free indirect discourse

A narrative technique in which the representation of a character's thoughts and actions showcases the word choice and tone that the character would use. This style requires a covert narrator so that the "voice" and "attitude" of the character shines through the surface of the narration, even though it is not written in first-person. It is "free" because the narration can jump from one mind to another, or one feeling to another, without the logic normally associated with conventional narration. It is "indirect" because we are not reading the "actual" thoughts and words of the character in quotation marks. It is discourse because it is a particular way of using language to tell a story. Here is an example from "The Dead" by James Joyce: "Lily, the caretaker's daughter, was literally run off her feet." In fact, she still has her feet, but she is very busy and feels as if she is "literally" run off her feet. Presumably, she would use this kind of language to describe her feelings at the moment and is generally inclined to see herself as "the caretaker's daughter," in case anyone is interested in who she is.