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    from Narrative Dynamics (Brian Richardson, ed.)

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    539 views8 pages

    Tomachevsky, "Story, Plot, and Motivation"

    Uploaded by

    desparejo
    from Narrative Dynamics (Brian Richardson, ed.)

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    12 Story, Plot, and Motivation BORIS TOMASHEVSKY STORY AND PLOT ‘A theme has a certain urity and is composed of small chematic elements ‘We may distinguish two major kinds of arrangement of these thematic elements: (1) that in which causa-temporal relationships exist between the thematic elements, and (2; that in which the thematic elements are comtem- porancous, or in which there is some shift of theme without internal exposi- tion of the causal connections. The former ace storie (tales, novels, epics); the latter have no “sory.” they are “descriptive” (eg, descriptive and didactic poems, Iytics, and travel books such as Karamin’ Letters ofa Russian Teavel- er or Goncharow’s The Frigate Palla) ‘We must emphasize chat a story requires nor only indications of time, but also indications of cause, Time indicators may occur in elling about a jou ney, but ifthe account is only about the sights and not about the personal adventures of the travelers, we have exposition without story. The weaker the ‘causal connection, the strenger the purely chronological connection. As the storyline becomes weaker, we move from the novel to the chronicle, to a stn ple statement of the sequence of events (The Childood Years of Bagrovi Grandson)’ Let us take up the notion of the story (fibula), the aggregate of mutually selated events reported in the work. No matter how the events were original- ly arranged in the work and despite their original order of introduction, in practice the story may be tole in the actual chronological and causal order of 164 Story, Plot, and Motivation Plot (chet) is distinct from story: Both include the same events, but in the plot the events are arranged and connected according 10 the orderly sequence in which they were presented in the work? “The idea expressed by the theme i the idea that summarizes and unifies the verbal material in the work, The work as a whole may have a theme, and ac the same time each pare of a work may have its own theme. The develop- ment of a work isa process of divesificaton unified by a single theme. Thus, Pushkin’ “The Shot” develops the story of the narrators meetings with Silvio and the Count, and the story ofthe confice between the ewo men. The story of life in the regiment and he country is developed, followed by the first parc of the duel berween Silvio and the Count, and the story of their final ‘After reducing a work co its thematic elements, we come co parts that are itreducible, the smallest particles of thematic material: “evening. comes,” “Raskolnikov kills the old woman,” “the hero dies,” “the letter is received,” and so on. The theme of an irreducible part of work is called the motif each sentence, in fac, has its own motif Ie should be noted that the meaning of “motif” as used in historical poet- ics~in comparative studies of migracory plots (for example, in the study of the skaz (or yarn)?)—difes radially from its meaning here although they are ‘usually consideted identical. In comparative studies a motif is a thematic unit. which occurs in various works (for example, “the abduction of the bride,” “the helpful beast’—that is, the animal that helps the hero solve his problem— tc). These motifs move in their entree from one plot to another. In co parative poetics, reduction to the smaller elements is not imporcants what is important is only that within the iis of the given genre these “motif” are always found in theie complete forms. Consequently, in comparative studies ‘one must speak of motifs tha have remained incact historically, chat have pre served theie unity in passing fom work to work, rather shan of “irreducible” motifs. Nevertheless, many motifs of comparative poetics remain significant precisely because they are also motifs in our theoretical sense ‘Mutually related motifs form the thematic bonds of the work. From this poine of view, the story is the aggregate of motifs in their logical, causal: chronological order the plot is the aggregate of those same motifs but having the relevance and the order which they had in the original work. The place in the work in which the reader learns of an event, whether the information is given by the author, or by a character, or by a series of inditecthints—allchis isirelevant to the story. Bus the aesthetic function ofthe plo is precisely cis, binging ofan arrangement of motifs the attention of the reader, Real inci dents, not fetionalized by an author, may make a story. A ploc is wholly an 165 ATIVE SEQUENCING Usually there