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Nonlinear narrative, disjointed narrative, or disrupted narrative is a
narrative technique A narrative technique (known for literary fictional narratives as a literary technique, literary device, or fictional device) is any of several specific methods the creator of a narrative uses to convey what they want —in other words, a str ...
, sometimes used in
literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to ...
,
film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...
, video games, and other narratives, where events are portrayed, for example, out of chronological order or in other ways where the narrative does not follow the direct causality pattern of the events featured, such as parallel distinctive plot lines, dream immersions or narrating another story inside the main plot-line. Most of the time, it is used to mimic the structure and recall of a character, but has been used for other reasons as well.


Literature

Beginning a non-linear narrative ''
in medias res A narrative work beginning ''in medias res'' (, "into the middle of things") opens in the midst of the plot (cf. ''ab ovo'', ''ab initio''). Often, exposition is bypassed and filled in gradually, through dialogue, flashbacks or description of pa ...
'' (Latin: "into the middle of things") began in ancient times and was used as a convention of
epic poetry An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. ...
, including
Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
's ''
Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Ody ...
'' in the 8th century BC. The technique of narrating most of the story in flashback is also seen in epic poetry, like the Indian epic the ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...
''. Several medieval ''
Arabian Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian ...
'' tales such as " The City of Brass" and " The Three Apples" also had nonlinear narratives employing the ''in medias res'' and flashback techniques. The medieval English poem ''
Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ang, Bēowulf ) is an Old English epic poem in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and most often translated works of Old English literature. ...
'' also utilizes a non-linear structure, focusing on events throughout the life of the titular character rather than describing them in a linear narrative. From the late 19th century and early 20th century, modernist novelists Joseph Conrad, Virginia Woolf, Ford Madox Ford,
Marcel Proust Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust (; ; 10 July 1871 – 18 November 1922) was a French novelist, critic, and essayist who wrote the monumental novel '' In Search of Lost Time'' (''À la recherche du temps perdu''; with the previous ...
, and William Faulkner experimented with narrative chronology and abandoning linear order. Examples of nonlinear novels are: * Laurence Sterne's '' The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman'' (1759–67) *
Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, ...
's ''
Sartor Resartus ''Sartor Resartus: The Life and Opinions of Herr Teufelsdröckh in Three Books'' is an 1831 novel by the Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher Thomas Carlyle, first published as a serial in ''Fraser's Magazine'' in November 1833 – Augus ...
'' (ca. 1833) * Emily Brontë's '' Wuthering Heights'' (1847) * Ford Madox Ford's '' The Good Soldier'' (1915) * William Faulkner's ''
The Sound and the Fury ''The Sound and the Fury'' is a novel by the American author William Faulkner. It employs several narrative styles, including stream of consciousness. Published in 1929, ''The Sound and the Fury'' was Faulkner's fourth novel, and was not immedi ...
'' (1929) *
Sadeq Hedayat Sadegh Hedayat ( fa, صادق هدایت ; 17 February 1903 – 9 April 1951) was an Iranian writer and translator. Best known for his novel '' The Blind Owl'', he was one of the earliest Iranian writers to adopt literary modernism in their care ...
's ''
The Blind Owl ''The Blind Owl'' (1936; fa, بوف کور, ''Boof-e koor'', ) is Sadegh Hedayat's magnum opus and a major literary work of 20th century Iran. Written in Persian, it is narrated by an unnamed pen case painter, who addresses his murderous confe ...
'' (1937) * James Joyce's '' Ulysses'' (1922) and '' Finnegans Wake'' (1939) * Flann O'Brien (pseudonym for Brian O'Nolan)'s ''
At Swim-Two-Birds ''At Swim-Two-Birds'' is a 1939 novel by Irish writer Brian O'Nolan, writing under the pseudonym Flann O'Brien. It is widely considered to be O'Brien's masterpiece, and one of the most sophisticated examples of metafiction. The novel's title ...
'' (1939) * William S. Burroughs' '' Naked Lunch'' (1959) * Joseph Heller's ''
Catch-22 ''Catch-22'' is a satirical war novel by American author Joseph Heller. He began writing it in 1953; the novel was first published in 1961. Often cited as one of the most significant novels of the twentieth century, it uses a distinctive non- ...
'' (1961) * Muriel Spark's '' The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'' (1961) *
Julio Cortázar Julio Florencio Cortázar (26 August 1914 – 12 February 1984; ) was an Argentine, nationalized French novelist, short story writer, essayist, and translator. Known as one of the founders of the Latin American Boom, Cortázar influenced an ...
's ''
Hopscotch Hopscotch is a popular playground game in which players toss a small object, called a lagger, into numbered triangles or a pattern of rectangles outlined on the ground and then hop or jump through the spaces and retrieve the object. It is a ch ...
'' (1963) *
N. Scott Momaday Navarre Scott Momaday (born February 27, 1934) is a Kiowa novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. His novel '' House Made of Dawn'' was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1969, and is considered the first major work of the Nativ ...
's ''
House Made of Dawn ''House Made of Dawn'' is a 1968 novel by N. Scott Momaday, widely credited as leading the way for the breakthrough of Native American literature into the mainstream. It was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1969, and has also been note ...
'' (1968) * Kurt Vonnegut's '' Slaughterhouse-Five'' (1969) * Tim O'Brien's '' Going After Cacciato'' (1979). * Stephen King's '' It'' (1986) * Milorad Pavić's ''
Dictionary of the Khazars ''Dictionary of the Khazars: A Lexicon Novel'' ( sr-cyrl, Хазарски речник, rtl=yes, ) is the first novel by Serbian writer Milorad Pavić, published in 1984. Originally written in Serbian, the novel has been translated into many l ...
'' (1988) * Michael Ondaatje's '' The English Patient'' (1992) * Irvine Welsh's '' Trainspotting'' (1993) * Arundhati Roy's '' The God of Small Things'' (1997) * Michael Ondaatje's ''
Anil's Ghost ''Anil's Ghost'' is the critically acclaimed fourth novel by Michael Ondaatje. It was first published in 2000 by McClelland and Stewart. ''Anil's Ghost'' follows the life of Anil Tissera, a native Sri Lankan who left to study in Britain and the ...
'' (2000) * David Mitchell's '' Cloud Atlas (2004) *
Erin Morgenstern Erin Morgenstern (born July 8, 1978) is an American multimedia artist and the author of two fantasy novels. '' The Night Circus'' (2011) was published in more than a dozen languages by 2013 and won the annual Locus Award for Best First Novel. She ...
's '' The Night Circus'' (2011) * Will Self's '' Umbrella'' (2012) *
Anthony Doerr Anthony Doerr (born October 27, 1973) is an American author of novels and short stories. He gained widespread recognition for his 2014 novel '' All the Light We Cannot See'', which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Early life and education Rai ...
's ''
All the Light We Cannot See ''All the Light We Cannot See'' is a 2014 war novel that was written by American author Anthony Doerr. The novel is set during World War II and centers around the characters Marie-Laure Leblanc, a blind French girl who takes refuge in her unc ...
'' (2014) *
Emily St. John Mandel Emily St. John Mandel (; born 1979) is a Canadian novelist and essayist. She has written six novels, including '' Station Eleven'' (2014) and '' The Glass Hotel'' (2020). ''Station Eleven'', which has been translated into 33 languages, has been ...
's ''
Station Eleven ''Station Eleven'' is a novel by the Canadian writer Emily St. John Mandel. It takes place in the Great Lakes region before and after a fictional swine flu pandemic, known as the "Georgia Flu", has devastated the world, killing most of the popul ...
'' (2014) Several of Michael Moorcock's novels, particularly those in the Jerry Cornelius series, in particular '' The English Assassin: A Romance of Entropy'' (1972) and '' The Condition of Muzak'' (1977) are notable for extending the nonlinear narrative form in order to explore the complex nature of identity within a multiversal universe. Scott McCloud argues in '' Understanding Comics'' that the narration of comics is nonlinear because it relies on the reader's choices and interactions.


