Situations 13&14
FALLING PREY TO CRUELTY OR MISFORTUNE
AND BECOMING FORTUNATE

“Be willing to have it so; acceptance of what has happened is the first step to overcoming the consequences of any misfortune.”

–WILLIAM JAMES

Falling Prey to Cruelty or Misfortune

Cruelty is a cruel act or remark that causes pain, suffering, or the infliction of physical or mental distress.

Misfortune is unnecessary and unforeseen trouble, an unfortunate state resulting from unfavorable outcomes.

This situation requires an Unfortunate and a Master or a Misfortune.

Falling Prey to Cruelty or Misfortune is a pessimistic situation. Just when a character doesn’t think things could get worse, they do. This has usually been considered a type of melodrama or “woman’s story.” Soap operas are based on this type of situation happening over and over again, but true melodrama is very bleak.

This is a hard situation to write because it demands a deliberate dissection of the heart of a character. Most writers tend not to broach the more serious and heavy-handed subjects such as the Holocaust, “witch” burnings, and other mass tragedies. It is very draining on the writer to immerse himself in these situations for a few years while writing the story, day after day reliving the story with the characters.

This is why this type of situation tends to focus more on one individual character than a whole group (as in the next similar situation, Revolt). It makes it a little easier to grasp. Very often you will see one character stand for the whole group, but this can take away from the story’s potential.

Another way to really understand this type of situation is to watch a European or foreign film of its type, not an American one. American cinema tends to show characters living above their means. They are always glamorous and heroic. Foreign cinema tends to show the harshness of reality. No pretty lighting, make-up, or fancy clothes for the Unfortunate here! The ending may not be all that neatly tied up, either.

THE UNFORTUNATE

The Unfortunate in this situation is someone who has already had a tough life. She may be doing okay in one or two areas of her life right now, but overall she’s had it pretty tough. This doesn’t mean she is jaded or cynical; on the contrary, she may be a somewhat positive person (making the audience love her even more), but she knows things don’t always go her way. She may be trying to better herself by:

• finding a husband

• trying a new hobby

• getting a new job

• moving to a different city

But obstacles keep jumping in front of her. She picks herself up and tries again. It takes a lot to break her.

A MASTER OR A MISFORTUNE

A Master is used for situations with Cruelty. He is someone who has some sort of control over the Unfortunate, whether it’s a boss, a family member, or a personal ideal. The Master won’t let her change her life or help herself. Perhaps the Unfortunate could leave the Master or the situation, but she doesn’t seem strong enough to do it. She may also have several friends around her who are plugging away just as she is—“Who is she to change and leave them behind?”

A Misfortune can be any number of variables that don’t work in her favor. It’s not necessarily personal:

• She may miss a train, wind up lost in a big city late at night, and get robbed of every penny she has.

• She could come home and find her brand-new car stolen and she doesn’t have any theft insurance. This could be the car she was going to use to leave town the next day.

• Her apartment could be burned down.

• Her husband could have run off with the secretary and left her with nothing but bills.

Whether Falling Prey to Cruelty or Misfortune is used as plot, subplot, or incident, the elements of the beginning, middle, and end are the same:

BEGINNING: An Unfortunate has a really tough time of it, and things get tougher as a Cruelty or Misfortune come her way.

• Has a Cruelty or Misfortune befallen her before the story begins?

• How unfortunate will you make her? Is her whole life in chaos or just one aspect of it? (Watching rich people lose some money isn’t as dramatic as watching a mother of three lose her last twenty dollars.)

• Will she face Cruelty or Misfortune? Which would be more dramatic for her?

• Are there other characters that are in the same boat as she is? Does she have a lot of reasons not to change her life?

• Is she trying to better herself? Has she made any progress?

• How will the Cruelty or Misfortune fall? Will she be humiliated?

MIDDLE: The Unfortunate deals with the Cruelty or Misfortune.

• How will she react to the Cruelty or Misfortune? Will she stand up for herself right away? Will she look for someone else to help her? Will she fall apart and feel sorry for herself?

• Will someone come to her rescue (even though she ultimately has to rescue herself)?

• Does she have any resources at all? (Family, friends, work, possessions, dreams, goals?)

• Is she about to give up on life altogether? What makes her push on?

• How many obstacles will you place in front of her once she decides to save herself?

• Are you working toward a happy or sad ending?

END: The Unfortunate succeeds or fails in putting herself back together.

• Will she end up in the same spot as she was in the beginning as if nothing has changed?

• Will she succeed or fail? How will you show this?

• Has she learned anything from her journey?

• What feeling will the audience have after the story?

• Have you kept the tone consistent throughout the entire story? (Don’t lapse into making things easy on the character in the end; keep everything consistent.)

• Have you established a theme or lesson in this story? Why should a reader put herself through your character’s hardship?

“Being fortunate is based on how much peace you have, not how many luxuries or conveniences you have. Practice from the heart to make peace with what is, then life gives you more help to change things for the better.”

–DOC CHILDRE

Becoming Fortunate

Becoming Fortunate means having unexpected good fortune or luck. Just as Misfortune can come out of nowhere, so, too, can fortune.

In this situation the Unfortunate becomes the Fortunate. Something unexpectedly positive happens to a needy character:

• A teacher takes notice of a poor student and helps her find her way.

• A poor maid wins the lottery and uses it to help people.

• A man facing death is saved by an angel and feels reborn.

• A workaholic finds love and leaves his job for a simple yet very happy life in the mountains.

Whether Becoming Fortunate is used as plot, subplot, or incident, the elements of the beginning, middle, and end are the same:

BEGINNING: An Unfortunate is having a tough time. Things look like they are about to fall apart when fortune smiles upon him.

• What kind of tough time is the Unfortunate having? (Make sure it is not something that is temporary or easy to get out of.)

• Show us what is at stake and make us root for this character.

• How quickly does fortune come?

• Does the character know he’s an Unfortunate? (He may be kidding himself into thinking his life is great so he can be in denial about his situation. )

• What kind of fortune does he receive? How?

MIDDLE: The fortune is a little more than he bargained for.

• Will he be able to handle it? Does he need to hire someone to manage it?

• How does his life change?

• Does he feel unworthy?

• Can he still be friends with his old buddies, or do they resent him now?

• Is he grateful for this fortune?

• Does it make him greedy?

END: The Unfortunate manages to keep things together. He has completely changed.

• Does he change for the better? Why? (Some people who win the lottery find their life hasn’t gotten much better. They don’t know how to manage their money, friends ask for money constantly, and family may resent them.)

• Does he want to go back to the way he was?

• Does he give something back to others?

EXAMPLES

King Lear, WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

MISFORTUNE AS PLOT—An aging King invites Misfortune when he abdicates to his corrupt daughters and rejects his one loving and honest daughter.

The Grapes of Wrath, JOHN STEINBECK

MISFORTUNE AS PLOT— Driven off their Oklahoma farm during the dust bowl days of the Great Depression, the Joad family loads its belongings into a truck and joins thousands of other dispossessed farmers in the trek to California.

Schindler’s List, STEVEN SPIELBERG

FORTUNE AND MISFORTUNE AS SUBPLOT— Oskar Schindler is a greedy German businessman who becomes an unlikely savior during the barbaric Nazi reign when he turns his factory into a refuge for Jews. The Jews have experienced Misfortune under the Nazi regime but Fortune in finding Mr. Schindler.

It Could Happen to You, JANE ANDERSON

FORTUNE AS PLOT— A police officer leaves a lottery ticket as a tip for a waitress. It is a winning ticket, and their lives change when they split the fortune.