ate different kinds of mocifs within a work. By simply retelling the story we immediately discover what may be omitted without destroying the coherence of the narrative and what may not be omitced with- out disturbing the connections among events. The motifs which cannot be omitced are bound motif: chose which may be omicted without disturbing the whole causal-chronological course of events are fire motif Although only the bound motifs are reyuited by the story, free motifs (digressions, for cxample) sometimes dominate and determine the construc: tion of te plot. These incidental motifs (deals, et.) are presented so thatthe tale may be cold artistically; we shall recur later to the various functions they perform. Literary ttadition largely determines the use of free motifs, and each Titerary school has its characteristic stock; however, bound motifs are usually distinguished by their “vitality”—thac is, they appear unchanged in the works of various schools. Nevertheless, literacy tradition clearly plays a significant role in the development of the tory (for example, the stories of typical novels of the 1840s and 1850s are about che disasters ofa petty official—e.g., Gogol’ “The Greatcoat,” Dostocvsky’s Poor People: in the 1820s the stories were usu: ally about the unfortunate love of a European fora forcigner—e.g., Pushkin’ Captive of the Caucasus and The Gypsies In “The Undertaker” Pushkin wrote pointedly about the use of fice motifs within a ierary tradition Just at noon the next day, he coffin maker and his daughters let ehrough che wichet side-gae oftheir newly purchased home and set off fora neighbor [shall not begin to describe either the Russian kaftan of Adrian Prokhovovich nor the European clothes of Akulina or Darya—difering in that respect fiom the usual notions of recent novelists. I suppose, however, that ts nor supe. ‘yous to note that both children wore the yellow caps and red shoes chat they customarily wear only on festive occasions. The description of the clothes is remarked upon here as « traditional free motif of chat period (the 1830s) [Among the various kinds of motifs we may distinguish a special class of introductory motifs which require specific supplementation by other motifs, 2s, typically, when the hero is given a task, For example: A father wants his daughter to marry; the daughter, © avoid the marriage, assigns an impossible task. Or the hero woos the princess who, to avoid the dreaded marriage, sets him a task which at firs scems impossible; or, as in Pushkin’ “Tale of Balds,” the priest, in order to sid himself of a worker, commissions him ro collect quit rent from the devil. Any embodiment of this task motif requizes an account of the task itself, an aocount which also serves co introduce the story of the 166 Story, Plot, and Motivation heros exploits. The delay of the story is another such motifs in The Arabian Night Scheherazade forestalls her execution by telling stories wo the prince who ehteatens to take her life, This “sory telling” motif i the device which introduces th tales. So also in adventure stores there are motifs of pursuit and so on. Usually the introduction of a free motif occurs as a development of previously introduced motif which is inherently bound up withthe story. ‘Moris may be also clase acconting to ther objective funtions, Usually «story is developed by introducing several characters (ramatis personae) relat ced co each other by mutual interests or by other tes (kinship for example). Tis inettdatonship at any given moment isthe sitwarion, For example, the hero loves the heroine, but she loves his val. We have thte characters hero, hero- ine, val, These ae the tes: the love ofthe hezo for the heroine ad her love for the rival Also typical ace situations in which the characters a related by oppo- sition, in which different persons want to change a suai by different means For example the hezo loves the heroine an she loves him, bu dhe parents pre- vent cheir marsage;chey uy to marry, the patents ey to separate them, A story may be thought of as a journey fiom one situation o another Dating the journey a new character may be ineroduced (complicating the sit uation), old characters eliminated (For example, by the death of the rival), or the prevailing rlationships changed. Morifs which change che situation are dynam maf: those which do not axe static, Consider, for example, Pushkin “Mistress into Maid.” Although ‘Alexey Berestoy loves Akulins, his father is arranging his marrage to Liza Muromskays. Alexey, unaware that Akulina and Liza are one and the same petson, objects ro the mariage thrust upon him by his father. He goes co have ie cue wih Liza and discovers that she is Akulina, so the situation changes— Alexey’ objections to the marriage vanish. The discovery that Akulina and Liza are the same person isa dynamic mort. Free