Film

Defining nonlinear structure in film is, at times, difficult. Films may use extensive flashbacks or
flashforward A flashforward (also spelled flash-forward, and more formally known as prolepsis) is a scene that temporarily takes the narrative forward in time from the current point of the story in literature, film, television and other media. Flashforwards a ...
s within a linear storyline, while nonlinear films often contain linear sequences.Blum, Richard A. (2001). ''Television and Screen Writing: From Concept to Contract''.
Focal Press Focal Press is a publisher of creative and applied media books and it is an imprint of Routledge/Taylor & Francis. Company history The firm was founded in London in 1938 by Andor Kraszna-Krausz, a Hungarian photographer who migrated to Englan ...
. p. 125. .
Orson Welles' ''
Citizen Kane ''Citizen Kane'' is a 1941 American drama film produced by, directed by, and starring Orson Welles. He also co-wrote the screenplay with Herman J. Mankiewicz. The picture was Welles' first feature film. ''Citizen Kane'' is frequently cited ...
'' (1941)—influenced structurally by '' The Power and the Glory'' (1933)—and Akira Kurosawa's ''
Rashomon is a 1950 Jidaigeki psychological thriller/ crime film directed and written by Akira Kurosawa, working in close collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Masayuki Mori, and Takashi Shimura as v ...
'' (1950) use a non-chronological flashback narrative that is often labeled nonlinear.


