Stories

[kags]

I remember something at the back of my mind about there being a theory that only a certain number of basic storylines exist and all fiction is a variation on one of these basic stories. Apologies that this is a bit vague, can anybody enlighten me?

[Lotus]

Hmm, Im not really too sure about a set number of storylines, and people variating them as much as they possibly can - but there is a set structure that most fiction stories/novels etc. follow. So there are categories which are set, and the author decides how to go about them. So you would have the character dynamics, the plot dynamics, a primary and secondary storyline, a main and impact character, etc. All these categories have a number of points in them the authors chooses in accordance with his ideas. So technically, its not so much as a set number of storylines, as a sceleton of one, and the authors creates the rest within the available options... Hope this is what you meant :)

[Lotus]

Just re-read that, and it sounded a bit confusing, so have a look here http://www.dramatica.com/story/index.html
it explains what I was trying to say, with examples, etc :)

[Quizmonster]

There have long been theories that there are only three, only seven or only "howevermany" plots in literature. My personal favourite is the list of 36 created by Georges Polti. To see it and the various others click http://www.ipl.org/div/farq/plotFARQ.html

[kags]

Thanks Quizzie - I think it was the 7 plots I had in mind - fascinating stuff!

[rinkytink]

Todorov had some interesting theories on narrative structure. Here is a starting point:

http://www.adamranson.freeserve.co.uk/todorov.htm

[superloopie]

Wasn't it Plato or Aristotle? Something about there being only 5 (or 7?) basic stories in the world, everything else being simply a variation on these themes...It was some old philosopher dude anyway!

[superloopie]

just realised how pointlessly vague my answer was there...sorry!

[maxi29]

Quizmonster's excellent answer (and accompanying website) doesn't include one of the most famous of them all,. Vladimir Propp's Morphology of the Folktale. But as Propp proposes 31 plots, that doesn't fit the bill either.

[Grandmere]

Have you heard about Vladimir Propp's Morphology of the Folktale? He was a Russian professor of literature (?) who analyzed over 150 Russian folktales according to the functions performed in them. He identified 31 functions performed by 7 characters (hero, donor, villain, princess, etc.). The 31 functions may not all be in a given tale, but the ones that are in a folktale will always fall in the same order -- they cannot be shuffled. While he wrote the book in 1927, the U of Texas Press published an English translation in 1968, apparently still available. The ISBN is 0292783760, apparently going for around $16.00, but available on eBay for about $5. It is a fascinating, tiny little book, about 150 pages. I analyzed Gulliver's Travels in a grad course about 15 years ago and got an A on my paper. The most fun I ever had writing an assignment.