THE CLASSICAL NARRATIVE TEXT
•Basic features of the classical (realistic text):
–Well-defined characters: character-centred narratives
–The world is knowable and susceptible of rational enquiry.
–Spatio-temporal and moral guidance. Hierarchy of voices and
discourses.
–Structuring principles: chronology, causality and teleology. Movement
forward.
–Tension between advance and delay (suspense) and between
information and lack of it (surprise).
Complementary way of looking at a narrative text
Basic structure of enigma (or conflict, the “agon”) and resolution.
Events bring about changes and transformations, leading to a new
order or equilibrium. Closure.
