Media Theory and Design 1

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Media Theory and Design 1

• Fall 2007 Week 9
• Narrative and Form

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Morphology of the Folktale

• Vladimir Propp, 1928, deconstructing the
  components of narrative (building upon
  Aristotles ideas in Poetics
• Tales possess one special characteristic
  components of one tale can without any alteration
  whatsoever can be transferred to another

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Morphology of the Folktale

• or There are no new stories to tell
• Narrative as system with a grammar
• Narrative as equation, like signification
• Characters serve functions
• Functions are common components
• Components are limited

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Morphology of the Folktale

• All stories are updated folktales/fairy tales
• Bruno Bettelheim (1903-1990, psychologist) Role
  of folktales /fairy tales - Deal with universal
  problems, create sense out of chaos, give us hope

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Morphology of the Folktale

• Two kinds of heroes victimized and wandering
  (but never both)
• 31 functions / components

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Morphology of the Folktale

• The villain struggles against the hero.
• The donor prepares the hero or gives the hero
  some magical object.
• The (magical) helper helps the hero in the
  quest.
• The princess marries the hero, often sought for
  during the narrative.
• Her father Propp noted that functionally, the
  princess and the father can not be clearly
  distinguished.
• The dispatcher character who makes the lack
  known and sends the hero off.
• The hero or victim/seeker hero reacts to the
  donor, weds the princess.
• False hero/anti-hero/usurper takes credit for
  the heros actions or tries to marry the princess

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Morphology of the Folktale

• 1 A member of a family leaves home (the hero is
  introduced)
• 2 An interdiction is addressed to the hero
  ('don't go there', 'go to this place')
• 3 The interdiction is violated (villain enters
  the tale)
• 4 The villain makes an attempt at reconnaissance
  (either villain tries to find the children/jewels
  etc or intended victim questions the villain)
• 5 The villain gains information about the victim
• 6 The villain attempts to deceive the victim to
  take possession of victim or victim's belongings
  (trickery villain disguised, tries to win
  confidence of victim)
• 7 Victim taken in by deception, unwittingly
  helping the enemy
• 8 Villain causes harm/injury to family member (by
  abduction, theft of magical agent, spoiling
  crops, plunders in other forms, causes a
  disappearance, expels someone, casts spell on
  someone, substitutes child etc, commits murder,
  imprisons/detains someone, threatens forced
  marriage, provides nightly torments)
  Alternatively, a member of family lacks something
  or desires something (magical potion etc)
• 9 Misfortune or lack is made known, (hero is
  dispatched, hears call for help etc/ alternative
  is that victimized hero is sent away, freed from
  imprisonment)
• 10 Seeker agrees to, or decides upon
  counter-action

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Morphology of the Folktale

• 11 Hero leaves home
• 12 Hero is tested, interrogated, attacked etc,
  preparing the way for his/her receiving magical
  agent or helper (donor)
• 13 Hero reacts to actions of future donor
  (withstands/fails the test, frees captive,
  reconciles disputants, performs service, uses
  adversary's powers against him)
• 14 Hero acquires use of a magical agent (directly
  transferred, located, purchased, prepared,
  spontaneously appears, eaten/drunk, help offered
  by other characters)
• 15 Hero is transferred, delivered or led to
  whereabouts of an object of the search
• 16 Hero and villain join in direct combat
• 17 Hero is branded (wounded/marked, receives ring
  or scarf)
• 18 Villain is defeated (killed in combat,
  defeated in contest, killed while asleep,
  banished)
• 19 Initial misfortune or lack is resolved (object
  of search distributed, spell broken, slain person
  revived, captive freed)
• 20 Hero returns

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Morphology of the Folktale

• 21 Hero is pursued (pursuer tries to kill, eat,
  undermine the hero)
• 22 Hero is rescued from pursuit (obstacles delay
  pursuer, hero hides or is hidden, hero transforms
  unrecognizably, hero saved from attempt on
  his/her life)
• 23 Hero unrecognized, arrives home or in another
  country
• 24 False hero presents unfounded claims
• 25 Difficult task proposed to the hero (trial by
  ordeal, riddles, test of strength/endurance,
  other tasks)
• 26 Task is resolved
• 27 Hero is recognized (by mark, brand, or thing
  given to him/her)
• 28 False hero or villain is exposed
• 29 Hero is given a new appearance (is made whole,
  handsome, new garments etc)
• 30 Villain is punished
• 31 Hero marries and ascends the throne (is
  rewarded/promoted).

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Morphology of the Folktale

• The role of genres (sub-sets) Detective,
  suspense, sci-fi, Western, romance, fantasy, etc.
• Time
• Location
• Hero
• Heroine
• Secondary
• Villains
• Plot
• Theme
• Costume
• Locomotion
• Weaponry

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Hamlet on the Holodeck

• Narratives are narratives, with conventions
• Stories are constructed by the author and
  constructed by the reader
• Technology gives us new ways of constructing
  stories

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Hamlet on the Holodeck

• Immersion
• Agency (co-authoring / authoring)
• Choice
• Interaction
• Personalization
• Enaction
• Transformation (we become)
• Collaboration (games texts)

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Hamlet on the Holodeck

• Non-linearity (time and place)
• Akira Kurosawa, Japan, Rashomon, 1950 four
  different versions of a crime told from different
  perspectives
• Jorge Luis Borges, Argentina,The Garden of
  Forking Paths, 1941 branching (selection of
  multiple paths) - the precursor to hyperlinks?
• David Foster Wallace, U.S., Infinite Jest, 1996
  Endnotes are scattered throughout the text, a way
  of disrupting the linearity (for some readers)
  while maintaining some sense of cohesion (for
  others).

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Hamlet on the Holodeck

• 20 Master Plots Quest, Revenge, Metamorphosis,
  Sacrifice, Adventure, Riddle, Transformation,
  Discovery, Pursuit, Rivalry, Maturation, Excess,
  Rescue, Underdog, Love, Ascension, Escape,
  Temptation, Forbidden Love, Descent.

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In-class assignment

• Create tale using the 31 functions, genre
  components, 20 master plots, and the create your
  own romance formula from Chapter 7, Making Sense
  of Media

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Assignments

• Project 2 due next week (Week 10) ads examples
  of remediation
• For Week 11 (1.) bring example of viral
  media/marketing and discuss why it is viral
  (2.) bring example of sequential art and discuss
  it using examples/citations from Understanding
  Comics (3.) deconstruct the formula of the work
  according to 31 functions, genre components, 20
  master plots