pirates of the carribean
Applying Todorov’s and Propp’s narrative theories to the opening scenes of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’.
In this essay I will be discussing the theories of Tzvetan Todorov and Vladimir Propp and how they have been applied to the opening scenes of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’.
Todorov’s theory states that most films/cartoons/stories all follow this same pattern: they start off in equilibrium, there is disruption of the equilibrium, this disruption is then acknowledged and an attempt is made to restore it. At the end of the story the equilibrium has been restored however this may be a new equilibrium, different to the original.
In the opening scenes of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Todorov’s theory is applied in a number of ways. It starts in a dream/flashback type scene where Elizabeth is remembering her childhood. The dream starts off in equilibrium, Elizabeth is on a boat with her father and the crew, everyone is happy and doing as they should be. Elizabeth then notices a boy floating in the water; this then is a disruption of the equilibrium. She screams and the crewmen know that something is wrong. They pull the boy from the water in an attempt to restore the equilibrium, Elizabeth acknowledges his name, Will Turner, and discovers that he is a pirate; the fact that he is a pirate sets up a disruption of the equilibrium later in the film, however this is not yet recognised. A new equilibrium is then formed, Elizabeth looks after Will Turner and everyone is as they should be, in a new equilibrium. However, they then come across a burning pirate ship and this disrupts the new equilibrium. The dream suddenly stops as Elizabeth wakes up and the equilibrium is never restored, which could forebode something bad happening later in the film.
This is an example of Todorov’s narrative theory and how it has been used in a small section of the opening scene of the film. The film as a whole follows Todorov’s theory, encasing small sections where the theory is applied scene by
In this essay I will be discussing the theories of Tzvetan Todorov and Vladimir Propp and how they have been applied to the opening scenes of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’.
Todorov’s theory states that most films/cartoons/stories all follow this same pattern: they start off in equilibrium, there is disruption of the equilibrium, this disruption is then acknowledged and an attempt is made to restore it. At the end of the story the equilibrium has been restored however this may be a new equilibrium, different to the original.
In the opening scenes of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Todorov’s theory is applied in a number of ways. It starts in a dream/flashback type scene where Elizabeth is remembering her childhood. The dream starts off in equilibrium, Elizabeth is on a boat with her father and the crew, everyone is happy and doing as they should be. Elizabeth then notices a boy floating in the water; this then is a disruption of the equilibrium. She screams and the crewmen know that something is wrong. They pull the boy from the water in an attempt to restore the equilibrium, Elizabeth acknowledges his name, Will Turner, and discovers that he is a pirate; the fact that he is a pirate sets up a disruption of the equilibrium later in the film, however this is not yet recognised. A new equilibrium is then formed, Elizabeth looks after Will Turner and everyone is as they should be, in a new equilibrium. However, they then come across a burning pirate ship and this disrupts the new equilibrium. The dream suddenly stops as Elizabeth wakes up and the equilibrium is never restored, which could forebode something bad happening later in the film.
This is an example of Todorov’s narrative theory and how it has been used in a small section of the opening scene of the film. The film as a whole follows Todorov’s theory, encasing small sections where the theory is applied scene by