1.12 Reading

Part 1

Work in pairs. Discuss these questions

1 Have you ever read a book or seen a film and thought the plot was very similar to another film/ book?
2 Which films/ books were they? How were they similar?
3 Did it bother you? Why?/ Why not?

Here is the first part of an article about common plots. Read it and then answer the questions in pairs

Take the first plot, which he calls Overcoming the Monster. There are ancient stories like the Greek myth of Theseus killing the monstrous Minotaur and Biblical stories like David defeating the giant Goliath. More recently, we’ve had Dracula, the films Jaws and Star Wars and thrillers like James Bond, where the monster is a baddie who wants to rule the world. All these stories contain almost exactly the same elements.
In this plot, there’s a community threatened by a monster — and a hero who is called to save them. The hero prepares to meet the monster, a process which often includes being given some special weapon or being told of a particular weakness that the monster has — its fatal flaw. To begin with, as the hero approaches where the monster lives, everything goes according to plan. However, when the hero finally sees the monster for the first time, they realize the huge challenge they face. Things start to go wrong and they end up trapped. They’re about to be killed when at the last moment they make an amazing escape.
They then succeed in destroying the monster  — usually with the help of the special weapon they’ve been given or by taking advantage of the monster’s only weakness.
It makes you wonder if any story is really original.

1 Why does the writer claim we often find films predictable?
2 What are the main stages of the Overcoming the Monster plot? Can you think of any other similar stories?
3 Can you think of any examples of:
— famous monsters / baddies?
— fatal flaws that monsters/ baddies have?
— the kinds of huge challenges heroes can face?

Part 2

Christopher Booker identified seven basic plots — and you have seen one outline. Work in three groups, A, B and C. Each person in each group will now read two more basic plots.

Rags to riches

You could call this the Cinderella story. To begin with, our hero is a nobody, generally bullied and abused by the people around them. However, we learn about a talent or a secret dream they have, which is often shared by a ‘dark’ rival. Early in the story, an event provides an initial breakthrough for the hero, suggesting they can reach their goal. However, the hero then suffers a series of setbacks, which sends them into despair. Subsequently, usually with the help of a friend, they begin to change and to believe in themselves as individuals until they finally face their rival and show how superior they are. At the end of the story, the hero gets their riches and usually also gets their ‘prince charming’ or princess.

The quest

The hero in this case is living in the place that is under threat -often because something inside the society itself is corrupting it. The hero is visited by a ghost or has a dream and is told to go on a long, difficult journey in order to seek the thing that will save their community. The hero sets off with some friends and along the way they have to fight monsters, resist the temptation to join some dark force, or pass through a dangerous area. They are usually helped by some wise old man, beautiful woman or spirit. Having been through lots of ordeals, the hero finally gets to their destination only to find they have to do three tests or deal with some other difficulty before reaching their goal. Having passed these final tests, the quest is complete, the kingdom is saved and they often also win the hand in marriage of the prince or princess.

! be bullied: if you are bullied, you are repeatedly scared or hurt by people bigger and stronger than you.
! rival: a rival is a person / team / company that you are competing with.
! breakthrough: if you make a breakthrough, you start being successful at something — or achieve something
! despair: despair is the feeling that things are terrible and that there is nothing you can do to change them.
! quest: a quest is a long and difficult search for something
! corrupt: if a society or person is corrupted, they have been encouraged to do dishonest or immoral things.
! resist temptation: if you resist temptation, you manage not to do something you want to do, but which could be bad for you.
! ordeal: an ordeal is a very bad experience you have for a period of time

Rebirth

This plot is similar to tragedy in that the ‘hero’ is essentially someone who becomes isolated, mean or heartless. This happens because they are influenced by some evil figure, are badly treated by someone or are wrongly accused of something. The pain of this leads into a downward spiral of hatred and obsession. Sometimes these influences are revealed later in the story through flashbacks to their earlier life. Unlike the main character in a tragedy, however, the ‘hero’ is finally saved because they come into contact with a younger, more innocent person who makes them see the deadness of their life. The hero changes and begins to live again.

Voyage and return

In the voyage and return story, the heroes find themselves transported to another world, without really knowing why. At the beginning of the story, there’s usually something wrong with the hero-they’re bored or innocent. or arrogant, etc. Then, by chance, they’re thrown into a different world. This could be a fantasy world, another country, or simply a very different social setting from the one they are used to. At first, they find things difficult but this new place quickly becomes enjoyable, offering lots of possibilities. However, after a while, the hero becomes trapped or corrupted by the place, and it may threaten their life. The hero finally manages to escape, often by recognising flaws in their own character or how they have hurt other people.

! isolated: if you become isolated, you end up on your own, with no friends to support or to help you.
! be accused of: if you are accused of doing something wrong, someone says that you did it.
! downward spiral: if you enter a downward spiral, you go into a situation that gets worse and worse.
! flashbacks: flashbacks are the parts of books/ plays / films where you see what happened in an earlier time.
! be transported: if you are transported to another place (or time), you are moved there somehow.
! corrupted: if a person becomes corrupted by a place, it influences them in a bad way and makes them do dishonest or immoral things
! flaws: your flaws are the faults in your character (or appearance)

Comedy

Obviously, comedies are about making people laugh, but nearly all comic stories share common themes. A couple or a group get separated because of a misunderstanding or because they are unaware of their true needs or characters. Through a series of events, the characters start to realise who they truly love and / or how they have behaved badly. These events involve the heroes wearing disguises at some point, pretending to be someone different, and further silly misunderstandings that result in a terrible mess. In the end, everything is resolved. Any baddie who refuses to change is exposed for what they are and is laughed at or punished in some way, while the couple get together — often in the form of a wedding — whilst everybody else lives happily ever after.

Tragedy

Tragedy is a bit like the Overcoming the Monster story, but seen from the monster’s perspective. At the beginning, we see a noble or talented person who, despite being successful, feels their life is incomplete and still wants something more. They are presented with an opportunity to fulfil their desires, but this generally requires breaking some kind of law. At first, they get away with this crime, but new obstacles soon appear and they are forced to commit further, often more violent, crimes until the situation gets totally out of control. The hero has become a monster and is finally destroyed either by committing suicide or by someone seeking revenge.

! get separated: if you get separated from people you are with, you accidentally lose them — often in a crowded place.
! disguise: a disguise is something you wear to change the way; you look — so that people won’t recognize you.
! resolve: if problems are resolved, a good solution is found.
! be exposed: if a person is exposed as a liar / cheat / bad; person etc, the truth about them is finally revealed — for all to see.
! fulfil your desires: if you fulfil your desires, you achieve what you wanted to — or get what you really wanted.
! get away with: if you get away with a crime or with doing something wrong you are not caught or punished for it.
! obstacles: obstacles are problems or difficulties that stop you from getting where you want to be — or getting something you want.
! seek revenge: if you seek revenge you want to hurt, punish or kill someone — because they have done something similar to you.

Try to remember in which plot someone:

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Complete the sentences about books and films with words from exercise.

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