By Kasie Whitener
Everything I know about boxing I learned from the Rocky
movies.
The gritty character of Philadelphia boxer Rocky Balboa is an
American icon and the Rocky story is a classic American underdog tale. We love
stories about an unknown, scrappy, determined kid whose heart and passion win
him the big prize. Think Karate Kid, Annie,
or Goonies; how about David Copperfield, Jane Eyre, or Cinderella?
According to Christopher Booker, author of The Seven Basic Plots, rags-to-riches or
underdog stories are so much a part of our shared storytelling experience that
we actually take them for granted.
NBC’s Olympics journalists are looking for underdog stories
on every competitor in Rio . Americans want to
cheer for underdogs. That’s our national character: the drive and gumption
needed to succeed despite the odds. We believe if you work hard enough you can
be a winner, a champion, a gold medalist.
In the telling of the athletes’ stories from Rio , a pattern has emerged. First, we’re told who the
athlete is and we’re reminded how difficult the event he’s competing in will
be. A flashback sequence follows full of grammar school photos of the athlete
as a child meeting his idol or winning his first championship. Next, a major
setback is described: an injury, a personal loss, a competitive loss, or a
catastrophic diagnosis. Then the comeback is described: how the athlete found
the inner strength to push through heartbreak and work even harder to achieve
his dream. The final bit is always the tee-up moment, the athlete himself
stating his goal.
“I’m just here to compete and maybe take home a medal.”
Humble to the last.
We love these stories so much that sports journalism has
developed a formula for them and nowhere is the formula more effective than the
Olympics. Because yesterday we didn’t care about these people and next week we
won’t care about them again. But today, right now, we care so much we’re
shouting at the TV for Mara Abbott to maintain her lead on the bike, Katie
Ledecky to shatter her own world record in the pool, and Kerri Walsh-Jennings
to spike that ball into the sand like it’s her job.
Lots of genre fiction conforms to formula. Mysteries and
romance each have patterns that genre writers freely admit to following.
Sometimes it seems as though we really are recycling the same seven basic plots
over and over again.
When storytelling has been such an essential part of the
human experience for centuries, it really is hard to tell a new story.
As writers we can be discouraged by that knowledge; maybe
we’re just renaming old heroines and spinning the same trite tales. Or maybe we
can use the seven basic models to keep our own ideas balanced and familiar.
Then we can add a little magic like that classic underdog
Harry Potter.
We can make old stories new and
keep our audience cheering for our heroines until the last bell of the last
round. There are 12 of them, according to Rocky.
Hey -- if you're really into boxing, try White Rock Boxing on 76 near Ballentine. It's a great venue to see some real stories about real people.
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