Andrew Goodwin Theory

Goodwin Narrative Theory

What is Goodwin Theory?

• Andrew Goodwin believed that the music video can represent/ promote the song by analysis the lyrics. There are different way to narrative the video.

The reasons for the different narrative structures are as follow:

- pop videos are built around songs

- the pop video uses the singer both as narrator and as a character

- the singer often looks directly at the camera 

- ultimately its about creating the Star image.

Structure:

• pop videos rely on repetition - the video often repeats the chorus part for the audience easier to remember.
• The video may even go beyond the meaning of the song, in order to make the audiences repeat to watch the video therefore to promotes the song.

Three types of narrative:

1. illustration - where the video tells the story of the lyrics.

Example ：

artist: Shawn Mendes

song: Treat You Better

Album: illuminate 

screenshots (that evidence the theory):

In this music video, the story is following the lyrics. There is a girl not happy with her relationship and we can see in the video that the boyfriend is treating her badly, and Shawn Mandes acts a guy who likes the girl and as the lyric says he will treats her better.

Example 2:

Artist: MAGIC

song: Rude

Album: Don't kill the magic

screenshot:

 

This music video is exactly following the lyrics.

the lyric is ' Got in my car'

 He went up to the girl's father and asked him when the lyric is 

'Can I have you daughter for the rest of my life.'

the father replied as the lyric, 'Tough luck, my friend the answer is no.'

2. amplification- the artists may take on fictional roles within the narrative.

Example:

artist: Taylor Swift

Song: Willow

Album: Evermore

screenshots:

The story in this music video is not relate to the song but the song is about the relationship between two characters. 

3. disjuncture

- this is where there is little connection between the lyrics and video or where the video contradicts the lyric.

Example:

Artist: Role Model

Song: Hello

Album: Oh, how perfect

screenshot:

There is nothing in the music video relate to the lyrics.

What ever the narrative is , the music video always reflects the genre of music.