Narrative Theory

1. Narrative
“Refers to the way the film’s story is
structured – the way which events are
ordered and revealed to the
audience.”

2. Torodov’s
Narrative
Structure
Equilibrium.
Disruption Of The
Equilibrium.
Recognition Of
The Disruption.
An attempt to
repair the damage
caused by the
disruption.
New
equilibrium.
This type of
narrative structure
is very familiar to
us and can be
applied to many
‘mainstream’ film
narratives.
Torodov’s narrative structure
cannot be applied directly to teen
slashers as although they contain
most of the elements, they’re in a
different order. The film
‘Halloween’ starts with an
equilibrium of the teenagers
being happy together in a room,
then comes the disruption of the
equilibrium when the girl is killed.
From this point, the rest of the
film is also of killings. This is why it
is hard to apply Torodov’s theory
as teen slashers do not have
happy endings.

3. Propp’s Character Types And
Narrative Functions. Vladimir Propp studied
hundreds of folktales and
found they contained 8
character types and 31
functions that move the
story along.
The 31 functions include
events such as;
Ø The hero is prohibited
from doing
something.
Ø The villain learns
something about
the victim
Ø The villain is
punished, etc.
This theory is also hard to apply to teen slashers, like
Torodov’s structure, as there are no generic ‘heroes’ within
the film. The way that Propps functions can be applied is
that there is usually a lone female figure seeking help. In
Scream, we are able to see that a villain exists, but the
mystery is kept from us is the identity of them.

4. Levi-Strauss’ Binary Oppositions
NOTE
It is important to note that we
judge one half of each binary
opposition in a more negative
way; therefore the meanings of
the binaries are ideological as
they are culturally constructed.
Levi-Strauss suggested that
binary oppositions are key
to the meaning making it
narrative. He argued the
constant creation of
conflict and opposition
propels narrative, and that
narrative can only end on a
resolution of conflict.
Unlike the other two
theories/functions. Levi-
Strauss’ can be applied
easily. There is a very
generic ‘good v evil’ theme
implemented into teen
slashers. We can also
apply the ‘boy v girl’
theme to ‘Halloween’ as
Michael Myers kills his
sister.
Examples of Binary
oppositions;
Ø Good/Evil
Ø Men/Women
Ø Truth/Lies
Ø Normal/Abnormal
Ø Strong/Weak
Ø Natural/Artificial
Ø Young/Old
Ø Light/Dark

5. Roland Barthes Enigma Codes.
The Hermeneutic Code is often known as the enigma
code;
The Hermeneutic Code refers to any element
of the story that is not fully explained and
hence becomes a mystery to the reader.
The full truth is often avoided.
The enigma code is the way in which the
tension is built up to add suspense to the
audience.
Many clues are dropped about specific events
in the film, without revealing the secrets
directly, leaving the audience hooked in the
film.
In generic teen slasher films
the main enigma is the
killer. This is because they
do not know the true
identity of the killer, as they
are kept till the end until
they are revealed. This is
demonstrated by the film
‘scream’. We find out at the
end of the film that the
killer(s), as there are
unexpectedly two killers,
are close friends/ people
that mean a lot to the
lonesome girl that is left
after everyone else has
been killed.

6. Roland Barthes Enigma Codes.
The Hermeneutic Code is often known as the enigma
code;
The Hermeneutic Code refers to any element
of the story that is not fully explained and
hence becomes a mystery to the reader.
The full truth is often avoided.
The enigma code is the way in which the
tension is built up to add suspense to the
audience.
Many clues are dropped about specific events
in the film, without revealing the secrets
directly, leaving the audience hooked in the
film.
In generic teen slasher films
the main enigma is the
killer. This is because they
do not know the true
identity of the killer, as they
are kept till the end until
they are revealed. This is
demonstrated by the film
‘scream’. We find out at the
end of the film that the
killer(s), as there are
unexpectedly two killers,
are close friends/ people
that mean a lot to the
lonesome girl that is left
after everyone else has
been killed.