Silent and early era

Experimentation with nonlinear structure in film dates back to the
silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...
era, including
D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the n ...
's '' Intolerance'' (1916) and
Abel Gance Abel Gance (; born Abel Eugène Alexandre Péréthon; 25 October 188910 November 1981) was a French film director and producer, writer and actor. A pioneer in the theory and practice of montage, he is best known for three major silent films: ''J ...
's ''
Napoléon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
'' (1927).Debruge, Peter (December 7, 2007).
More scripts take nonlinear route
. '' Variety''. Retrieved on February 3, 2008.
Nonlinear film emerged from the French
avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretica ...
in 1924 with
René Clair René Clair (11 November 1898 – 15 March 1981), born René-Lucien Chomette, was a French filmmaker and writer. He first established his reputation in the 1920s as a director of silent films in which comedy was often mingled with fantasy. He wen ...
’s ''
Entr'acte (or ', ;Since 1932–35 the French Academy recommends this spelling, with no apostrophe, so historical, ceremonial and traditional uses (such as the 1924 René Clair film title) are still spelled ''Entr'acte''. German: ' and ', Italian: ''in ...
'', Dadaïst film and then in 1929 with Luis Buñuel and
Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...
's ''
Un Chien Andalou ''Un Chien Andalou'' (, ''An Andalusian Dog'') is a 1929 French silent short film directed by Luis Buñuel, and written by Buñuel and Salvador Dalí. Buñuel's first film, it was initially released in a limited capacity at Studio des Ursuline ...
'' (English: ''An Andalusian Dog''). The surrealist film jumps into fantasy and juxtaposes images, granting the filmmakers an ability to create statements about the Church, art, and society that are left open to interpretation.Dancyger, Ken & Rush, Jeff. (2006). ''Alternative Scriptwriting: Successfully Breaking the Rules''.
Focal Press Focal Press is a publisher of creative and applied media books and it is an imprint of Routledge/Taylor & Francis. Company history The firm was founded in London in 1938 by Andor Kraszna-Krausz, a Hungarian photographer who migrated to Englan ...
. pp 154-163. .
Buñuel and Dalí's '' L'Âge d'Or'' (1930) (English: ''The Golden Age'') also uses nonlinear concepts. The revolutionary Russian filmmakers
Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein (russian: Сергей Михайлович Эйзенштейн, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ ɪjzʲɪnˈʂtʲejn, 2=Sergey Mikhaylovich Eyzenshteyn; 11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, scree ...
,
Vsevolod Pudovkin Vsevolod Illarionovich Pudovkin ( rus, Всеволод Илларионович Пудовкин, p=ˈfsʲevələt ɪlərʲɪˈonəvʲɪtɕ pʊˈdofkʲɪn; 16 February 1893 – 30 June 1953) was a Russian and Soviet film director, screenwrite ...
, and Alexander Dovzhenko also experimented with the possibilities of nonlinearity. Eisenstein's '' Strike'' (1925) and Dovzhenko's ''
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...
'' (1930) hint at a nonlinear experience. Dancyger, Ken (2002). ''The Technique of Film and Video Editing: History, Theory, and Practice''.
Focal Press Focal Press is a publisher of creative and applied media books and it is an imprint of Routledge/Taylor & Francis. Company history The firm was founded in London in 1938 by Andor Kraszna-Krausz, a Hungarian photographer who migrated to Englan ...
. pp. 393-394.
English director Humphrey Jennings used a nonlinear approach in his World War II documentary '' Listen to Britain'' (1942).


