaggeration, omission, insanity and more.

This narrative style while mainly used in first-person storytelling has been debated to exist in second and third person too.

Some examples: Lolita, American Psycho, Penance, Gone Girl, Bunny

Is Katniss an unreliable narrator?

The short answer is no. Not really. Her narration style isn't to actively hide things from the reader. She doesn't lie, she doesn't exaggerate and she doesn't omit the truth from us.

Katniss tells us what happens around her when it happens around her. In fact, we are in her head constantly.

What Katniss is, is a biased narrator.

What is a biased narrator?

A biased narrator is one whose personal feelings, emotions, beliefs or limited perspective affects their account of the events.

Every. single. narrator is a biased one.

In literature, an unbiased narrator is SO extremely rare that people still debate if that even exists. Every story is funneled through from someone's perspective, someone's specific experience.

Would The Hunger Games be the same from Effie's POV? Would it be the same from Finnick's? Plutarch's? Gale's?

No! Of course not. All these people viewed events differently, experienced things differently and experienced different things.

But Katniss doesn't tell us everything!

Katniss tells us everything she experiences through the lens in which she experiences it. Katniss is a traumatized character that people omit things from all the time.

She is not told about Peeta's plan to confess his feelings. She is not told about the plan in the Quell. She is not told about almost every single aspect of the rebellion plan. AND SO MUCH MORE.

Katniss is lied to, and used all the time. And that's what we get too - we are experiencing it with her. We are not being actively lied to by her.

Narration doesn't come to you served in a platter all ready and prepared for you to consume. You can't read Lolita and tell me how Humber Humber was the good guy, but he actively tries to get you to believe him he is. Just because Katniss is a complex character and not the know-it-all hero of the story, that does not make her unreliable. You can and should rely on her perspective. There is a reason it's limited.

What does this say about the story?

[prokopetz]

Essential genres of YouTube narrators:

Dude who sounds like off-brand Grover from Sesame Street and thinks "hello, everybody" is a catchphrase

Person with a conspicuous SoCal accent trying and failing to emulate the sterile cadence of a Nintendo Direct presentation

Clearly aiming for sentimental sincerity; mostly succeeds in sounding like they're struggling not to cry

Really excitable guy who's always shouting

Earnest Brit who pauses both before and after all of their puns to make sure you got it

Blatant Hbomberguy wannabe

The actual Hbomberguy

[artemlegere]

Scene of the Narration of the Decameron

Artist: Salvatore Postiglione (Italian, 1861–1906)

Date: c. 1906

Medium: Oil on canvas

Collection: Private Collection

[pedropascal24-7]

Pedro narrating Encounters in the Milky Way Space Show for the American Museum of Natural History

[elliespectacular]

Which Wow it's made! narrator did you have the most fun "working" with?

I think all of the How It's Made narrators have something unique to play with so it's hard to pick a favorite. Brooks Moore gives an air of wonder to the processes he describes. Lynne Adams presents every line like it's a profoundly Fun fact. Tony Hirst really makes you feel like each detail is of great importance and is worth remembering. The other narrators (whose segments I don't really use much) have their own unique flavors as well.

I can't pinpoint the exact way in which these nuances factor into the creative process, but it's fair to say that there are likely jokes that I only pursue because something about that narrator's delivery makes it "hit" where it wouldn't otherwise. The source script can be identical (save for some regional changes) but the voice reading it can inspire a particular takeaway - or in my case, a particular transformation.

[bernardreneguillot]