Todorov's narrative theory research

Bio
He is a Bulgarian- French historian/philosopher born on March 1st 1939. He studied at the university of Sofia and he took his M.A in philology in 1963. He emigrated to France and enrolled at the university of Paris where he took a Doctorat de troisieme cycle in 1966. This is equivalent to a Ph.D. He is an author of many books and essays which relate to anthropology, sociology etc.

Todorov's narrative theory

His theory is that all narratives meaning books, films, Tv etc. All contain five fundamental stages in this order:

• A state of equilibrium
• A disruption of that order by an event 
• A recognition that the disorder has occurred
• An attempt to repair the damage of the disruption
• A return or restoration of a new equilibrium 

In these stages, narrative is seen as a linear structure but a circular one. The narrative is driven by attempts to restore the equilibrium. However, the equilibrium attained at the end of the story is not identical to the initial equilibrium. Out of the 5 stages these are the 3 main ones:

• Equilibrium- everything is balanced, everything is fine "normality" 
• Disequilibrium- Unbalanced, a problem occurs- this is the main source of drama
• New Equilibrium-  balance restored, problem solved, things are fine but can also be different