Media language: narrative. Todorov's equilibrium, disruption and new equilibrium; Propp's character functions; and Levi-Strauss's binary oppositions as the structural carriers of meaning and ideology.

What this dot point is asking

Within media language, OCR names three narrative theorists: Todorov, Propp and Levi-Strauss. You need to know each model, choose the one that fits a product, and show how narrative structure does more than tell a story: it shapes the audience's understanding and can carry ideology.

The answer

Todorov: equilibrium and disruption

The pleasure and engagement come from the disruption: audiences are pulled forward to see how the problem is resolved. The new equilibrium is rarely identical to the first, so the narrative implies change or learning.

Propp: character functions

Propp argues that across many stories the same character functions recur, roles defined not by personality but by what they do for the plot:

• Hero: seeks something or restores order.
• Villain: creates the disruption and opposes the hero.
• Donor: provides the hero with something needed (an object, knowledge, power).
• Helper: aids the hero.
• Princess (and her father): the reward or goal, often a person to be won or saved.

Spotting these functions reveals the underlying machinery of a narrative and how characters are positioned for the audience.

Levi-Strauss: binary oppositions

Levi-Strauss argues that meaning is generated through binary oppositions: conflicting pairs that structure the narrative, such as good versus evil, civilisation versus savagery, us versus them or order versus chaos. Crucially, the oppositions are rarely balanced: one side is usually privileged and the other devalued. This is how narrative carries ideology, by making certain values appear right or natural and others wrong or threatening.

Examples in context

A strong narrative answer selects the theory that suits the product, applies it to named moments, and shows how the structure positions the audience and embeds values, rather than reciting all three theories in turn.

Try this

Q1. Explain Todorov's theory of narrative equilibrium. [5 marks]

• What the marker wants. The three stages (equilibrium, disruption, new equilibrium) and the idea that the new equilibrium differs from the first (AO1), ideally with a brief media example.

Q2. Analyse how binary oppositions create meaning in one set product you have studied. [10 marks]

• Cue. Name the oppositions (Levi-Strauss), say which side is privileged, and explain the value or ideology this encodes for the audience (AO2).