There is a folktale, I think Chinese, where the plot goes like so:
There's a woman on the road (probably getting water or something). As she travels, there is an an army marching. They are coming with weapons and drums. She continues walking, the army continues to approach.
In the end, the woman reaches the river, and the army invades a different, unrelated town. The suspense was for nothing, yet the message of life's fragility and the arbitrary nature of circumstance is conveyed.
Long story short, I want to read more of these types of stories with unexpected narrative structure. Does anyone know the name of this folktale, or the type of story it is?
by LoopyFig
1 Comment
It’s called Kitshotenketsu and is a 4 act structure. Studio Ghibli movies also work this way. It goes ki- the introduction, sho- the development, ten- the twist, and ketsu- conclusion. Lots of Asian stories are told this way. Now, I watched one video on this several months ago so I could be wrong. Hopefully some other redditors can give you sone good suggestions.