motifs are usually static, but not all static motifs ate fre. ‘Thus we assume that if musder is necessary tthe progres of the story, one ofthe characters must have a revolver The motif of the revolver, as the reader becomes aware of it is both static and bound—bound because without the revolver the musder could not be commicced. This situation occurs in Ostrov- shy’s The Poor Bride. Desceiptions of natute, local color, furnishings, the characters, thet per- sonalves, and so on—ehese ae typically static motifs. The actions and behav jor of the main characters are typically dynamic mot Dynamic motifs are motif which are cena co the story and which keep ic moving: in the plo, on the ozher hand, static moxify may predominate From the point of view of the story, motifs are eal ranked according other inmporeance. Dynamic motif are most important, then motifswhich prepare their 167 7 NARRATIVE sEauEMCING way, then motifs defining the sicuation, and so on, The relative importance of 4 motif to the story may be determined by retelling the story in abridged form, shen comparing the absidgement with the more fully developed narrative The development of a story may generaly be understood as a progress from one situation to another, o that each situation is characterized by a con- “five of interest, by discord and steuggle among the characters. The dialectical ‘development of the sory is analogous co the development of social-historical processes in which each new historical stage is seen both as a cesult of the serugele of social groups in the preceding stige and as a batleield for the interests of the new social group constituting the cusrene socal system. ‘The struggle among the characters (the conflicts of interests mentioned above) is accompanied both by the gathering of the characters into groups and by the agreement of each group upon the tactics to be used against the other. This conduct of the struggle— the aggregate of motifs which characterize it~ is called the intrigue (che usual term in dramatic ertiism). “The development of the intrigue (or, with complex groups of characters, parallel intrigues) leads either to the elimination of the conflicts or tothe cre ation of new conflicts. Usually at the end of the story all the conflicts are ree- onciled and the interests harmonized. Ifa situation containing the conflict furthers the progress of the story, then, since the coexistence of two conflict ing forces is impossible, one mus inevitably prevail. The later harmonious sit- tation, which does not require further development, will neither evoke nor arouse the reader's anticipation. That is why the condition at the end of a ‘work is s0 static, This static condition is called the ending? Thus the old moralistic novels usually have a double movement in which virtue is oppressed while vice tsiummphs (a moral conflict), but in the ending virtue is rewarded and vice punished. Sometimes a harmonious situation is found at the beginning of stories in which, for example, “the hero had been living peacefully and quietly. Sud denly .. ete.” Here, in order to get the story going, a dynamic motif destroys the initial peaceful situation. The aggregate of such motifs, disturbing the tranquillity of the initial situation and provoking action, is called the exciting force, Usualy the nature of the exciting force determines the whole course of the story, and all the intrigue ie reducible only to the various motifs which termine the basic conflict intioduced by the exciting force. ‘This change the peripery (the movement feom one situation to another). The more complicated the conflict withiy the situation and the stronger the opposing interests of the characters, the greater the senson of situation, "The increase in tension is proportionate co the proximity of a great change of fortune. Tension is usually achieved by preparing for the change in the situa- tion, Thus in the typical adventure novel the villain, seeking to destroy the 168, Story, Plot, and Motivation hero, constantly has the odds in his favor. He prepares for the hero's defeat, bucat the last possible moment, when the hero's downfll seems positively cer ‘ain, he is unexpectedly saved and the machinations of his encmies frustrated. Such preparation increases the tension. “Tension usually reaches its highest point just before che ending. This cul- ‘inating point of the tension is usually called the climax (Spannung). In the simplest system of dialectics eelevant to the construction ofa story, the climax is lke che anthesis (the thesis isthe exciting force, the anthesis the climax, and the synthesis the ending). ‘We must remember thatthe formation ofa plor from che material ofthe story requires a narrative introduction co the intial situation, The presexta tion of circumstances determining the inital cast of characters and thei imer- relationships