Narrative Analysis: The Shining

When watching a horror movie like The Shining, we can apply the frameworks provided by several media theorists to gain a better understanding of the story. However, in this case some theorists may be more useful than others, as The Shining is not a typical Hollywood film. Directed by Stanley Kubrick, the film is a nightmarish, claustrophobic experience which throws many established narrative conventions out of the window in order to increase the sense of dementia, paranoia and confusion.

1--Todorov

Todorov’s theory is that of the Classic Hollywood narrative. It states that a story following a linear chronology will always begin in a state of balance and peace, or equilibrium. This equilibrium is then disrupted by an event, usually the arrival of a villain or some other impending danger. The rest of the plot then follows the attempts of the protagonists to restore this equilibrium. There will be breakthroughs and setbacks, triumphs and disasters, but eventually the equilibrium is restored, and everyone lives happily ever after.

The Shining uses this narrative structure to an extent, but twists it completely. Although there is equilibrium at the start, there is no real event at the beginning that disrupts it. Instead, Jack Torrence goes slowly insane over the course of the film, and we can see the gradual effect the isolation and ghosts in the hotel are having on him. This is actually true of many horror films, as the villain slowly causes more and more chaos while the heroes remain ignorant. However, unlike those other films, The Shining does not see a restoration of the equilibrium at the end. The last few scenes show Wendy and Danny disappearing into a snowstorm, and that’s the last we see of them; there’s no way of telling if they’re all right or not. As for Jack, he freezes to death, but a photograph in the hotel then shows him alive and well at a party. This serves to underline the confusion caused by the narrative of the film.

2—Propp

Propp examined folk and fairy tales to see if their narrative structure was comparable with modern storylines. What he found was that there are 8 archetypal roles that characters fulfil. They are:
• The Villain(s)—they’re the ones that upset the equilibrium, and they try and prevent the hero from restoring it.
• The Hero—out to save the world and get the girl.
• The Donor—gives the hero an item to help in on his way.
• The Helper—the sidekick, always there to back the hero up.
• The Princess—the villain has her in his clutches, and she needs rescuing.
• The King—father of the princess, and the local authority figure. He rewards the hero for his brave deeds.
• The dispatcher—the guy who sends the hero on his grand adventure.

The Shining has characters fulfil some of these roles, but the small number of characters means that some roles will be empty, depending on how one interprets the film. For example, while the hotel manager is definitely the dispatcher, does the fact that he gives Jack the “quest” make Jack the hero? But surely Jack is the villain, the madman with the axe? So then either Wendy or Danny must be the hero—but isn’t Wendy supposed to be the princess? Halloran is the helper and the donor but he doesn’t provide much help; getting axed as soon as he walks in the door. One could even say the hotel itself is the villain, driving Jack to insanity and turning him into its puppet. In conclusion, Propps theories become muddled in the confusion of The Shining.

3—Levi-Strauss

Levi-Strauss was interested in binary opposition, the concept of two opposing forces. These binary opposites are concepts such as Good vs. Evil, Nature vs. Industry, and Known vs. Unknown. The idea is that by viewing one concept, we can gain a better understanding of its twin.

The Shining does not use the classic theme of good vs. evil used in many other horror films. Instead, the main themes are those of sanity vs. insanity and the natural vs. the supernatural. In particular it’s never clear whether Jack is going mad by himself or if there really is a supernatural presence driving him to kill his family. Its worth noting that whenever Jack sees a ghost, there is a mirror nearby—is he simply seeing his own madness-twisted reflection? But then how did Delbert Grady manage to open the door in the kitchen?

4—Boardwell and Thompson

These two came up with the theory that a narrative is “chain of events in a cause-effect relationship, occurring in time and space”. In effect, this means that each part of a story should be a reaction to the previous part. Filmmakers can affect this chain of events by editing shots together in a way that affects our understanding of them.

The Shining uses this chain reaction idea to illustrate Jack’s descent into madness. Each thing that happens to him at the hotel, whether getting up late, or being unable to write, or being menaced by ghosts, gradually makes him more and more crazy. Kubrick also uses editing to blur our perceptions of time and space; the hotel is always lit, distorting our perception of time passing.