Narrative Theorists

Vladimir Propp

Vladimir Propp developed a character theory for studying media products such as

books, television programs and films, which says that there were 7 main character

types in the stories he studied, these findings can be applied to other media such as

our film trailer.

These 7 character types were:

The villain, who struggles to compete against the hero.

The donor, who prepares the hero or gives the hero some form of object to help them on there way.

The helper, who assists the hero in the quest.

The princess, the person the hero marries, often looked for during the narrative

The princess's father, who the hero must impress in order to win the princess.

The dispatcher, the character who sends the hero off.

The hero reacts to the donor, accepts help from the helper, weds the princess and ultimately defeats the villain.

Propp also stated that any story followed a strict pattern of functions, he states that there are 31 of these functions, they are:

Absentation

Interdiction

Violation of Interdiction

Reconnaissance

Delivery

Trickery

Complicity

Villainy and Lack

Mediation

Beginning Counter-Action

Departure

First Function of the Donor

Hero's Reaction

Receipt of Magical Agent

Guidance

Struggle

Branding

Victory

Liquidation

Return

Pursuit

Rescue

Unrecognized Arrival

Unfounded Claims

Difficult Task

Solution

Recgnition

Exposure

Transfiguration

Punishment

Wedding/Victory

Tzvetan Todorov

Tzvetan Todorov simplified narrative theory while also allowing a more detailed understanding of media products with his idea of Equilibrium and Disequilibrium.

His theory:

• The media piece starts with a state of equilibrium, where everything is as it should be.
• It then suffers some disruption, this is the disequilibrium of the piece.
• New equilibrium is produced at the end of the story-line and normality is restored.

Todorov also states that there are five stages the narrative of a story can progress through, these are:

1. A state of equilibrium (All is as it should be.)

2. A disruption of that order by an event.

3. A recognition that the disorder has occurred.

4. An attempt to repair the damage of the disruption.

5. A return or restoration of a NEW equilibrium