Story, Plot and Character Action:

Narrative Experience as an Emotional Braid

S. Nath

Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design

Southampton Row
London, WC1B 4AP, UK

s.nath@synesis.tv
http://www.synesis.tv

Abstract. Narrative action in its meaningfulness, is the presentation of the author‟s view of real-
ity: an imparting of an inter-subjective experience to the audience. T his paper proposes a view
of narrative that is relevant to the apparatus1 and the nature of user experience in immersive
IVEs: as an aggregate of temporally successive experiential states. Narrative action is a structur-
ing operation of elements and constituents of the story world towards that end. T o the audience,
a narrative is always emergent. T his paper defines a concept called narrative state, which refers
back to the user state for narrative order in emergence, and identifies the progressive elements of
a narrative. Since the participative user is also a narrative element, the system needs a regulatory
mechanism that works on user states simultaneously.

1 Introduction

1.1 The New Medium

The lack of material physicality in computer generated virtual environments, allows for a possibili-
ty of reactively structuring experiences in real-time, unlike other media. The medium allows for the
existence of intelligent agents 2 capable of complex reactive and/or autonomous behaviour [2],
[10], [19], [23], [39], [47].

Virtual embodiment in the medium is „real‟ and visible, the experience of a fictio nal world is much
more intense and direct. The intensity of the „embodied here-body‟3 experience blurs the borders
that are physically and psychically clear in conventional media [22], [24]. The audience experience
in immersive IVEs is characterised by the aspects of presence [42] [43], and physical interaction
(„body action‟) [24]. The apparatus is one that, in theory, can perceive, cognise and react to this

1
T o borrow the term from Cinema Studies, apparatus refers to the physical machinery, the use and application
of which enables the text of the film to be presented to an audience.

2
In its reductive form agent refers to software entities capable of intelligent behaviour. In the narrative context
an agent is „one who acts and influences the course of events‟ [33]. T his paper will use the term as denoting
both the significative dimensions.

3
Ihde considers the „framed‟ form of audio-visual media and its position of being „in front‟, as having always
”differentiated the artificiality of the technologically imaged from the wider world. T he dissolution of the
frame implies a „here-body‟ experience. T he addition of pro-prioceptive [43], kinaesthetic and tactile com-
ponents (body action), and the predominance of the first person viewpoint actuate an „(embodied) virtual
body‟[24],.
presence and action. The medium, therefore, lends itself to a narrative that occurs as a cons e-
quence of interaction between autonomous agents and the user over a duration of time: an emer-
gent narrative [1]. The audience/user‟s participative position also makes him/her an elemental
constituent of the narrative world (Fig 01).

Narrative, therefore, needs to be looked upon more as a syntactical structure of action and expe-
rience, rather than just an informational or linguistic construct. The emergence of the narrative, by
virtue of referring back to audience/user action, makes it constructive [10]. The implications of the
distinctive apparatus and the resulting audience experience, in immersive IVEs (Intelligent Virtual
Environments) forms the context of this paper.

Fig.01 User position in an immersive Virtual Environments.

1.2 Emergent and Constructive Order

In her paper „Narrative in Virtual Environments - Towards Emergent Narrative‟ [1], Aylett elabo-
rates on her concept of emergent narrative through the example of a football match. The emergent
and constructive nature of the narrative, as opposed to the scripted or plot-dictated, progres-
sively develops out of „free‟ interaction between subjects. Narrative complexity is expected to
emerge in a bottom-up fashion, where each level is created by the interaction of elements below it.
A system where every agent is free, and behaves totally of its own accord would result in a con-
dition where "actors create positive and negative external effects" [27]. In our context, I will see
these polarities as the possibilities of free behaviour (including that of the user) and interactions
resulting in an engaging emergent narrative as against events occurring in a random, maybe even
absurdly destructive manner. In terms of probabilistic evalu ation, it seems more likely that the
„negative surprises will outweigh the positive ones‟.

A control mechanism therefore becomes imperative. The implementation of control mechanisms

has been attempted in various forms, and their functioning has not been “really feasible: the
drama manager intervenes punctually in the action decision pro cess, while it should be much
more present, what is technically not possible.” [30], [45]. In my view, the control mechanism
needs to reside within the agent itself, for it to be „more present‟, and has to be based on an
awareness of the environment.

