Blog 3a

Mary Frances Zambreno is discussing how some stories never seem to fade away with each generation that passes. She explores some reason as to why this is using straightforward, simple language to get her audience to fully comprehend her theory. Zambreno points out tools that have been used in Arthurian literature that could be the indicator for why this particular story of King Arthur, and many of the like, has lasted for many years.  Some tools are the following: mutability or plasticity, piecemeal, windows of opportunity, and open-ended closure.

          Mutability or plasticity is defines as the quality of being capable of change or reshaping, this quality is at the control of the author. This is seen in the Arthurian literature when every generation, culture, or individual taste has reshaped or changed from the original story into something more relatable for the era. The second tool is a piecemeal, which is characterized by unsystematic partial measures taken over a period of time; can be seen as short scenes or tales within the stories. Zambreno uses the example of the romance involved in Arthurian stories. Another tool would be “windows of opportunity.” The dictionary defines this as short time frame during which an opportunity must be grasped or lost. Zambreno defines this as new perspectives perceived by the audience from the original version. It gives the chance to fill in their created information for the story, even though it may not be true. Lastly, the open-ended closure tool is used. This tool can be seen when the author tells the audience there is more information and stories out in the world, but the audience must go find this information on their own time. These are the tools that Zambreno says can contribute to the success of many stories, especially the involvement of romance within the stories. Even though romance can always keep interest in a story, audiences find that these narratives produce and compress questions that related to both the 12^th century and modern world.