narrative

Narrative - The retelling of a story

Barthes' Codes- Significant items and objects.

Example - enigma code
What are key characters showing (who, what, why, where?)

Aristotle - A famous Greek philosopher. He stated that all stories need a beginning, middle and end, and created a template for this.

Todorov - theorized that each narrative passed five stages:
Equilibrium - the state of normality.
Disruption of equilibrium - a character or action or action which disrupts the state of normality.
Main protagonist recognises that the equilibrium has been disrupted.
Restoration of equilibrium- The protagonist attempts to restore the equilibrium.
New equilibrium - Equilibrium is restored, but transformations and changes have occurred from the original equilibrium.

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

Levi-Strauss
- good narrative is caused by opposites (binary opposites such as male/female, good/evil)

Up narrative:
Significant items/signs-Clouds, mailbox, picnic basket

Narrative

For a good impact on the audience when they are watching the opening scene of a film there are three main theories that film makers use and they are all to do with Barthes' codes. one of the theories is action, the action in this film opening is the growth of the relation ship in age and love, action happens throughout the opening but there is a 10 second build up to each action  part such as finding out there is a child on the way and then the Acton is that the child is lost and then comes the loss.