is called the exposition. Not all nacratives begin with an exposition. In the simplest case—thac in which the author opens by acquainsing us with the elements of the story rmaterial—wve have immediate exposition. But the quick start (ex abrupt, in ‘which the presentation begins with previously developed events and we ate only gradually acquainted with the situation of the hero, is also fairly com- mon. In such cases we have delayed exposition, which is sometimes quite pro longed. We may distinguish among the introductory motifs which comprise the exposition. Sometimes we come to know the situation through hints, and only the assimilation of such seemingly incidental remarks forms a coherent impression; then we do not have exposition proper—that is, the expository motifs are not grouped into one complete narrative section. But somerimes, when outlining a certain event whose general ramifca- ‘ions we do not yet understand, the author, in clarifying it (either through his ‘own comments or through the speech of a character) will include expository ‘material which tells us abour what has already happened. Then we have tran posed exposition; more specifically, we have a time shife ia. the elaboration of the story material Delayed exposition may be continued to the very end, so that throughout the whole narrative the reader sometimes does not know all chat is necesary for understanding what happens. Usually the author withholds information about the circumstances involving a group of major characters, telling the reader only what one or the other of the characters knows. The information about these “unrevealed” circumstances is then given in the ending. Suck: an ending, including in itself elements of exposition and, a it were, casting light back on everything preceding the peripesy, is called a regressive ending. Let us assume that neither the reader of Pushkin’ “Mistress into Maid” nor the hero, Alexey Berestov, knows the identity of Akulina and Liza Muromskaya. In chat event, information about chat identiey would have regressive force—that is, it 169) ¢ ¢ i 1 WARRATIVE SEQUENCING would give a teue and fiesh understanding of all the preceding situations “Snowstorm,” also from Pushkin’ Zales of Bellin, is so constructed, ‘Usually this delayed exposition begins as a series of hints, In that case, these combinations are possible: ‘The reader knows, the main characters do not; some of the characters know, some do nor; the reader and some of the characters do not know; no one knows (the truth is discovered by accident); the characters know, but the reader does not, These hints may run throughout the narrative and may involve only some of the motif, In such a case the seme mocif may appear several dimes in the construction af the plot. Consider a typical novelistic device: One ofthe char- acters, long before the time of the action, has been kidnaped (first motif). A character appears, and we leatn from his biography that he was not raised by his parents and does not know them (second motif). Then we learn (usually by comparison of dates and circumstances, or by the motif of a sign—an amulet, a birthmark, etc.) thac the kidnaped child and the hero are the same petson, Thus the identity of the first and second motifs is established, ‘This repetition of a motif in variant forms is typical of plots in which aspects of the story are not introduced in their natural chronological order. A repeated motif ‘usually shows the connection which exists in che story becween patts of the pilor structure, Thus, if, in the typical example used above, the means of rec ‘ognizing the lost child is an amulet, then this amulet motif accompanies both the narrative about the disappearance of che child and the biography of the new character. (See, for example, Ostrovsky’s The Guilty Are Without Blame.) ‘Such connecting motifs make chronological displacements possible in narra- tives Exposition is not the only element that may be tansposed; certain parts of the story may be narrated after the ead knoves that they have already occurred. A coherent account of significant parts of an event which foretell wha will hap- pen in an episode before it is narrated is called foreshadowing (Vorgschieht). Delayed exposition, or the presentation of the biography of a new character introduced into a new situation, are typical Forms of foreshadowing. Many exam- ples of the technique may be found in Targenev’s novels. “Premonition’ (Nachgerchichte) an account of what will happen told prior co the approaching, events to prepare the reader, is more rare, Nachgechichte sometimes takes the form of auguties, predictions, or of more oF les likely assumptions. In analyzing the plot structure of individual works, attention should also be given to che use of time and place in the narrative. Storytime and reading time are distinct in a work of