UpperIntermediate_Unit1_Reading_p13

Outcomes Upper Intermediate Reading Text
Pages 13, 185 and 186 (Information files) Unit 1: Heard it all before
HEARD IT ALL BEFORE

Ever been watching a film or reading a book and had the feeling you’ve heard it all before?
You know the boy’s going to get the girl, the baddie – the bad guy – is going to lose or be
killed, or the team will win their last game. What’s really surprising is that we don’t have this
feeling more often, because, according to Christopher Booker’s brilliant book Why We Tell
Stories, nearly all stories are based around just seven basic plots and in each plot we see the
same character types and the same typical events over and over again.
Take the first plot, which Booker calls Overcoming the Monster. Stories of this kind all have
several common features.
1 A community is threatened by a monster or ‘baddie’ and a hero is called to save it.

The hero prepares to meet the monster and is either given a special weapon or
learns about a particular weakness that the monster has – its fatal flaw.
2 The hero approaches the monster and initially everything goes according to plan.
3 The hero confronts the monster for the first time and is frustrated. They realise the
huge challenge that the monster presents.
4 There is a nightmare stage. The hero is trapped and faces death.
5 Finally, the hero makes an amazing escape, succeeds in destroying the monster
usually with the help of their special weapon or by exploiting the monster’s only
weakness. They are rewarded and order is restored.
You can see these features in ancient myths like Perseus killing Medusa or George and the
Dragon, religious stories like David defeating the giant Goliath, modern tales like Dracula or
Harry Potter, and films such as Jaws, Star Wars or in James Bond movies. Booker argues
that we don’t tire of these plots because they fulfil a deep psychological need for love and
moral order. Indeed, where stories don’t follow these plots, we may find them unsatisfying or
they may reveal issues in the author and society that produced them.
COMEDY
Comedy in Booker’s terms does not necessarily have to be funny. As with the other plots, this
is about story development.
1 The main characters are bound to get together, but can’t see it: they have apparently
different characters or viewpoints; they’re from different classes; they’re with a ‘wrong’
partner, etc.
2 This confusion becomes worse through further misunderstandings, events or new rival
characters.
3 Something happens to reveal the truth. Characters become aware of their true selves.
Baddies are punished. The right couple gets together or marry.
Common features: people disguise themselves (including men as women and vice versa) or
pretend to be someone different, or a meeting is arranged but the wrong person comes.
Stories: Beauty and the Beast; Twelfth Night; Cyrano de Bergerac; You’ve Got Mail
RAGS TO RICHES
This is the story where a quiet or ‘weak’ character with a special talent becomes a hero or
great success.
1 The main character is in poverty or bullied by a dark character.
2 The hero’s talent is revealed and they have some initial success.
3 A crisis happens. Everything goes wrong and it seems they can no longer reach their goal.
This may be an accident; a dark character asserting their power, the weakness of the hero
or an obstacle in society.
4 Some event helps them find new strength to overcome the problem.
5 They achieve complete success, marry the ‘prince’, or become the ‘king’.
Note: Some rags to riches stories are ‘true’, but when told, the account still follows this
pattern.
Stories: Cinderella; Aladdin; The Pursuit of Happyness; The Blind Side
TRAGEDY
Tragedy shows a good person’s fall from grace. It follows this pattern:
1 The main character is successful but not fully satisfied. An opportunity to fulfil their
dreams presents itself, but it involves a bad deed.
2 The hero gets away with their crime and enjoys the rewards.
3 Problems arise – something threatens to reveal the bad deed or end the hero’s period of
success. The hero commits a further evil act to protect themselves.
4 Forces gather against the hero and their life runs out of control.
5 The hero is destroyed either by committing suicide or by a relative of the victim seeking
revenge.
Stories: Macbeth; Carmen; Breaking Bad; Black Swan
VOYAGE AND RETURN

A hero becomes a better person through a visit to another world. It follows this pattern:
1 The hero has a flawed character, for example: immature, restless, foolish, unkind or
arrogant – and through some incident is transported into a strange new world.
2 At first they find the new world exciting and fascinating.
3 The hero encounters a problem which makes them see a dark side to the new world.
4 The hero experiences the world as a nightmare and feels trapped and looks for a way out.
5 The hero manages to escape and returns to the world, often with new insight and as a
better person.
Stories: Gulliver’s Travels; Alice in Wonderland; Big; 17 Again.

UpperIntermediate_Unit1_Reading_p13

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

UpperIntermediate_Unit1_Reading_p13

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

UpperIntermediate_Unit1_Reading_p13

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Outcomes Upper Intermediate Reading Text

HEARD IT ALL BEFORE

1 A community is threatened by a monster or ‘baddie’ and a hero is called to save it.

VOYAGE AND RETURN

You might also like