Post-World War II

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran ...
's works since 1959 were also important in the evolution of nonlinear film. Godard famously stated, "I agree that a film should have a beginning, a middle and an end but not necessarily in that order". Godard's '' Week End'' (French: ''Le weekend'') (1968), as well as
Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...
's '' Chelsea Girls'' (1966), defy linear structure in exchange for a chronology of events that is seemingly random.Dethridge, Lisa (2003). ''Writing Your Screenplay''. Allen & Unwin. pp. 114-117. Alain Resnais experimented with narrative and time in his films '' Hiroshima mon amour'' (1959), '' L'Année dernière à Marienbad'' (1961), and '' Muriel'' (1963).
Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most ...
defined his own nonlinear cinema with the films ''
La Strada ''La strada'' () is a 1954 Italian drama film directed by Federico Fellini and co-written by Fellini, Tullio Pinelli and Ennio Flaiano. The film tells the story of Gelsomina, a simple-minded young woman (Giulietta Masina) bought from her mother ...
'' (1954), '' La Dolce Vita'' (1960), '' '' (1963), '' Fellini Satyricon'' (1969), and ''
Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council * Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
'' (1972), as did
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
filmmaker
Andrei Tarkovsky Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky ( rus, Андрей Арсеньевич Тарковский, p=ɐnˈdrʲej ɐrˈsʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ tɐrˈkofskʲɪj; 4 April 1932 – 29 December 1986) was a Russian filmmaker. Widely considered one of the greates ...
with his modernist films '' The Mirror'' (1975) and '' Nostalghia'' (1983). Nicolas Roeg's films, including ''
Performance A performance is an act of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Management science In the work place ...
'' (1970), '' Walkabout'' (1971), ''
Don't Look Now ''Don't Look Now'' ( it, A Venezia... un Dicembre rosso shocking, lit=In Venice... a shocking red December) is a 1973 English-language film in the thriller genre directed by Nicolas Roeg, adapted from the 1971 short story by Daphne du Mauri ...
'' (1973), '' The Man Who Fell to Earth'' (1976), and '' Bad Timing'' (1980) are characterized by a nonlinear approach. Other mainstream nonlinear filmmakers include
Michelangelo Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni (, ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian filmmaker. He is best known for directing his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents"—''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and ''L'Eclisse'' (1962 ...
, Peter Greenaway,
Chris Marker Chris Marker (; 29 July 1921 – 29 July 2012) was a French writer, photographer, documentary film director, multimedia artist and film essayist. His best known films are ''La Jetée'' (1962), '' A Grin Without a Cat'' (1977) and ''Sans Soleil ...
, Theo Angelopoulos, Agnès Varda, Raúl Ruiz, Carlos Saura, Alain Robbe-Grillet.Kinder, Marsha
Hot Spots, Avatars, and Narrative Fields Forever
". '' Film Quarterly''. Vol. 55, No. 54. Retrieved on February 9, 2008.
In the United States, Robert Altman carried the nonlinear motif in his films, including '' McCabe & Mrs. Miller'' (1971), '' Nashville'' (1975), '' The Player'' (1992), '' Short Cuts'' (1993), and '' Gosford Park'' (2001).
Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...
embraced the experimental nature of nonlinear narrative in '' Annie Hall'' (1977), '' Interiors'' (1978), and '' Stardust Memories'' (1980).


