(Term 1: Week 5)
This week we learned about the important of story arcs and character types in film. Below are some notes that I have taken during the lecture.
Story Circle
- You: A character is in a zone of comfort
- Need: They want something
- Go: They enter an unfamiliar situation
- Search: Adapt to it
- Find: Get what they wanted
- Take: Pay a heavy price for it
- Return: Then return to their familiar situation
- Change: Having changed
Story Arc
Character Types
Protagonist: The main character.
Antagonist: The opposite of main character, usually an enemy and threat.
Dynamic: Character that grows and change throughout the story.
Static: The opposite of dynamic character, doesn’t change and fixed.
Round: Well developed characters, realistic with emotions, thoughts and feelings.
Flat: The opposite of round character, lack of depth and development.
Archetypes
Hero
- Protagonist or central character.
- Separate from the ‘ordinary world’.
- Sacrifice himself for the service of the journey at hand.
- Answers the challenge.
- Completes the quest and restores the ‘ordinary world’s’ balance.
- We experience the journey through the eyes of hero.
Mentor
- Provides motivation.
- Provides insights.
- Provide training to help the hero.
Threshold Guardian
- Protects the ‘special world’ and it’s secrets from the hero.
- Provides essential test to prove a hero’s commitment and worth.
Herald
- Issues challenges.
- Announces the coming of significant change.
- Can make their appearance anytime during a journey, but often appear at the beginning of the journey to announce a call to adventure.
- A character may wear the herald’s mask to make an announcement or judgement.
- The herald need not be a person. It can be an event or force: the start of a war, a drought or famine, or even an ad in a newspaper.
Shapeshifter
- The shapeshifter’s mask misleads the hero by hiding a character’s intentions and loyalties.
- The shapeshifter’s alliances and loyalty are uncertain, and the sincerity of his claims is often questionable. This keeps the hero off guard.
Shadow
- Can represent our darkest desires, our untapped resources, or even rejected qualities.
- Frequently sees himself as a hero, and the story’s hero as his villain.
- The hero’s enemies and villains often wear the shadow mask.
- This physical force is determined to destroy the hero and his cause.
Trickster
- Relish the distruption of the status quo, turning the ‘ordinary world’ intro chaos with their quick turns of phrase and physical antics.
- Although they may not change during the course of their journeys, their world and its inhabitants are transformed by their antics.
- The trickster uses laughter and ridicule to make characters see the absurdity of the situation, and perhaps force a change.
Allies (sidekicks)
- Represent the virtues of the hero.
- Can be individual or can be a team.
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Film Analysis: The Lord of The Ring Trilogy
Movie Summary
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, starting an epic set in the fictional world of Middle-earth. The story begins with an introduction of the first character, Bilbo Baggins, a Hobbit which is a small, kindly race about half the size of Men living in the Shire, the part of Middle-earth that is the Hobbits’ home. He wandering deep inside the cave when he stumbles upon a ring and takes it back with him to his home. While he is unaware that the ring is the One Ring that has been long searched by Sauron, all he know is the ring causes him to become invisible when he’s wearing it.
Bilbo knew that the ring give him the sense of strangely greedy feeling and thats when he decided to give up and gives the ring to his heir, his cousin Frodo Baggins. Bilbo long lost friend, Gandalf the Grey, a great Wizard suspects that the ring is indeed the One Ring of legend. After confirming his suspicions, he tells Frodo that the ring must be taken away from the Shire, as Sauron’s power is growing once again. The journey begins with Frodo accompanied by three of his Hobbit friends – Sam, Merry, and Pippin to sets out from the Shire and throw the Ring into the fires of Mount Doom, Mordor.
Story Arc
You: Frodo Baggins, a small Hobbits living peacefully in the Shire. Frodo does not consider himself particularly heroic, but the job must be done and he is the only person available. Frodo can be seen lacks all the usual features of heroism. However, he is gifted with such quality as common sense, a good heart, and the determination to do his best.
Need: He inherit the one Ring from his cousin and being told to bring the ring to the Mount of Doom, Mordor in order to destroy it.
Go: Frodo and his Hobbit friends pursued by the nine Ringwraiths, servants of Sauron known as Black Riders along the way. In effort to save the hobbits, Gandalf brings them to the unfamiliar realms of Elves. The hobbits spend a night in the company of wandering Elves who promise to protect the hobbits.
Search: Frodo and the hobbits meet Aragorn, a Ranger who roams the wilderness and who is the heir of the King of Gondor. Frodo puts on the Ring, revealing himself to the Black Riders and get stab with a blade of evil enchantment, and he nearly dies as they race for Rivendell, another realms of Elves.