Kirsch [27] argues that a systems design approach based on the concept of polycentral horizon-
tal order, offers a scenario wherein the agent would have its autonomy and yet prevent a totally
chaotic situation by being "able and obliged to know the aggregate behavior" on a larger scale.
It is essentially a control system built within the agent, as opposed to an external dictatorial co n-
trol module. The aggregate behaviour is the cumulative of polarities (states) of all the elements.
The knowledge of which creates a situation of an individual‟s unpredictability being compatible
with an environment‟s predictability. Kirsch gives the analogy of an hour-glass to explain the
concept:

“In an hour-glass the sand flowing down forms a nice little heap the form of which is quite predictable. Ho w-
ever it is not predictable what route an individual grain of sand will take and what its final position in the heap
will be.”

A certain amount of predictability in the larger environmental context is desirable, if not nece s-
sary, for the maintenance of order. After all, the very concept of a story or narrative implies the
finitude of authorial intention. The concept applied to emergent narrative systems implies the
design of an environment defined in terms of causal laws, within which individual elements (user
included) have their behavioural freedom.

Since both emergence and experience can be looked upon as a succession of states, in simple
terms the aggregate implies:

(i) a knowledge of the current state, and

(ii) historical knowledge of how the current state was reached, i.e., the recognition of a
pattern or trajectory,
(iii) a predictive evaluation of this trajectory with reference to an „ideal‟ state,
(iv) selection of „best‟ course of action (strategic plan) towards tran sforming the current
state into the ideal state, and
(v) preparedness towards effecting agency based on this selection.

Steps (iii) through (v) also indicate a world knowledge – what is (and is not) possible within the
environment, and a self knowledge – what one‟s own capacity for action is. Thus the freedom is
not absolute and infinite, but limited by one‟s perception of it.

The concept of emergence through user interaction pre-supposes the constructive aspect. The
user, by virtue of being immersed, is a part of the narrative world. The narrative world and the
experience it offers, exists for „consumption‟ by the user. This makes it imperative to include the
aggregate experiential state of the user as a reference point, in addition to the state of the narra-
tive world and its elements. This aggregate state paradigm embodies the approach of this paper
towards narrative, as well as the challenge it addresses. The definition of the aggregate state
implies the definition of parameters of, what can be referred to as, narrative state. The purpose of
the narrative state is narrative order, with the overall goal of generating a meaningful narrative
experience. In that sense, the paradigm is user-centred.

2 Narrative: Audience Experience

The nature and potential of IVE based „VR Theatres‟[24] is likened to Improvis ational Theatre [1],
[10], [37]. The physical relocation of the audience on stage and in character, has far reaching
consequences:

"Experiments which involve the spectator in the performance or which extend to him a cre ative role in the
dramatic process must call into question our conventional understanding of theatre and artistic creation." [48]
In my view, it would be a fundamental fallacy to „import‟ a structural concept of na rrative from
media that have a different apparatus, and lend a completely pos ition to the audience/user. The
perspective I suggest, towards looking at narrative, is one based in progressive development of
a situational condition (state) that refers to the user‟s experiential state. The outlook has a
broader goal than just achieving narrative coherence of agent behaviour; it aims at achieving
meaningfulness of this coherence to the user.

The context of constructive emergence requires a specific outlook in the understanding of narra-
tive: to the (purposeful) process of creating it. I will, therefore, identify and define concepts
within the study of narrative fiction, and adapt and apply them to the technological context of our
discussion. I invite the reader, to approach the concepts keeping in mind the dual position of the
audience/user immersed in a fictional world inhabited by purposeful characters, as:
(i) a constituent of the narrative world (a narrative element), and
(ii) the consumer of the narrative.

An epistemological outlook on the action of a storyteller, indicates that narrative is the represen-
tation of an instance of inter-subjective experience. „To produce a narrative is to make a moment
of inter-subjective experience knowable, or discernable as such, through communication‟ [33].
Walter Benjamin describes the action of a storyteller as taking 'what he tells from experience - his
own or reported by others. And he in turn makes it the experience of those listening to his tale'
[5].

The production of a narrative requires the existence of a pre-defined inter-subjective experience.

In other words, subjecting the audience to a narrative involves a pre-defined experience (within a
subject context) that is „made into‟ their own experience. The process of imparting experience
involves the orchestration of the „ultimate elements‟ of narrative: ”events and existents in a chain
of temporal causality or at least contingency”[11]. Peter Brooks views narrative as “not a matter
of typology or of fixed structures, but rather a structuring operation peculiar to those messages
that are developed through temporal succession, the instrumental logic of a specific mode of
human understanding” [9].

