36 Dramatic Situations list 12/5/10 6:05 PM

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on 30 Aug 2010 05:01
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36 Dramatic Situations
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1. Supplication
The situation of “Supplication” is versatile, requiring only a Persecutor, a Suppliant and a
Power in Authority. Essentially, the Persecutor brings harm to the Suppliant who then
appeals to the Power in Authority for salvation. The most obvious example of this in
modern film is the crime story of an innocent man on trial begging for reason to triumph
while appealing to the judge, governor and anyone else who will listen to grant
salvation.

2. Deliverance
Ever feel that you have seen this movie
“Deliverance” is a situation of helplessness that evolves into one of triumph because of a before or that there is nothing new? Well they
hero. It requires An Unfortunate, A Threatener and a Rescuer.
have been saying that for quite some time.
Georges Polti "36 Dramatic Situations"
translated into English was published in 1916.
This work establishes the theory that all
stories fall into set categories.

These categories are still taught in script

writing courses.

This is taken directly from the "Film School

Rejects" web site.
Film School Rejects - Thirty-Six Dramatic
3. Crime pursued by vengeance Situations

Crime. Pursued. By Vengeance. By far the most intensely-named dramatic situation,

Wikipedia
“Crime Pursued by Vengeance” keeps it simple and deadly. All it takes is an Avenger and
The Thirty-Six Dramatic Situations
a Criminal.

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4. Vengeance taken for kin upon kin Mockumentaries and other

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essentially involves a family member wronged by a family member and a third family
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5. Pursuit 7 votes
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6. Disaster Embed this list with widgets RSS Feed

“Disaster” is a confusing situation for modern audiences because one element of it has
blossomed while others have fallen by the wayside. Technically it includes a Vanquished
Power and a Victorious Enemy or Messenger. Here’s where it gets tricky. For the most Join listal and create your own lists and
part, Disaster refers to the downfall of an empire or a king (like Troy) or the downfall of much more
the entire world (whether that be localized by personal experience or literal, like in
2012).

However, one subsection of Disaster is the Natural Catastrophe – a genre that exploded
in the mid-20th century with disaster movies featuring volcanoes erupting, earthquakes
rattling, buildings catching fire and ships turning completely upside down. 36 Dramatic
Situations writer Georges Polti probably had no idea that one minor grouping in a sea of
military-inspired kingdom killers would emerge to become its own cinematic genre.
Probably because he couldn’t have foretold the invention of movies.

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7. Falling prey to cruelty/misfortune

“Falling Prey to Cruelty or Misfortune” – This situation only requires the presence of a
Victim and either a Master or a Misfortune. Bad Thing A happens to Person B and has
lasting ramifications on Person B’s life.

8. Revolt
Oh, “Revolt.” There’s nothing like a good, old fashioned case where one or a thousand
rise up against tyranny. It is a revenge of the most elaborate kind – because it requires
a conspiracy. There are really two elements at work here: the Tyrant and the
Conspirator. Fortunately, the conspiracy can be one man with a convoluted plan, a group
planning on stabbing their leader on the 15th of March or an icon who revolts and
causes social change because he or she is just that charismatic.

9. Daring Enterprise
“Daring Enterprise” – This dramatic situation requires a Bold Leader, an Object, and an
Adversary. It’s essentially the forerunner of the Men on a Mission Movie. It’s high
concept, but the key here is that the stakes have to be life-threatening enough to make
the enterprise considered daring. Heading into the Mexican desert to attack a heavily
guarded compound is dangerous. Heading to a dinner full of idiots, for example, is not.

10. Abduction
“Abduction” – This situation requires the presence of an Abductor, an Abducted, and a
Guardian. It’s a relatively cut-and-dry situation in which someone is taken, with or
without their consent, and the abductor is set to protect their captive from the one in
pursuit of reclamation.

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11. The Enigma

“The Enigma” – Defined by the presence of an interrogator, a seeker and a problem, or
more accurately a riddle to be solved. This becomes an interesting crossover situation
with another – “pursuit” – especially in regards to how Se7en, and other stories in the
mystery genre, fit categorically into one and/or the other.

12. Obtaining
“Obtaining” – This situation includes a Solicitor looking to take ownership by means of
force, ruse, or persuasion and an Adversary seeking to deny them their prize. This can
also entail a central arbitrator of the two opposing parties, such as a judge in a
courtroom.

