Theories of Narrative

Theories of Narrative

Roland Barthes

Barthes described all texts as complex 'bundles' of meaning which can be unravelled to create a whole range of different meanings.

• According to Barthes texts can be:
• OPEN - With numerous 'threads to pull'
• CLOSED - With only one obvious thread to grasp
• Texts that can be read in a number of ways are known as Polysemic text

Example of a polysemic text

The film scarface is open to a number of interpretations

It can be viewed in the following ways:

• As a glorification of violence
• As a 'Rags to Riches' story
• As a critique of the values of 1980s - greed & consumption 

These 'Threads' that Barthes referred to are known as Narrative codes

The most significant of these codes is the enigma code.

This is constructed to attract and hold the attention of the audience normally by creating a mystery or puzzle that the audience want to see solved.

The enigma code is usually introduced in the disruption phase of Todorov's model

Vladimir Propp

Analysed folks stories

Identified 8 key character roles in these stories:

1. The Hero (The Protagonist)
2. The Villain (The Antagonist)
3. The Donor (Provider)
4. The Helper 
5. The Father figure
6. The Dispatcher
7. The Princess
8. And The false Hero

Example of 'The Vladimir Propp theory'

Star Wars

1. The Hero - Luke Skywalker
   
2. The Villain - Darth Vader
3. The Donor (Privider) - Obi-Wan Kinobi
4. The Helper - R2-D2, C3PO, Chewbacca
5. The Father figure - Obi Wan
6. The Dispatcher - Princess Leia
7. The Princess

The three act structure

• In Hollywood films, the narrative tends to be organised in what is called the "Three Act Structure"
• The writer, Syd Field has identified what he calls the ideal program three act structure

1. The setup

In this structure, a film must be set-up within the first twenty to thirty minutes before the main character or protagonist experiences a 'Plot point' that gives him or her a goal that must be achieved

2. The confrontation

Approximately half the movie's running time must be taken up with the character's struggle to achieve his or her goal: this is the 'Confrontation period'

• Field also sometimes refers to the Midpoint, a more subtle turning point that happens in Act II - the confrontation which of ten has an apparently devastating reversal of the main character's fortune.

3. The climax

The final quarter of the film (The third Act) despots a climatic struggles by the protagonist to finally achieve (or not achieve) his or her goal and the aftermath of this struggle.