Todorov's and Propp's Theory

Todorov’s Theory of Equilibrium and Disequilibrium: 

1) Equilibrium: Everything is how it should be.
2) Disequilibrium: The state of the equilibrium has been disrupted.
3) Recognition: It is recognized that a disruption has occurred.
4) Fixing the Problem: An attempt is made to fix the problem.
5) A New Equilibrium: Everything is how it should be again,although there may be a few differences.



An example of Todorov's theory is in the 2005 Thriller, The descent. We can see the equilibrium of the narrative when the characters are seen rafting. They are all shown having a laugh and a good time as a close group of friends. The disruption from this point is when the central character, Sarah is in the car with her husband and daughter. Their car comes into collision with another van and her husband and daughter are killed. Sarah soon wakes in hospital to find out that they are dead, this is the recognition stage of this part in the narrative. Sarah and her friends soon begin to try and repair their lives and relationships by setting out on another team adventure, caving. There then is a scene where the group of girls are in a cabin camping for the night, it could be debated that this is the new equilibrium for the characters as they are having a laugh and good time again and rebuilding relationships. From this point, the process starts again and there is an equilibrium where the girls are setting off to the caves. They are enjoying themselves and looking forward to do a new activity. As the girls enter the caves and begin to explore them a disruption occurs when the characters find out that Juno has taken them to a completely different cave than they were meant to and they are lost. This also involves the recognition as they realise what has happened and that they are lost. In their attempt to repair the situation they begin to work together to try and find their way out of the caves. Their is no new equilibrium at this point as the characters struggle to do so. The whole narrative of The Descent is full of little cycles of Todorov’s narrative. With the characters becoming trapped under rocks etc. However, the main Disruption of the film is when the creatures in the caves are discovered and they begin to hunt and kill the characters. There is a strong recognition stage as the characters realise what is happening and begin to repair by trying to kill and escape the caves in order to survive. It is again very debatable whether there is a new equilibrium at the end of the film as all the characters are dead apart from Sarah. However, Sarah is lastly shown staring at an illusion of her daughter. She seems content and this could be seen as her personal equilibrium as she has accepted the situation she’s in and seems happy just to see her daughter again



Propp's Character Theory:

• The Hero – a character that seeks something.
• The Villain – who tries to oppose the hero.
• The Donor – provides an object of significant power.
• The Dispatcher – who sends the hero on his/her quest via a message.
• The False hero – who disrupts the hero’s journey by making false claims.
• The Helper – who aids the hero.
• The Princess – acts as a reward for the hero.
• Her Father – who acts to reward for the hero.

 This can be seen in the 1977 Science fiction film, Star Wars, A new hope.

• The Hero – Luke Skywalker, he looks to become a Jedi and defeat the evil Darth Vader.
• The Villain – Darth Vader, he looks to rein terror across the galaxy and defeat Luke Skywalker.
• The Donor – Obi-Wan Kenobi presents Luke with a Lightsaber, a weapon only worthy of a Jedi.
• The Dispatcher – R2D2, he lands near Luke’s home with a message from Princess Leia.
• The Princess – Leia, The princess of Alderaan, needs saving from the Empire.
• The Helper – Han Solo, alongside Chewbacca he accompanies Luke on missions.
• The Father – Darth Vader, acting as the evil Dark Lord, he isn’t revealed to be the father until later on.