Narrative

Narrative 

Narrative is some kind of retelling often in words, of something that has happened. The Narrative is not the story itself but rather the telling of the story.

Bathes' codes: Significant items and objects, anything can happen, but don't lose the audience. (Action, symbol, enigma) He came up with the idea of signs and that they can tell us a lot of different meanings. He said that text is like a ball of thread and needs to be broken down and looked at in more detail, and that everything has multiple meanings.

Tests may be open (unravelled ending).
Texts may be closed.

Enigma code - What are characters saying, who what where why? This results in the audience wanting to see more.


Todorov: This is the theory is that every production has five stages.

1. Equilibrium (The state of normality) 
2. Distruption of the equilibrium (A character/action causes an effect which disturbs the normality)
3. The main protagonist recognises the equilibrium has been disturbed
4. Restoration of the equilibrium (The protagonist attempts to restore the equilibrium)
5. New equilibrium (Equilibrium is restored, but transformations and changes have occurred from the original equilibrium)

Propp
- All narratives have a common structure
- Shaped by characteristics

Levi-Strauss
- Good narrative is caused by opposites (Binary opposites)


The Prestige Narrative 





Top hats = Magic
Birds in cages = trapped/ freeing
Lightening = scared feeling

Enigma - Why Lighting?
Stages

• Equilibrium = normal practiced magic trick
• Disruption = people shouting/violence, reappearence of magician doesn't happen - magician gets stuck in a box of water - Murder.
• New Equilibrium  = No magician/magic potentially back to normality

Characters

• Older man
• Young Girl
• Audience
• Magician + Assistant 
• Murderer 

Opposites

• Calm narrative  Vs stressful narrative
• Caged and freedom
• Youth and elder
• Innocence and wisdom 

UP narrative 


Significant items/signs

• Clouds turn into babies
• Mailbox shows happiness 

Stages

• Disruption of Equilibrium = not being able to have a baby, not being able to go to south America, car break down, broken leg, roof falling in 
• New equilibrium = Ellie dies before him (Carl) , Carl Lives alone.

Characters

• Ellie is outgoing lively / dies first / physically different (tall and skinny)
• Carl is shy / lives on without Ellie / Physically different (Short  and stocky)

Lava Narrative

Significant items/signs

• couples/love
• Volcanoes song - about finding love = theme love

Enigma - Will he find love?

stages

• Normality - volcano all alone, singing song about love.
• Disruption - lava burns out, female lave bursts out the sea to find him.
• New equilibrium - 2 volcanoes murged in love sining about each-other.

Characters

• Male 
• Female

Opposites

• Tall skinnyVs short and wider