“That’s why every magic trick has a third act.” – The Prestige
A man has to have a purpose in life. All memes today are “as found”.
I’ve heard it said that there are only seven basic plots to stories, and that was the thesis of a book by the Christopher Booker. Who would have thought a guy named Booker would write a book? On the other hand, I’d hate to be the guy named Booker who didn’t write a book, unless my name was Dan-O.
Anyhow, we might look at those plots in a future post (maybe next Friday?) but now I want to talk about how most movies are made – they use a three act structure, and compare that to a human lifespan.
The First Act is the setup. It introduces many of the characters and the situation. You start by knowing absolutely nothing about what’s going on other than the title and maybe you might have seen a preview. It’s the job of the storyteller to let you know what’s going on, while at the same time bringing drama and challenges into the life of the protagonist.
For most people, their first act may vary in details, but it’s the time of life from when they’re born until they complete their schooling and are “out in the world”. Obviously, most of the ways that we reached adulthood are different, but most of them rhyme pretty well. You may have had more or less adversity, you may have had more or less wealth, you might have been raised in the mountains or in the city, but those are just variations on a theme.
True story: when I started my first website back in 2000, I was trying to figure out how to get it in search engines, so I did a search, at work, for “Submission Websites” when a bunch of fetish websites for a fetish I never even knew existed popped up. Thankfully, the web controls were weak then.
Most people lose a grandparent, experience some tragedy, experience some conflict with parents, and almost everyone has to deal with the disturbing revelations of puberty and growing awareness of how small they are in comparison to the world.
Sure, some stories vary greatly, and I certainly wouldn’t have wanted to be raised in the 1930s Soviet Union, but I imagine most stories of those reading this are pretty similar through adulthood. Not the same, but similar.
How do you ground someone from Gen Z? Make them go outside and socialize with their friends.
That’s the end of the first act, and the first challenge for most people is finding their way and path in life. That’s the second act. In a movie, the protagonist has a problem introduced in the first act that they have to solve. In a good movie, the protagonist has to grow in ability, skill, virtue, or some combination of the three to deal with the problem. The second act transforms the protagonist into something more than what he was.
The Second Act of most lives consists of wrestling with careers and marriages and children for most people. Some miss part of that triad, but most people deal with all three.
I tried this, and it actually works, but video games are more fun.
This is the time in life when marriages succeed or fail. When careers go where you expected, or, more likely, veer off in wild tangents that 18-year-old you would never have expected. And, children. Anyone who has raised more than one knows that each one is different, and each one presents a different challenge in order to make them suitable to add value to the world.
Or not. Sometimes, all of these things fail. I guess that’s why they make comedies? Regardless, it’s the time when people are busy trying to accomplish things, trying to solve problems, and trying to make a place in this world and contribute.
Say what you will about Vlad, but he took action when the stakes were high.
While similarity remains, there is much more variation in the Second Act for most people. That’s where fortunes rise and fall, and that’s where heartbreak and setbacks are either overcome or we allow them to overcome us.
The final act is the Third Act.
In a film, it creates a climax. All of the action, all of the plots, all of the tension built into the story is resolved, for good or bad. It finishes the story, and resolves enough of the plot to satisfy the audience, and finally allows reflection by the protagonist on how they’ve changed, and understanding who they really are.
In a life, what does the Third Act look like? Is it a gold watch at retirement, cruises, and sitting on the patio in a shade with a lemonade watching boats go by?
For me, I can’t see that.
I can’t imagine that being my Third Act. I’ve consciously filled my life with struggle, with daring myself to improve and get better and see my worst times were when I was complacent and life was easy. It may be that you’ve chosen differently, and I’m just messed up, but it does set up my Third Act.
Steve Jobs said he wanted to “kick a dent” in the Universe, and he certainly did. Would smartphones have come without the iPhone®? I do think so, but I think his overall legacy is a negative one. Smartphones haven’t made humanity happier, for the most part. Instead, they’ve created a false connection where people are still seeking real connections.
This would be a good third act.
I guess, if I were looking for a climax to my life, it would kicking a far different dent in the Universe, allowing people to see that we don’t have to live like this. There is another way, and it’s better, and freer, and provides that hope of humanity becoming the flower of creation, rather than another weed.
I believe that with all of my heart, that there is another way. I’d write a book about it, but my name isn’t booker. Wait, maybe if it was a wild book?
The Book:
