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The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories
by
This remarkable and monumental book at last provides a comprehensive answer to the age-old riddle of whether there are only a small number of 'basic stories' in the world. Using a wealth of examples, from ancient myths and folk tales via the plays and novels of great literature to the popular movies and TV soap operas of today, it shows that there are seven archetypal them
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Paperback, 728 pages
Published
September 1st 2006
by Bloomsbury Academic
(first published October 28th 2004)
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Carol Rees
Filmmakers Ron Howard and Tom Hanks say that "Apollo 13" is a Voyage and Return story.
J.k
yep. looking at it right now.
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
An absolutely infuriating book. The basic premise, that there are a limited number of basic structures to be found in narrative storytelling, is fair enough but hardly anything new. Booker makes some good connections and some of them are undeniably on-the-money. But the whole book is infected by Booker's right wing, traditionalist ideology that it becomes, as it goes along, a deeply unpleasant, reactionary read. For Booker, the ideal man is a martial warrior & the ideal woman a housewife (sa
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All in all, there is some incredibly worthwhile information here. Too bad it’s overlong, and much worse: it shows a nasty writer at his opinionated nastiest.
But it looks like I never got around to constructing an actual review. So here are my notes. They'll have to do.
Recommendation:
◼ Read all of Section 1, containing descriptions of the seven basic plots in erudite detail.
◼ Skip to Chapters 21 through 24 of Section 3. These explore the “dark” and “sentimental” variations of the foregoing.
◼ Skim ...more
But it looks like I never got around to constructing an actual review. So here are my notes. They'll have to do.
Recommendation:
◼ Read all of Section 1, containing descriptions of the seven basic plots in erudite detail.
◼ Skip to Chapters 21 through 24 of Section 3. These explore the “dark” and “sentimental” variations of the foregoing.
◼ Skim ...more
Though I'm a little uncomfortable dismissing a book that has taken someone half a lifetime to write, I can't help but think that when it comes to The Seven Basic Plots the author's time could really have been better spent. There were points where this book outright insulted me; as a literature student, as a feminist, as a psychology major, and as a lover of stories in general.
The idea of applying Jungian theory to literature is not new, but reading this book often had me wondering whether such a ...more
The idea of applying Jungian theory to literature is not new, but reading this book often had me wondering whether such a ...more
700 pages! A great deal of which is repetition of ideas and extensive plot summaries of exemplar stories throughout time, and can be skimmed. The ideas put forth in this book are appealing intuitively if ultimately unfalsifiable, and familiar if you've ever gotten into Jungian psychology or Joseph Campbell. Basically we're talking about archetypes, the psyche, and evolutionary drives; the human desire to "re"connect with "something greater," which might be god or more likely perpetuation of the
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So I was uncomfortable, early on, with the extreme heteronormative attitude, and the appropriation of Freudian/Jungian discourse as if these theories are just self evident, but I gave it a bit of leeway, because, if problematic, that kind of analysis is at least widespread... But my discomfort and suspicion grew, and at last, I could read no more. I gave up after he attempted to discuss Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley. Here are the sentences that almost broke my brain:
"The question which then ari ...more
"The question which then ari ...more
Finished at last. What an utter waste of time - but in a sick sort of way I just had to keep going, to see just how bad it could get. He started off with a good idea - that a lot of stories have similar basic plot outlines. Unfortunately he then gets a bit carried away, comes up with a formula, then applies it not just to literature, but the whole of human history. Which is all a decline from some prelapsarian state of blessedness. It's like the theory of the four humours in medicine - it seems
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This book is 5x thicker than it needed to be. If it didn't make a very few fine observations I would have thrown it against the wall, which would have left a considerable hole.
Repetition aside, its greatest weakness is Booker's inability to disentangle his personal prejudices from what makes a story work in the general sense. For example, according to Booker, if the hero doesn't vanquish the villain and run off with the (victimized) female who, he maintains, is nothing more than a projection of ...more
Repetition aside, its greatest weakness is Booker's inability to disentangle his personal prejudices from what makes a story work in the general sense. For example, according to Booker, if the hero doesn't vanquish the villain and run off with the (victimized) female who, he maintains, is nothing more than a projection of ...more
This book is actually many things:
- An introduction to the seven basic plots and their many associated archetypes that work in combination.