Narrative, as temporal succession of states, is the „instrumental logic of a specific mode of human
experience‟4. Producing a narrative is, therefore, an act of directly (and s uccessively) manipulat-
ing narrative elements to indirectly (and successively) manipulate audience knowledge, feeling
and action. The audience experience of narrative is, therefore, an aggregate of successive states:
a progression of

(i) the audience’s knowledge: perception and cognition of the constitution and situ-
ational configuration of the narrative world and its elements;
(ii) the audience’s affective states: emotional reactions to events and existents;
(iii) the audience’s physical response resulting from the above: psycho-somatic re-
sponses [21] , and, in our context, acts performed 5.

4
I have substituted the word ‘understanding’ with ‘experience’, on the premise that the process of understanding
is an experience.
Experience is understood as: 1. T he effect upon the judgment or feelings produced by any event, whether wi t-
nessed or participated in; personal and direct impressions as contrasted with description or fancies; personal
acquaintance; actual enjoyment or suffering. 2. An act of knowledge, one or more, by which single facts or
general truths are ascertained; experimental or inductive knowledge; hence, implying skill, facility, or pract i-
cal wisdom gained by personal knowledge, feeling or action (Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary,
© 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.)

5
T he term action is used here as „A syntagmatic organisation of acts‟. An act is an event of narrative value
“which brings about a state of change by an agent. Action is differentiated from a character‟s behavioural act,
in terms of narrative value. For example, „the girl released the bear‟ is an act „it rained last week‟ is not” [33].
An act effects a change in the narrative state, action plots a trajectory of this change.
The concept of narrative state denotes the aggregate state of narrative elements in a causal tra-
jectory, as a current state in the temporal „structuring operation‟. By virtue of this operation be-
ing constructive, it refers to and influences the audience‟s current experiential state in terms of
knowledge, feeling and action.

Before we move on to identifying the progressive components or elements of the narrative state,
I feel it necessary to elaborate on a much-overlooked aspect in analytical and structural studies of
narrative. It is, however, an aspect that assumes much consequence in the practice of storytel-
ling, and the audience/user experience of stories.

3 Audience Experience: Emotion

“Great stories are the ones that move us”.

- Anonymous

The affective import of (narrative) experience, has mostly existed as an axiom. Some of the recent
thought and neurological evidence, however, illuminates the importance of emotions in perce p-
tion, thinking, learning, and apprehending art. Emotions are a primary influence in perception,
cognition (inference), performance and interaction, and, aesthetic response [7], [12], [13], [14],
[15], [16], [20], [25], [26], [29], [31], [34].

The emotional state of the audience/user forms one of the key influences in her understanding of
the temporal causality, as well as, in disposing her to action. Since an emotional state is a cycle of
progressive development and decay [34], and forms a principal factor influencing the understand-
ing of a situation, it assumes core importance in the elemental definition of narrative state. The
storyteller, in the act of imparting experience, controls the action of agents and regulates the emo-
tions of her audience, to effect a (progressive) discovery of the temporal causality, and meaning:

“When an idea wraps itself around an emotional charge, it becomes all the more powerful, all the more pr o-
found, all the more memorable…a story well told gives you the very thing you cann ot get from life: meaningful
emotional experience…[that] are meaningful now, at the instant they happen.” [32]

The structuring operation of temporal causality, is also the act of subjecting the aud ience to a
pattern of emotion. It is argued that since no emotion, in its essence, is directly communicable, it
is induced through elements chosen and orchestrated by the storyteller. Since emotions can only
be „lived through‟, they become a vital aspect in the context of the embodied here -body experi-
ence of the user. Emotions, by virtue of influencing evaluative judgment [12], [16], and su ccess
rates in creative tasks [25], assume operational importance in constructive emergent systems.

