Basic plots and empathy

BASIC PLOTS SUMMARISED

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Basic mega plot: 5 stages presents in each story

Anticipation stage Dream stage Frustration

stageNightmare

stage Resolution

The call to adventure, and the promise of what is

to come

The heroine or hero experiences some

initial success - everything seems to

be going well, sometimes with a

dreamlike sense of invincibility

First confrontation with the real

enemy. Things begin to go wrong

At the point of maximum dramatic tension, disaster has erupted and it seems

all hope is lost

The hero or heroine is eventually victorious,

and may also be united or reunited

with their ‘other half’

(a romantic partner)

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Plot 1: Overcoming the Monster


stageNightmare

stage Resolution

The call Initial success Confrontation Final ordealMiraculous

escape, death of the monster

Examples: Perseus, Theseus, Beowulf, Dracula, War of the Worlds, Nicholas Nickleby, The Guns of Navarone, Seven Samurai/The Magnificent Seven, James

Bond, Star Wars: A New Hope

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Plot 2: Rags to riches


stageNightmare

stage Resolution

Initial Wretchedness

at Home

Out into the World

The Central Crisis

Independence Final Union,

Completion and Fulfillment

Examples: Cinderella, Aladdin, Jane Eyre, Great Expectations, David Copperfield

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Plot 3: The Quest


stageNightmare

stage Resolution

The Call (Oppressed in the City of Destruction)

The Journey (Ordeals of the Hero/Heroine &

Companions)May include some or all

of the following:a. Monsters

b. Temptationsc. The Deadly Opposites

d. The Journey to the Underworld

Arrival and Frustration

The Final Ordeals

The Goal (Kingdom,

Other Half or Elixir won)

Examples: The Odyssey, Pilgrim’s Progress, King Solomon’s Mines, Watership Down

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Plot 4: Voyage & Return


stageNightmare

stage Resolution

Anticipation Stage (‘Fall’

into the Other World)

Initial Fascination

(Dream Stage)

Frustration Stage

Nightmare Stage

Thrilling Escape and

Return

Examples: Alice in Wonderland, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Orpheus, The Time Machine, Peter Rabbit, Brideshead Revisited, The

Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Gone with the Wind, The Third Man (1948)

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Plot 5: Tragedy


stageNightmare

stage Resolution

Anticipation Stage (Greed

or Selfishness)

Dream Stage Frustration

Stage Nightmare

Stage

Destruction or Death Wish

Stage

Examples: Macbeth, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Carmen, Bonnie & Clyde, Jules et Jim, Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, Julius Caesar

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Plot 6: Rebirth

Anticipation stage

Dream stageFrustration

stageNightmare

stageResolution

Under the Shadow

A young hero or heroine falls

under the shadow

of a dark power

The Threat Recedes

Everything seems to go well for a

while - the threat appears to have

receded

The Threat ReturnsEventually the threat approaches again in

full force, until the hero or heroine is

seen imprisoned in a

state of living death

The Dark Power Triumphant

The state of living death continues for a long time when it

seems the dark power has completely

triumphed

Miraculous Redemption

If the imprisoned person is a heroine,

redeemed by the hero; if a hero, by a

young woman or

child

Examples: Sleeping Beauty, The Frog Prince, Beauty and the Beast, The Snow Queen, A Christmas Carol, The Secret Garden, Peer Gynt

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Other plots: The mystery • Begins by posing a riddle, usually

through the revelation that some baffling crime has been committed. Central figure unravels the riddle.

• Examples: Bel and the Dragon, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie

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Other plots: Rebellion Against ‘The One’

• A solitary hero/heroine finds themselves being drawn into a state of resentful, mystified opposition to some immense power, which exercises total sway over the world of the hero. Initially they feel they are right and the mysterious power is at fault, but suddenly the hero/heroine is confronted by the power in its awesome omnipotence.

• The rebellious hero/heroine is crushed and forced to recognize that their view had been based only on a very limited subjective perception of reality. They accept the power’s rightful claim to rule.

• Example: The Book of JobDark version: Brave New World, 1984

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Other plots: The challenge plot• The main character overcomes

daunting challenges and succeeds.• “Challenge plots appeal to our

perseverance and courage. They make us want to work harder, take on new challenges, and overcome obstacles. They inspire us to act

• Examples: David and Goliath, Rocky

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Other plots: The Connection plot• People develop a relationship

that bridges a gap—racial, class, ethnic, religious, demographic, or otherwise. Connection plots make us want to help others, be more tolerant of others, work with others, and love others

• Example: Titanic, belle and the best

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Other plots: Creativity plot• The Creativity plot involves

someone making a mental breakthrough, solving a longstanding puzzle, or attacking a problem in an innovative way. Creativity plots make us want to do something different, to be creative, and to experiment with new approaches

• Examples: MacGyver, the Goonies

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Empathy is often created by introducing drama to an otherwise perfect life

Wall-e’s is a like the most honest and cutest child / pet and he is

extremely lonely, craving someone to be in his live

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Creating empathy for characters

Bambi’s mother gets killed by a hunter

Cinderella is treated like a slave by her own family

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Happy feet is rejected from his community by his own

family

The innocent Snow white is wanted dead by a jealous

princess

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Harry Potter is the most miserable, lonely boy you can imagine. He’s shunned by his

relatives, the Dursley’s, that have raised him since he was an infant. He’s forced to live in the cupboard under the stairs, forced to wear his cousin Dudley’s hand-me-down clothes, and forced to go to his neighbour’s house

when the rest of the family is doing something fun. Yes, he’s just about as

miserable as you can get.

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What they have in common• They all are innocent archetypes• They are genuinely good, but bad things happen to

them• They go through a crisis (conflict) before its

resolution, creating empathy

• Innocent archetypes without crisis / conflicts do not create empathies

Basic plots and empathy

Economy & Finance

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