Introduction
Vladimir Propp was a folklorist researcher interested in the relationship between characters and narrativeThe way the events in a story are put together and presented to the audience..
Propp argued that stories are character driven and that plots develop from the decisions and actions of characters and how they function in a story.
He claimed characters could be classified into certain roles that progress a story.
These roles are:
Image caption, Type: the Villain
Role: struggles to stop the hero in their quest
Image caption, Type: the Donor
Role: prepares the hero for their quest
Image caption, Type: the Helper
Role: offers help to the hero in their quest, this is usually a sidekick
Image caption, Type: the Princess
Role: person the hero marries, and who is often searched for during the quest
Image caption, Type: the False Hero
Role: a character than initially appears as good but turns out to be evil
Image caption, Type: the Dispatcher
Role: the person that sends the hero on their quest
Image caption, Type: the Hero
Role: the person on the quest through which the audience follow the narrative
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Non-fiction
Propp's ideas are also relevant in non-fiction print texts like newspapers which often portray politicians as villains if their decisions or policies aren't popular with the public. When someone has done a good deed for charity or helped in a daring rescue, newspapers often portray them as heroes.

Newspaper front pages from May 2015