The orchestrated emergence of audience experience occurs through an inte ntional regulation of
affect and cognition, and ensuing action. This regulation is inbuilt in the story created. However,
since storytellers mostly create the story before telling it to the audience, they base it on an aud i-
ence model6 [6], [44], [45]. In its most basic form, the „structuring operation‟ can be looked upon
as a simultaneous act of: controlling audience‟s desires and expectations, and, effecting a deve l-

6
Bennett cites: Jean E. Howard's Shakespeare's Art of Orchestration (1984), Ann Pasternak Slater's Shakespeare
the Director (1982), and Una Chaudhuri's "Spectator in Drama/Drama in Spectator" (1984), mentioning that
playwrights structure plays keeping their audiences in mind. Szilas cites: Eco, Umberto. Lector in Fabula.
Bompiani, 1979, and Durand, P . Cinema et Montage - Un Art de L'ellipse. Cerf, 1993, mentioning "When an
author writes a novel, a scriptwriter a screenplay, he or she imagines the audience or the reader, and writes his
narrative according to what he or she supposes his audience or reader to be."
opmental progression of their experiential states. This paper will identify aspects of narrative that
effect the regulatory action. These aspects are reflective of narrative state, as well as the narra-
tive experience 7 of a story.

4 Narrative Experience

Every mode of storytelling exerts regulation over the audience experience through the use and
interplay of various design factors that influence and ind icate a set of audience expectations. In
identifying these factors, this paper will draw on various concepts in the study of literature, dra-
ma, theatre and cinema.

4.1 The Story World: Thematic Set

The selection of a theme has implications on the setting of codes and conve ntions in the man-
agement of memory, expectation, desires and action. In setting the inter-subjective context, it lays
down the restrictions and potential of audience involvement with the narrative world. The con-
cepts of genre, mode and distance form the key elements of the thematic set.

4.1.1 Genre

Genre is more than a cataloguing method, it does not refer to just the type of story. Neale
concludes that genre must be looked upon as a tripartite process of production, marketing
and consumption. Genres are a fundamental part of a medium‟s apparatus, and regulate the
different orders of subjectivity including that of the spectator. They refer to audience e x-
pectation and hypothesis (speculation as to how the story will end), and are part of the
system that regulates desire, memory and expectation. Neale draws useful conclusions on
the strategies that genres fulfil in relation to the economics of desire. Since genres operate
over a series of typologies (e.g. in films - Modern Epic: 1984, The People vs. Larry Flint,
Sport: Chariots of Fire, Raging Bull; in games – Adventure: Final Fantasy, Simulation:
The Sims), they offer the possibilities of regulating desire over a d etermined number of
possible instances. A genre also regulates memory and expectation, through generic codes
and conventions that contain poss ibilities of reading [35], [36].

4.1.2 Dramatic Mode

While a genre can be indicative of the dramatic mode, the latter embodies the functional
parameters of the notion of reality that the narrative imitates. Klaus considers the dramatic
mode to be a function of essential qualities in the world, and the dominant patterns of h u-
man experience. The dramatic mode is an influence of four polarities over two axes (Fig.
02).

7
‘Narrative experience’ is used in to denote the audience/user’s experience of a narrative. It is the consumption
experience, and is distinguished from the authoring or narrating exper ience.
 Fig.02 Adapted from: Klaus, Carl H, „Drama‟ in Scholes et al. ed. Elements of Literature, OUP 1991
(p786). “T he vertical pair emphasize the essential qualities in the world; the horizontal pair emphasize
the dominant patt erns of human experience; the point of intersection – the absence of emphasis – refers
to the world as it is. In this way we can immediately visualize emphases, its distinguishing characteristics,
and its relation to each of the others… these categories will serve us best if we use them tactfully as
guides to understanding rather than as a rigid system of classification” [28]

The dramatic mode in emphasising on the essential qualities the world, beaut iful/orderly or
ugly/chaotic, helps the audience determine „what is best or what is worst in the world‟ [28].
In emphasising on the nature of the world through a dominant pattern of experience that
the characters undergo, it plots a trajectory of character interaction between two polarities:
a state of opposition with one another and/or to the world, and a state of harmony. Dra-
matic mode in setting the laws that govern the staged world, also regulates audience e x-
pectation and hypothesis.

4.1.3 Distance

While distance remains a much ignored area of study in theatre, cinema considers it to in-
versely impact the degree of audience engagement [3].Distance is a necessary element in
the relationship between audience and the staged world. “The combination… of unreality
with recognizable human characteristics seems to be the minimum requirement for identifi-
cation, and both these conditions are variable and provide the borders within which dis-
tance operates. Those qualities that make the object seem like ourselves (humanization)
pull the object towards us; those aspects which distinguish the object from ourselves and
the real world (an awareness of fictionality) push the object away from us. The aesthetic
tension between these two opposing tendencies const itutes distance and provides condi-
tions for the variability of distance….The most intense personal relationship with minimum
awareness of fictionality is „low‟ distance and the combination that the realist film and re a-
listic play aspire to” [4]

Distance extends into a psychical concept, it regulates our „theatrical expectations‟ [6]. A
genre can at times be suggestive of distance, e.g. Sci-Fi and Animation, but it is largely a
matter of stylistics that can also differ within a genre.

