by Alison Flood Read the Original
Summary Notes
University of Vermont researchers studied 1,737 stories and found there are 6 basic narrative shapes - rags-riches, tragedy, man-in-hole, Icarus, Cinderella and Oedipus. Previous theories suggested there are either 3 or 36 basic plots, but their research challenged these theories. They analyzed literature from Project Gutenberg, and are now exploring how digital reading is altering plot arcs and author behavior.
Key Learnings
- There are 6 basic narrative shapes in literature, not 3 or 36 as previously theorized.
- The 6 basic narrative shapes are: rags-riches, tragedy, man-in-hole, Icarus, Cinderella, and Oedipus.
- Researchers studied 10,000-word windows of English literature from Project Gutenberg.
- Digital reading is changing plot arcs and author behavior.
- The research was inspired by Vonnegut's comparison of Cinderella and the Old Testament's creation myth.
- Summary Notes
- Key Learnings
- 6 Universal Narrative Shapes Found in Stories
- Digital Reading Transforming Storytelling
6 Universal Narrative Shapes Found in Stories
Researchers studied 1,737 stories and found there are 6 basic narrative shapes (rags-riches, tragedy, man-in-hole, Icarus, Cinderella and Oedipus). Previous theories range from 3 basic plots to 36 master plots. “There is no reason why the simple shapes of stories can’t be fed into computers; they are beautiful shapes,” said Vonnegut. Vonnegut's theory has been proven true with the help of computers, showing that there are six basic narrative shapes in literature.
Digital Reading Transforming Storytelling
University of Vermont researchers were inspired by Vonnegut's comparison of Cinderella and the Old Testament's creation myth. They analyzed 10,000-word windows of English literature from Project Gutenberg and are now considering how digital reading is changing plot arcs & author behavior. “Foster-Harris’s 1959 assertion that there are three basic plot patterns (happy ending, unhappy ending and tragedy), or Christopher Booker’s The Seven Basic Plots” Previous theories suggested only three or seven basic plot patterns, but the research has shown that there are actually six basic narrative shapes in literature.