This document discusses several narrative theorists and their contributions. Vladimir Propp analyzed character roles in stories and identified common roles like the hero, villain, and donor. Tzvetan Todorov suggested most narratives follow a pattern of equilibrium, disruption of equilibrium by an outside force, and restoration of a new equilibrium. Roland Barthes proposed that narratives use five codes - action, enigma, symbolic, semantic, and cultural - to engage the reader. Finally, Claude Levi-Strauss examined how stories unconsciously reflect cultural values through symbolic binary oppositions like good vs evil.
2. VLADIMIR PROPP
He proposed that it was possible to classify the characters
and their actions into clearly defined roles and functions.
Films such as Star Wars Propp’s model precisely, but a
significant number of more recent films such as Pulp Fiction
do not.
PROPP’S CHARACTER ROLES
The hero (seeks something)
The villain (opposes the hero)
The donor (helps the hero by providing a magic object)
The dispatcher (send the hero on its way)
The false hero (falsely assuming the role of hero)
The helper (gives support to the hero)
The princess (the reward for the hero, but also needs protection from the
villain)
Her father
3. TZVETAN TODOROV
Suggests most narratives start with a state of equilibrium
(everything is calm, normal and equal) In which the
protagonists (main character).
The state of normality is disrupted by an outside force, which
has to be fought against in order to return to a state of
equilibrium.
Equilibrium Disequilibrium New equilibrium
Something bad happens Everything is fine again
4. ROLAND BARTHES
Suggests that narrative works with five different codes which
activate the reader to make sense of it.
Action – a narrative device by which a resolution is produced
through action, eg. A shoot out.
Engima- a narrative device that teases the audience by
presenting a puzzle or riddle to be solves, Works to delay the
story’s ending pleasurably.
Symbolic – Connotation
Semantic – Denotation
Cultural – a narrative device which the audience can
recognise as being part of a culture e.g. a ‘made man’ in a
gangster film is part of the mafia culture.
5. CLAUD LEVI-STRAUSS
Examined how stories unconsciously reflect the values, beliefs
and myths of a culture. Our understanding of the difference
between the word and its ‘opposite’.
These are usually expressed in the form of binary oppositions.
His research has been adapted by media theorists to reveal
underlying themes and symbolic oppositions in media texts.
Binary oppositions = a conflict between two qualities or term
Harry potter = good guy voldemort = bad guy
