narrative theories and structure components

8/10/2019 Narrative Theories and Structure Components

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Katy Fleetham

Narrative Theories and Structure Components

Vladimir Propp

Propp analyzed the plot components of Russian folktales in order to identify

their basic narrative elements. He found that there were 31 plotelements/functions to every story as well as 8 different character types.

The first character that he established was the Hero. This is often the main

character that sets off on a quest as part of a mission or to solve a mystery. My

story does not include a hero, this is due to the fact that I only have 5 characters

in total and a hero was not required. A hero character can be found in the film

Shrek, this movie follows the quest that Shrek is set on at the beginning of the

film, as he is the main character.

The Villain is a character that goes against the hero. This character is usually

morally bad which contrasts with the hero. The audience feels negatively

towards the villain, due to their bad characteristics, and therefore supports thehero in the story. The wolf in my story would be classed as a villain as he tried to

blow down the pigs houses in order to cause them harm. The big, bad wolf

creates contrast against the innocent, little pigs in my story.

The next character that Propp found was the Princess or the prize. This is the

reward that the hero usually works toward achieving throughout the story. For a

typical fairytale story, a princess is the prize, but for other stories the prize can

be anything (even inanimate objects). The prize in my story would be the pigs,

which the wolf attempts to eat throughout the book, but he never actually

succeeds (because he is a villain and childrens books are better suited to have a

happy ending).The Donor is the character that provides the hero with a gift, clue or special

power to help them complete their quest. Sometimes the donor requires

something in return for their gift, which could involve another quest, or for the

hero to complete a riddle to earn the gift. I do not have a donor in my book,

mainly because it would not have a hero to support and my story is too short. In

the film Shrek, the dragon acts as the donor because at the end of the story, after

Shrek has completed his quest, she eats the villain.

The helper can be combined with the position of the donor. The helper works

alongside the hero, often throughout the story or they may appear in critical

points, in order to complete the quest. The helper has limited skill, and thereforeare the support role. Their limited characteristics emphasize those of the hero. I

do not have a helper in my story, as there is no hero to be helped and my story is

too simple. Donkey, in Shrek, acts as the helper who follows Shrek along on his

mission to save the Princess.

The following character is the Princess Father. Typically, this character provides

the task for the hero to complete. The Princess Father is often over protective ofhis daughter and the hero has to gain the permission of the father, to have the

Princess. Propp stated that sometimes the Princess and the Father are not clearly

distinguished. My story does not include this character for the obvious reason

that it would not suit the story and therefore is not applicable. In the film Shrek,this character is clearly distinguished as The King.


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Katy Fleetham

The False Hero acts heroically and can quite often be mistaken for the real Hero

in a story. Sometimes, the Princess Father is fond of the False Hero, which makes

it difficult for the Hero to gain access to the Princess. The False Hero may also try

to take credit for some of the Heros work. My story does not have a False Hero

as it is not necessary since I have no Princess, Princess Father or Hero for it to

interact with. An example of a False Hero can be found in the film Shrek, asPrince Charming has the respect of the Princess Father and comes across as a

hero for the majority of the film, until demonstrated otherwise.

The dispatcher is the character that sets the hero off on a mission or quest at the

beginning of the story. They usually play an early role in the story; they may be

the mother, father or boss of the character they set out on the quest. Sometimes,

the Princess Father sets the Hero off on a mission in order to gain the Princesshand in marriage. The dispatcher can be combined with the role of the false hero

who may set the Hero off on a false mission, which causes them danger, or they

may follow along disguised as the helper. The dispatcher in my story would be

Mother Pig, who sends the Three Little Pigs to go and build their own houses atthe beginning of the story.

Todorov

Todorov was a Russian structuralist. He believed that all narratives followed the

same (or a similar), simple path. This path came in versions of 3 or 5 steps. Some

stories are not in consecutive order and therefore may not conform to these

steps. The 5 steps are as follows:

1. State of equilibriumIn my story, this is at the very beginning where the

three little pigs are living in the house with their mother.

2.

Disruption (caused by an event)This is displayed in my story withspeech. This is when mother pig tells the three little pigs that they have toleave.

3. Recognition of the disorderThis is when the three pigs in my story

actually leave mother pigs house.

4. The attempt to repair damageThis part of my story is when the pigs

build their houses to replace the fact that they no longer live with their

mother.

5. Restoration of the new equilibrium- For my story, this is the end where

the three little pigs live together in the brick house.

The 3-step version of this idea consists of:1. The equilibrium

2. The disequilibrium

3. The new equilibrium

The equilibrium is where the story starts. This is a typical day for the characters

in the story. The characters lives are in balance and this is what the viewer

expects the character to be doing as part of their everyday life. In my story, the

equilibrium is demonstrated on the first page. The first sentence expresses what

normal day to day life is for the 3 little pigs.


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The disequilibrium is the part of the story where an event takes place and causes

an interruption to the everyday activities that the characters entail. This may be

anything from a meteor crashing down to Earth to the character meeting

someone new. From this moment, the story becomes about the characters and

how they react to this situation. The aim of the characters is often to return to

the equilibrium. The disequilibrium in my story begins to take place after thesecond sentence when mother pig stated that they must build their own houses

and the three pigs leave on page 2 to begin their mission.

The new equilibrium is placed at the end of the story. This is when the

disequilibrium is solved and everything becomes balanced again. This may mean

returning to the original equilibrium or it may be a new version of normal

everyday life for the characters. The audience expects this situation to continue

after the story ends. The new equilibrium in my story is when the three little pigs

live together in the brick house that was built in my story; rather than the norm

at the beginning of my story where they lived with their mother.

Claude Levi Strauss

Strauss came up with the idea of binary opposition. He believed that there can

only be a story when two opposing sides come together and interact. It is the

conflict between them that drives the story. His theory may involve the opposing

sides as follows:

Good/ Evil

Men/ Women Police/ Criminals

Young/ Old

Humans/ Aliens

Humans/ Nature

My story involves the binary opposition of good and evil. The good is

demonstrated in the pigs who are little and innocent. The evil is shown through

my wolf character, who tries to blow down the houses of the pigs. The two sides

come together when the three little pigs decide to build their houses just outside

the woods near the beginning of my story.

Narrative Structure

Open narratives dont reach a conclusion as part of the story, these can be foundin the forms of soap operas or comic books. Closed narrative stories contain a

conclusion within that piece of text and can be used for stories. My story has a

closed narrative because this is more suitable for childrens books that are

expected to have a start, middle and an ending to leave the child satisfied.

Single strand narratives have only one storyline which is followed throughout.

Multistrand narrative structures have many storylines, and can be found in the

forms of tv series or films, where they follow round the lives of many characters

to keep the audience interested. My book is a single strand story due to the fact

that children can find it difficult to follow more than one story at a time and for


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my age range this seems better suited. Multistrand narratives are often aimed at

an older audience.

A linear narrative consists of all the events in the story happening in consecutive

order throughout the story. Non-linear narrative structures may include flash-

backs or flash-forwards and these are usually aimed at an older audience due to

the complexity. I chose to use a linear narrative as this is suited better to my

audience so the story is easier to follow.

Realist narratives reflect real life. It consists of having only real events whichcan occur in reality. Anti-realist narratives have events and characters that are

unlikely, if not impossible, to happen in real life. Realist narratives can be

demonmstrated in some non-fiction films and documentaries. Anti-realist

narratives can be found under the genres of science fiction and fantasy. My story

is anti-realist because it involves talking pigs and wolves who build their own

houses, which is very unrealistic, but it appeals to children which is why this was

a good narrative structure to use for my story.

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