Picture this: a dastardly villain twirling his moustache, and a damsel in distress tied to the railroad tracks. Sounds like melodrama! But what if I told you that some of the most beloved stories of all time are, in fact, melodramas?
What is Melodrama, anyway?
Melodrama often gets a bad rap, especially from critics who use it as a catch-all insult for stories they dislike. But let’s get back to basics. The actual definition of melodrama is:
A story where exaggerated emotions, stereotypical characters and a sensationalised plot featuring unrealistic problems attempts to elicit a strong emotional reaction from the audience.
The key word here is ‘unrealistic’.
Drama features realistic characters involved in a realistic plot displaying realistic emotions as they face realistic problems.
Melodrama features stereotypical characters involved in a sensationalised plot displaying exaggerated emotions as they face unrealistic problems.
What’s wrong with Melodrama?
Well, arguably, nothing. Much of modern storytelling is basically melodrama, and there are many examples of stories that are both melodramatic and timeless classics:
- Rebecca
- Now Voyager
- Brief Encounter
- Wuthering Heights
- The Count of Monte Cristo
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- A Streetcar Named Desire
- Romeo and Juliet
- Gone With the Wind
What do these stories have in common? Larger-than-life characters grappling with intense emotions and confronting huge moral dilemmas. Sound familiar?
Clearly, there’s not necessarily anything wrong with larger-than-life characters, intense emotions or huge moral dilemmas. Let’s look then at the four characteristics of melodrama in more detail and see where the problem lies.
The Four Characteristics of Melodrama
The characteristics we’ve identified are:
- Exaggerated emotions
- Stereotypical characters
- A sensational plot
- Unrealistic problems
But are all these elements inherently bad, because to me, this list seems to conflate two different things:
- Events: plot and problems
- People: characters and emotions
Let’s explore in more detail.
The Good, the Bad, and the Melodramatic
Strong Emotional Reactions?
When done right, melodrama can evoke a strong emotional response, and I think we can agree that as writers, we should aim to elicit a strong emotional reaction in our reader. Leading the reader to express indifference and apathy after reading our uninspiring, unemotional novel isn’t really what we’re aiming for. And if the reader goes ‘meh’ when they finish the story, it won’t become a blockbuster, will it?
So, we’re not really doing our job and are unlikely to be successful as writers if we don’t generate an emotional reaction to our work.
Plots and Problems
As a speculative fiction author, I’m drawn to the unrealistic. A lot of the fun of a story for me is precisely the thing in the story that’s unrealistic: the speculative element. I mean, Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, The Avengers and Doctor Who ain’t exactly what you’d call gritty and down-to-earth, are they?
It seems to me that it’s a small-minded view of fiction to suggest the plot should always be ‘realistic’. To me, there’s nothing wrong with ‘unrealistic’ plots and high-stakes situations. In fact, they’re often what make a story memorable, because a sensational plot is gripping, engaging and fun. Mysteries, intricate plots and unexpected twists are what most people want in their stories, what keeps them turning the pages.
Characters and Emotions
There’s nothing good about stereotypical characters. And having our characters exhibit exaggerated emotional reactions isn’t good either.
So, it seems that stereotypical characters and exaggerated emotional reactions are where the problem with melodrama lies.
But, there’s a fine line between a stereotype and an archetype. Archetypal characters like Protagonist and Antagonist are necessary for a story to be a story. Characters with distinct traits and motivations are what stories are all about. So, we’re going to have to explore where the balance between archetypal characters that resonate with readers and stereotyped characters is.
(For more about archetypes, see Story Archetypes that Make Your Novel Resonate.)
The Danger with Melodrama: Bathos
Bathos is perhaps the major danger when writing emotional scenes. But what exactly is bathos, and why is it so problematic?
Bathos occurs when a writer attempts to evoke a strong emotional response but accidentally produces an anticlimactic, comic effect. It’s what happens when the author’s attempt at Pathos—evoking pity, sadness or empathy—fails. It’s unintentional.
For example, the notoriously terrible movie, The Room, has this dialogue:
You’re tearing me apart! I did not hit her! I did not! Oh, Hi, Mark.
Bathos undermines the emotional impact we’re aiming for. The last thing we want is for our readers to laugh when we’re trying to make them feel pity, sadness or empathy, isn’t it?