- A system. It can be applied to any story you know (and it’s fun to do so).
- A tool. An almost obligatory read for anyone who invents stories. If you don’t tap on this 37 years research you’re simple on disadvantage. It’s not that everyone should follow the author's guidance in order to write stories that fulfill the self and not the ego, on the contrary, a ...more
- An introduction to the seven basic plots and their many associated archetypes that work in combination.
- A system. It can be applied to any story you know (and it’s fun to do so).
- A tool. An almost obligatory read for anyone who invents stories. If you don’t tap on this 37 years research you’re simple on disadvantage. It’s not that everyone should follow the author's guidance in order to write stories that fulfill the self and not the ego, on the contrary, a ...more
I didn't mean to read this book. I just wanted to know see what the seven basic plots were! But I devoured the first 300+ pages in a way that made me realize I just might read all 700. (It's just so lucid! With all this yummy discussion of well-known stories from throughout the ages, FOR all ages . . . )
The next 150 pages or so have made me increasingly uneasy, as we discuss all the ways in which stories can go "wrong"--AND what this says about their authors. Not to mention us as a society. AND ...more
The next 150 pages or so have made me increasingly uneasy, as we discuss all the ways in which stories can go "wrong"--AND what this says about their authors. Not to mention us as a society. AND ...more
Perhaps you have heard that there are no new stories, there are only the retelling of old stories. Or maybe you have heard it said that there are only a small number of basic stories. Well, Christopher Booker took these statements seriously, and spent a lifetime writing his book about them and published it in 2004. He asserts in the beginning that there are only seven basic plots: Overcoming the Monster as exemplified by Beowulf and Star Wars, Rags to Riches with Joseph in the Bible and David Co
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The Seven Basic Plots
Author: Christopher Booker
Publisher: Continuum International Publishing Group
Published In: New York City, NY / London, UK
Date: 2004
Pgs: 728
_________________________________________________
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
A small number of basic stories permeate the world. They are hardwired into the human psyche. These plots exist in ancient myths, folk tales, play, novels, campfire tales, James Bond, Harry Potter, and Star Wars. These plots go to the way that we imagine s ...more
Author: Christopher Booker
Publisher: Continuum International Publishing Group
Published In: New York City, NY / London, UK
Date: 2004
Pgs: 728
_________________________________________________
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
A small number of basic stories permeate the world. They are hardwired into the human psyche. These plots exist in ancient myths, folk tales, play, novels, campfire tales, James Bond, Harry Potter, and Star Wars. These plots go to the way that we imagine s ...more
This book helped me do something I find excruciatingly difficult: describe my own novel. I read this book when I was trying to write back cover copy for Punch book 1: The Loribond. It was only in reading The Seven Basic Plots that I realized I had unwittingly written a comedy.
The Seven Basic Plots is a humongous tome. For a book that purports to survey all of human literature to reveal the basic driving psychology of human storytelling, it's focused on the DWMs a bit too much for me. There were ...more
The Seven Basic Plots is a humongous tome. For a book that purports to survey all of human literature to reveal the basic driving psychology of human storytelling, it's focused on the DWMs a bit too much for me. There were ...more
A fascinating but infuriating book which requires one to accept the premise that Jungian archetypes form the only satisfying basis for a narrative. This premise is explored through the means of numerous if partial examples from both literary and popular culture. The author's bias and erudition make this an enjoyable read and it is worth persevering to the end, however there are several annoying factual errors in the plot summaries. And Booker's despair with regard to novels and other works from
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I read the book in one sitting, powered through the sheer weight of verbiage by the force of my hatred for it.
To say there are 7 plots and they represent ways of talking about overcoming the ego is fair enough - but when he can't find a single novel that properly exemplifies these ideas, it may have been time to ditch the theory.
Instead he concludes that all authors since the romantic movement have not been emotionally mature enough to fit his theory, so it must be the author's fault. Not a faul ...more
To say there are 7 plots and they represent ways of talking about overcoming the ego is fair enough - but when he can't find a single novel that properly exemplifies these ideas, it may have been time to ditch the theory.