The selection of a story theme, in its genre, mode and distance dimensions, thus draws restric-
tions in the range of expected possibilities.
 T o illustrate this, let us take Aylett‟s example of a football match. If we were to find ourselves (by
choice), in the middle of a wet football field, wearing a certain jacket colour, we know we are in the
„sports‟ genre. T his knowledge would prevent us from expecting certain possibilities, e.g. that we would
have to chase cars or find means of killing alien invaders. We would know that we have to play with our
team against another team, and that there are only a limited set of things we can do to effect a limited
set of outcomes. We have, from memory, an assumed set of laws about this world. While we warm up
with the team, we notice that certain players in our team are unfriendly t owards us, others are nervous.
T he stadium is packed with people, most of whom are booing and jeering at us. Furthermore, the mana g-
er, walks up to us and makes clear his doubts about our „form‟, and warns that we might find ourselves on
the bench if we don‟t perform. We might infer that we won‟t probably be getting a lot of support from
our teammates. We know that we are the underdog in a disint egrative chaotic world. Our expectation and
desire will then depend on whether the virtual world looks and feels realistic (humanised). Our response
to the situation will decidedly be different if the manager were discharging smoke from his ears.

The thematic design of the immersive fictional world, has a direct regulatory influence on au-
dience‟s expectation, desire and perceived agency 8. The thematic determinants indicate the na-
ture and constitution of the narrative world. The narrative world is imitative of the real world, it
presents a subjective view (imitation) of reality. The view it presents helps the audience assume a
set of possibilities within this „different real‟ [40] world. The story world exists in reference to the
real world.

Genre, mode and distance also prepare us for a set of emotions we can expect (when we go for
something “sad” or “funny” or “thrilling” at the video rental).

4.2 Emotion and Mood

“T he fabric of our minds and of our behavior is woven around continuous cycles of em otions followed by
feelings that become known and beget new emotions, a running polyphony that underscores and punctuates
specific thoughts in our minds and actions in our behavior”
- Damasio [15]

Emotions are considered to have arousal and decay phases. Moods are explained as low tonic
levels of arousal within emotional systems, emotions are understood as high levels of arousal in
these same systems. Typically, emotions have higher intensity and last much shorter durations
than moods do. Moods can also be induced through a successive stimulation of similar (negative
or positive) emotions and feelings. If we were told one sad incident, followed by a horrifying one,
a pitiful one, another sad one, and so on…we would end up with a certain “bad” mood. Not only
that, as the mood sets in, our interpretation and response to each successive incident, would be
biased through the disposition the mood creates [12], [16], [25], [26]. Moods also have a tenden-
cy to evoke memories and physiological states that reinforce them [26]. The storyteller, in impart-
ing her own experience, regulates audience disposition by also subjecting them to a pattern of
emotions. The purpose of this effort being a „preferred reading‟. Thus, within the contextual pa-
rameters of the fictional world, by inducing emotion, she regulates action readiness, perceptual
biases, selective filters for memory and learning, and a feeling state [7], [26].

Let us assume for a moment that the football match scenario feels realistic. In a bac kdrop of a hostile
crowd, the manager aggressively warns us. He gives us an ultim atum, and he points at another player who
would replace us, if we don‟t perform. While he is talking to us, someone from the crowd throws an egg
at our face. Our reaction (or the lack of it) sends the crowd and some players into a bickering laughter.
Our emotional reaction to the situation will predispose us into reacting towards othe r characters, appre-
hending ensuing tackles, interpreting the dramatic mode of the world and inferring a set of possible dev e-
lopmental trajectories.

8
In cinema studies, agency pertains to internal (character‟s capacity to act upon and fulfill his/her desire),
external issues of control (is the director narrating the story or is the story controlled by a character -
narrator), and in relation to the audience (in terms of producing a meaning and a reading of the text). In the
context of this paper, agency refers to the capacity of an agent to effect a change in narrative state.
The storyteller works on her audience model, subjecting them to stimulators that would elicit
predictable states and responses. By having pre-designed the narrative, she works towards actu-
ating a pattern of such states to achieve a residual mood and an aggregate disposition towards
the world she is imitating. In creating a disposition towards her narrative world, she regulates the
audience‟s assessment of possibilities.