Find: In Rivendell, Frodo has been saved by the wise Elrond which has worked his healing magic. Frodo and his friends continue the task of carrying the Ring to Mordor, and a company called the Fellowship of the Ring has been selected to help and protect him with the journey.
Take: As the journey to Mordor become dangerous, Frodo and his friend Sam has been separated with their fellowships. Travelling towards the Mordor, they got lost and met Gollum which following them to get the ring. Gollum has led them to the lair of Shelob of a giant evil spider. Frodo got attack by the spider but he manage to save himself with the aid of Galadriel’s gift, a phial containing the pure light of elven stars. Meanwhile, the battle between man, the Elves and Orc the Sauron’s army is happened at the Two Towers.
Return: Frodo and Sam begin the final stage of the journey across the desert wasteland of Mordor. Aragorn distracted Sauron from any attempt to reach Mount Doom and after a long struggle, Frodo and Sam reach the slopes of Mount Doom. While Gollum reappears and attacks Frodo, he struggles and wrest with Frodo on the edge of the pit. Gollum managed to get the Ring from Frodo’s hand, but as he joyfully dance, Gollum accidentally falls into the volcano with the ring. Sauron’s enormous army, got defeated and Aragorn takes the throne and become the King of Gondor.
Change: Frodo and his Hobbit friends return home to the Shire. The world hails them as heroes for destroying the Ring and Sauron. As Merry, Pippin, and Sam moving on from the experiences, Frodo remains detached and saddened, permanently damaged by his experiences with the Ring. Frodo decided to sails with the elves to the Undying Lands to start a new life.
Timeline of The Main Character (Frodo Baggins)
Character Archetypes
Hero / Protagonist: Frodo Baggins is the main character in The Lord of The Ring Trilogy. He eventually got involves in a dangerous yet exciting adventure when he inherit the Ring from his older cousin. He never knew what lies ahead him when he accept the task given by Gandalf the Wizard to bring the Ring and destroy it in the fires of Mount of Doom in Mordor. With the helps of his fellowships, he is able to bring the quest to end.
Allies / Loyalty: Sam Gamgee is defined as a Hobbit with qualities of loyalty, humility, and down-to-earth. Sam provides the motivation to Frodo despite his status as common class man compare to Frodo who comes from the rich landed class. Sam stay with Frodo until the end of task and become parts of Frodo successful journey.
Trickster / Second Protagonist: Bilbo Baggins, is a hobbit of the Shire and the secondary character in The Lord of The Ring. He is the older cousin of Frodo Baggins and was once the bearers of the One Ring, and the first to voluntarily give it up, although with some difficulty. Bilbo travels to Rivendell and visits the dwarves of the Lonely Mountain before returning to retire at Rivendell and write books.
Trickster / Static: Pippin, together with his companion Merry, represents the entire Hobbit race. They are not typical adventure hero, but they shows a firmness of purpose and a quick-wittedness that make them a valuable member of the Fellowship.
Mentor / Dynamic: Gandalf The Grey is second to Saruman in the Order of wizards. He visited the Shire frequently, and encounter with the missing history of the One Ring. He led Frodo and the fellowship of the rings through the whole journeys. During the journey, Gandalf fight with Balrog of Morgoth, a servant of the first dark lord. Balrog’s whip lashed out, and grasped Gandalf by the knees, causing him to fall into the pit. He was sent back to mortal lands, and was granted the power to reveal more of his inner strength and rise again as Gandalf The White. He continued looking for the fellowship and guide them in the Great War.
Threshold Guardian / Dynamic: Aragorn is the heir to the throne of Gondor, but at the beginning of the trilogy, he hides this identity. As the Trilogy focus in Frodo quest, it is also tells Aragorn’s path to becoming king. As Aragorn gains confidence and self-awareness through his courageous support of Frodo and the rest of the fellowship, he fully embraces his role as king and commits himself to the role of king and gains his first followers.
Shadow / Antagonist: Sauron is the main antagonist, through the forging of the One Ring. At first glance Sauron does not appear to have much depth as a character. He much more being seen in a symbol, which was the Eye of Sauron. After centuries lying dormant, he rebuild his strength, and returned to power late in the Third Age, but was permanently vanished in the War of the Ring after destruction of the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom by Frodo Baggins.
Shapeshifter / Round: Gollum desires the Ring to accomplish his goals and believes that he cannot survive without it. He is quite talkative and comfortable around people, but sometimes his behaviour is so antisocial and violent. Gollum encounter with Frodo and Sam and trying to separate those two in order to obtain the Ring. As Smeagol, he was a deceptive, selfish murderer before the Ring even came to find itself. Gollum’s inner conflict make him struggle and easy to bound by the will of the Ring. He later dies together with the ring in the fires of Mount Doom.