Editing Story Structure Spring 2018 (section)

=== "Rags to Riches" ===

Start with immature or child character. The story starts with the protagonist at her lowest point.

Set up happy trajectory which is snatched away. Then there is no hope for a happy ending.

Protagonist is runt, overlooked, etc.

At the end the hero earns her reward rather than having it given to her.

Examples: ''Babe'' (the movie), ''Charlotte's Web''

Before the initial fall life seems good, but there is a flaw. The hero is actually in a miserable state despite being materially comfortable.

Hero goes into the world. Initial success is followed by a BIG fall. Independence leads to a test that leads to ultimate reward. ''(This doesn't fit either ''Babe'' or ''Cinderella'', tho???)''

Examples: Aladdin, King Arthur, Fisherman and His Wife, Puss in Boots, Pygmalion (My Fair Lady), Pretty Woman, Kung Fu movies, English 19th C. literature

Cinderella, supposedly "the most universal story." Supposedly going back to 400 A.D. China