Which of the narrative theories has the most validity when linking it to ‘The Shining’?

After watching the film the shining written by Stanley Kubrick and Stephan King I was then able to relate them to the narrative theories. Although it was hard to link a single theory to the film I was able to break the film down and relate individual theories with certain scenes in the films. For example the Torodov theory, where the main idea focuses on how the basic plot is formed and resolved, linked in with the beginning of the film where the family were living their normal life, the hotel is the change in the life which will later cause problems to the family which is where all of the events will later take place. The audience is aware what is going to happen and are also aware the change will take place when they are alone. This then links in with the theory of Levi Strauss who considers narrative structure in terms of vertical binary oppositions. For example to the audience the hotel appears to be innocent as its being looked after by a family yet Kubrick adds a twist using a binary opposite constantly testing the audiences understanding so the innocence is opposite to corruption, this helps the audience understand there is an opposite to every theme changing the stereotypical view of a hotel.

Another scene in the film that links in with the Strauss theory is the little boy Danny as Kubrick juxtaposes his infant innocence with his visions of blood and his knowledge of cannibalism. This immediately leaves the audience feeling unsure whether he is the protagonist character, it is also one of Kubrick’s trade marks as he likes to put a strange twist to such innocence. Another element of surprise for the audience involving Danny is the fact that he has an imaginary friend called Tony, who is his finger. Not only does Tony tell Danny to do the strangest of things which are far from childlike but he also had a disturbing voice which is spoken through the young boy, this technique is a shock tactic as the audience wouldn’t have expected such sound to come from such a small child. The audience would immediately relate an imaginary friend to a young child to be innocent and just be a friend to them, but this use of binary opposition keeps the audience thinking and linking the events to the theme of the film, which is a thriller. The use of ‘red rum’ an anagram for ‘murder’ is also another shock coming from a little boy, or his imaginary friend Tony. This technique adds to the suspense of the build up and foreshadows oncoming events constantly keeping the audience hooked and relating back to the genre of the film. The use of small children having a binary opposite is a common technique in ‘The Shining’ as the twin girls are also corrupted to remind the reader there is an opposite theme to everything, for example Kubrick’s use of iconography shows the twins with props such as knives and covered in blood, the non diegetic music used whilst the girls are in the scene also suggests a lack of innocence allowing the audience to piece the story and relate back to the theme once again.

The final theory I was able to relate the film back to was Vladimir Propp’s, although it was tricky to judge who fitted the attributes of certain characters at the beginning of the film it got easier to eventually pan out who fitted which category. At the beginning I had suspicion Danny may have been the false hero, this was because of his unexpected visions and because he had ‘The Shining’ which was linked to the title of the film. I immediately knew the head chef Dick was the donor as he informed Danny as well as the audience that he had ‘The Shining’ and gave off a lot of information. I then had the idea that Jack Nickelson was the victim, but of the hotel as it was corrupting his sanity and as the audience we were watching him deteriorate. I then thought the Mum, of Danny, was also a victim but of her husband Jack Nickelson as we witnessed violence verbally and physically towards her by him. We also saw events which could link to her vulnerability and her responsibility to Danny.

Although we looked into another Theory called Boardwell and Thompson I found it difficult to relate this to scenes of the film as such but can only think that Danny’s visions may have something to do with it as they foreshadow the events to come, informing the audience.