![]() One of the most famous characters who falls under this definition is the Joker, particularly in the 2019 film of the same name. This narrator has some form of psychological flaw that prevents them from understanding some key piece of information as seen in films like Joker, American Psycho, and Fight Club. This leads us to our final type of untrustworthy narrator: The Madman. Perhaps what’s being told to you isn’t exactly true, but it forces you to see the world through a different lens. We, as the audience, are forced to look more closely at the story and ascertain the truth. And Huck Finn is unaware of the racial prejudices so prevalent of his time. Forrest Gump can’t comprehend why people would see him as an inspiration running across the country. Jack doesn’t understand his mother’s suicide attempt. They lay the groundwork for a more subtle dramatic irony. Naifs typically don’t set up any grand final twist. Like most things in this film, he doesn’t quite understand what happened, which makes you feel for the young boy even more. Jack adapts well enough to the outside world, but we learn of his mother’s suicide attempt through his eyes. We know Jack and Ma will eventually escape the room, and you’re left to wonder how Jack will adapt when he realizes the world is bigger than he could have ever imagined. While this form of narrator reliability doesn’t set up a twist, it does do something else very interesting. In the case of Room, we know trees and squirrels are real, but it functions to show how deprived the boy is and the dangerous environment he lives in. The interesting thing about The Naif is that we typically aren't set up for a twist ending. It functions as dramatic irony because we, as the audience, can comprehend the sinister reality while Jack is thankfully ignorant. ![]() You can see this childlike innocence at play in Room.ĥ-year old Jack is our narrator, and his narration in the screenplay paints a more fanciful world than the reality actually is. We see their innocence, and we automatically root for them. Right off the bat, the naïveté endears us to the narrator. You can see The Naif in films like Room, Forrest Gump, and The Adventures of Huck Finn. This is a narrator who is ultimately innocent, and while it can lead to embellishments, there is no ulterior motives behind the mistruths. The Naif presents a different kind of narrator reliability. DIFFERENT TYPES OF NARRATORS Type 3: The Naif We still connect with this narrator, even if some of the details happened to be imaginary.Īs you can see, there are many answers to, “What is an unreliable narrator?” And sometimes, the deception isn’t always intentional. When writing an Embellisher, it’s helpful to keep in mind how someone may want to invent a fiction to deal with a harsh, unforgiving reality. The embellishment here is to give Edward Bloom a final sense of catharsis before passing away. Even when reading the screenplay, there’s no hint Verbal is lying because such details are so minuscule. The film utilizes a simple framing device - Verbal Kint confessing everything he knows about his crew and the crimes they’ve committed. You can read the full screenplay to see how this flawed narrator reads on the page. The reason for the deception is clear, and perhaps the best example of it is The Usual Suspects. You may see it in films like Gone Girl or Wonderland where a character has committed a crime and needs to avoid authorities. This is a narrator who deceives the audience and/or other characters to save his or her own skin. The first type of narrator we’ll look at is someone who lies for obvious reasons: the Self-Preservationist. WHAT IS AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR? Type 1: The Self-Preservationist ![]() To see how you can incorporate one into your narrative, you first need to consider the different types of unreliable narrators out there. ![]() So how can you make a fallible narrator that doesn’t feel too gimmicky? After all, you want to showcase the characteristics of an unreliable narrator without giving too much away at the very beginning.
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