2. What is Narrative?
Refers to the way the film’s story is
structured – the way in which events
are ordered and revealed.
3. Todorov thinks that most
story’s or plot lines follow the
same pattern or path.
There are 5 stages in this
pattern:
Todorov proposed a basic structure
for all narratives, he stated that
films and programmes begin with
an equilibrium, this is where the
story is at its most calm period,
then agents of disruption causes
disequilibrium, this is where the
story is at an unsettling and
‘disquiet’ period. This is then
follow by a renewed state of peace
and harmony for the protagonists
and a new equilibrium brings
brings the chaos to an end.
4. Film: Jennifer’s body
1.Equilibrium- Jennifer and Needy are two high school teenagers,
Jennifer is the ‘attractive girl who gets all the boys’. Needy is the girl who is
classed as a ‘nerd’.
2.Disruption of the equilibrium – Jennifer gets goes away with other
boys, returns but has turned into a succubus(demon).
3 .Recognition of the disruption – Jennifer starts to kill all the boys at
her and Needy’s high school, after killing all of them, she starts to hunt
Chip (Needy’s boyfriend).
4. Repairing the damage caused by disruption - Needy tries to stop
Jennifer from killing her boyfriend.
5. New equilibrium - Needy has created problems for herself as she fails
to save her boyfriend and ends up in a mental institution due to no one
believing her about Jennifer being a succumbs.
5. Vladimir Propp studied hundred of
folktales and found they contained
8 character types and 31 functions
that move the story along.
The 31 functions include events such
as :
-The hero is prohibited from doing
something
-The villain learns something about
the victim
-The villain is punished
-The hero is awarded for his actions
(Depending on what type of film it is)
-Etc…
6. Film: Horns
Character Type Person in the film
Hero Ig Perrish
Villain Lee Tourneau
Donor Dale Williams
Helper Glenna Shepherd
Princess Merrin Williams
Princess’ Father Dale Williams
Dispatcher n/a
False hero Terry Perish
7. Levi-Strauss suggested that binary oppositions
are key to the meaning making in narrative -
he argued the constant creation of conflict and
opposition narrative, and that narrative can
only end on a resolution of conflict.
Note:
It is important to note that we judge
one half of each binary opposition in a
more negative way. There the
meanings of the binaries are
ideological as they are culturally
constructed.
