Post by TIA Promotions on May 20, 2022 7:47:48 GMT -5
The 36 Dramatic Situations
In 1900, a French literary critic named Georges Polti published an analysis of literary plots entitled “The 36 Dramatic Situations”. All situations in any story or drama are supposed to fall into one of these categories. There may be more than one situation in the plot of a story if it’s long enough.
When trying to write a story block for your characters (a PPV cycle, season, or feud), you may want to use one of these situations to further your meta story.
Here are 36 Dramatic Situations you can use in your storylines
1. Implore
The supplicant appeals to authority to be delivered from the persecutor.
2. Save
The victim is in danger because of the persecutor, but the savior saves the victim.
3. Avenge a crime
The criminal commits an unpunished crime, then the avenger restores justice by punishing the criminal.
4. Avenge a loved one
The guilty person and the avenger are in conflict for committing a fault towards the victim, who is related to both.
5. Being tracked
The fugitive flees punishment for a misunderstood conflict.
6. Disaster
The vanquished power loses its place after being defeated by the victorious enemy.
7. Become the prey of cruelty / misfortune
The unhappy one suffers because of the misfortune or the master.
8. Revolt
The rebel revolts against tyrannical authority.
9. Bold enterprise
The bold leader conquers the desirable object by overpowering the opponent.
10. Kidnapping
The kidnapper abducts someone who was in the custody of the warden.
11. Solve an enigma
The interrogator poses an enigma to the researcher and gives him a better ability to achieve the researcher’s goals.
12. Obtaining
The lawyer claims an object in the possession of the opponent, and they fight to have it or keep it.
13. Enmity of kinsmen
The malevolent kinsman and the hated or reciprocally hating kinsman argue and hate each other.
14. Rivalry of kinsmen
The object of the rivalry chooses the preferred kinsman over the rejected kinsman.
15. Murderous adultery
Two adulterous characters conspire to kill the betrayed spouse.
16. Madness
The character goes mad and harms the victim or commits one or more crimes.
17. Fatal imprudence
The imprudent, through negligence or ignorance, loses the lost object or harms the victim.
18. Involuntary crimes of love
The lover and the beloved have unknowingly broken a taboo through their romantic relationship.
19. Murder of unrecognized kinsman
A character kills a loved one without knowing that he/she is close to him.
20. Self-sacrifice for an ideal
The hero sacrifices the person or thing for his ideal.
21. Self-sacrifice for kindred
The hero sacrifices a person or thing for its relative.
22. Sacrificing everything for passion
A lover sacrifices a person or thing for the object of his passion, which is then lost forever.
23. Having to sacrifice a loved one
The hero sacrifices the loved one for a higher ideal.
24. Rivalry between superior and inferior
A superior rival faces an inferior rival to win the object of the rivalry.
25. Adultery
Two adulterers conspire against the cheated spouse.
26. Love crime
A lover commits a crime for love
27. Dishonor of a loved one
The dishonourer discovers the wrongdoing committed by the guilty.
28. Obstacles to love
Two lovers face an obstacle together.
29. Love the enemy
A character begins to love his enemy while his hateful ally hates that enemy.
30. Ambition
The ambitious person is ready to do anything to conquer the coveted thing, and is fought by the opponent.
31. Conflict with a god
The human comes into conflict with a god to satisfy his ambition.
32. Wrong jealousy
The victim becomes jealous of the object and comes into conflict with the supposed accomplice.
33. Erroneous judgment / Judicial error
A character is unfairly accused.
34. Remorse
The perpetrator harms the victim or commits a fault or a crime then has remorse.
35. Reunion
A character searches for and finds another character after a long separation.
36. Mourning / loss of the loved one
The living character mourns the dead.
In 1900, a French literary critic named Georges Polti published an analysis of literary plots entitled “The 36 Dramatic Situations”. All situations in any story or drama are supposed to fall into one of these categories. There may be more than one situation in the plot of a story if it’s long enough.
When trying to write a story block for your characters (a PPV cycle, season, or feud), you may want to use one of these situations to further your meta story.
Here are 36 Dramatic Situations you can use in your storylines
1. Implore
The supplicant appeals to authority to be delivered from the persecutor.
2. Save
The victim is in danger because of the persecutor, but the savior saves the victim.
3. Avenge a crime
The criminal commits an unpunished crime, then the avenger restores justice by punishing the criminal.
4. Avenge a loved one
The guilty person and the avenger are in conflict for committing a fault towards the victim, who is related to both.
5. Being tracked
The fugitive flees punishment for a misunderstood conflict.
6. Disaster
The vanquished power loses its place after being defeated by the victorious enemy.
7. Become the prey of cruelty / misfortune
The unhappy one suffers because of the misfortune or the master.
8. Revolt
The rebel revolts against tyrannical authority.
9. Bold enterprise
The bold leader conquers the desirable object by overpowering the opponent.
10. Kidnapping
The kidnapper abducts someone who was in the custody of the warden.
11. Solve an enigma
The interrogator poses an enigma to the researcher and gives him a better ability to achieve the researcher’s goals.
12. Obtaining
The lawyer claims an object in the possession of the opponent, and they fight to have it or keep it.
13. Enmity of kinsmen
The malevolent kinsman and the hated or reciprocally hating kinsman argue and hate each other.
14. Rivalry of kinsmen
The object of the rivalry chooses the preferred kinsman over the rejected kinsman.
15. Murderous adultery
Two adulterous characters conspire to kill the betrayed spouse.
16. Madness
The character goes mad and harms the victim or commits one or more crimes.
17. Fatal imprudence
The imprudent, through negligence or ignorance, loses the lost object or harms the victim.
18. Involuntary crimes of love
The lover and the beloved have unknowingly broken a taboo through their romantic relationship.
19. Murder of unrecognized kinsman
A character kills a loved one without knowing that he/she is close to him.
20. Self-sacrifice for an ideal
The hero sacrifices the person or thing for his ideal.
21. Self-sacrifice for kindred
The hero sacrifices a person or thing for its relative.
22. Sacrificing everything for passion
A lover sacrifices a person or thing for the object of his passion, which is then lost forever.
23. Having to sacrifice a loved one
The hero sacrifices the loved one for a higher ideal.
24. Rivalry between superior and inferior
A superior rival faces an inferior rival to win the object of the rivalry.
25. Adultery
Two adulterers conspire against the cheated spouse.
26. Love crime
A lover commits a crime for love
27. Dishonor of a loved one
The dishonourer discovers the wrongdoing committed by the guilty.
28. Obstacles to love
Two lovers face an obstacle together.
29. Love the enemy
A character begins to love his enemy while his hateful ally hates that enemy.
30. Ambition
The ambitious person is ready to do anything to conquer the coveted thing, and is fought by the opponent.
31. Conflict with a god
The human comes into conflict with a god to satisfy his ambition.
32. Wrong jealousy
The victim becomes jealous of the object and comes into conflict with the supposed accomplice.
33. Erroneous judgment / Judicial error
A character is unfairly accused.
34. Remorse
The perpetrator harms the victim or commits a fault or a crime then has remorse.
35. Reunion
A character searches for and finds another character after a long separation.
36. Mourning / loss of the loved one
The living character mourns the dead.