Overblown similes are a common source of bathos. For example:
Her heart shattered into a million pieces, like a dropped iPhone screen.
Luckily, we can avoid bathos by:
- Ensuring the level of emotion matches the situation.
- Getting feedback on the story. Readers will spot unintended comedy in serious, emotional scenes.
- Reading work aloud: This helps catch the kind of awkward phrasing that can lead to bathos.
- Carefully considering metaphors and similes.
To an extent, bathos depends on the reader, as it’s their reaction and not everyone reacts the same. But remember, accidental comedy will undercut everything you’re trying to achieve, and always keep an eye out for it.
How to Solve the Problems with Melodrama
So, we’ve seen that there are good things and bad things about melodrama, and often a fine line between the two. How then to walk that line?
The Dysfunctional Response: No emotion
In an attempt to rid their story of the stench of melodrama, some writers tone down their stories. They don’t write big scenes, their characters don’t express or feel powerful emotions. These writers think they’re being subtle, but in trying to avoid melodrama, they’ve discarded something valuable.
The Solution: Stronger Motivation
In his magnum opus, ‘Story’, Robert McKee suggests that:
Melodrama is not a problem of over-expression, but of under-motivation; not of writing too big, but of writing with too little desire.
So, the problem isn’t necessarily the level of emotion. The problem is when a character’s emotional responses are not proportional to the issues they face. If a character breaks down over the loss of a child, then that’s proportional. If they break down over the loss of a handkerchief? Not so much.
This shifts our understanding of melodrama from a problem of excess to one of insufficient foundation. Let’s explore how stronger motivation solves the problem.
How Stronger Motivation Solves Melodrama Issues
With robust motivations, even extreme emotional responses become understandable and relatable. For example, if a character is suicidal because they lost their paper-round, that’s ridiculous. But if they lose their dream job, they’re deeply in debt and the only way to save their family from penury is to claim on their life-insurance, then we can understand their reaction, even if we see how tragic it is.
Similarly, strong motivation can transform one-dimensional characters into complex individuals. The “evil stepmother”, for example, could be grappling with her own demons. Her problems might not excuse her actions, but they do make them more understandable.
When characters have strong motivations, even extraordinary actions feel more realistic. When Ripley risks her life to confront the Alien Queen and save Newt in Aliens, for example, we don’t find it melodramatic, because we know her motivation stems from losing her own daughter.
How to Strengthen Motivation
A great way to make sure characters aren’t being melodramatic is to create a Character Worksheet that includes their motivations. For each character, write down:
-
- A backstory (even if not all of it makes it onto the page).
- An explanation of how the backstory shapes their motivations in the story.
- What the stakes are for the character.
- Their goals (which can be conflicting)
- Why each goal is important to them.
- What they fear will happen if they fail.
- How each goal relates to their backstory.
Use these Character Worksheets as a reference when writing emotional scenes. Ask yourself, “Are the character’s stakes and motivation strong enough to justify this?” If it isn’t, then either strengthen the motivation or tone down the emotion.
Finding the Sweet Spot
Remember, the goal isn’t to eliminate big emotions or high-stakes situations from our writing. Instead, it’s to make sure strong emotions and high stakes feel realistic. By focusing on stronger motivations, we can keep the engaging aspects of melodrama while avoiding its pitfalls, creating stories that are exciting and create an emotional reaction in the reader.
If we go back to the earlier definition and edit it, we see what we need to aim for:
A story featuring realistic characters involved in a gripping plot displaying realistic emotions as they face extraordinary problems.
Things to Do
- Remember that creating emotionally resonant stories isn’t inherently bad.
- Think about your favourite stories. What unrealistic elements do they include?
- Make a note of some stories you responded emotionally to.
- What is it about those stories that caused your response? Why?
- Analyse your own work. How melodramatic is it?
- Consider if your work would benefit from portraying stronger emotions.
- Experiment with evoking more emotion in a dramatic scene in your story.
- Try dialling the emotion back in a less dramatic scene.
Want to Read More?
The book I recommend for all plot structuring, including endings, is Story by Robert McKee. It’s available on Amazon US here and Amazon UK here.
Help!
If you need help with melodrama, or any other aspect of your writing, please email me. Otherwise, please feel free to share this article using the buttons below.
