The document provides guidance for students to analyze how an author contrasts different points of view in a text. It instructs students to identify two characters who experience an important event differently. Students are then directed to describe each character's feelings and perspective on the event based on clues from their words, actions, and language used. Finally, students are asked to explain how the author develops each point of view through word choices and tone and to consider why the author included multiple perspectives to communicate a central idea.

1. Week 6: Lesson 6
The Miller’s Tale

2. Do Now
The characters in “The Miller’s Tale”
are pretty scandalous. What is the
most scandalous story you have ever
heard?

3. Pert
Jaunty
and
lavish

4. Elope
To run off
to get
married
secretly

5. Trance
A state of half
consciousness
between
being asleep
and awake

6. Embrace
To take
into
one’s
arms

7. Point of View Mini-Lesson
Effective readers examine what the character’s
thoughts, words, actions, and feelings reveal
about his or her attitude toward story events.

8. Point of View Mini-Lesson
Analyzing multiple point of views helps them
better understand how the author uses
characterization to develop central ideas.

9. RL.7.6: EXPLAIN HOW THE AUTHOR CONTRASTS POINTS OF VIEW
READING THINKING
STEPS
Display:
TEACHER MODELING
Say:
Identify several characters
and/or narrators in a text.
Consider characters who:
 are the narrator.
 do or think something
important or
unexpected.
 help you explore the
central idea.
 First identify two or more characters to contrast. Use the
Thinking Step suggestions to help you pick.
 In “The Knight’s Tale,” I am interested in the characters of
Theseus and Palamon because they both react very
differently to Palamon’s winning the joust. I believe the
author uses these characters to develop a central idea,
and my analysis of the characters will reveal how.

10. Describe each narrator’s or
character’s point of view.
Think:
 How does each
character/narrator feel
about events or other
characters?
 What is his or her
perspective on events?
 What language does he
or she use to describe
events, ideas, and
characters?
 Point of view is the narrator or character’s feelings or attitudes,
as well as his or her perspective on events. Look for clues that
reveal how the character thinks or feels about a story event or
another character. For example, he or she may use biased or
unbiased language to describe characters, ideas, and events.
Clues also reveal one’s perspective on events. For example, the
winner of a game has a different perspective than the loser in
describing that game.

11. Describe each narrator’s or
character’s point of view.
Think:
 How does each
character/narrator feel
about events or other
characters?
 What is his or her
perspective on events?
 What language does he
or she use to describe
events, ideas, and
characters?
 I see that Theseus describes Palamon’s winning the joust
as “glorious” and “in the name of chivalry.” These word
choices suggest that he feels that Palamon’s victory is
honorable and just. However, Palamon is described as
“[crawling] across the grass to Arcite’s side” and asking
“What have we done?” This suggests that he feels that
what he has done is a tragedy. He regrets it.

12. Explain how the author
develops each point of view.
Notice word clues that
convey strong feelings.
describe.
create tone of voice.
reflect what is important to
the speaker or narrator.
Think: How do these choices
show the point of view
expressed?
• What word choices does the author make to develop the
different points of view? For example, an author may
reveal the narrator’s or character’s feelings about an
event through an angry or silly tone of voice. Focus can
suggest point of view—we spend our time and energy
describing what is important to us. Words with strong
connotations also convey point of view.
• The author develops Theseus’s point of view using a
celebratory tone of voice. He develops Palamon’s using a
regretful tone of voice.

13. Decide why the author
includes the different
perspectives (points of view).
Think:
• Why did the author include
multiple points of view?
• What idea does this
communicate?
• How does the conflict
advance the story or engage
readers?
• Think about why the author included the different points
of view. What can you figure out? Why is it useful to have
these two particular characters express their views?
What central idea does this communicate? How might it
advance the story or make it more interesting?
• One character sees the victory as glorious, while the
other character realizes that someone important has just
died. One inference I can draw is that contests of chivalry
might seem glorious, but they have serious
consequences.