Assignment 8: Narrative theory By Monae Minors-Gibbs
Assignment 8: Narrative theory
By Monae Minors-Gibbs
Target: Yellow level
Part A: Todorov
Suggested there was 5 stages of narrative
1. Equilibrium
2. Disequilibrium
3. Recognition of disequilibrium
4. Attempt to repair damage
5. New equilibrium
• The classic structure of beginning, middle and end
Equilibrium (Cat in the hat)
Normality Pictures
Normal family
Spotless house
Baby sitter comes around
to look after the children
Weather is bad
Children are bored
There is nothing to do
inside
Disequilibrium(conflict/disruption)
Disequilibrium Screen grabs
Unexpected character comes
Lets then jump on the sofa
Starting to break some rules
Unknown huge box
The mystery is inside the box
The box is the start of the
disruption
Recognition of disequilibrium
Recognition of disequilibrium Screen grabs
Mess in the house is made
Plates are smashed
The front room was clean, now
destroyed
Total destruction of the house
The house is collapsing
Try to clean the walls and ruins
the mums favourite dress
Attempt to repair the damage
Attempt to repair the
damage
Screen grabs
The cat finds his cleaning
machines
Attempts to clean up
„Thing 1 & Thing 2‟ help to
clean up too
They clean the mums dress
spotless
Neatly put the dress away
Looks untouched
New equilibrium
New equilibrium Screen grabs
The mum dumps the
horrible boyfriend
The children are happy he's
gone
The mum gains her kids
trust
They end up having fun
Jump on the sofa together
Part B: Levi-Strauss
Believed that our world is described in binary opposites,
realising the differences, contradictions and conflict or
opposites.
Day/night
Good/bad
Male/female
Film Opposite 1 Opposite 2 Explanation
Pursuit of
Happiness
One character is
male, the other is
female
The male is more
caring/more forceful
Superman hero is saves the
girl and city
Villain is trying to
destroy everything
Villain tries to
capture the hero
The mother/girlfriend
character The dad/breadwinner
This character plays
the hero
This character
play the villain
Scream 4 Hero is good
Villain is evil
Hero normal
costume
Villain dark
costume and mask
I Robot Hero is human
Villain is a robot
Hero helps
Villains make things
worst
This character is
hero The villain
A picture of the
hero This is the villain
Part C: Barthe
All about anticipations and clues identified by codes
- Enigma codes
- Action codes
- Semantic codes
- Symbolic codes
- Cultural codes
Enigma codes
Enigma- narratives set up as puzzling to be solved, and
drawing the audience in
Delays the ending/resolution
Sometimes left unsolved
Answer to enigmas contribute to our enjoyment of
resolutions (new equilibrium)
Examples are „Memento‟ and „The Separation‟
Who are
they?
Why are they
arguing?
Why are they?
Who is he?
Why did he kill
him?
Why is he wearing
the mans clothes?