1990s and 2000s

In the 1990s,
Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensembl ...
influenced a tremendous increase in the popularity of nonlinear films most notably '' Pulp Fiction'' (1994). He also used non linear narrative in '' Reservoir Dogs'' (1992), ''Kill Bill'' ( 2003 and 2004) and '' The Hateful Eight'' (2015). Critics have referred shifting of timeline as Tarantino effect. Other important nonlinear films include
Atom Egoyan Atom Egoyan (; hy, Աթոմ Եղոյեան, translit=Atom Yeghoyan; born July 19, 1960) is a Canadian filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in the 1980s from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. Egoyan m ...
's '' Exotica'' (1994),
Terrence Malick Terrence Frederick Malick (born November 30, 1943) is an American filmmaker. His films include ''Days of Heaven'' (1978), '' The Thin Red Line'' (1998), for which he received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay ...
's '' The Thin Red Line'' (1998), and Karen and Jill Sprecher's '' Thirteen Conversations About One Thing'' (2001). David Lynch experimented with nonlinear narrative and
surrealism Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to ...
in '' Lost Highway'' (1997), '' Mulholland Drive'' (2001), and ''
Inland Empire The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the citie ...
'' (2006). In the years leading into and the beginning of the 21st century, some filmmakers have returned to the use of nonlinear narrative repeatedly, including
Steven Soderbergh Steven Andrew Soderbergh (; born January 14, 1963) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer and editor. A pioneer of modern independent cinema, Soderbergh is an acclaimed and prolific filmmaker. Soderbergh's direct ...
in ''
Schizopolis ''Schizopolis'' (also known as ''Steven Soderbergh's Schizopolis'') is a 1996 surrealist experimental comedy film with a non-linear narrative written and directed by Steven Soderbergh. Plot Although the film does not have a linear plot, a str ...
'' (1996), '' Out of Sight'' (1998), '' The Limey'' (1999), '' Full Frontal'' (2002), '' Solaris'' (2002), and ''
Che Che, Ché, Chè or CHE may refer to: People * Ché Ahn, (born 1956), American Christian pastor * Che Guevara (1928–1967), Argentine Marxist revolutionary * Che (surname) (车), Chinese surname * Che Lovelace (born 1969), Trinidadian artist Ar ...
'' (2008); and Christopher Nolan in '' Following'' (1998), '' Memento'' (2000), '' Batman Begins'' (2005), ''
The Prestige ''The Prestige'' is a 1995 fantasy novel by British writer Christopher Priest. It tells the story of a prolonged feud between two stage magicians in late 1800s England. It is epistolary in structure; that is, it purports to be a collection o ...
'' (2006), '' Inception'' (2010), '' The Dark Knight Rises'' (2012) and ''
Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.
'' (2017). ''Memento'', with its fragmentation and reverse chronology, has been described as characteristic of moving towards
postmodernism Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of modern ...
in contemporary cinema. Another example would be
Terrence Malick Terrence Frederick Malick (born November 30, 1943) is an American filmmaker. His films include ''Days of Heaven'' (1978), '' The Thin Red Line'' (1998), for which he received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay ...
's acclaimed '' The Tree of Life'' (2011). The element of reverse chronology was explored further in Gaspar Noé's 2002 film '' Irréversible''. Noé's 2009 film '' Enter the Void'' also used an uncommon narrative structure as a man recalls his life through flashbacks at the time of his death, induced by the use of psychedelic drugs.Nelmes, Jill (2003). ''An Introduction to Film Studies''.
Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law ...
. p. 87.
Richard Linklater used nonlinear narrative in '' Waking Life'' (2001), '' A Scanner Darkly'' (2006);
Gus Van Sant Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, producer, photographer, and musician. He has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultu ...
in ''
Elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantida ...
'' (2003), '' Last Days'' (2005), and '' Paranoid Park'' (2007). Alejandro González Iñárritu's film ''
Babel Babel is a name used in the Hebrew Bible for the city of Babylon and may refer to: Arts and media Written works Books * ''Babel'' (book), by Patti Smith * ''Babel'' (2012 manga), by Narumi Shigematsu * ''Babel'' (2017 manga), by Yūgo Ishika ...
'' is an example of fragmented narrative structure. Hong Kong auteur Wong Kar-wai explored nonlinear storylines in the films '' Days of Being Wild'' (1991), '' Ashes of Time'' (1994), '' Chungking Express'' (1994), '' In the Mood for Love'' (2000), and ''
2046 In contemporary history, the third millennium of the anno Domini or Common Era in the Gregorian calendar is the current millennium spanning the years 2001 to 3000 (21st to 30th centuries). Ongoing futures studies seek to understand what is l ...
'' (2004). Fernando Meirelles in '' City of God'' and '' The Constant Gardener''. Some of Alejandro González Iñárritu's films feature nonlinear narratives, specially the ones written by Guillermo Arriaga who also uses non linear narratives in his films.
Charlie Kaufman Charles Stuart Kaufman (; born November 19, 1958) is an American filmmaker and novelist. He wrote the films '' Being John Malkovich'' (1999), '' Adaptation'' (2002), and '' Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'' (2004). He made his directorial ...
is also known for his fondness of nonlinear story-telling as applied in ''
Adaptation In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...
'' and ''
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ''Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'' (also simply known as ''Eternal Sunshine'') is a 2004 American romantic science fiction drama film written by Charlie Kaufman, directed by Michel Gondry, and starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet. Pi ...
''. Takashi Shimizu's Japanese horror series, '' Ju-on'', brought to America as '' The Grudge'', is also nonlinear in its storytelling (the only exception being ''
The Grudge 3 ''The Grudge 3'' is a 2009 American supernatural horror film and the third and final installment in ''The Grudge'' original trilogy. Toby Wilkins, who had previously directed the successful film ''Splinter'' and the short film series '' Tales fro ...
''). Director Martin Koolhoven has made more movies with a nonlinear narrative, but the most notorious one is probably his controversial western '' Brimstone'', which premiered in the 2016
Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...
. Director Vetrimaaran made the Tamil-language thriller film '' Vada Chennai'' (2018) which has a nonlinear narrative structure. Another Tamil-language film, '' Iravin Nizhal'' (2022), has a single-shot non-linear structure. '' Friend of the World'' (2020) is broken up into chapters, which has a nonlinear plot.