art. Story time is the amount of time required by the events that are said to occur; reading time is the time required for seading the work (or witnessing the spectacle). The later depends on the “tize”of the work. 170 a Story, Plet, and Motivasion Story time is given in chiee ways: (1) The moment of action may be dated absolutly (when the chronological moment is simply stated~—for example, ‘at two o'clock on January 8 in 18—" os “in wintet"), oF relatively (y indi cating the simultancity of events or their chronological reationshi>—e afer two years.” et.); (2) the duration of events may be indicated (‘the eon. versation lasted for half an hour; or indirectly, “afer five days they arrived at the appointed place”) and (3) an impression of the duration of time may be given, so chat we indirectly deter mine the passage of time by judging che length of the speech or the normal duration of the action, We may note that writers use the last mos freely, cramming long speeches into short lines and, conversely, expandirg short speeches and quick action into long durations of ime ‘The place of the action may be either static or dynamic. If stati, all che characters gather in one place (which is why hotels or their equivalents so fe- quently figure in stories—they make unexpected meetings possble); if dynamic, the characters are moved from place to place for the necessary encounters (eravel-type tales, for example). ‘che journey continued for thive months,” MOTIVATION ‘The system of motifs comprising che theme of a given work must shew some kind of artistic unity IFthe individual motif, or a complex of motif, are not sufficiently suited othe work, ifthe reader feels that the relationship between certain complexes of motifs and the work itself is obscure, then that complex is said to be superfluous. If ll the parts of the work are badly suitec to one another, the work is incoherent. That is why the introduction ofeach separate motif or complex of motifs must be motuted. The network of devieesjust- fying the intioduction of individual motifs or of groups of motifs is called The devices of motivation ae so numerous and varied that they must be lasified: 1. Compositional motivation This principle refers to the economy and usefulness of the motifs Separate motifs may characterize either objects (tage properties) brought to thereader’s tention oF the activites of the characters (episodes). Not a single property may remain unused in he telling, and no episode may be without influence on the situation. Chekhov refered to just such compositional motivation when he seated that if one speaks about nail beaten into walla che beginsing of a narrative, then atthe end the hero must hang himself on thac nai m7 NARRATIVE SEQUENCING [A prop, in tis case a weapon, is used in precisely this way in Ostrovsky’ The Poor Bride. The titd ace set ncludes a revolver hungon the tapestry over the divan.” At fist this dual ofthe setting seems a simple, concrete feacure characterizing Karandyshev’s way of life. Inthe sath scene attention is diect- col towards this detail ROBINSON: (looking at che apestry) What do you have hete? KARANDYSHEV: Cigar. No, what's hanging up there? Is this eal? K: What do you mean “real”? This is a Turkish weapon, The dialogue continues and the speakers ridicule the weapon; then the morif narrows until a rematk is made about the worthlessness of the pistol 1: Bucin wha way is ie worthles? The pistol, for example... (he takes the pistol Fin the wall). PARATIOV: (taking the pistol from him) This pistol? 1 Ab, be carefl—it shoots, P: Donte afraid, Is juseas dangerous whether it fires or not. All the same, ie wont fire. Shoot at me from five paces Il let you 1; Well—no, This pistol may be loaded. P; So—it will do to hammer nails into the wall (Throws the pistol on the table) [Ar the end of the at the fleeing Karandyshiev takes the pistol from the table; inthe fourth act he shoots Larissa with i Here compositional considerations motivate the inttoduetion of the pistol motif. Because ie prepares the audience for the final moments ofthe play, the pistol san indispensable part ofthe denouement. This is the frst kindof com- Positional motivation. A second type of compositional motivation occurs when ‘motifs are used as devices of characterization, but these morifs must be appro- priate co the story. Thus in the same play, The Por Bride, the motif of the bur sundy prepuce aol adulterated by a shady wine merchant for cieap sale typifies the poverty of Karandyshevs daly life and prepares for the deparure of Larisa Details which show character may be integrated with the action either by psychological analogy (eg., moonlight nights for love scenes and lightning, and thunder for scenes of death or evil in novels) or by contrast (the motif of indifferent nature). In The Poor Bride, whee. Larissa dies, the singing of