Action codes
Codes of actions that lead audience to expect contains consequences
E.g. Psycho which is a horror film
Horror- ‘Psycho’
•Woman alone in the
shower
•Not very aware someone
is watching her
•Audience expect
something bad to happen
Romance- „Prince and Me‟
•Finds out he's a prince
•Never wants to talk to
him
•Audience know she will
go after him
Semantic codes
Meanings of characters, objects and
locations
Learn from experience about the
denotations and connotations
Iconographic features work in same
way
Examples of semantic codes
Iconography Screen grabs
Spaceships & aliens = Sci-fi
Drama/Romance- Moulin
Rouge
Horror- Red Riding Hood
• Seen as promiscuous
• Love
• Passion
• Red suggesting being a target
• Red connotes that she is
danger
Symbolic codes
Oppositions and antitheses (light/dark)
Male=dark, abusive, trapped
Females= light, free, justice
Opposites Screen grabs
Male= abusive, troubled,
criminal(rape), strong, evil
Female=innocent, disturbed
by rape
Precious getting
raped
biological
father
Opposites Screen grabs
Representation of the villain
Dark costume connotes evil
The prop of the odd mask also adds to
the villain representation
The assumptions of bald men are the
villains
Hero is usually in a matched costume
and mask
Handsome
Manly
Dark costume but could connote
professional at being the hero
Cultural codes
Bring understanding and meaning to the text
References to things in popular cultures and historical
events
E.g. World Trade Centre
Set around the
9/11
Dealing with a
big serious
crisis
Part D: Propp
Studied fairy tales and legends and noticed the similarities: similar character type and same problems
His thesis was about 7 distinctive character types called „spheres of action‟
• Hero
• Dispatcher
• Villain
• Donor
• Helper
• False hero
• heroine
1st spheres - Hero
On a quest
It is usually a male
Conflict appears
Ends up getting the girl
Falls in love
with female
Na'vi
Taking orders
leaves him in
conflict with the
world he feels is
home (Pandora)
Goes on a mission in
exchange for a spinal
surgery for his legs
2nd spheres – dispatcher
Starts hero on its way
Usually to restore disequilibrium
Gives the information
the hero and the
others need This character helps
to start off the
journey
3rd spheres – villain
Opposes the hero
Cause of disruption
This character destroys the home land of the natives
Colonel moves forward
with his ruthless
extermination tactics
Forces the
soldier to
take a stand
Instructs the
soldiers to fight
back in an epic
battle for the fate
of Pandora.
4th spheres – donor (another film)
Helps hero by giving him/her magic tool/gift to help them on the journey
For example Cinderella film
The fairy god
mother gives
Cinderella advice
Uses her magic
to dress and get
Cinderella to
the ballShe makes sure
Cinderella is
equipped for
her journey
5th spheres – helper (example of other film)
Assists/helps hero in restoring normality/equilibrium
She tires to help by
arguing
•destroying
Hometree could
damage
the biological neural
network native to
Pandora
She risks
her own life
for the Na'vi
This character is named
Grace
6th spheres – false hero (example from
Cinderella)
On side of a hero but turns against him/her
Attempts hero away from quest
The two
evil sisters
The sisters lie
and say its their
shoe They do not call
Cinderella to
try on the shoe
hoping it would
fit them
7th spheres – heroine
Usually females but not always
Usually threatened by villain and needs the help of a hero
Often in/ends up in love
She is
threatened
by the
villain
Colonel
Quaritch
She's is getting
help from her
hero
She falls
in love
Part E- other terms
Diegesis
Narrative range
• Unrestrictive narrative
• Restrictive narrative
Narrative depth
• Objective character identification
• Subjective character identification
Diegesis
Internal world created by the story that the characters
themselves experience and encounter
(The world the characters live in (in TV/FILM)
Fish Tank shows diegesis
because the main
character goes through
everyday problems in
her life.
Narrative range
Unrestrictive narrative A narrative which has no limits to the information that is presented (not hiding any
piece of information to the audience) i.e. news
Restrictive narrative Offers minimal information of the narrative (hides some information from the
audience)Momento gives little
information to the
audience The actual
story of his wife dying
etc.)
Pretty Woman is
unrestricted narrative as
you see her steps to
change from a striper.
More screen grabs
Near to the beginning
he gets a call, the
audience does not know
who calls him
Narrative depth (green)
Objective character identification
The viewer is given unique access to a characters point of
view such as seeing things from the characters mind,
dreams or memories.
Subjective character identification
Unique access to what a range of characters can see and
do (can see multiple)
Part F: Modular narratives
“Express a sense of time which can be detachable and
may have manipulation”
(Where time is not linear)
Forking path – introduces a number of plotlines that
usually contradict one another
Episodic – collection of multiple stories
• Abstract- non narrative formal system
• Anthology- shorter tales which are apparently
disconnected but share a random similarity
Anachronic- uses of flashbacks and flash-forwards (4321)
Split screen- divides screens into two or more frames
Anachronic – ‘4,3,2,1’
The girl slipped and the friends
are helping her up
Slip screen
Here is a example of split screen in a scene of Snake Eye:
http://youtu.be/OzaBztLaGD4
Here is a screen grab of a split screen scene from the film
Mean Girls
Visually see
who the
conversation
is with
The
conversation
is in time