1. Vladimir Propp
“characters have a narrative function,
they provide a structure for the text”

2. • Vladimir Propp was born in 1895 in Russia. He
was a media theorist who analysed over 100
folk tales and realised that certain characters
appear repeatedly in all the tales.
• His theory is useful because it avoids treating
characters as if they are individuals and
reminds us that they’re merely constructs.
Some characters are involved just to progress
the narrative.

3. • These recurring characters are ones such as
the:
• Hero (or heroine)
• Villain
• The gift giver
• The sender
• The false friend
• The helper
• The damsel in distress.

4. • Most folk tales and Superhero
films contain the majority of the
common Proppian characters,
most notably the heroes and
villains, This is because there
would be no need for a superhero
if there was nothing to fight
against/ for.

5. Star Wars VI: Return Of The Jedi
• Hero – Luke Skywalker
• Damsel in Distress – Princess Lela
• The Helper – Han Solo
• The Villain – Darth Vader
• The Sender – Obi Wan
• The Gift Giver - Yoda
http://matttrailer.com/star_wars_episode_vi_retur
n_of_the_jedi_1983

6. • In different genres such as comedy films, Proppian
characters still occur but not all of the same ones appear.
In the trailer for the hangover, there are the heroes such
as the 3 main protagonists and the villain who is Mr
Cheung who kidnapped their friend Doug. Doug in this
case would be the ‘Damsel in Distress’ which is strange
because in most cases the damsel in distress in usually a
female as they are seen as the more dependant gender.
Also Doug's wife would be the sender in this case as they
are getting married so he is sent on a stag party.
http://www.cinemagia.ro/trailer/marea-mahmureala-the-
hangover-3185/

7. Friday 13th (2009)
• In Friday 13th the clear
Proppian character type is
the Villain who is the
murderer of the film. There
are also a set of victims who
would make up the Damsel
In Distress roles. This is
different towards other
genres as there isn’t a clear
hero or knight in shining
armour seen in the film,
instead the villain is seen as
powerful and unstoppable.
This helps create fear in the
audience.

8. • The characters which appear most in film
trailers no matter what genre are the ‘heroes’
and the ‘villains’. This is due to the fact that it
makes the film involve some form of
competition which makes the film more
interesting for the viewer to watch. It also
follows tradition from books and fairy-tales.
There is usually a damsel in distress of some
sort, but it isn’t a necessary component.