13. Enmity of kin

“Enmity of Kin” – This situation treads a rather fine line in distinguishing itself from
another defined dramatic situation – Rivalry of kin. The primary factor segregating the
two is the presence of hatred on behalf of at least one of the parties involved, not to
mention that the sheer presence of hatred limits this situation to be applicable almost
entirely within the confines of familial relationships.

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14. Rivalry of kin

“Rivalry of Kinsmen” – This situation involves two persons of relation, or friends, fighting
over an object or the affection of another, whether that be a love interest or of another
kin.

15. Murderous adultery

“Murderous Adultery” – The elements of two adulterers and either a betrayed husband or
wife come together in this situation, ending in the demise of one, or more, of the three
characters involved. This can be a rather fun situation for a writer to play with in that in
any given story the object of the audience’s sympathy can be any of the three whether
they’re the victim of adultery, the guilty spouse, or the paramour. Then, when you add
in the element of murder the person committing the murder could be provoked by
revenge, or even as in the case of Match Point, a premeditated attempt to get out of an
unenviable quandary.

16. Madness
“Madness” – A simple scenario consisting of one who has gone insane and a victim of
the madman’s actions. The victim can certainly be the madman him/herself being the
cause of their own misfortune or undoing, or as is tragically common (because of the
undeniable powerful effect) it tends to be a kinsmen or loved one of the madman. The
reasons for succumbing to madness can vary as often as the consequences and the
victim ranging from obsession to fear, and everything in between and beyond.

17. Fatal imprudence

“Fatal Imprudence” – The rash act or curiosity of one, or a collective, that directly leads
to their own misfortune, dishonor, or death or the consequences befall a relative or loved
one.

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18. Involuntary crimes of love

a Lover; a Beloved; a Revealer. “Involuntary Crimes of Love” – This situation can involve
a very broad set of circumstances ranging from unknowingly having an affair with ones
relative to unknowingly having an adulterous affair with someone one didn’t know was
married.

19. Slaying of kin unrecognized

This situation involves the “Slayer” and the “Unrecognized Victim.” As shown in the
supposed original example of this situation – the Oedipus story – the slayer implicitly
doesn’t recognize that the victim him or herself is kin until the act of slaying is
complete.

20. Self-sacrifice for an ideal

“Self-Sacrifice for an Ideal” – This situation is pretty straightforward. It involves the
Hero, the Ideal, and the “Creditor” or person or thing sacrificed (typically, also the
“Hero”). The hero does what is necessary to achieve, or often dies while seeking to
achieve, the ideal and gives of themselves first and foremost in order to achieve it.

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21. Self-sacrifice for kin

“Self-sacrifice for kin” is a quite flexible dramatic situation, as the word “kin” can take
on several meanings. While a familiar iteration of the situation can be treated literally (a
brother sacrificing himself for his sibling, a parent sacrificing him or herself for a child),
“kin” can also refer to a loved one not related by blood, or the more symbolic kindred
one is attached to by nation or ideology. In its most literal interpretation, this situation is
manifested as one life being sacrificed in order to save the life of another, but in the
case of various iterations of this situation –like the particular story of Harakiri – sacrifice
can be enacted in order to preserve honor or an accepted version of memory (as in, the
one sacrificed for does not necessarily have to be living).

22. All sacrificed for passion

“All Sacrificed for Passion” is a situation whose classical roots are probably most evident
in Shakespearean theater like Romeo and Juliet. This situation typically involves “The
Lover,” “The Object of Final Passion” (usually the same as the lover), and “The Person or
Thing Sacrificed.” In the Shakespearean example and in its filmic equivalents, The Lover
transforms into The Object of Final Passion through a tragedy often involving death, and
the rest of the narrative that proceeds involves the way in which the living remaining
member of that relationship deals with that loss. Knowing that they will no longer
achieve they same fulfillment they possessed with The Lover, they take action that seals
some sort of tragic fate. (The passion for The Lover here can also be substituted for
obsession with someone with whom the protagonist doesn’t have an active romantic
relationship, like in Taxi Driver).

23. Necessity of sacrificing loved ones

The situation of “Necessity of Sacrificing Loved Ones” as exercised by classics and
religious texts see one family member or kinsman sacrificing another for some sort of
greater good, often with the dictation of a greater (i.e., supernatural or God-like) power
at play. In its modern cinematic adaptation, however, the moral landscape in which such
actions are motivated isn’t exactly so clear or straightforward.

