Propp was a Bulgarian theorist who analyzed over 400 Russian folk tales and found that they followed consistent character roles and narrative functions despite surface level differences. He identified 8 character roles - the hero who seeks something, the villain who opposes the hero, the donor who aids the hero, the dispatcher who sends the hero on a quest, the false hero who pretends to be the hero, the helper who assists the hero, the princess who is both a reward and target of the villain, and the father who will reward the hero.