Instead he concludes that all authors since the romantic movement have not been emotionally mature enough to fit his theory, so it must be the author's fault. Not a faul ...more
An exellent book that I highly recommend to any writer, or "wannabe" writer. It helps if you have some concept of Jungian psychology, but the author does a good job of making his discussion of the concept of the "self" and "ego" very approachable. He does synopses of many famous stories, ranging from ancient folk tales to modern Hollywood blockbusters. If you've ever wondered why you found a particular story unappealing, reading this book might help you understand why. I foresee this book being
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Too much of a muchness, as my grandmother was fond of saying. Nothing revelatory or fascinating, and every other word could be eliminated. I appreciate the research and the hours behind the book, but the outcome is a daunting and misnamed book. Covers "how" in great detail and leaves hanging the "why."
Full disclosure: I didn't finish this book. But that's partly why I give it only 2 stars.
1. It was much longer than it needed to be.
2. It made me angry, or at least uncomfortable, with where the author was taking his arguments.
The first section of the book was interesting and worthwhile. The author demonstrated how stories -- from all over the world and from ancient times to modern -- can be categorized by seven basic plots. I enjoyed reading the examples (summaries of books, movies, operas, f ...more
1. It was much longer than it needed to be.
2. It made me angry, or at least uncomfortable, with where the author was taking his arguments.
The first section of the book was interesting and worthwhile. The author demonstrated how stories -- from all over the world and from ancient times to modern -- can be categorized by seven basic plots. I enjoyed reading the examples (summaries of books, movies, operas, f ...more
Mar 21, 2009
Daniel Teo
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
writers, readers
Shelves:
writing
Anyone who likes reading or writing, or even some other form of storytelling (like movies for example) really owes it to themselves to read this book. This book will give you so many great new insights and you will gain a much deeper understanding and appreciation on how stories are built up. I found myself looking at stories differently than I did before.
Booker explains how all stories basically fit into one of the seven basic plots. What's more, those stories will go through the same five main ...more
Booker explains how all stories basically fit into one of the seven basic plots. What's more, those stories will go through the same five main ...more
I purposefully did not research this author before finishing the book because I wanted to absorb the book on its own merit.
I loved the book, and I thoroughly enjoyed Booker's conjectures and conclusions about why humans seek meaning in their stories, and what meaning they seek. The only real flaw in the book (for me) was toward the end when he was discussing contemporary fiction... I think Booker's British experience and passionate nationalism clouded and somewhat distorted his otherwise mostly ...more
I loved the book, and I thoroughly enjoyed Booker's conjectures and conclusions about why humans seek meaning in their stories, and what meaning they seek. The only real flaw in the book (for me) was toward the end when he was discussing contemporary fiction... I think Booker's British experience and passionate nationalism clouded and somewhat distorted his otherwise mostly ...more
The thing I recall most about this book was the author's feeling that something has grown askew within the 21st Century story structure...as if we can't resolve things 'the way we used to' - Post modernism? Something about storytelling inside that giant evolving universal perspective appealed. Stories are incredibly powerful. I didn't finish this book, but I cherry-picked some gold. However, I read these structural writing books and then instantly try to forget them. I don't want to feel to head
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I'm quitting this. I'm really perlexed that Brooker is acting as if the idea of the commonalities in stories is merely a "teasing notion" to everyone else, and that he's the only person to actually research it. Plus this review.
I think if you stick to the technical juice of the book and to the presence of mind it takes to come up with the definition of the different plots, this is pretty neat.
Yet, the lack of diversity in the examples, namely on the gender of the authors (that was the one that struck me the most) is definitely a turn-off. I think that if the author had stuck more to the actual matter at hand, instead of throwing so much opinionated secondary thoughts, everyone would probably have enjoyed this a bit mor ...more
Yet, the lack of diversity in the examples, namely on the gender of the authors (that was the one that struck me the most) is definitely a turn-off. I think that if the author had stuck more to the actual matter at hand, instead of throwing so much opinionated secondary thoughts, everyone would probably have enjoyed this a bit mor ...more
If you want to read this book because you think the author is going to outline seven basic stories that permeate through all or at least most of written literature then you're going to be disappointed.
