Narrative

Narrative Theory

The narrative theory is the way in which stories are organised and how the audience will see them. Since the idea developed, a number of elements have arisen that affect the way in which the structure is organised.

Key Elements of Narrative

• Time - The element, time, is how much time the storyline covers within the film. it is not a representation of how long the actual film is on for however. The biggest example of how this element is used is in 2001: A Space Odyssey, as this film transpires roughly 50,000 years.
• Closure - The closure element of narrative is the way in which a film ends, and whether the films problems are all resolved, however once a film ends without closure, it brings up the opportunity for sequels, whilst also giving the audience a mental stimulant of trying to answer it themselves. The best example could be the Avenger's films, as they constantly lead into new sequels.
• Enigma - This is the element of the narrative that refers to the problems of the characters, and what they have to face. Every film has enigmas as there would quite simply be no story without any enigmas.

Linear and Non-Linear Narratives

All media texts are either linear or non-linear. Linear means that the story is observed in chronological order whereas the Non-linear version tends to be riddled with flashbacks, storyline changes and constant zoning. Most Hollywood films tend to stick with the simplified Linear style, as it best suits their audience.

Tzvetas Todorov Theory

Todorov was from Bulgaria and his theory was in the way that he sees media texts, he says that most films and music videos have a specific structure to it. He says that there are four stages to this structure;

Equilibrium- This is always at the start  of the text, Everything is shown as happy and normal, the ideal setup.

Disruption- This is when the Equilibrium is destroyed, usually by something drastic or tragic happening to the main character.

Resolution- This is when the main character solves the problems raised by the film and all the obstacles have been dealt with.

New Equilibrium- This is similar to the old equilibrium but never tends to be the same, the characters try to return to as normal a life as possible.


Applying the Theory

The equilibrium can be seen clearly within the film The Outlaw Josey Wales as we see Clint Eastwood living with his family in a very rural and happy aspect, The disruption comes when he hears sounds of horses running and finds his house burning down, his wife taken away. The Resolution comes when Clint gets revenge on the people who murdered his son and stole his wife, and the New Equilibrium comes as Clint tries to live his life as normal as possible with his wife. However it will never be the same as the original due to the loss of his son and the events that took place.

Roland Barthes Theory

Barthes theory is described that all media texts are bundles of meanings. He believes that you can read them from completely different perspectives and different people can assume different things from the same texts, his theory is consistent of 3 parts.

Open- An open text is described as having no specific end, many people can think different things about and and form their own consensus. A good example would be in The Dark Knight Rises wherein Batman dies, or so we believe. Alfred sees Bruce Wayne in a cafe and We are left to wonder whether Batman truly died.

Closed- This is when the text has only one real meaning and the audience is not free to form their own ideas, this can be seen in most Hollywood films as they are very specific on their films endings.

Polysemic- A polysemic text is when a media text has different people taking different meanings and ideas from the text. This is dependent on how they view the text. An example would be Scarface, as there are many meanings within this film and the violence is shown to be acceptable.

Barthes often refers to these Threads as being narrative codes and that the most significant of these are the Enigma, Different audiences are able to take what they want from the text and the Enigma code is normally shown in the disruption phase of Todorovs Theory.

Vladimir Propp's Theory

Propp is known for majorly for the way he can analyse characters within old folk stories. He is able to link them in away most people cannot... He established a link between old folk stories and hollywood films, having 8 main types of characters

1. Hero
2.Villain
3.Donor
4.Helper
5. Father Figure
6. Dispatcher
7. Princess
8. False hero

Applying this to films such as James Bond we can see clear links such as;

1.James Bond
2.Le Chiffre
3. Q
4.The woman that will always appear.
5. Q
6. M
7. Who he falls for
8.An inside man that we see working with bond at the start

Syd Fields Theory

Fields theory is that the narrative is always organised in three act structures, He believes that all films follow this specific theory.

1.Setup- In this first act, seen within the first 30ish minutes of the film, we learn about the main characters and how the film is setting up for the story to come. This is known as the Equilibrium within Todorovs theory.

2.Confrontation- In this act we can usually see through most of the film. The main character will try his/her bed best to solve any problems within the film and overcome any obstacles in their way. This is the midpoint in the act and shows the devastation for the main character.

3. Climax- This act we can usually see in the last quarter of the film as the main character will resolve its struggle with the villain and one will come out victorious, mostly the good guy. We are then able to see the aftermath of their problems and how they resolve them.

Strauss

Strauss' theory is based on the structure of narratives being dependent on binary opposites.