Theories of Narrative

I have researched two popular theories of narrative. These are theories concerning the structure of the narratives. I wish to use these to create an interesting narrative for the film which I can reflect within my trailer as the aim of a trailer is to make it apparent where the narrative is and to help set up the narrative for the full length movie.

TZVETAN TODOROV’S THEORY – he notices a repeating pattern in narrative and so came up with the following ideas:

EQUILIBRIUM – An existing state of harmony.

DISEQUILIBRIUM – The equilibrium is disturbed by an event or “evil” character which leads to a chain of events.

NEW EQUILIBRIUM – The evil is overcome and harmony exists once more.

The theory is basically stating that narrative is just a repeating pattern of harmony, disruption and harmony. This theory is true for most films and therefore we would most probably accept the idea that our film would follow this situation. The narrative in the trailer will therefore have to set up at least the first two parts of this theory to show how a disturbance was caused and the audience wish to see how it will be overcome which will make them want to watch the rest of the film.

VLADIMIR PROPP’S THEORY – After studying Russian fairy tales, well known for their narratives dependent on characters to move the narrative along, he came up with the following ideas:

THE SEVEN SPHERES OF ACTION – What the character does in the narrative to help it move along.

The villain – creates the narrative complication

The donor – gives the hero something which helps the resolution of the narrative

The helper – gives the hero help to resolve the narrative

The princess – has to be saved by the hero, often a romantic interest

The dispatcher – sends the hero on his task or journey

The hero – saves the day and resolves the narrative, sometimes he has been on a quest or similar

The false hero – appears to be good but has actually been a “bad guy” the whole time

This theory is stating that characters are crucial to move the plot along and therefore these stock characters are vital to create a successful movie. In our trailer we will only be introducing a few of the characters, we will however, introduce the ones we think are most crucial for setting up the narrative and plot.