4th July 2012 - Narrative Practitioners

• TODOROV

Tzvetan Todorov proposed the basic structure for all narratives. He said that all films and programmes begin with equilibrium (a calm period), followed by disequilibrium (the period of unsettlement and disquiet) caused by agents of disruption. He said that this was then followed by a period of renewed peace and harmony for the protagonists, and the new equilibrium brings the chaos to an end. This is shown as the simplest form of narrative (it can also be referred to as 'classic' and 'Hollywood' narrative).

• PROPP

Vladimir Propp discovered a theory after studying Russian fairy tales, and said that there were 8 types of characters evident;

1. The hero
2. The villain
3. The donor
4. The dispatcher
5. The false hero
6. The helper
7. The princess
8. The princess's father

However, he did not state that the characters were all separate people (the donor could also be the helper, etc). He also discovered actions that are functions of narrative;
1. Preparation

• A community/family/kingdom is in an ordered state of being
• A member of the community/family/kingdom leaves home
• A warning is given to the leaders of the community/a rule is imposed on the hero
• The warning is discounted/the rule is broken
• The villain attempts to discover something about the victim of the broken rule
• The villain tries to deceive the victim to gain advantage
• The victim unwittingly helps the villain

2. Complication

• A state of disorder
• The villain harms a member of the community/family/kingdom
• One of the members of the community/family/kingdom desires something
• The hero is sent to get what is desired
• The hero plans action against the villain

3. Transference

• The hero leaves home
• The hero is tested or attacked/he meets the test and gains a magical gift or helper
• The hero reacts to the donor
• The hero arrives at the destination he can fulfil his quest

4. Struggle

• There is a struggle between the hero and villain
• The hero ends up being branded
• The villain is defeated
• The state of disorder is settled

5. Return

• The hero returns from their quest
• The hero is pursued
• The hero escapes or is rescued from capture
• The hero arrives home, but is not recognized
• The false hero claims the rewards
• A task is set for the hero
• The task is accomplished

6. Recognition

• The hero is recognized
• The false hero/villain is unmasked
• The false hero is punished
• The hero gains award (princess/kingdom)

LEVI-STRAUSS
Claude Levi-Strauss looked at narrative structure in terms of binary oppositions; binary oppositions are sets of opposite values which can reveal how media texts are structured (e.g. good/evil, boy/girl). Levi-Strauss also wasn't so interested in looking at the order in which events were arranged. Instead, he looked for deeper arrangements of the themes.

BARTHES
Roland Barthes described a text as, in a nutshell, a tangled ball of threads and the threads need to be unravelled. Once the metaphorical thread has been unravelled, we see a wide range of potential meanings. You could continue to unravel the narrative from a different angle to get a completely different meaning.