Category Archives: Dramatica

Stories with Forewarnings about “The Past”

Forewarnings indicate the consequences are getting closer and therefore imperiling the goal. The following stories have forewarnings pertaining to “The Past”.

Reservoir Dogs: Mr. Orange relates an imagined incident from his past, in which ironically, a roomful of good guys (cops) couldn’t tell he was a bad guy; in the warehouse, he is the only good guy in a roomful of bad guys.

X-Files: Beyond the Sea: In the past Boggs was scheduled to be executed. He was put through the ritual of the last meal and marched to the gas chamber. He remembers that the souls of his family who he had murdered after their last meal watched him eat his last meal that day. He’s terrified of experiencing the agony of facing his victims and going to that cold place in death. Boggs’ past threatens to repeat itself and death threatens to touch Jim and Liz, and Mulder when he’s shot.

From the Dramatica Software

Story Structure in the Real World: The Past as a Forewarning

Forewarnings are the dramatic indicators that the story consequence is closing in and the goal is more in peril.  In a given story structure, all the forewarnings will pertain to the same kind of thing, such as cracks forming in a dam.

In some structures, forewarnings pertain to the past:

For example, discovering that the inhabitants of a stone age village that is being excavated died of a mysterious virus; finding love letters written by your spouse before you were married that are addressed to one of your friends with whom your spouse is currently working on a business project; seeing pictures of yourself in a hidden family album that lists you by a different name; learning that, historically, all the women in a family have died of breast cancer, etc.

From the Dramatica Software

Dramatica Definition: Physics

Physics • [Class] • dyn.pr. Psychology<–>Physics • an activity or endeavor • The Physics Class is one of action. Whereas the Universe Class describes a fixed situation, Physics is a Class of dynamics. Situations evolve, develop, and change. Activities are engaged in and endeavors undertaken. • syn. an activity, an enterprise, an initiative, an endeavor, an operation

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Dramatica Definition: Perspective

Perspective • [Domain] [Class] • The combination of one of the four viewpoints with one of the four Classes • To complete the creation of one of the four perspectives (or Domains) for any particular story, a viewpoint must be matched to a Class so that the place which the perspective is looking from is defined and the nature of the perspective is defined. The four viewpoints include the Objective Story, the Subjective Story, the Main Character. Universe, Physics, Psychology, and Mind are the four Classes which represent the four broadest classifications of story issues. In every complete story, each viewpoints is assigned one Class, creating four Perspectives. Only by fully exploring all four Perspectives can a Grand Argument Story be fully developed.

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Using Forewarnings

Whether or not the characters are aware of them, the audience will need to see forewarnings that indicate the approach of the Consequences. Forewarnings describe the kind of items that can be used to indicate approaching Failure.

One way to bring Forewarnings into your story is to have them be glimpses of one item that gets worse and worse, such as the growing cracks in a dam above the town in which your story takes place.

Another way of bringing in Forewarnings is to use many things of a similar nature. This happens in Ghostbusters where all kinds of paranormal activity increase as Armageddon approaches. The ghosts are causing all many different types of problems, more varied than just cracks in a dam, yet they are all appropriate because they are of a like nature.

Forewarnings do not have to be based on something falling apart. Forewarnings can also be seen as something which grows, such as the slowly growing fire in Towering Inferno.

From the Dramatica Software

Dramatica Definition: Permission

Permission • [Variation] • dyn.pr. Deficiency<–>Permission • what is allowed • Permission means Ability limited by restrictions. These constraints may be self imposed or imposed by others. When a Character considers what he can or cannot do, he is not assessing his ability but the limitations to his ability. When one worries about the consequences born of disapproval or self-loathing, one halts for the lack of Permission. The frustration of a character suffering a vice-grip on his ability may eventually erupt in an explosive reaction if the noose gets too tight. • syn. constrained ability, limited capability, restricted capacity, hindered performance, allowed limitations, restrained utility

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Using Main Character Resolve

Just because a Main Character ultimately remains steadfast does not mean he never considers changing. Similarly, a Change Main Character does not have to be changing all the time. In fact, that is the conflict with which he is constantly faced: to stick it out or to alter his approach in the face of ever-increasing opposition.

Illustrating your Main Character as wavering can make him much more human. Still, if his motivation is strong enough, your Main Character may hold the course or move toward change from the opening scene to the denouement. It all depends on the kind of experience you wish to create for your audience.

There is no right or wrong degree of certainty or stability in a Main Character. Just make it clear to your audience by the end of the story if he has been changed or not by the experience. Sometimes this happens by forcing your Main Character to make a choice between his old way of doing things or a new way. Another way of illustrating your Main Character’s resolve is to establish his reaction in a particular kind of situation at the beginning of the story that tells us something about his nature. After the story’s climax, you can bring back a similar kind of situation and see if he reacts the same way or not. From this, your audience will determine if he has Changed or remained Steadfast.

What if a Main Character Changes when he should Remain Steadfast, or Remains Steadfast when he should Change? Choosing your Main Character’s Resolve describes what your Main Character does without placing a value judgment on him. The appropriateness of his Resolve is determined by other dynamics in your story which will be addressed later. For now, simply choose if your Main Character’s nature has Changed or Remained Steadfast.

From the Dramatica Software

The Concept Behind Character Resolve

Do you want your story to bring your audience to a point of change or to reinforce its current view? Oddly enough, choosing a steadfast Main Character may bring an audience to change and choosing a change character may influence the audience to remain steadfast. Why? It depends upon whether or not your audience shares the Main Character’s point of view to begin with.

Suppose your audience and your Main Character do NOT agree in attitudes about the central issue of the story. Even so, the audience will still identify with the Main Character because he represents the audience’s position in the story. So, if the Main Character grows in resolve to remain steadfast and succeeds, then the message to your audience is, “Change and adopt the Main Character’s view if you wish to succeed in similar situations.”

Clearly, since either change or steadfast can lead to either success or failure in a story, when you factor in where the audience stands a great number of different kinds of audience impact can be created by your choice.

From the Dramatica Software

Start and Stop Characters in the Real World

In Dramatica theory, characters can grow by starting a new behavior/attitude or stopping an old one. But how does that translate to the real world? Here are some examples:

Start as the Growth — The direction of the Main Character’s growth is toward starting something. The issue of Resolve (Change/Steadfast) has an impact on how to evaluate Growth (Start/Stop), so we’ve included examples which reflect these different contexts. For example:

Start/Steadfast: a business man refuses a generous offer to buy his business, holding out in the belief that his son will eventually start taking an interest in running it; etc.

Start/Change: believing that her lack of confidence is keeping her stuck in a lousy job, a woman starts demanding more of her employees; etc.

Stop as the Growth — The direction of the Main Character’s growth is toward stopping something. The issue of Resolve (Change/Steadfast) has an impact on how to evaluate Growth (Start/Stop), so we’ve included examples which reflect these different contexts. For example:

Stop/Steadfast: a radical activist believes she must remain tied to the gates of a nuclear plant so that her example will cause the employees to shut down the plant; etc.

Stop/Change: For example, a doctor who always pushes her patients too hard for their own good stops when she becomes ill and is treated the same way; etc.