Narrative Theory - Todorov, Barthes, Propp, Field

Narrative Theory

The narrative theory refers to the ways in which the stories within media texts are organised and the way that the audience see them. There a few elements which have an impact on the way in which structures are organised.

Key Elements of Narrative

• Time - The time element of narrative refers to how much time the storyline covers within the film, and does not represent the amount of viewing time that the film is on for. It is the time period that the film covers from the start of the film to the end of the film. A good example of this is the film: 2001 A Space Odyssey. This film starts 50,000 years in the past and fast forwards to the future so it covers a huge time scale. 
• Closure - The closure element of narrative refers to the way that the film ends, and whether the film ends with all the problems resolved or with some questions still to be answered. Most Hollywood films usually finish with closure which means all the problems have been solved and there is no problems left. However, when a film ends without closure, it creates opportunities as it makes the audience think about the problems themselves and even allows for a sequel of the film to be made. A good example is a lot of Avengers' films as they always have questions unanswered at the end of them, which allows for lots of sequels to be made. 
• Enigma - The enigma element of narrative refers to the problems that the characters in the media text have to face and eventually have to overcome in order to get back to as close as normal as they was before. All films have enigmas because there would be story to tell if there was no enigma, and it would therefore be a pointless media text. It is important for all films to have enigmas or audience would quickly lose interest. 

Linear and Non-Linear Narratives 

All media texts face a linear or non-linear narrative. A linear narrative is when a story is observed by the audience in chronological order. There are no flashbacks or any viewing of any past events that may have occurred. Most Hollywood films have a linear narrative as they are the simplest to make and understand for the audience. They have a clear starting point and have a definitive ending point. There are very few subplots within the film and they try to achieve closure as best as they can. 

A non-linear narrative is a media text that doesn't take place in chronological order and the order of events is not the correct order. A good example of this is the film Pulp Fiction, in which the film starts with the aftermath of an event that takes place in a cafe, and then during the film, one of the main characters dies. Then, at the end of the film, the character who died earlier, is seen in the same cafe and the events that take place happen before the opening scene. It leads to a very complex storyline which can be hard to understand.

Tzvetas Todorov Theory

This man from Bulgaria has his own theory about the way that he sees media texts, and that most films and music video usually have this structure to them. There are 4 stages of this structure. These are:

• Equilibrium - This is always at the start of the media text, of where everything is normal and well in the characters life. They are usually happy, and are getting on with life as normal without any problems to deal with. 
• Disruption - This is when the Equilibrium is disrupted by the villain causing a problem for the main characters. A disruption disrupts the flow of normal events for the main character and the disruption causes enigmas (problems) for the main characters. 
• Resolution - The resolution is when the main character solves the main problems within the film and overcomes the villain and all obstacles that have been put in front of them. 
• New Equilibrium - This is always the end of the media text, when the problems have been made and have been resolved. The main characters are trying to get back to normal again, and have learned from their past experiences. 

Applying Todorovs Theory to a Media Text - The Outlaw Josey Wales

Equilibrium - The Equilibrium in this film is when Clint Eastwood and his son are walking through the woods with his horse, enjoying spending time together.

Disruption - The Disruption in this film is when the boy runs off, and then Clint begins to hear sounds of horses running, and he starts to sense danger.

Resolution - The Resolution in this film is when Clint will get revenge on the people who killed his son and abducted his wife, and finds out the answers to the enigmas/problems in the film

New Equilibrium - The New Equilibrium in this film will be when Clint gets his wife back, when he has exacted revenge on the villains in the film, and then he starts to adjust back to normal life again, but it is different from the first equilibrium because of certain consequences and experiences that he has learnt from.

Roland Barthes Theory

Roland Barthes Theory was that he described all media texts as being complete bundles of meanings. He said that texts can be read from different perspectives, and different people can get different ideas and meanings from absorbing the same text. He also described texts as being in 3 different ways:

• Open - An Open text is when the media text has no definitive end, and many people can think different things about it, and make up their own conclusions. An example of this is the film "The Dark Knight Rises". When it appears that Batman has died, Alfred sees "Bruce Wayne" in a cafe with a woman, but the audience is left to wonder whether it is actually real, or whether Alfred is dreaming. There are numerous "threads to pull as there are no definite endings to the text.
• Closed - A Closed text is when there is only one real meaning in the film, and all audience members are only pulling at one thread. There is a definitive conclusion to the media text, and there are no questions at the end of it. The majority of Hollywood films have closed endings.
• Polysemic - A Polysemic text is a media text of which different people can get different meanings and different ideas from the text that they have absorbed, depending on how they see the text. An example of this is the film: Scarface. There are many different meanings that can be given to this film. One meanings that can be given is that it could show how violence is made to look good and acceptable. Another meanings that can be taken from is that it can showcase how the 1980's were like. The story of being greedy and doing anything it takes to get money. 

Barthes referred to these "threads" as being narrative codes. The most important/significant of these codes was the enigma code because this is where most of the different meanings can occur from, and different audiences can interpret the media text in different ways. The enigma code is normally shown in the disruption phase of Todorovs theory.

Vladimir Propp's Theory

Vladimir Propp is known for the ways that he was able to analyse characters in folk stories, and see the similarities in all of them. He then looked at films and saw the similarities between characters in folk stories and characters used in films. He noticed that most Hollywood films contained the same 8 different kinds of characters which all play their own role. The 8 roles are:

1. Hero
2. Villain
3. Donor
4. Helper
5. Father Figure
6. Dispatcher
7. Princess
8. False Hero - Shows his/her true colours

When applying this theory to the James Bond films, we can see that this is true.

1. James Bond
2. Jaws, Le Chiffre etc.
3.  Q - He provides Bond with all of his weapons.
4.  The woman who always meets Bond and helps him on his missions.
5.  Q
6.  M
7.  The woman who he falls in love with.
8. Usually a secret agent who secretly works with the enemy. E.G. Rosamund Pike in Die Another Day. 

Syd Fields Theory 

Syd Fields theory was that narrative stories were always organised in the three act structure. He believed that all films followed this theory. The three acts were:

1. Setup - In this act, usually the first 20 or 30 minutes of the film is setup learning about the main characters within the film and setting the scene for the story coming ahead. This would be known as the equilibrium in Todorov's theory. Also in the setup act, the main character learns about the problems that he/she will face and this gives the character a problem of which he/she will intend to overcome later in the film.
2. Confrontation - In this act which usually takes up the most time in a film, the main character is trying his/her best to solve the main problem within the film and overcoming any obstacles that is needed in order to achieve that goal. We see the struggle that the main character has in being able to keep calm and be able to solve the problem. There is a often a midpoint in this act which shows a devastation for the main character. This could be in the form of the character getting captured or someone close to him dies. 
3. Climax - In this act which usually takes place at the last quarter of the film, we see the main character have a real struggle with the villain in order to overcome their problems and solve their enigmas. We also get to see the aftermath of the problems, and how the main character has changed and learnt from these problems. 

Levi-Strauss also argued that a structure of narratives or the way that a story is told is dependent on binary opposites being showcased.