Narrative Theories

This is a scene from the franchise The Lord Of The Rings where the protagonist and his companions try to pass the mines to continue their quest.

In terms of Todorov's theory of Equilibrium, the equilibrium would have been before when the protagonist Frodo and the 'fellowship' enter the mines of Moria and try to pass.The disequilibrium would be when their quest is disturbed by orcs and later conflicted with Balrog a demon of the ancient world. Lastly, the new equilibrium is the end of the scene where Gandalf defeats the demon by throwing him off the cliff, however,  he is taken by it, leaving the others to complete the quest alone.

According to Propp's character theory, the ultimate hero in the franchise is Frodo as he is the one who has been chosen to take the ring to Mordor and destroy it. The dispatcher is Gandalf as he is the one who tells Frodo of the situation and sends him on the journey to Mordo. In the film the overall villain is Sauron however in this scene it is the orcs and Balrog (they try to end the quest and take the ring). The main donors are Bilbo (Frodo's uncle)  who gives him the sword that glows when the orcs are near so that he is able to escape. Also, Galadriel (elf) who gives Frodo a star (source of light) to help him in darkness. The helpers are the fellowship who set on his quest to help Frodo with his task but the main helper is Sam who helps Frodo till the end. It could be argued  that the princess could also be Frodo where he is tempted by the ring and so he needs to be saved from himself. In this scene, however, you could argue that Gandalf was the princess while he was fighting Balrog. Those who have seen the films will know that the false hero is Gollum who once was a hobbit but deteriorates as the result of the evil power of the ring. He begins to help Frodo and Sam but ultimately betrays them.

Barthes had the idea that there are enigma and action codes the audience understand. In this scene, the main enigma code was when the characters were running across the plank creating tension for the audience to wonder if they will get across. Also, when  Gandalf was in a battle with Balrog the audience think about whether he will survive the fight. Equally the action codes,in violence scene, when the fellowship were attacked by the orcs and they had to defend Frodo as well as themselves. For example the swords, bow and arrows etc.

This is a scene from the series Lucifer where the protagonist (Lucifer) is helping detective Chole to find out who was responsible for the murder of Delilah.


According to Todorov's theory of equilibrium, it begins with Lucifer and detective Chole who are questioning a man to confessing a murder he committed. This is interrupted when the man holds a gun and points it towards an innocent and is shot by the detective. The new equilibrium is the when the detective is shot and Lucifer throws the man in question against the glass and tortures him.


As stated by Propp, all narratives have different characters.The stereotypical villain would be Lucifer (the devil) however, in this particular scene the villain is Jimmy, the man in question responsible for the murder.The hero is arguably Lucifer as he is the main character but, could also be Chole. The helper is Lucifer/Chole who have been assigned the task of finding the killer.The helper is in the majority of this scene and throughout the series making her one of the main characters.The dispatcher could be the police who assigned them the case. The first princess is the singer who is threatened with a gun pointing towards him nevertheless, Chole is also a princess by the end of the scene as she needs saving after being shot. 

The first enigma code the audience is made aware of is when the man is being interrogated it creates tension as to what will happen next. This is then followed by action codes of guns being taken out which signifies a violent scene. Another action code is when then man's head is smashed against the glass which again implies violence as he then screams when he sees Lucifers true form.

This is a scene from Speed where the protagonist Alex must save an innocent who is being held hostage by an ex-police officer/criminal.

In terms of Todorov's theory of Equilibrium, the equilibrium would be Annie who is being kept prisoner and has a bomb attached to her. The disequilibrium is when the police officer Alex climbs the moving train to try and save her.

According to Propp's character theory, the hero in the film, as well as this scene, is Alex the police officer. The villain is Jimmy an ex-police officer. The helper is the police force but also Annie who helped save people from the previous scene. However, Annie could also be seen as the princess as she is the one who needs saving. The dispatcher would be the police force that Alex works for.

The first enigma code is when Alex is on a moving train this gives the audience the impression that he has not been noticed yet. An action code that is followed by this is the gun signifies violence to come. Another enigma code is the bomb wrapped around Annie. This creates tension on whether she will survive. Another enigma and action code is at the beginning where the villain starts to shoot at the ceiling of the train create a sense of mystery and apprehension as the audience know the hero is there and wonder whether he survives.