Postmodernism:

Postmodernism says that there is no real truth. It says that knowledge is always made or invented and not discovered. Because knowledge is made by people, a person cannot know something for sure – all ideas and facts are ‘believed’ instead of ‘known’.

• It’s an approach towards understanding, knowledge, life, being, art, technology, culture, sociology, philosophy, politics and history that is REFERENTIAL  (in that it often refers to / copies other things)
• RE-IMAGINING= To recreate or form a new conception of by recreation
• PASTICHE=A work of art, drama, or architecture that imitates the work of a previous artist.
• PARODY= A work or performance that imitates another work or performance with the use of irony and humour.
• COPY
• BRICOLAGE= construction of media with a diverse range of available things ‘involves the rearrangment and juxtaposition of previously unconnected signs to produce new codes of meaning’(Barker & Jane, 2016:237)

Narrative theory:

• Structure: beginning, middle, end- equillibrium -> disruption of equillibrium -> equilibrium restored. (freytags pyramid)
• Propp; characters and their roles, the theory that all characters are reimagined from a set of character templates ~(hero, villian, helper, princess, false hero, father)
• Turner makes clear that the roles aren’t specific to a singular character as one character can fit into more than one of these templates; and it is determined by their functions and SPHERES OF ACTION
• Chatman splits narrative and plot into two main structures; satalights and kernels, kernals being something absoluetly essential to the plot to make sense or for the audience to know. Satalights being something not essential to the plot that can be taken out- yet are important for subtle progression such as character development/ non-essential background context
• Barthes talks about the different type of codes through the narrative. Proairetic code: action, movement, causation Hermenuetic code: reflection, dialogue, character or thematic development Enigma code: the way in which intrigue and ideas are raised – which encourage an audience to want more information. We can relate chatmans Satalight ideaology to hermenuetic code as development.

Denouement – the final part of a play, film, or narrative in which the strands of the plot are drawn together and matters are explained or resolved

Exposition – it is the background information on the characters and setting explained at the beginning of the story

Tomb Raider:

The main character of tomb raider is a female who partakes in violence which is not a common theme throughout older generation games/films. Lara Croft is represented in exposed clothing to appeal to heterosexual men – Laura Mulvey ‘Male Gaze’

Metroid:

Metroid cover displays a dominant signifier of a ‘male’ looking character which is the gender opposite of Tomb Raider. As you progress throughout the game it is revealed that under the suit the character is a female.