a Gypsy chorus is heard from the restaurant door, 172 7 Story, Pi and Motivation ‘We have sil consider the possibile of misleading motivations props an episodes may be used to distract the reader’ attention from the real station This happens frequently in detective novels, where a series of details is given in order to lead che reader (ancl a geoup of characters—for example, Watson or the police in Conan Doyle) pa blind alle. The author forces the readet to expect an ending inconsistent with the fact of the case. Techniques of mis- leading motivation occur chiefly in works created against the background of a major literary waditon; the reader naturally interprets each detail according to the conventions of the tradition. The deception is discovered atthe end, and the reader is convinced that all such details were introduced merely to support the final suepess. “Misleading morivation (the play upon generally known literary cules fiem- Jy entrenched in tradition and used by dhe author in other than their ua ‘ional ways) is indispensable for parody ‘We demand an element of “illusion” in any wore, No matter how convention: filled and artistic it is, our perception of it must be accompanied by a feeling thae what happens in itis “real.” The naive reader feels thie with extraordinary force and may ery to verify the authenticity ofthe statements, perhaps even to make certain that the characters existed. Pushkin, after completing The Hi:to- 1 of the Pugachyou Rebellion, published The Captaint Daughter in the form of the memoirs of Grinyov and concluded with this epilogue ‘The manuscripe of Peter Andreyevitch Grinyov was given to us by one of his grandchildren who hac learned that we were occupied with a work con- cerning the times his grandfather described. We decid, wich the Fails pecmision, to publish it sparsely. Pushin creates the illusion of a teal Grinyoy and his memoirs, supported in decal by a well-known personal fact of Pushkin’ life—his historical study of | the history of Pugachyov. The illusion is further supported by the opinions and convictions expressed by Grinyov, which differ in many ways from opin- ions expressed by Pushkis hinnell For more experienced readers the need for realistic illusion expresses itself as a demand for “lfelikeness.” Although firmly aware of the fictitious nature of the work, the experienced reader nevertheless demands some kind of con- formity to reality, and finds the value of the work in this conformity. Even readers fully aware of the laws of aesthetic structute may not be psychologi- cally fice from che need for such illusion. As a result, each motif must be 173 uagnarive Sequencing introduced asa probable motiFin the given situation. But since the laws of plot construction have nothing in common with probability, any introduction of motifs isa compromise between objective reality and literary tradition. We will rot mention the uéter absurdity of many of the more traditional techniques for introducing, moxifs. To show the isteconcilabilcy of these absurd traditional techniques with realistic motivation we should have 1 parody them. See, for ‘example, Vanpuk, the Famous parody of operatic productions which humor ‘ously presents a election of lampoonable traditional operatic situations. This parody is sll included in the repertory of The Distorted Mirror! ‘Accustomed to the techniques of advencures, we overlook the absurdicy of the fact thatthe rescue ofthe hero always occurs five minutes before his seem- ingly inevitable death, the audience of ancient comedy or the comedy of Molitte overlooks the fact that in the last act all the characters turn out £0 be 3. Artistic motivation [As [suid the use ofthe motif results from a compromise becween realistic illu sion and the demands ofthe artistic structure. Not everything borrowed from reality is ft for the work of at, as Lermontov noted when he wrote about the journlistc prose of his contemporaries in 1840: Whose portraits do they depiee Where do they hear thet conversations? Ver if hey had realy happened — We simply would nor want to hear them. Boileau said much the same in his play on words, “le onai peut quelguefoi ns pas wraisemblable”(*Sometimes the truth may not seem true”), understanding, by “nai” realistic motivation, nd by “orasemblable”antistic motivation ‘A system of realistic motivation quite ofien includes a denial of atitic motivation. The usual Formuka is, “IF this had happened in a novel, my hero would have done such and such, but since it really happened, here are the Bur the denial of the literary forma in itself asserts che laws of atis- facts. tic eemposition, ach realistic motif must somehow be inserted into the structure of the natrative and be illuminated by a particular part of it. The very selection of realistic themes must be justified artistically Usually quarrels berween new