For one, Booker focuses almost solely on Western stories and literature. And even then, the seven basic plots that he offers (he actually changes it to nine at the end of the first section) in no way incorporates all or even most of the stories (written or otherwise) in Western civilisation. The se ...more
For one, Booker focuses almost solely on Western stories and literature. And even then, the seven basic plots that he offers (he actually changes it to nine at the end of the first section) in no way incorporates all or even most of the stories (written or otherwise) in Western civilisation. The se ...more
This is first-rate criticism--and I am usually averse to criticism, as in my view few critics understand literature. (Perhaps that sounds absurd, but I think most writers agree with me.) It's also a particularly useful book for writers. Its basic premise is that Jung is correct on his theory of the archetypes, and if stories are to mean anything to us, they need to conform, basically, to archetypal patterns. Obviously that doesn't mean that they need to be formulaic. Booker thinks that western l
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This started out wonderfully, I truly enjoyed the chapters about the basic plots. But as soon as he started talking about "modern" literature and why it's all wrong because it doesn't follow archetypal structures, he lost me. It's one thing to say all of Proust doesn't follow an archetypal structure, which might be true. It might also be true that it's mostly literature about the self, and thus essentially egocentric. But to imply from that that it's BAD literature and not worth reading... Well,
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Booker's identification of the principal narrative structures underlying the best examples of stories, novels, plays and films is attractive and, seen retrospectively, intuitively right. Those seven plots (which he entitles Overcoming the Monster, The Quest, Voyage and Return, Rags to Riches, Comedy, Tragedy and Rebirth) singly or in combination naturally appear to underpin a very large proportion of the narratives Booker approves of. The first part of this mammoth study seems to triumphantly pr
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This book explains storytelling, and it does it extremely well. What it doesn't do is give practical advice if that's what you're looking for. It's too long and too unwieldy for most creative writers to digest. I was bored at times. A good reference book for your library shelf.
Sep 13, 2017
David
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
cultural-analysis,
literary-criticism
Why do so many of our most cherished stories seem the same? There's an ordinary person who is probably an orphan (Frodo, Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, etc.) who goes off on some sort of quest to fight against a great evil. This story has small differences, but the big picture is the same.
The reason is that there are, as Booker says, seven basic plots: Overcoming the Monster, Rags to Riches, the Quest, Voyage and Return, Comedy, Tragedy and Rebirth. Within these stories there is overlap as indivi ...more
The reason is that there are, as Booker says, seven basic plots: Overcoming the Monster, Rags to Riches, the Quest, Voyage and Return, Comedy, Tragedy and Rebirth. Within these stories there is overlap as indivi ...more
This book is above all thought-provoking, the kind of book that sends your brain in so many directions that you stop thinking about it to avoid the headache. It is also the very nearest to giving a non-Christian account of Christian morality (more on that later).
The basic thesis is that all stories have five basic divisions:
1. The Anticipation Stage: Hero is somehow immature and he must go on a journey to grow.
2. The Dream Stage: He enters another world or quest, and has some initial success.
3. ...more
The basic thesis is that all stories have five basic divisions:
1. The Anticipation Stage: Hero is somehow immature and he must go on a journey to grow.
2. The Dream Stage: He enters another world or quest, and has some initial success.
3. ...more
Without a doubt, the most boring book I have ever read. It's 700-page brick about S T O R Y and it's just dry toast with peanut butter and sandpaper chasers in the middle of the Sahara. Every time I squinted at the 7 point type and read about some archaic story from 1829 where the woman is desperate to get married I instantly passed out. In fact, in total transparency, I only made it through the first section of the seven archetypes. I don't think I could have endured another 450 pages of this t
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“The kind of self-righteous intolerance once associated with the more puritanical forms of religion and the more extreme forms of Socialism now reappeared to promote the 'rights' of women, homosexuals, racial minorities, the disabled and any group of people who could be portrayed as being 'below the line' and therefore discriminated against...Unconsciously they were using the belief that they were acting in the name of selfless moral principle simply as a cloak for asserting their ego, and as a means to enjoy feelings of moral superiority. In the cause of 'toleration' and promoting collective 'rights,' they had become possessed by a fanatical and humorless intolerance.”
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“At the beginning of a full five-stage Tragedy, the central figure is always part of a community, a network of relationships, linked to other people by ties of loyalty, friendship, family or marriage. And one of the most important things which happens to such heroes and heroines as they embark on their tragic course is that they begin to break those bonds of loyalty, friendship and love (even if, initially, they may form other alliances). It is the very essence of Tragedy that the hero or heroine should become, step by step, separated from other people. Often they separate themselves in the most obvious, violent and final way possible, by causing other people's deaths.”
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