4.3 Plot

In essence plot is related to the causality of events [17], and is therefore, inferential. It also im-
plies and end: it is the desiring dynamic in narrative which moves the audience an d story towards
the end, while simultaneously delaying that end, of a narrative [9]. It effects a specialised form of
experience, a carefully designed pattern and process that achieves its end in a fixed time span. It
differentiates the narrative world from the real, by effecting a series of causal events, the totality
of which creates a coherent imitation of the world [28]. It is through the knowledge of the causali-
ty that the audience understands the implied reality. The plot refers to an aggregate and a larger
context:

“Our experience of causality, then, depends upon our assessment of various probabilities. On a small scale,
the connections among events may be quite weak and indirect even though on a large scale, an overall pattern
may be evident… [Causality implies] “top-down” frames of reference for grouping elements, that is, to prin-
ciples and criteria that are not determined solely by local conditions but instead are responsive to larger co n-
texts” [8]

A plot is based on an assessment of possibilities in reference to a larger temporal and causal

context: an understanding of the nature and dynamics of the narrative world. Thus at any point in
time or stage in the progression of the narrative, the audience‟s assessment of the number of
possibilities is dependent upon an aggregate knowledge of the narrative world.

The plot extends beyond the situational contiguity of the story, it relates to action. It is intrinsic
to narrative [8], and in being causal and temporal it implies a movement „from‟ – „to‟ of a situa-
tional configuration. It is an instantiation of a trajectory of sit uational transformation [46] in a
narrative world, through action [18]. The plot is the dynamic, in conformance to the causal laws
of the narrative world, that drives this transformation to its end. Audience hypothesis and under-
standing of the plot, therefore depend on their assumptions and/or inference of these laws. The
storyteller controls the presentation of events and agent b ehaviour, to suggest to the audience,
assumptions, inferences and hypothetical predictions about this transformation. The comparison
of a „predicted‟ with an „ideal‟ end state regulates desire.

For example, in the football match, if through a series of events and behaviour (e.g. constant penetr a-
tive attacks by the opposing team, a missed tackle resulting in a goal being scored against our team), we
could infer that the team is not playing well, many players do not think highly of us and they don‟t pass
the ball enough: the team might lose, we might be blamed for it and we can‟t do much without the ball.
And our idealised end state, let‟s assume, is winning the game and setting things right with the team. Our
comparative evaluation of the two ends, of our capacity to effect a change in the situation, and, our a g-
gregate disposition affects our assessment of possible course(s) of action.

A plot, in terms of aggregate state, is reflective of a historical and predictive transfo rmational
trajectory, with reference to an ideal state. The storyteller‟s revelation of th e causal logic, in the
context of a current state in transformation, regulates expectation and desire. The plot is subse r-
vient to the composition of a narrative world. The unfolding of a plot is a revelation of the agency
and capacity of actants9 composing the narrative world. The actantial model derives from the
make-up of the narrative world.

In the „telling‟ mode, the plot dictates the pattern of agency of the actants over the subject. The
characters become agents of different actants, at different times, to exert agency over the situa-
tion. This temporal choreography serves to advance the transformational trajectory. In the „listen-
ing‟ mode, however, the plot is a consequence of the agency. A new state occurs as a cons e-
quence of character action, contributing to an inferred transformation trajectory. A character‟s
behavioural dynamic adds to the aggregate knowledge of the narrative world, and reiterates or
amends notions of its causal logic. The plot is an instance of the reality presented.

4.4 Character

Characters are different from real people, as much as the narrative world itself is different from the
real. They are like real people (humanised) but are never identical. They are subservient to a
world that is shaped by theatrical contexts and imitative purpose [27]. We can think of a character
as a function of two impulses: the impulse to individualise and the impulse to typify. The indiv i-
dualisation impulse – habitual patterns of speech, action, or appearance – and the way character
represents something larger than himself. „These individualising touches are part of the storyte l-
lers art. They amuse us or engage our sympathy for the ch aracter. The typifying touches are part
of a story‟s meaning‟[41]

Character and its development contributes to the aud ience‟s understanding of the aspect of reali-
ty, the narrative points to. In becoming agents of different actants, they reveal the dynamics ref-
lective of the essential quality of the narrative world. In their affinity to certain actants in certain
situations, they reveal their personalities. Through their personality and development, they reveal
their position and its trajectory in the elemental layout of their world.

