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Romance stories

Disciplines > Storytelling > Plots > Classic story types > Romance stories

Description | Example | Discussion | See also

Description

Romance is the core theme of many stories and is a supplementary plot line in many more.

Separation, unrequited love and the general inability to get together is a common theme, for example:

A loves B but B loves C (the love triangle).
A and B are in love but are separated by distance (eg. B is in the army).
A and B are different in some way, (eg. differing social, economic or cultural backgrounds).
A and B love each other but neither realizes that their love is returned.
There is some dark secret which prevents A from admitting love of B.
A and/or B lack the courage or skills of courtship.
A and B have a first date - how will they get on?
A and/or B are already attached to another person.
The romance may be stressed and tested in various ways, for example: A is accused of a crime. B stays loyal and helps prove innocence.
A is very ill, but B's ministrations help pull B through.
A must win the approval of B's children, family, friends, etc.

Example

Gone With The Wind
Love Story
Casablanca

Discussion

Love is a great motivator yet few find perfection in it. We love and lose, betray and are betrayed. But still we dream of the perfect romance.

Romantic stories portray both idealistic love and also the imperfections and madness. They give us hope and tug at our heart-strings. In short, they move us perhaps like no other genre.