Narrative is a way of organizing events in a causal sequence with a beginning, middle, and end. Narratives have macro and micro features. At the macro level, they have a structure like Aristotle's beginning-middle-end or Todorov's equilibrium-disequilibrium-re-equilibrium. Vladimir Propp identified 31 narrative functions and 7 character archetypes like the villain, donor, and hero based on his analysis of Russian folktales. At the micro level, narratives use constructional devices like cinematography, editing, and sound. They also employ genre codes and narrative codes described by theorists like Levi-Strauss and Barthes.

1. NARRATIVE
Film and Media Studies
By
Vishnu Achutha Menon
Research Scholar
Department of Media and Communication
CUTN

2. What is Narrative?
• Latin –NARRE- To make Known
• Via
– Causally related events
– Connected
– Sequenced
– Logically presented

3. Definition 2
• “Narrative is a way of organising spatial and
temporal data into a cause and effect chain of
events with a beginning, middle and end that
embodies a judgement about the nature of
the events as well as demonstrates how it is
possible to know, and hence to narrate, the
events. “ Brannigan E. Narrative Comprehension and Film

4. Macro Features of Narrative
Structure
– Aristotle’s beginning, middle and end.
– Todorov’s equilibrium>disequilibrium>re-equilibrium
– Propp’s “functions”
– Vogler’s “twelve steps”
2. Temporal order,temporal duration, temporal
frequency
3. Story and Plot
– Explicitly presented actions/events
– Implicitly inferred ationas/events
– Non diegetic material (captions/titles,drama enhancing music
etc.)

5. Micro Features
• 1. Constructional Devices
» Cinematography
» Mise- en- Scene
» Editing
» Sound
2. Genre Associations2. Genre Associations
Genre Codes (e.g. Iconography)Genre Codes (e.g. Iconography)
Genre ConventionsGenre Conventions
3. Narrative Codes3. Narrative Codes
Levi Straus’s Binary OppositionsLevi Straus’s Binary Oppositions
Barthes Narrative CodesBarthes Narrative Codes
Character PsychologyCharacter Psychology
Semiotic AnalysisSemiotic Analysis

6. Todorov
• Initial Situation (Equilibrium)
• Disruption (Non equilibrium)
• Restoration (Re Equilibrium)

7. Propp 1928
• Morphology of the Russian Folktale 1928
• Types of Characters, Specific Forms of Action,
function in the Narrative.
• Thiry One Functions identified.

8. Specific research on narrative
– Vladimir Propp
– Russian Formalist in the 1930s
– He wanted to see if there was a finite number of
structures for narrative. He analysied Russian folk
tales and found they could be classified into 5
categories.
– He also identified seven archetypal characters.

9. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain
• The Donor/giver of knowledge
• The Helper
• The Princess (sought after person)
• The Dispatcher
• The Hero (or victim)
• The False Hero

10. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor
• The Helper
• The Princess (sought after person)
• The Dispatcher
• The Hero (or victim)
• The False Hero

11. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor Obi Won Kenobe
• The Helper
• The Princess
• The Dispatcher
• The Hero (or victim)
• The False Hero

12. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor Obi Won Kenobe
• The Helper Han Solo
• The Princess
• The Dispatcher
• The Hero (or victim)
• The False Hero

13. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor Obi Won Kenobe
• The Helper Han Solo
• The Princess Princess Leah
• The Dispatcher
• The Hero (or victim)
• The False Hero

14. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor Obi Won Kenobe
• The Helper Han Solo
• The Princess Princess Leah
• The Dispatcher R2 - D2
• The Hero
• The False Hero

15. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor Obi Won Kenobe
• The Helper Han Solo
• The Princess Princess Leah
• The Dispatcher R2 - D2
• The Hero Luke Skywalker
• The False Hero

16. Propp’s character archetypes
• The Villain Darth Vader
• The Donor Obi Won Kenobe
• The Helper Han Solo
• The Princess Princess Leah
• The Dispatcher R2 - D2
• The Hero Luke Skywalker
• The False Hero Darth Vader (Luke’s dad)

17. Basic Plots
• Romance: Boy meets girl / boy loses girl / boy
finds girl(or Vice versa)
• Bordwell and Thompson (1991) define
narrative as “A chain of events in cause-effect
relationship occurring in time and space.
• The Kuleshov Effect: The linear connections
we make between shots.

18. Definitions from Bordwell and
Thompson (1991)
• Plot: What we see on screen. Includes extra-
narrative things.
• Story: all that we know about the narrative including
seen and unseen.
• Diegesis: The total world of the story.
• Parallelism: Parallel development of multiple
storylines.
• Cause and effect: Cause and effect. Causes can come
from a character.

19. Chris Vogler 1992
The Writers Journey
• Archetypes
– Hero
– Mentor
– Shapeshifter
– Trickster
– Herald
– Allies
– Shadow
– Threshold Guardians
• The Hero’s Journey
– Ordinary World
– Call to Adventure
– Refusal of the Call
– Mentor
– First Threshold
– Tests, Allies, Enemies
– Approach to the Inmost Cave
– Ordeal
– Reward (seizing the sword)
– The Road Back
– Resurrection
– Return with the Elixir

20. Levi Strauss
• Binary Opposites (Macro)
– Protagonist/Antagonist
– Action /Inaction
Binary Opposites (Micro)
– Good looking / Ugly
– Witty / Humourless

21. Barthes
• Audience Decodes
– Enigma Code (sets up a question to be answered later)
– Semic Code (How characters, actions ,events, settings etc.
take on meaning within a culture.
– Symbolic Code - Binary Oppositions or Psychological
symbols
– Action Code - understood by cross reference to other
narratives in our culture
– Cultural Codes - understood through our interaction with
the wider world.