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24. Rivalry of superior vs. inferior

“Rivalry of Superior and Inferior” involves “The Superior Rival,” “The Inferior Rival,” and
“The Object.” The object, of course, is not necessarily material, but can represent an
ideal (justice, vengeance), or the winning over of another agent in the situation.

25. Adultery
“Adultery” is a frequently explored dramatic situation in cinema, and is often the catalyst
for thrillers and stories of vengeance (like the films of Adrian Lyne), or contemplative
meditations on morality and social expectations (like the films of Eric Rohmer).

26. Crimes of love

This situation involves the elements of “The Lover” and “The Beloved,” which are clearly
defined in Dog Day Afternoon as Sonny and Leon. “Crimes of Love,” as it is defined by
Polti, most often involves the affairs themselves which are deemed to be criminal, or
relationships that are designated by society as unconventional or unacceptable. What’s
fascinating regarding how this situation exists in Dog Day Afternoon is not only the fact
that love in this case inspires a criminal act, but that in the eyes of the established order
which Sonny’s bank robbery evolves into a rebellion against, the love that inspires the
crime is seen as a figuratively “criminal” act in of itself against the established order and
expectations of mainstream society.

27. Discovery of the dishonour of a loved one

“Discovery of the Dishonor of a Loved One” involves “The Discoverer” and “The Guilty
One.”

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28. Obstacles to love

“Obstacles To Love” – The ingredients for this scenario are simple. Two lovers, one
obstacle. Put simply, there must be two lovers who want to be together but are kept
apart by some obstacle. That obstacle can be a physical thing like another person or a
great distance or it can be something less concrete like family expectations or societal
laws and norms.

29. An enemy loved

“An Enemy Loved” – There are three elements to this situation. The Lover feels affection
for the Enemy which causes the Hater to despise the Lover. Love is rarely something
controllable and instead finds a life of its own within us, and it’s that unpredictable
nature that leads to ill-advised love affairs.

30. Ambition
“Ambition” – Three elements are needed for this situation. An Ambitious Person covets
an Object/Goal but finds their desires possibly thwarted by an Adversary.

31. Conflict with a god

“Conflict With a God” – This scenario contains two parts, the immortal and the mortal.
Basically, the mortal challenges, offends, or stands up to the the god, and is punished

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for his/her actions with dire consequences.

32. Mistaken jealousy

“Mistaken Jealousy” – This scenario has a handful of variations, but the core is pretty
straight-forward. Someone is jealous of something someone else has but it’s for
mistaken or untrue reasons.

33. Erroneous judgement

“Erroneous Judgment” – This situation requires three pieces including the Mistake
(occurring organically without fault or through intentional malice), a Victim of the
Mistake, and a Cause or Author of the Mistake (hereby known as the Guilty One).

34. Remores
“Remorse” – The situation requires three elements including a Wrongdoer, a Wrongdoing,
and an Interrogator/Other who helps the person acknowledge their sin and deal with
their feelings of remorse. This isn’t a matter of mystery or suspense as the incident and
the one responsible can be well-known from the beginning. What’s important is the
sinner taking ownership of their guilt, accepting it, and then making an effort to deal
with it in some way.

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35. Recovery of a lost one

“Recovery Of a Lost One” – This is one of the more straight forward of the situations in
that there are only two very simple elements needed. There is a seeker and there is a
found one. Person A is lost in some way, person B goes looking for them, and person B
succeeds in finding person A.

36. Loss of loved ones

“Loss Of Loved Ones” – The core of this situation, the final one on Georges Polti’s classic
list, is simply someone seeing (or learning about) the death of someone that they love.
What happens next isn’t important in regard to the situation… it’s entirely about the loss
itself.

Comments
Posted: 1 month, 2 weeks ago at Oct 21 6:29
one of the most thought-out lists on here big respect man.
greatly recieved.
dappa1975

Posted: 1 month, 2 weeks ago at Oct 21 22:39

Thanks most of it is just cut and past from Film School Rejects.
I was going to try and add some course material from a script
jaytoast writing course but it wasn't as clear.

Posted: 1 month ago at Oct 31 12:03

wahh so much effort *___* and it's indeed fantastic :D

Kami-chan

Posted: 1 month ago at Oct 31 14:12

marcoporres Excellent stuff.

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