NARRATIVES

THE PLOT.
This is everything that is visibly and audibly present to the
audience in the text. It is what the audience observes.
THE STORY
This is all the events of the narrative. Its both explicit and implicit.
Its what the reader understands about what is happening within the
story.


A NARRATIVE
Its a chain of events in a cause and effect relationship in time.
It includes a beginning, middle and end.
The plot and story makes up a narrative however they can overlap
as the plot presents certain story events and the story goes beyond the
plot, suggesting events that the audience never witness.
NARRATIVE THEORISTS.
TZETUAN TODOROV
Todorov suggested that all narratives have five states of narrative which is
general template for most stories.
1.) A state of equilibrium.
2.) A disruption by an event.
3.) A recognition of the disorder has happened.
4.) An attempt to repair the disruption.
5.) A return of a new or different equilibrium.
An example is the well known film Finding Nemo.
A STATE OF EQUILIBRIUM
It becomes after the prologue as Nemos mother and other fish are
eaten by another vicious fish. After this we see Nemo waking his
father (Marlin) up as he is very excited for his first day of school.
They are happily living together inside an anemone.
A DISRUPTION BY AN
EVENT
Nemo is captured by a scuba diver. Nemo is then given to scuba
divers niece who is known to kill fish as she looks after them.
A RECOGNITION OF THE
DISORDER HAS HAPPENED.

The disorder is recognised by Marlin as he sees the boat driving
away. The whole ocean hears about the news and this encourages
Marlin even more to find fish that know which direction to swim.
AN ATTEMPT TO REPAIR
THE DISRUPTION.

The attempt is Marlin and Dory swimming across the ocean to
find Nemo. They face many challenges and make new friends along
the way.
A RETURN OF A NEW OR
DIFFERENT EQUILIBRIUM.

After Nemo is found he returns to school without getting bullied
because of his lucky fin. Marlin becomes friends with the other
parents and they carry on living a happy life. The other fish in the fish
tank are set free in the ocean. Dory teaches the shark that fish are
friends not food.
It shows a major change
to the new equilibrium.
VLADIMIR PROPP.
Propp suggested that narrative structure can be determined by role.
Also character roles help us understand the constructed nature of the
narrative.
Propp came up with 8 character roles and there are 31 functions to
character.
Propp helps us to understand that each character role has a purpose
within the narrative and audience identification.
8 CHARACTER ROLES.
The villain who struggles with the hero.
The hero departs on a search for the princess.
The dispatcher sends the hero on a mission.
The false hero claims to be the real hero taking all the credit.
The donor offers a gift with magical properties.
The princess known as a goal or reward who marries the hero and punishes
the villain.
The father he rewards the hero.
CLAUDE LEVI STRAUSS.
He suggests the production of meaning is depended on the idea
of binary oppositions. It involves looking at the conflict between two
qualities and understanding how the text produces meaning.
BINARY OPPOSITES IN
LORD OF THE RINGS.
Peace vs. War
Good vs. Evil
Hope vs. Fear
Nature vs. Machinery
Bravery vs. Cowardice
ROLAND BARTHES.
He argued that a narrative is told through a series of codes. The
codes are used to control the way information is given to the
audience. The two most important being
Enigma codes a narrative device that teases the audience by
presenting a puzzle or riddle that has to be solved.
Action codes a narrative device which a resolution is produced
through an action.