The music video for Britney Spears' "Every Time" depicts her character dealing with intrusive paparazzi while out with her partner. An altercation ensues when the paparazzi annoy them. Back home, she and her partner argue, and she later loses consciousness while bathing. The video cuts to a hospital where doctors are unable to resuscitate her as a baby is born next door, implying her reincarnation. Theories of narrative structure and symbolic codes are then discussed and applied to elements of the music video's plot.

1. Theories in
Music Videos
Ben Jacks

2. Every time – Britney
Spears
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YzabSdk7ZA

3. What is the story about?
• In the clip we watched of the music video ‘Every time’ by
Britney Spears, the video shows Britney and who seems to
be her partner Stephen Dorff travelling by car being hoarded
by paparazzi. The paparazzi seem to be annoying both of
them. As they get out of the car the paparazzi are all over
them and the male actor gets into a fight with one of them
after something hits Britney on the head. When they get into
their house, they end up arguing and Stephen throws a vase
at the wall which smashes. When Britney gets into the bath,
she notices the cut on her head and it bleeding badly which
leads to her being unconscious in the bath. Stephen walks
into the bathroom and finds her lying under the water in the
bath so pulls her up. It then cuts to the hospital where the
doctors fail to resuscitate her at the same time as a baby is
being born in the next room. This makes the audience think
that this is Britney being reincarnated into a new life.

4. Todorov’s 5 Stages of
Narrative
Todorov’s theory is that all stories follow the same pattern of 5 different stages.
1. Equilibrium
o This means that when it first starts everything is good, everything is normal and the
characters are in a happy state of mind.
2. Disruption
o This disruption breaks the equilibrium to disrupt the happiness.
3. Recognition of Disruption
o The characters in the story realise that there is a disruption and there is sometimes panic
and worry.
4. Attempt to fix disruption
o The characters try to repair the disruption to get back to equilibrium.
5. Re-equilibrium
o This is where the characters have restored the problem and equilibrium is restored back to
the original or similarly.

5. Todorov’s 5 Stages of
Narrative Applied
1. Although we don’t see an actual equilibrium we can
presume that before the paparazzi came it was relaxing
and peaceful while they were in the car driving
2. Hoarded by paparazzi and Britney gets attacked
3. Arguing because of what happened and male breaking
objects
4. Sitting in the bath, thinking things through to try and sort
it out
5. Peaceful death, another life comes in to the world

6. Levi Strauss – Binary
Opposition
This is the theory of binary opposition
o This means that two opposites/groups/concepts working in opposition to each other
Some examples of opposites are:
• Good and bad
• Rich and poor
• East and West World
• Love and Hate
• Black and White
• Peace and war
• Civilised and savage
• Democracy and dictatorship
• First world and Third world
• Domestic and foreign/alien
• Articulate and inarticulate
• Young and old
• Man and nature
• Protagonist and antagonist
• Action and inaction
• Motivator and observer
• Empowered and victim
• Man and woman
• Good looking and ugly
• Strong and weak
• Decisive and indecisive
• East and west
• Humanity and technology
• Ignorance and wisdom

7. Levi Strauss – Binary
Opposition Applied
• There were many opposite of groups/concepts working in position to each
other. One example was the argument that the couple had which obviously
highlighted that they had different views on the paparazzi and what they
should’ve done.
• Another example of opposites was the man and the paparazzi fighting who
also had different views which was why they were fighting.
• Also, a difference is between Britney and the new born baby who are at
completely different stages in life; as Britney is going out, the new born baby
is coming in.

8. 1. Enigma Code
o audience is intrigued by the need to solve a problem
2. Action Code
o audience is excited by the need to resolve a problem
3. Semantic Code
o audience is directed towards an additional meaning by way of connotation
4. Symbolic Code
o audience sees symbolism in a text e.g. they might assume that a character
dressed in black is evil or menacing and forms expectations of their behaviour
5. Cultural code
o audience derives meaning in a text from shared cultural knowledge about the way
the world works
Rolland Barthes Narrative
Codes

9. Rolland Barthes Narrative
Codes Applied
1. Enigma Code
o Audience engaged and intrigued by the way Britney and her partner are arguing
to resolve the problem
2. Action Code
3. Semantic Code
4. Symbolic Code
o Britney is wearing all white clothes when she is in the hospital representing the
end of her life
5. Cultural Code