3 ms·

Western works (especially cinema) use this in individual scenes all the time, right? The first example wouldn't be at all out of place in the first act of a fil

by ashark 9y ago

Western works (especially cinema) use this in individual scenes all the time, right? The first example wouldn't be at all out of place in the first act of a film to show us that two people know one another, or (even more effectively) later after they've fought to show us that they're friendly again. Its use as the central structure for an entire 1.5-2hr movie, or a whole novel, say, is what's rare. [EDIT] All the examples on Wikipedia are very short, too. Is such a structure common as the central plot of a longer work anywhere? Its super-common in the West in the above use—maintaining interest in scenes that lack conflict—but again, not as the main plot structure of anything. Also, the "argument" version on WP made me realize that the thing this all reminds me of that I couldn't quite place is the syllogism

dragonwriter 9y ago
> Western works (especially cinema) use this in individual scenes all the time, right? Sometimes, probably, though conventional theories of screenwriting hold that each scene must have and be defined by a conflict whose resolution advances the plot related to the wider conflict of the piece, and that a scene which does not have a conflict or whose conflict doesn't fulfill a role in advancing the wider plot should be excised. > Also, the "argument" version on WP made me realize that the thing this all reminds me of that I couldn't quite place is the syllogism It also has some similarity to the Thesis/Antithesis/Synthesis style of rhetoric/argument, possibly closer than to the purely-deductive syllogism. But, yes, I can see that similarity, too. Interestingly, the Western 3-Act structure has been described as a special case of T/A/S structure; so, in a way, this structure may be more relatable to Western structure than the superficial differences suggest.
PeterisP 9y ago
Perhaps Magnolia http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0175880/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0175880/ with all the separate stories coming together in the end is an example?

by ashark 9y ago

dragonwriter 9y ago

> Western works (especially cinema) use this in individual scenes all the time, right? Sometimes, probably, though conventional theories of screenwriting hold that each scene must have and be defined by a conflict whose resolution advances the plot related to the wider conflict of the piece, and that a scene which does not have a conflict or whose conflict doesn't fulfill a role in advancing the wider plot should be excised. > Also, the "argument" version on WP made me realize that the thing this all reminds me of that I couldn't quite place is the syllogism It also has some similarity to the Thesis/Antithesis/Synthesis style of rhetoric/argument, possibly closer than to the purely-deductive syllogism. But, yes, I can see that similarity, too. Interestingly, the Western 3-Act structure has been described as a special case of T/A/S structure; so, in a way, this structure may be more relatable to Western structure than the superficial differences suggest.

PeterisP 9y ago

Perhaps Magnolia http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0175880/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0175880/ with all the separate stories coming together in the end is an example?