“T RUE CHARACT ER is revealed in the choices a human being makes under pressure – the greater the pres-
sure, the deeper the revelation, the truer the choice to the character‟s esse ntial nature.” [32]

To the audience, character development occurs in two ways: through differential knowledge
about personality (revelation of traits), and, through a change in personality (revelation of ten-
dencies)[41]. Character development in the inter-subjective context allows for a qualitative know-
ledge of both, the character and the context.

At any moment in absolute time, the aggregate character behaviour results in an aggregate dis-
position towards the character and situation, an aggregate unde rstanding of the situational tra-
jectory, and an aggregate experience of the narrative world. The overall experience, as Branigan
[8] points out, is referential to the perceived „top-down‟ grouping of elements in the narrative
world, i.e., character action becomes an instance of the dominant patterns of human experience in
the presented reality. Character behaviour and development is an instantiation of the aspect of
reality presented in the narrative world.

The concept of polycentral horizontal order applied to a narrative world „inhabited‟ by auto-
nomous elements implies a knowledge of aggregate behaviour. This aggregate or narrative state
evaluated in reference to the „known‟ nature of the world, and a desired „ideal‟ state, forms the
basis for a plan of action. Since the existents and events in a narrative world serve the purpose of

9
An actant occupies actantial roles determined by the narrative trajectory. T hey are diffe rent from characters
in that several characters can fulfill the role of a single actant. Actant s operate within an actantial model by
which a narrative is structured according to the relation between actants [33]
illuminating the causal logic, operating within the presented aspect of reality, the „ideal‟ state
towards which the elements would push, needs to be congruent with this view.

Let‟s assume that our disposition and inferences about the situation in the football match point to an
idea that we could win, if we can get the team together. Out of the two possible plot trajectories - the
pathetic trajectory: we remain underdogs and our situation turns from bad (at the beginning) to worse (at
the end); or the heroic: we overcome the odds and achieve a favourable end – we chose to work towards
the latter. In the half-time break, we attempt to speak to some players who appear symp athetic and/or
capable of turning the situation around. We decide to encourage and compliment some players for their
play, in an attempt to improve „relations‟. And we point out t hat, if the team played against the expec-
tations formed by the opposing team in the first half, we might just get an edge. T he response of other
characters and agents would depend on their assessment of the effect our action would have, in achieving
the „ideal‟ narrative state.

In an emergent narrative, the plot needs to be emergent. The emergence of the plot, is the pro-
gression of a situational trajectory reflective of the nature of the narrative world. Since the narra-
tive world exists, primarily for the purpose of imparting to the audience an experience of the au-
thor‟s view of reality, it forms the primary basis for the emergence of a plot. The overall arc of the
emergent plot needs to be dependent on the characteristic nature and dynamics of this world.

For example, if the world of the football match is a disintegrative world, we will despite our attempts not
succeed. T he emergent plot arc will be pathetic. If we started as a hero, appreciated and revered by the
crowd and team-mates, the arc would be tragic. T he narrative world would not let us succeed, through be-
havioural action of characters or „chance‟ happenings. If the world to be ironic, we might perform well,
and even win the match, only to find out that we don‟t get credit for it (the team doesn‟ t appreciate our
efforts). T he design of the world, its dynamics, and laws, would give us a direct experience of the au-
thor‟s view of reality: a narrative experience.

5 Drama

The situational development effected by character traits and tendencies, as well as „acts of God‟,
need to follow a trajectory that sustains interest. It is a play on aud ience/user expectations and
desire.

If it is clear to us from the beginning that we won‟t succeed, we would lose interest and involvement.
T here needs to be an uncertainty towards the nature of the final outcome. T he events and existents in
the narrative world need to create the illusion of an opposite nature. A disintegrative world, would ther e-
fore, provide partial success in our endeavours. We might, in such a world, be able to convince the play-
ers to play in co-ordination, and pass the ball. We might even score a goal, and get a positive r esponse
from team-mates. Our expectations and desires will be formed following this prov isional success. We
might start believing that we will finally succeed in achieving our „ideal‟ state.

