2. Individuals act as causal agents:
Major strasser’s arrival causes the entire plot, without him Ilsa and Victor would not be
relevant and there would be no pressure on them to leave the country.
Victor is a typical hero archetype therefore causes good. He starts singing over the Nazis, so
does everybody else. His good nature also drives the plot, wishing to take down the Nazis
causes them to come after him and prompting the escape.
3. Cause and Effect Chain:
All events that happen have later relevance in the story, Ugarte giving Rick the passes ties Rick into
the plot and as a result he has full control over who leaves the country or not.
Hasser’s arrival leads to a massive military presence in Rick’s cafe, as well as the conflict between
the French and German soldiers.
Ilsa and Rick’s previous relationship is the reason he helps her in the end, however this differs
slightly from the classic hollywood narrative chain, giving the audience drips of information via
flashbacks and not just a linear, straightforward storyline. This is still an example of cause and
effect as this is established prior to Rick’s actions, but it still shows innovation and a slight
difference from the storylines of the era. Ilsa leaving Rick at the station is also a cause for Rick’s
aggression when they meet again.
4. Desire motivates the narrative:
Victor’s desire for freedom is the main driving force of the narrative, his escape and the papers
that provide that become the most important ideas in the film as they are the source of all
power within the narrative. This paired with Strasser’s desire to catch him creates the main point
of conflict.
The protagonist embodies this desire:
Rick’s desires are very contested, but it can be assumed that his
ultimate desire is love as that is what we see him most engaged with.
However, this is not the main conflict of the plot, it is the letters. This is
another way Casablanca differs from the genre conventions of the
time, Rick would be expected to engage with this, but doesn’t,
repeating that he doesn’t meddle in other people’s business.
Rick only makes himself relevant to the
central conflict when his own desires are
introduced.
5. Counterforce impedes the goal-oriented plot:
The plot is somewhat goal oriented in that it centres around the main points of first getting
access to the passes and then leaving the country. However, these are quite broad set and span
over the entire film rather than most classical hollywood films that typically had smaller but
more frequent goals.
The counterforce in the film is Major Strasser and the Nazis as well as Louis Renault for a vast
majority. They impede the protagonist for a while, but Strasser who is widely regarded as the
antagonist doesn’t have much screen time at all. This is because a lot of the issues come from
Rick’s discretions, him replacing Strasser whenever the audience is unsure to his morality.
6. Closure is achieved:
The ending of Casablanca is what sets it apart from typical films of the era. The ending is
somewhat bittersweet, the audience expecting Ilsa to make a choice between the two men
(usually the fan favourite) and they live happily ever after in the typical fairytale-like ending. The
trope of “getting the girl” was massively prevalent, even then.
However, in Casablanca, this is broken. Rick chooses to save Ilsa and Victor in an ultimate display
of self-sacrifice. You still get the sense of closure somewhat, when the audience is shocked over
the blatant imbalance between the outcome of the characters- Rick arrested whilst Ilsa and Victor
fly up into the sunset, the film wraps up with a change of heart from Louis. This leaves Rick
heartbroken but not all is lost, also portraying a feeling of finality and feels like a reasonable
middle ground to an audience.
