Okay, let’s define those three types of third-person narration:
Third-Person Omniscient:
The narrator is all-knowing.
They know the thoughts, feelings, motivations, pasts, and futures of all characters in the story.
The narrator can move freely between different characters’ perspectives and provide information that no single character would know.
Third-Person Limited:
The narrator’s knowledge is limited to the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of one character (or occasionally a small group of characters).
The reader only sees the world through that character’s eyes and mind. They don’t know what other characters are thinking unless it’s revealed through dialogue or action.
Third-Person Objective:
The narrator is like a camera or a fly on the wall.
They report only what can be seen and heard – actions, dialogue, external descriptions.
The narrator does NOT reveal the thoughts, feelings, or internal states of any character. The reader must infer these based on what the characters say and do.
Which one is present in “The Monkey’s Paw”?
“The Monkey’s Paw” primarily uses Third-Person Limited narration, focused mainly on Mr. White.
We get insights into Mr. White’s thoughts and feelings (his initial interest in the paw despite warnings, his nervousness about the wish, his dawning horror, his panic at the door, his final desperate wish).
While the narrator describes the actions and dialogue of other characters (Mrs. White, Herbert, Sergeant-Major Morris), we do not gain access to their inner thoughts and feelings in the same direct way we do for Mr. White. We see Mrs. White’s grief and desperation through her actions and words, but we aren’t privy to her internal monologue like we are for Mr. White at key moments.
Some might argue for a brief lean towards objective or a very restricted omniscient at times when describing the setting or external events without linking them directly to Mr. White’s perception, but the predominant point of view that grants us access to a character’s internal state is limited to Mr. White.