Analysis of Propp's Theory in "Stranger Things" Through Joyce Byers
In the TV series "Stranger Things," Joyce Byers plays a key role amidst the narrative structured by Propp's theory. This analysis highlights how character roles such as the Hero, the Villain, the Helpers, the Prize, and the Mentor/Donor align with the actions and motivations of various characters in the show, offering a deeper understanding of the storytelling dynamics at play.
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STRANGER THINGS Character Choice: Joyce Byers (Wills Mother)
FEATURE 1: PROPPS THEORY Description - Propps theory around narrative/story stats that every narrative has a, almost pre- set character roles and a very baseline story, being that the Villain s goal is to disrupt some sort of balance or already has, as well as stopping the hero, who s goal is to restore balance to what the villain disrupted. The Archetypes - Propps theory stats that there are several main archetypes in a narrative or story, which are as follows: The Hero The heroes goal through the narrative is to restore balance by going on a quest, adventure or simply completing some sort objective. He does all of this while the Villain and his followers, minions or even bodyguards, etc try to stop the hero or block his progress. Although, the hero does not always have to win or succeed as the villain can also succeed. In stranger things case however, the Hero would be Hopper, the towns sheriff but could also arguably be Wills friends who make multiple unsuccessful attempts to find/save Will. (Arguably 11 later on but this is only the first few Eps of the show) The Villain The Villains goal is to disrupt a world or cause an event that triggers the dispatcher to send the hero on his/her/it s quest. The Villains main goal throughout the narrative/story is to make attempts (whether they are successful or not is up to the story) to stop the hero and his friends/party members from progressing further. In stranger things case however, the villain could arguably be either the demi- gorgon (whoops I mean the thing that took Will ) or Dr. Brenner. This is because Dr. Brenner essentially created the portal which brought the Demi-gorgon into their world But the Demi-gorgon did choose to take Will to The upside-down . Thus meaning the Narrative contains two Villains instead of the classic Single villain with his group of minions or henchmen clique.
FEATURE 1: CONTINUED The Helper(s) The helper or helpers goal is to assist the hero in his quest or objective, being either right by the heroes side or from far away, doing whatever necessary to aid the hero on their quest. The helper(s) will often make some sort of a sacrifice in order for the Heroes quest to continue, further delving the heroes drive to finish their quest. But in stranger things, the helpers are both Wills friends and his Brother Jonathon, which is clear because both Wills friends and Jonathon go searching for him when told not to. Wills friends also meet 11 while searching for Will, who becomes one of the Catalysts for the town finally recovering Will Byers (which is also revealed later on Ugh) The Prize/Princess Propps theory also stats that the hero needs a reward/prize for completing his quest and defeating the Villain or putting a stop to their plans. The prize is often either some sort of object with magical prop(p)erties, wealth, an object of importance or even a person (usually someone of romantic interest to the Hero themselves). In Stranger things however, the prize is revealed very early on (in the prologue to the first episode to be exact) that Will Byers is the prize, as he mysteriously disappeared and becomes the heroes/Hoppers objective to find him and bring him back to his family so that they can be together once again, which acts as a reward for him, as he still grieves over the death of his daughter, driving him that extra mile and giving him more incentive to find Will (sorry for the rant). The Mentor/Donor The Mentor/donor is said to either have trained the Hero for their quest (or not) or alternatively the Mentor/Donor gives the Hero some sort of magical item , an item of importance to aid them in their quest/objective or even a piece of information. In stranger things however, a mentor/donor of sorts is not exactly prevalent, but Will and his friends science teacher Mr. Clarke explains to them how the upside-down (if it existed) would work. He explains it through the analogy of The Acrobat and the flea , essentially, Will s friends are the Acrobat, only able to walk on top of the rope, but the flea, who is the Demi-gorgon, can go both on top of the rope and underneath the rope (which basically gives it all away).
FEATURE 1: CONTINUED EVEN FURTHER The Dispatcher The dispatcher is the individual or catalyst that sends the hero on their quest or gives them their objective. They often play a small role in the beginning and end of the narrative/story, but they play a very key role in the narrative/story they are in. In stranger things however, the dispatcher is defiantly Joyce Byers, also known as Will Byers mother. She first realises that Will is missing and calls for help, going to Sherriff Hopper (who is the Hero of the story). From Joyce talking to Hopper about her missing son, this causes Hopper to begin investigating. So essentially, Joyce sent Hopper on his quest which was to find Will. The Blocker/False Hero The blocker/false hero acts as one of the Heroes bigger adversatives or threats, as the blocker/false hero is either someone who is in the heroes party/friend group BUT is working for the Villain of the narrative. Or alternatively, they can manipulate certain good guys in the narrative with backstory or information they have on that particular character. In stranger things, a prominent Blocker/False Hero is Dr. Brenner, as he steals 11 as a young child and drugging her mother up until she forgot about 11 and what happened to her. As 11 grew up Dr. Brenner acted as 11 s father, as it is shown that 11 calls Dr. Brenner calls him Papa . Throughout the narrative of stranger things, he also blocks the progress of the Hero and his helpers, arriving when they least need him to.
FEATURE 1: CONTINUED EEEEVEN FURTHER How The Feature Portrays The Character: Propps theory portrays Joyce as a hard Dispatcher and somewhat of a helper (but primarily, The helpers are Wills friends and his brother Jonathon). As mentioned before, Joyce is the one who originally discovers Will is missing. There isn t too much to talk about here with Joyce but this does give key information on her character. Effect on the development of the Narrative: Joyce, as Wills mother, plays one of the key roles in the first seasons narrative, being both one of the main driving forces that provoke the others to help look for her son and obviously discovers he s missing in the first place, which in turn starts the narratives main driving conflict Finding Will Byers.
FEATURE 2: TORDOV Description: Tordov s theory stats that a story has three main parts/equilibriums until the narrative/story comes to a conclusion, with the equilibriums being as follows: Equilibrium This part of Tordovs theory is the starting point to the narrative, essentially what life is like before the equilibrium is thrown out of balance. Everything is often normal, with a certain event occurring that throws it off. In stranger things case, the Equilibrium we are shown is with Will and his three friends playing a game of Dnd and having to go to bed/go home because it s a school night. Disequilibrium The main part/chuck of the narrative/story is the disequilibrium, where the certain event happens that throws off the balance and forces for there to be a rise from key characters in the narrative to restore this balance. In stranger things, this balance is thrown off when will goes missing and Joyce realises this. The key characters that rise up to find him are Hopper, Wills friends, Wills family and some other assorted town members. New Equilibrium - This part of Tordovs theory of almost always the conclusion of the narrative/story, with order being restored and the conflict ended, a new equilibrium comes into play, representing a new life for the characters affected by the conflict of the narrative. But This is not always shown in every narrative/story, with either the story ending for this can be shown or the equilibrium not being restored at all. In stranger things however (SPOILERS!!!!) the equilibrium is restored by Hopper and his helpers (along with Joyce and 11) getting them to the upside-down and getting Will back, ending the conflict and bringing in the New-equilibrium.
