On the structure of a literary work
August, 15; 2024. By Arscodex
We come here to talk a little about the different structures of literary works, in this case plural, although as we will see, there are only two main types: the classic beginning-middle-end and the "flashback" type of chapters (that is: without a correlative temporal order).
Well, the future storyteller, whether a possible film director, writer, or who knows what, must know that "the fish is sold" (as indicated by the Spanish saying) in this regard, there are only these two types of literary structures and if this person wants to create something he/she must know that this creation will necessarily fall into one of these two types (or into a third: literary nonsense, which has no place in this study precisely because of its non-structured nature).
The future storyteller must know that, yes, the story competes against the others in this "game" established in this way, and there is no way to get out of these structures so he can dedicate his intellect and efforts to creating a good work within these parameters. Let us remember that the most famous works as well as the lesser known or irrelevant ones follow the same structure, so in principle finding that kind of "diamond" among so much "coal" will be difficult.
The future storyteller must know that these are organized equally according to those available on the face of the earth, that is, they compete with each other and if these are not capable of offering anything new, they will fall to the bottom of The lake of oblivion (yes, the one from Pedro Alonso Pablos' film), and little will be known about them. So the future storyteller must concentrate on improving, as far as possible, what exists, since otherwise we all know the destiny of that literary work.
And beyond delving into the already hackneyed structure of introduction-middle-end, already described by the ancient Greeks but in force for some time before, as the reader will be noticing, we are seeing all those adjacent elements that swarm around the very concept of literary structure.
Regarding the two types of structure (the classic three-part or the "flashback"), we recommend that the future storyteller begins with the first one, the "classic", since in this way he will be able to measure with himself and with the world the interest of what he is creating, and that he leave the second type for a later moment in his production.
To give some examples, it is like in the world of gastronomy. All the restaurants in Spain offer croquettes. Well, if someone is able to stand out within this type (the croquettes), then we are talking about something interesting. Or for example, music. Contemporary popular song has a typical structure that is organized around the musical chorus, as we well know and as Ben Mocadem de Cabra explained to us. There is a second type in this case, as in the case of literature, which is not relevant here. Well, any musician who tries to get away from this structure is likely to find himself with experimental music, so it is not advisable to make that move.
Similarly, abstraction in painting represents the absence of narrative and figurative structure and loses some interest as a visual art, beyond its secondary decorative function (like wallpaper decorations).
Therefore, the future storyteller already knows: "the fish is sold"; if you are not able to stand out in the classical structure, then perhaps you have not been called for this task, since there is little room for maneuver in this regard. So we recommend, as we have done other times in this medium, that the future artist try to stand out within the established structures, even if he feels "caged" or lacking a certain freedom.
Well, the future storyteller, whether a possible film director, writer, or who knows what, must know that "the fish is sold" (as indicated by the Spanish saying) in this regard, there are only these two types of literary structures and if this person wants to create something he/she must know that this creation will necessarily fall into one of these two types (or into a third: literary nonsense, which has no place in this study precisely because of its non-structured nature).
The future storyteller must know that, yes, the story competes against the others in this "game" established in this way, and there is no way to get out of these structures so he can dedicate his intellect and efforts to creating a good work within these parameters. Let us remember that the most famous works as well as the lesser known or irrelevant ones follow the same structure, so in principle finding that kind of "diamond" among so much "coal" will be difficult.
The future storyteller must know that these are organized equally according to those available on the face of the earth, that is, they compete with each other and if these are not capable of offering anything new, they will fall to the bottom of The lake of oblivion (yes, the one from Pedro Alonso Pablos' film), and little will be known about them. So the future storyteller must concentrate on improving, as far as possible, what exists, since otherwise we all know the destiny of that literary work.
And beyond delving into the already hackneyed structure of introduction-middle-end, already described by the ancient Greeks but in force for some time before, as the reader will be noticing, we are seeing all those adjacent elements that swarm around the very concept of literary structure.
Regarding the two types of structure (the classic three-part or the "flashback"), we recommend that the future storyteller begins with the first one, the "classic", since in this way he will be able to measure with himself and with the world the interest of what he is creating, and that he leave the second type for a later moment in his production.
To give some examples, it is like in the world of gastronomy. All the restaurants in Spain offer croquettes. Well, if someone is able to stand out within this type (the croquettes), then we are talking about something interesting. Or for example, music. Contemporary popular song has a typical structure that is organized around the musical chorus, as we well know and as Ben Mocadem de Cabra explained to us. There is a second type in this case, as in the case of literature, which is not relevant here. Well, any musician who tries to get away from this structure is likely to find himself with experimental music, so it is not advisable to make that move.
Similarly, abstraction in painting represents the absence of narrative and figurative structure and loses some interest as a visual art, beyond its secondary decorative function (like wallpaper decorations).
Therefore, the future storyteller already knows: "the fish is sold"; if you are not able to stand out in the classical structure, then perhaps you have not been called for this task, since there is little room for maneuver in this regard. So we recommend, as we have done other times in this medium, that the future artist try to stand out within the established structures, even if he feels "caged" or lacking a certain freedom.
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