and old literary groups atise over artistic motivation. The ald, tadition-oriented group generally denies the artistry of the new licerary form. This is shown, for example, in poetic diction, where the 174 os Story, Plot, and Motivation use of individual words must be in accord with firmly established lireraty ta ditions (tradition, which produces the distinction between prosaic and poetic word, strictly forbids their use together). T consider the device of defamiliariation o be a special instance of arts: tic motivation. The introduction of nonliterary material inco a work, if iis «0 be aesthetic, must be justified by a new and individual interpretation of the material. The old and habitual must be spoken of as if ic were new and unust al. One muse speak of the ordinary as if it were unfamiliae Techaiques of defamiliasizing ordinary things are usualy justified because the objects are distorted through the mental processes of a character who is not familiar with them. A well-known example of Leo Tolstoy's use of the technique occurs in War and Peace when he describes the council of war at Fils, He introduces a litle peasant giel who watches the council and, like « child, interprets what is done and said withour understanding it. Tolstoy uses precisely the same method of interpreting Euman reatioaships in “Khol- stomer,” where he presents them ehrough the hypothetical psychology of a horse. (See “Kashtanka,” in which Chekhov gives as much of che psychology ‘of a dog as is necessary to defamiliarize che nacative; Korolenko’s “The Blind Musician,” which interprets the life of the sesing ehrough che psychology of the blind, is of the same type.) Swift uses these methods of defamiliarzation extensively in Gaullivers Thvels in order to prescat a satrieal picture of the European social-politial ‘order. Gulliver, arsiving in the land of the Houyhnhnms (horses endowed. with reason), tells his master (x horse) about che customs of the ruling class in human society. Compelled to tell everything with the uemost accuracy, he removes the shell of euphemistic phrases and fictitious traditions which just: fy such things a war, clas strife, parliamentary intrigue, and so on. Stripped of their verbal justification and thereby defamiiarized, these copics emerge in all their horror. Thus erticism of the political sytem—nonliverary material is arstically motivated and fully involved in the narrative. THE VITALITY OF PLOT DEVICES [Although the general devices of plot construction ofall lands and all peoples are significanly similar, and although iis posible wo speak about the unique logic of plot construction, itis nevertheless tue that specific devices, their combinations, dhe uss, and dheir functions have changed greatly in the course of literary histor. Each literary period, each school, is characterized by the system of devices which ace peesent in the common style (inthe broad sense of “syle of ts lterary gerres and preferences In this respect we muse distinguish beeween conventional and fee devices. 175 NARRATIVE SEQUENCING Conventional devices are devices requited by a given genre and a given periods the Freich clsiciam of the seventeenth century, with is dramatic unis and petty regulation of various gente forens, produced the stictest system of con ventional devices, Conventional devices ae dhe uadematks of the works pro- duced by a school that accepts that particular convention. In any «ypical seventeenth-century tragedy the place of action remains unchanged and the time is limited to swenty-four hours. All comedies end in marriage, and all tragedies in the deaths of the principal characters. Any convention establishes its ‘own sot of devies, Everything in lcrature—from the choice of thematic ma tials, the various motif and thei ws together, to systematic pronouncements hous language, diction, ec.—may be made into a compositional device. The use of one word and the proscription of another, and so on, may be subject 0 regulation, Conventional devices originate because they are convenient techni cally; thir repetition becomes traditional, and, falling imo the area of norma- tive poetics, they are codified as compulsory rules. But no convention can exhaust all possibilities and forece all che devices necessary for the creation of ional devies there are abways fice an entire work, so that along with the com é devices —devices peculiar co individual writers, works, genres, movements ete € Conventional devices usually descroy themselves. One value of literature & is its novelty and originality. In the struggle for regeneration, the orthodox, i the traditional, the stereotyped devices are most attacked, and the obligatory rE becomes prohibited. The creation of new traditions and techniques does nor, F however, prevent the revival of prokibited devices after the passing of two oF i three literary