Vladimir Propp was a Russian critic who studied hundreds of old folk tales to see if they shared similarities in structure. From his study, Propp identified 8 character roles and 31 narrative functions common amongst folk tales. He then generalised these common conventions to other narrative structures.
The 8 character roles:
1) The villain/s
2) The hero
3) The 'damsel in distress'/princess - the object of the villain's evil plans and the reward for the hero's courageous duties
4) The father - who rewards the hero with his daughter
5) The donor - who provides magical property to the narrative, usually through some sort of object
6) The helper - who aids the hero in his duties
7) The dispatcher - who sends the hero on his way
8) The false hero
These portrayals of common character roles are now apparent in media all over the world. We commonly are presented with the roles of 'heroes' and 'villains' through the news; for example, Mother Theresa would be classes as a modern day hero whereas, Bin Laden would be classes as a worldwide villain. Propp has helped us to construct media personalities through the use of character roles which determined the general perception of any particular person.
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