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Dramatica
Dictionary
L
Leap of Faith
-- Just prior to a story's climax, a conscious choice by the Main Character
to either Change or remain Steadfast with no way of knowing for sure which
will best lead him to his goal or resolve his personal problem -- No Main
Character can be sure that he will succeed until the story has completely
unfolded. Up until that moment, there is always the opportunity to change
one's approach or one's attitude. For example, a Main Character may determine
that what he thought was the true source of the problem really is not.
Or he may reconsider his motivation to try and resolve it; whether he
should give up or try harder. Again, there is no way for him to tell with
certainty which path will lead to success. Nevertheless, when these scenarios
close in on a single moment in the story, the moment of truth, where the
Main Character has his last opportunity to remain steadfast in his approach
and attitude or to change either or both, there will be a Leap of Faith.
After that, all that remains is to see it to its conclusion, good or bad.
That moment of truth is called the Leap of Faith because the Main Character
must choose a course and then commit himself to it, stepping into the
unknown with blind faith in a favorable outcome or resignation to an ostensibly
poor one.
Learning (a.k.a.
Gathering Information) -- [Type] -- dyn.pr. Understanding<-->Learning
-- gathering information or experience -- Learning describes the process
of acquiring knowledge. It is not the knowledge itself. When a portion
of a story focuses on learning, it is the gathering of an education that
is of concern, not the education that ultimately has been gathered. Learning
need not be an academic endeavor. One might learn to express one's feelings
or learn about love. Learning does not even require new information as
sometimes one learns simply by looking through old information from a
different perspective or with a new approach. It is not important if one
is learning to arrive at a particular understanding or just to gather
data. As long as the focus is on the process of gaining information, Learning
is the operative word. -- syn. cultivating experience, acquiring
information, collecting data, gathering knowledge
Level -- [Structural
Term] -- One of the vertical strata of the Dramatica structural chart.
The relationship between levels (Elements, Variations, Types and Classes)
of dramatic units is similar to turning up the power on a microscope:
each has a different resolution with which to examine the story's problem.
Classes take the broadest view and have the greatest structural impact
on Genre. Types are more detailed and most directly affect the Plot. Variations
are even more refined, most intensely influencing Theme, and Elements
provide the greatest detail available in a story, concentrating on the
qualities or traits of Characters.
Limit -- [Plot
Dynamic] -- The restricted amount of time or options that, by running
out, forces the story to a climax -- The Limit is what forces the story
to a close. One of the functions of a story is to give the audience the
value of experiences it has not had itself by living through the Main
Character. As such, the Main Character in the story Changes or Remains
Steadfast and hopes for the best, and we learn from his accomplishments
or disappointments. Yet, even a Main Character would not jump into the
void and commit to a course of action or decision unless forced into it.
To force the Main Character to decide, the story provides all the necessary
information to make an educated guess while progressively closing in on
the Main Character until he has no alternative but to choose. This closing
in can be accomplished in either of two ways: either running out of places
to look for the solution or running out of time to work one out. Running
out of options is accomplished by an Optionlock; a deadline is accomplished
by a Timelock. Both of these means of limiting the story and forcing the
Main Character to decide are felt from early on in the story and get stronger
until the climax. Optionlocks need not be claustrophobic so much as they
only provide limited pieces with which to solve the problem. Timelocks
need not be hurried so much as limiting the interval during which something
can happen. Once an established Limit is reached, however, the story must
end and assessments be made: is the Outcome Success or Failure? is the
Judgment Good or Bad? is the Main Character Resolve Change or Steadfast?
etc.
Logic -- [Element]
-- dyn.pr. Feeling<-->Logic -- a rational sense of how
things are related -- Logic is the mental process of choosing the most
efficient course or explanation based on reason. The Logic characteristic
exemplifies the theory behind "Occam's Razor," that the simplest
explanation is the correct explanation. Therefore, the Logic characteristic
is very efficient but has no understanding or tolerance that people do
not live by reason alone. As a result, the character with the Logic characteristic
often ignores how other's "unreasonable" feelings may cause
a very real backlash to his approach. -- syn. linear reasoning,
rationality, structural sensibility, syllogistics
Logical Problem
Solving Style (a.k.a. Male Mental Sex) -- [Character Dynamic]
-- The Main Character uses logical problem solving techniques -- A choice
of logical selects a psychology for the Main Character based on causal
relationships. A male Main Character solves problems by examining what
cause or group of causes is responsible for an effect or group of effects.
The effort made to solve the problem will focus on affecting a cause,
causing an effect, affecting an effect, or causing a cause. This describes
four different approaches. Affecting a cause is manipulating an existing
force to change its eventual impact. Causing an effect means applying
a new force that will create an impact. Affecting an effect is altering
an effect after it has happened. Causing a cause is applying a new force
that will make some other force come into play to ultimately create an
impact. These are the four primary problem solving techniques of a logical
minded character. It is important to note that these techniques can be
applied to either external or internal problems. Either way, manipulating
cause and effect is the modus operandi. When selecting intuitive or logical,
typically the choice is as simple as deciding if you want to tell a story
about a man or a woman. But there is another consideration that is being
employed with growing frequency in modern stories: putting the psyche
of one sex into the skin of another. This does not refer only to the "sex
change" comedies but to many action stories with female Main Characters
(e.g. Aliens) and many decision stories with male Main Characters
(Prince of Tides). When an author writes a part for a man, he/she
would intuitively create a male psyche for that character. Yet by simply
changing the name of the character from Joe to Mary and shifting the appropriate
gender terms, the character would ostensibly become a woman. But that
woman would not seem like a woman Even if all the specific masculine dialogue
were changed, even if all the culturally dictated manifestations were
altered, the underlying psyche of the character would have a male bias
rather than a female bias. Sometimes stereotypes are propagated by what
an audience expects to see which filters the message and dilutes the truth.
By placing a male psyche in a female character, preconceptions no longer
prevent the message from being heard. The word of warning is that this
technique can make a Main Character seem "odd" in some hard
to define way to your audience. So although the message may fare better,
empathy between your audience and your Main Character may not.
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