Narrative theory analyzes the structure of stories and plots in media texts. There are two main components - the story, which is the events that are presented, and the plot, which is how those events are shown. Narratives typically follow a structure of stability, a disruption, awareness of the disruption, action against it, and a new stability. Common narrative types include the hero, dream fulfillment, chase, and love stories. Levi-Strauss believed narratives simplify into a basic good vs. evil structure. Music videos can recycle styles from other media and retell narratives from a different perspective. The meaning of a narrative depends on the individual viewer's interpretation. Most music videos are either a performance or conceptual clip

1. Narrative Theory

2. Tim O’Sullivan
Narrative – the structure of a story/story + plot
He argues that all media texts tell us some kind of story.
Media texts offer a way of telling stories about ourselves.
Narrative theory sets out to show that what we experience when
we read a story is to understand set of constructions.
What is
inferred
Story – what happens
What is
presented
Non-diegetic
material
Plot – how we are shown
what happens

3. Bordwell and Thompson
There are two distinct parts of a narrative: story
and plot. These are identified in two different
ways:
• Fabula – this involves the events that are
implied rather than blatantly shown
• Syuzhet – this involves everything seen and
heard on screen

4. Pam Cook
Cook states that the typical narrative should
have the following structure :
• Linearity of cause and effect within an overall
trajectory of enigma resolution
• A high degree of narrative closure
• A fictional world containing verisimilitude

5. Todorov
Todorov similarly explains the typical structure a
narrative should have:
1. Stability
2. Disruption of the equilibrium
3. Awareness of the disruption
4. Action against the disruption
5. A new equilibrium

6. Kate Domaille
Domaille identifies 8 types of narratives:
• Achilles – typical hero with a weakness
• Candide – the invincible hero
• Cinderella – the dream comes true
• Circe – the chase
• Faust – sin and ‘selling your soul’
• Orpheus – the gift that is taken away
• Romeo and Juliet – the love story
• Tristan and Isuelt – the love triangle

7. Claude Levi-Strauss
Levi-Strauss believes that every narrative is
simplified into a basic ‘vs.’ structure. For
example, this may be good vs. bad, love vs. hate
etc.
There is no in between with binary opposites,
making the structure clear.

8. Michael Shore
Shore argues that music videos are all made up of
various recycled styles. For example, Weezer’s
‘Buddy Holly’ video takes styles and scenes from
the sitcom Happy Days.
http://youtu.be/kemivUKb4f4
Another example of this is Ingrid Michaelson’s
video, which is a feminist take on Robert Palmer’s
‘Simply Irresistible’ music video.
http://youtu.be/5GBT37_yyzY

9. Andrew Goodwin
Goodwin suggests that even though narrative
structures may be the same, the meaning
constantly changes depending on the person
viewing it.
What may be understandable and interesting to
one person may be offensive or confusing to
another.

10. Sven Carlsson
Carlsson suggests that there are typically two
types of music videos:
• Performance clip
• Conceptual clip – can include a narrative or an
abstract idea that is an artistic interpretation
of the song