Television


United States

In American television, there are several examples of series that make use of nonlinear narrative in different forms and for different purposes. Some notable examples are ''
Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography * Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland *Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
'', '' Undone'', ''
Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited h ...
'', '' The Walking Dead'', '' Once Upon a Time'', '' The Witcher'', '' Arrow'', '' Orange Is the New Black'', and '' True Detective''. Even though it is often found in
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
, some
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
shows use nonlinear narrative too, such as '' Arrested Development'' and '' How I Met Your Mother''. This kind of narrative is used in several ways. Some series only have certain nonlinear episodes, such as '' Penny Dreadful'' and '' The Leftovers''. Others use nonlinear storylines throughout the whole series, such as ''
Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography * Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland *Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
'' and '' Arrow''. Other series use nonlinear narrative in the beginning of a season and then explore the past until they meet, such as '' Damages'' and '' Bloodline''.


The past in certain episodes

Some television series use nonlinear narrative in certain episodes to fully explore an important part of the main characters' past. An example is Showtime's horror
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
'' Penny Dreadful'', which features one episode per season that is entirely devoted to exploring key moments in Vanessa Ives' ( Eva Green) past. Another example is HBO's drama '' The Leftovers'', whose ninth episode is set in the past and explores the lives of the main characters before the critical event that drives the story took place. Fox's sci-fi series '' Fringe'', the
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
original
comedy drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
'' Transparent'' and the
Netflix original Netflix is an American global Internet streaming-on-demand media provider that has distributed a number of original streaming television shows, including original series, specials, miniseries, and documentaries and films. Netflix's original pr ...
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
''
Grace and Frankie ''Grace and Frankie'' is an American comedy television series created by Marta Kauffman and Howard J. Morris for Netflix. The series stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin as the eponymous Grace Hanson and Frankie Bergstein, two aging women who f ...
'' use this technique only in certain episodes too.


The future or past throughout the series

There are certain television series that use nonlinear narrative to explore the past - or future - of one or various characters throughout its whole run. The ABC television series ''
Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography * Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland *Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
'' made extensive use of nonlinear story telling, with each episode typically featuring a primary storyline on the island as well as a secondary storyline from another point in a character's life, either past or future. So does
The CW ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
's series '' Arrow'' which, in every episode, features a storyline following the life of
Oliver Queen Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 in November 1941. His secret identity, real name is Olive ...
( Stephen Amell) stranded in an island and a main storyline five years later in which he goes back home and decides to become a vigilante. Using a similar storytelling technique,
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
's original series '' Orange Is the New Black'' explores the lives of the main characters in prison and also some important part of their past before they became
inmate A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...
s. Another example is FX's horror-
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
series ''
The Strain ''The Strain'' is a 2009 vampire horror novel by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan. It is the first installment in ''The Strain Trilogy'', and was followed by '' The Fall'' (2010) and ''The Night Eternal'' (2011). Plot synopsis A Boeing 777 ...
''.


As a narrative hook

Some television series use nonlinear narrative in the beginning of a season as a narrative hook, showing an intense or shocking event, and then extensively explore the past and the reasons that lead that event to happen. A notable example is the AMC
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
series ''
Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited h ...
'', which in the beginning of its final season showed a neglected and lonesome Walter White ( Bryan Cranston) and then explored what had happened to him. This technique was also used in ''Breaking Bads Pilot and in its second season. Using the same formula, FX's
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
winning legal drama '' Damages'' starring Glenn Close, begins each season with an intensely melodramatic event taking place and then traveling back six months earlier. Throughout the season, each episode shows events both in the past, present, and future that lead up to and follow said event.
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
's original series '' Bloodline'' and ABC's
crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and comb ...
'' How to Get Away with Murder'' use a similar storytelling technique.


To mimic human memory

Another reason why a television series uses nonlinear narrative is to better portray the way human memory recalls events. In its first season, the HBO
anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically cate ...
series '' True Detective'' used nonlinear narrative depicting the events that the main characters described and in the way they remembered them. Showtime's Golden Globe winning
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
'' The Affair'' uses this narrative technique in the same way. However, by using unreliable narrators, this show emphasizes how differently two people recall the same events.


