[RESEARCH] Andrew Goodwin's Theory

Songs don’t follow Todorov’s theory of the conventions of how a narrative is structured into different stages (normality, problem, resolution). Andrew Goodwin noticed this and felt that music videos would require their own type of structure.

Songs often use repetition in their choruses or lines; similarly music videos repeat a certain shot during these lines. As we become familiar with a certain genre we see that certain shots repeat in certain genres e.g. during a guitar solo in a rock song we get a long shot of the guitarist playing. This repetition is also very helpful when it comes to promoting the song as it can become stuck within the audience’s head.
Music videos often build to a climax before their closure to reflect the structure of the song and so the viewer is more likely to remember it before the video (often) fades away.

Goodwin proposed that there were three different types of relations between a song and the video:

1. Illustration:
Where the video tells the story of the lyrics, often dance is used to express the mood in the song. An example of such is One Direction's Best Song Ever. 






















2. Amplification:


Where the video introduces new meanings to the song but does not contradict it, adding layers of meaning. An example of such is Katy Perry's Roar. The song is about relationships but the video focuses on Katy trying to survive in the forest which adds another meaning (independence) to the song.






















3. Disjuncture:
Where the video makes little or no connection to the lyrics and sometimes even contradict itself. An example of such is Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror. The song is about self-realisation but the video centres on radical world events.