Whose POV is this?

Sophia Mattia,

TikTok is full of “POV” videos that are not POV. These are videos that have the text “POV:” written on them with a scenario assigned to the video that the individual posting it is acting out. However, a common thread with many of these videos is that the users are using the term point-of-view incorrectly. 

The term point-of-view means that someone can see or experience something from someone else’s position as if it were their own. In many of these point of view videos, the person that the viewer is supposed to be experiencing the point of view of is still in the video. For example, if a video is labeled “POV: You’re a high school student in the 1990s,” a video that is incorrectly using the term will show an individual with a backpack, sitting at a desk, wearing a ’90s outfit, at school. If the viewer were really experiencing the point of view of the ’90s high school student, the video should only picture the classroom and surroundings through the student’s eyes; in other words, the text is from a second-person point of view, but the viewer would be experiencing the scenario as if they were the student.

When these users post “POV”, they actually mean “This is what it’s like to…” or “Imagine this…” Using the ’90s student example, the video would be more accurate if the text said “This is what it was like to be a high school student in the ’90s.” Naturally, that is not as snappy and eye-catching as the POV acronym. 

As a former (and current at heart) English major, there’s no way I’m keeping quiet about this issue. I’m tired of people using POV incorrectly, especially on a big platform such as TikTok, where every trend blows up. POV is confusing to learn, but it helps with understanding stories, creative writing, and how you see the world, so let’s go through it together. 

 

First-person

A first-person point of view is when the narrator of a story or other piece of media uses the pronouns “I,” “me,” and “we.” The reader/viewer is given direct access to that character’s thoughts, emotions, and actions. They are inside their mind. 

Example: “I sat down at the desk and let out a sigh.”

 

Second-person 

A second-person point of view is when the pronoun “you” is used to tell a story. The reader/viewer is experiencing the story as if they were that character, being told to put themselves in their shoes. 

Example: “You sat down at the desk and let out a sigh.”

 

Third-person

A third-person point of view is when the pronouns “she,” “he,” “they,” “it,” or someone’s name is used to tell a story. The reader/viewer is an outsider of the story, experiencing a distanced version of it. However, third-person point of view is special because there are a few different variations of it. 

 

Third-person objective 

This is when the viewer/reader has to rely on the description of expressions and emotions of a character to know how they feel. They do not have access to a character’s mind.

Example: “Sally seemed sad.”

The verb “seemed” is used because the narrator cannot know for certain if Sally was sad because they are not in Sally’s mind. 

 

Third-person limited

This is when the viewer/reader only has access to one character’s emotions, actions, and thoughts. 

Example: “Sally was sad. Her friends seemed annoyed.”

The verb “was” is used when describing Sally because the narrator has access to Sally’s emotions, actions, and thoughts, but no one else’s.

 

Third-person omniscient 

This is when the viewer/reader has access to all of the characters’ emotions, actions, and thoughts.
Example” “Sally was sad. Her friends were annoyed.”

The narrator can use “was” with respect to Sally and her friends because they know how all of them feel. 

 

While this analysis of the POV trend may seem like an unimportant nitpick to many viewers, I think it’s important now to talk about writing rules, especially with the rise of AI and the decline of written communication. Even though not every person considers themselves to be a writer, we use writing in our lives every day, so we should at least try to understand it. 

 

Sophia Mattia

Sophia Mattia is a recent graduate of Drexel University with a BA in English (writing concentration), minors in communication and linguistics, and a certificate in entertainment writing and publishing. She was the editor in chief of Drexel’s newspaper, The Triangle, in her senior year and enjoys writing about the arts, academics, and music. She also writes short fiction and poetry. She hopes to one day write a novel. In her free time, she writes songs and plays piano. She can be found on Bluesky at sophiamattia.bsky.social.

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