generations. Tivo literary styles may be distinguished in terms ofthe percepribilty ofthe devices. The frst, characteristic of writers of the nineteenth century, is distin- t ‘ished by its artempe to conceal the device; all ofits motivation systems are designed to make the literary devices seem imperceptible, co make them seem as natural as possible—that is, co develop the literary material so that its develop. ment is unperecived, But this is only one style, and not a general aesthetic rule. Ie is opposed to another style, an unrealistic style, which does not bother about } concealing the devices andl which frequently tres to make them obvious, as when A writer intertupts a speech he is reporting to say that he did not hear how it ended, only to goon and report what he has no realistic way of knowing. In such i «case the author has called attention to the device or —a they say the tech nique is “laid bare.” Pushkin, in the fourth chapter of Bogeny Onegin, writes: ‘And here alteady sparkle the snows ‘And hey spread among silver fields — (The reader waits fora thyme like rose Let him take quickly what this poem yields.) Story, Plot, and Motivation Here we have a clear and deliberate laying bare of the technique of rhyme, In che early stages of Fururism (in che works of Khlcbnikoy) and in con- temporary literature, che laying bare of techniques had became traditional (many of the tales of Kaverin contain examples of the of plot stucture) Among works containing such devices, we must distinguish those which lay bare extraneous devices—either traditional devices or those belonging to another writer Ifthe laying bare of excraneous literary devices is humorous, we hhave patody. The functions of parody are many, but its usual function is to ridicule ax opposing literary group, blasting ies aesthetic system and exposing i Parodies ate quite widespread; they were traditional in dramatic literature, ‘when any mote or les outstanding work called for an immediate parody. The background fom which a parody takes off is always another literary work (or a whole group of works). A significant number of parodies may be found among the tales of Chekhow. Some parodies, not primarily satiric, are developed freely for the sole pur- pose of showing off the techniques. Thus the Followers of Laurence Sterne at the start of the nineteenth century formed their own school, which had devel- ‘oped out of parody, into a school which pursued parody as an art in its own right. In contemporary literature, Steenes techniques have been revived and Widely disseminated (the transposition of chapters, excessive and casual digressions, the slowing of the action, and so on, ate typical). Devices ate laid bare because a perceprible device is permissible only when. it is made creatively ourstanding. When a device is noticed despite the author's attempt «o conceal it, it produces a detrimentally comic effect. To pre- vent this, che author deliberately lays bare the device “Thus devices are boro, live, grow old, and dic. ‘Ta the extent that their use becomes automatic, they lose ther efficacy and cease to be included on the lst of acceptable techniques. Renovated devices with new functions and new meanings are required to prevent techniques from becoming mechanical Such renovation is like the use of a quocation fiom an old author in a new application and with a new meaning, [This monograph continues with a discussion of the concept of literary gen- 125, followed by discussions of the dramatic, lyric, and fictional genes ng bare of devices NoTES 1. A volume of reminiscences by Segey Akskow published in 1858, Te none 2. Ln bie the story isthe ation el” he plo, "how te reader bese of the action 3, Posibly che nearest equivalent of sz is "yarn." Technically, ashe it stoxy in which the manner of celling (te agemal speech patetne oF the natzitor—dect, 77 agrative sequencing pronunciation, grammatical peculntes, pitch pater, et) i a8 importa to the effcr as the sory ine, For x description of the Amedcan equivalent ofthe kas see Samuel CGemenss widely reprinted "How to Tella Stuy.” Tener 4 Quite the same happens if, in place of a group of characters we havea psycholg cal aol in which the ineral psychic history of the her is described. The various psy chological motif of his conduc, che various sides of his spviual lie, nstints, passions, fe, asuine the vole usualy played by other characters. In his respect we ean generalize about hs whole past and future, 5 To put thin ore familiar teminology, the ending occurs afer all tensions have been eased, Tomashovaly’ analysis of plc structure here follows closely Aricock’ analysis of dramatic structure. Tr nate 6 From the point of view ofthe arangemens ofthe nateative marrial,the pat begin ning the narrative is ale the prologue close is called te

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