Other examples

In its fourth and fifth season, AMC's post-apocalyptic
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
'' The Walking Dead'' used nonlinear narrative extensively. Even though it is not common, some comedy also shows use nonlinear narrative. An example is the
sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...
'' Arrested Development'' which, in its fourth season, made heavy use of nonlinear narrative, devoting each episode to explore the story of each of its characters separately. Other examples of nonlinear narrative in American television are: '' 12 Monkeys'', '' A to Z'', '' Alcatraz'', '' American Horror Story'', '' Better Call Saul'', ''
BoJack Horseman ''BoJack Horseman'' is an American adult animated black comedy-drama streaming television series created by Raphael Bob-Waksberg. It stars the voices of Will Arnett, Amy Sedaris, Alison Brie, Paul F. Tompkins, and Aaron Paul. Set primarily in ...
'', ''
Daredevil Daredevil may refer to: * A stunt performer Arts and media Comics * Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications), a fictional 1940s superhero popularized by writer-artist Charles Biro * Daredevil (Marvel Comics character), a Marvel comic book superhero ...
'', '' Dopesick'', '' Fargo'', ''
The Flash The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...
'', ''
FlashForward A flashforward (also spelled flash-forward, and more formally known as prolepsis) is a scene that temporarily takes the narrative forward in time from the current point of the story in literature, film, television and other media. Flashforwards a ...
'', ''
Forever Forever or 4ever may refer to: Film and television Films * ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice * ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama * ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...
'', '' Gotham'', '' Grounded for Life'', ''
Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pu ...
'', '' Heroes'', '' House of Cards'', '' Once Upon a Time in Wonderland'', ''
Person of Interest "Person of interest" is a term used by law enforcement in the United States, Canada, and other countries when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime. It has no le ...
'', '' Pretty Little Liars'', '' The Returned'', ''
Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
'', '' Sense8'', '' Undone'', ''
The Vampire Diaries ''The Vampire Diaries'' is an American supernatural teen drama television series developed by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, based on the book series of the same name written by L. J. Smith. The series premiered on The CW on September 10, ...
'', ''
Wayward Pines ''Wayward Pines'' is an American mystery science fiction television series based on the ''Wayward Pines'' novels by Blake Crouch. Developed for television by Chad Hodge, the pilot was directed by M. Night Shyamalan, with both as executive pr ...
'' and '' The Witcher''.


Japan

Japanese
anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
series sometimes present their plot in nonlinear order. In '' The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya'', for example, the episodes were deliberately aired in non-chronological order. A more nonlinear example is '' Baccano!'', where every scene is displayed in non-chronological order, with most scenes taking place at various times during the early 1930s and some scenes taking place before (extending back to the 18th century) and after (extending forward to the 21st century). Other examples include '' Durarara!!'', ''
Monogatari Series is a Japanese light novel series written by Nisio Isin and illustrated by Vofan. The plot centers on Koyomi Araragi, a third-year high school student who survives a vampire attack and finds himself helping girls involved with a variety ...
'', '' Yami to Bōshi to Hon no Tabibito'', '' Touka Gettan'', ''
Rental Magica is a Japanese light novel series by Makoto Sanda, with illustrations by Pako. It is in the midst of serialization in ''The Sneaker'' magazine published by Kadokawa Shoten. An anime television series adaptation animated by Zexcs was broadcast ...
'', '' Ergo Proxy'', '' Fullmetal Alchemist,'' ''
Axis Powers Hetalia is a Japanese webcomic, later adapted as a manga and an anime series, by Hidekaz Himaruya. The series' main presentation is as an often over-the-top allegory of political and historic events as well as more general cultural comparison ...
'', '' Hidamari Sketch'', '' Mekakucity Actors'', '' Princess Principal'', '' The Garden of Sinners'' and (partly) '' Boogiepop Phantom''.