The plot, is always an emergent mechanism. In conventional forms of drama, it emerges out of a
differential (even contradiction) of the expected result, and the ou tcome. Drama is characterised
by this situation of surprise or reversal 10. Narrative progression in simplistic terms is the presen-
tation of a situation (reflective of the inherent qualities of the narrative world), the gradual devel-
opment of a contra-situational expectations in the audience/user (through manipulation of dispo-
sition and inference), a climactic resolution of this „conflict‟ and a reiteration of the world n ature.
The actantial model reflects this nature throughout the narrative, character dynamics serve to
create this dramatic trajectory for the reiteration of an idea by creating a perceptive differential.

10 Dramatic structure is also characterised by three experiential aspects: discovery, surprise and reversal. T hese
three terms indicate various degrees of differentiation between expectations and revelation. T he most potent
form of surprise is the Aristotelian concept of reversal: a revelation that is the exact opposite of expectation.
T he dramatic purpose of the element of surprise is not just the maintenance of interest, but also the reitera-
tion of an idea by first creating a perceptive differential.
6 Conclusions

1. Considering the apparatus and the distinct nature of the user experience in imme rsive IVEs,
an attempt to develop a model for emergent narrative sy stems necessitates a relevant under-
standing of the basic concepts. This paper suggests an outlook based in:
(i) temporal structuring of narrative elements
(ii) progressive development of experiential states of the audience/user
(iii) taking the core creative intention (intended reading) of the author, to be the impart-
ing of an experience to the audience, towards communicating a subjective view of
reality.

2. Narrative emergence needs to be viewed in terms of aggregates over a time span. IVE based
emergent narrative systems need to map and track narrative states of the narrative world, and
experiential states of the user, to ensure an orderly emergence of a coherent and meaningful
experience (narrative order).

3. Constructive emergence of narrative needs to acknowledge the user on bot h dimensions – as

an actor in the narrative world, and, as the consumer of the narrative. The user is as much a
functional part of the system as any other synthetic agent. This indicates the need for a co n-
trol mechanism to enable regulation of user states towards narrative order. Human storytell-
ers use various design factors to effect regulation of user states. This paper ident ifies the
relevant factors, and elucidates their functioning. In identifying the audience/user control p a-
rameters exercised by the s toryteller, it reiterates a basic premise: the action of the user is not
non-deterministic. The control parameters are not indicative of a hierarchical relationship.
They must be looked upon as dimensional constituents of the narrative state.

4. The core control principle lies in the definition of the intended view of reality, reflected in the
qualitative nature of the fictional world. The author‟s worldview manifests in the causal laws
governing the elements of the narrative world. Laws that shape the dominant experiential pat-
terns of being in that world. Laws that will become known to the user through direct experi-
ence. Laws that do not inhibit free behaviour, but regulate the cognizance of the scope of
that freedom. Of course, the degree of determinism is d ependent on the degree of the user‟s
involvement, and the fidelity with which the system can map and track a user state.

An underlying question that addresses us concerns the system‟s technological capacity to pe r-

ceive and predict user state. While knowledge and cognition are much more difficult to map,
tracking user emotion seems a near possibility [38]. One way to address this problem is to con-
sider how human storytellers work. Since, their renditions are mostly pre-designed, they work on
an understanding of how emotions work within a context, for their audience - an audience model.
Their design and rendition of context is therefore carefully planned. They know from experience,
that within a contextual backdrop, certain stimulators would induce specific kinds of emotions.
And they know from experience, that certain kinds of emotions would create a certain dispos ition
towards inferring and understanding. Even in set texts, like a novel or cinema, where the physical-
ity of the medium does not allow for iterative action, they work on a „collective‟ audience model:
an understanding of the individuality and universality of human nature. As Walter Benjamin [5]
says:

“All great storytellers have in common the freedom with which they move up and down the rungs of their
experience as on a ladder. A ladder extending downward to the interior of the earth and disappearing into the
clouds is the image for a collective experience”

The development of a model for emergent narrative systems needs a model of aud ience expe-
rience intended by the author, and specific to the medium.
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Published in S. Göbel, N. Braun, U. Spirling, J. Dechau and Holger Diener eds. Proceedings of the Technologies for Interactive
Digital Storytelling and Entertainment (TIDSE) Conference 2003, p.p. 1-18. Fraunhofer IRB Verlag, Darmstadt. 2003