Narrative Theories

By Maud Start

I have researched narrative theories and have found that the Narrative Theory that suits our movie the most is Todorov's theory.

His theory involves the simple pattern of:

EQUILIBRIUM

DISRUPTION

RECOGNITION OF DISRUPTION

REPAIR

EQUILIBRIUM

However, because our movie fits under the genre 'Thriller' the first and last point must be changed as a thriller involves equilibrium is not very exciting. There will at some point be equilibrium, yet it will soon switch back to disruption in order to keep the thriller feeling fresh. Our movie will start with a calm beginning, the girl walking in the woods, with flash backs, that let the audience know that something is wrong, however the disruption will soon be found out, that the girl killed her grandmother, somebody will recognise it, and attempt to repair it, for a while there will be equilibrium, soon turning straight back to disruption.

Another theory I researched was Propp's theory, this involves a set 7 characters, that apparently are present in every story, there is the Hero (protagonist), Donor (who gives an item), the Villain (antagonist), Helper, Dispatcher, Heroine and the False Hero. In our movie we have a villain, a victim, and an antagonist, but the remaining characters are less clear cut. For this reason I feel that our movie does not fit to Propp's theory.