Video games

Some video games mimic film non-linearity by presenting a single plot in a chronologically distorted way instead of letting the player determine the story flow themselves. The
first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
'' Tribes: Vengeance'' is an example of this; another is Sega's '' Sonic Adventure''. A nonlinear plot structure may or may not be combined with branching: All of Quantum Games were developed nonlinear structures into the style of hyperlink cinema. Some games tell their nonlinear story without the player being able to change any (or very little) of the plot structure. For example, ''
Uncharted 2 ''Uncharted 2: Among Thieves'' is a 2009 action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. It is the second game in the ''Uncharted'' series and was released in October 2009 for PlayStation 3. Set two ...
'' begins ''
in medias res A narrative work beginning ''in medias res'' (, "into the middle of things") opens in the midst of the plot (cf. ''ab ovo'', ''ab initio''). Often, exposition is bypassed and filled in gradually, through dialogue, flashbacks or description of pa ...
'', with the lead character in the aftermath of an accident that the player only reaches several hours of gameplay later. Indie game '' Fragments of Him'' also begins ''
in medias res A narrative work beginning ''in medias res'' (, "into the middle of things") opens in the midst of the plot (cf. ''ab ovo'', ''ab initio''). Often, exposition is bypassed and filled in gradually, through dialogue, flashbacks or description of pa ...
'' but, in addition to the nonlinear beginning, it later jumps between characters to build the story and character relationships in a nonlinear fashion, and a subtle branch means that players may see the stories in a different order if they walk into a different room at the beginning. Indie developers
Dennaton Games Dennaton Games is an independent Swedish video game developer founded by programmer Jonatan Söderström and artist Dennis Wedin. The company name is a portmanteau of the founders' names. History Jonatan Söderström is an indie game developer ...
use non-linear passages of time in their game
Hotline Miami 2 ''Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number'' is a top-down shooter video game co-developed by Dennaton Games and Abstraction Games, and published by Devolver Digital. It takes place before and after the events of its predecessor, ''Hotline Miami'', as i ...
in the same way Pulp Fiction is written. For example, some segments of the game take place before the events of the Prequel. It is used for dramatic effect in most cases, some characters have already had onscreen deaths but the player will not realise it until a later chapter of the character walking blindly to their already shown death. Often game developers use the idea of
character amnesia Character amnesia is a phenomenon whereby experienced speakers of some East Asian languages forget how to write Chinese characters previously well known to them. The phenomenon is specifically tied to prolonged and extensive use of input methods, ...
in games. It helps give the game a beginning because the audience only has the understanding that there is a history before the events of the game take place. Furthermore, by creating a nonlinear storyline the complexity of game play is greatly expanded. Nonlinear game play allows for greater replay value, allowing the player to put together different pieces of a potentially puzzling storyline. A fitting example of character amnesia is the 2005 video game ''
Façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loan word from the French (), which means ' frontage' or ' face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important aspect ...
''. In ''Façade'' the player is put into a situation that lasts approximately 10 to 15 minutes in real time, yet the events recalled seem to have a basis in years of dramatic history.Chen, Sherol. "Nonlinear Storytelling in Games: Deconstructing the Varieties of Nonlinear Experiences." Expressive Intelligence Studio Blog , EIS at UC Santa Cruz. Web. 17 Nov. 2009. .


HTML narratives

In contemporary society webpages or to be more correct, hypertext, have become affluent forms of narratives. Hypertexts have great potential to create non-linear forms of narratives. They allow for individuals to navigate within the story through links, images, audio and video, consisting of multiple subtopics that do not force the audience to make their next selection based on what their previous experiences are.


See also

* Anachronistic *
Chronology Chronology (from Latin ''chronologia'', from Ancient Greek , ''chrónos'', "time"; and , ''-logia'') is the science of arranging events in their order of occurrence in time. Consider, for example, the use of a timeline or sequence of even ...
*
Experimental fiction Experimental literature is a genre that is, according to Warren Motte in his essa"Experimental Writing, Experimental Reading" "difficult to define with any sort of precision." He says the "writing is often invoked in an "offhand manner" and the ...
* Exponential time * Fabula and syuzhet * Hyperlink cinema *
Hypertext fiction Hypertext fiction is a genre of electronic literature, characterized by the use of hypertext links that provide a new context for non-linearity in literature and reader interaction. The reader typically chooses links to move from one node of text ...
* Interactive narrative * List of cycles * Metacognition * Metafiction * MS Paint Adventures *
Nonlinear narrative films In mathematics and science, a nonlinear system is a system in which the change of the output is not proportional to the change of the input. Nonlinear problems are of interest to engineers, biologists, physicists, mathematicians, and many other ...
* Nonlinear television series * Reading path *
Sense of time The study of time perception or chronoception is a field within psychology, cognitive linguistics and neuroscience that refers to the subjective experience, or sense, of time, which is measured by someone's own perception of the duration of the ind ...
*
Sequence In mathematics, a sequence is an enumerated collection of objects in which repetitions are allowed and order matters. Like a set, it contains members (also called ''elements'', or ''terms''). The number of elements (possibly infinite) is called ...
*
Spacetime In physics, spacetime is a mathematical model that combines the three dimensions of space and one dimension of time into a single four-dimensional manifold. Spacetime diagrams can be used to visualize relativistic effects, such as why differ ...
* Stream of consciousness * Time in physics * Wheel of time


References


External links

* Cowgill, Linda
Non-Linear Narratives: The In Time Travel
* Denby, David.
The New Disorder: Adventures in film narrative
. March 5, 2007. ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
''. * Eckel, Julia
Twisted Times: Non-linearity and Temporal Disorientation in Contemporary Cinema
. In: Eckel et al.: ''(Dis)Orienting Media and Narrative Mazes''. Bielefeld: Transcript 2013. {{DEFAULTSORT:Nonlinear Narrative Narratology