Narrative- Dramatism & Culture- Constitutive Analysis

October 16, 2022

 Narrative-Dramatism Analysis of Netflix's Mindhunter

-

An analysis of Mindhunter, a show inspired by book "Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Special Crime Unit", follows the true story of the beginning of the FBI's Behavioral Science unit, which helped study and document serial killers and psychopaths in the 1970's. The show follows two protagonists, mostly focused on Special Agents Holden Ford and Bill Tench, who begin working together after discovering similarities in their studies and interests. The two work in the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, in 1977 They end up in a number of various locations based on their work, as investigations take them across the country. 

The show itself does a great job of setting up the plot and attracting viewers in the very beginning, with events that take place that set the tone for the rest of the show. At this beginning stage, the Psychology Division of the FBI was not well respected within the system, and Holden and Bill therefore have a harder time with getting funding and permission for their studies. Throughout the 2 seasons, the pair spend a large majority of their time in two places, either interviewing various serial killers or out in the field, helping solve ongoing murders. One thing the show does especially well is enticing its audience without the need to show murder or gore, and provides a number of mind-bending plot twists that makes the viewer have to come back and continue watching. This is because the audience only sees the aftermath of the various events, making it harder to predict exactly what will come next. The true events of the story are also of interest to the viewer, and as the different personalities of each person comes into play with the interviews conducted with Holden and Bill, viewers can build an understanding of why it is important that they continue to study people with similar problems. 

The chronology of events in the show help provide a dramatic understanding of two stories at once. An example of the insights that they were able to gain can be seen in their interviews and interactions with Ed Kemper, a serial killer known as the Coed Killer. Ed was a person who was very intelligent, with a high IQ and a generally off-putting demeanor. After building his trust, Holden and Bill are able to talk and discuss the finer details of not just the killings Ed conducted, but his reasoning, rational, his tactics, and even went on to give advice on what killers might do following their crimes, in order to help them. Ed described how he kept 'trophies', and how the killers might return to the places where bodies were hidden, which helped them to catch serial killers later in the series. 

Overall, Mindhunter not only does a great job at highlighting the importance of understanding serial killers, but also grabs the attention of its viewers with a plot full of twists and turns. The narrative structure of the series plays in well with the different sub-plots, as the viewer has various interests in mind throughout its entirety. Though this is not a new show, I would encourage viewers to watch this, and would recommend this to anyone interested in mystery, true crime, or drama.

Narrative analysis helps to give deeper context of the overall benefits of understanding those who commit serious crimes such as this. Though this is enough to help readers understand part of the story, it is hard to fully encapsulate everything that is meant to be understood without watching the show itself. It is helpful for those who have seen the show, however, and helps to look at the further intricacies of the show and the methods used by characters in the show as well. Narrative Analysis helps to break down the events, but still might leave out other aspects. 

Culture-Constitutive Analysis of Dave's Hot Chicken, Los Angeles, California

-

LA itself has a very iconic culture, one that is diverse and filled so much with self expression. Dave's embodies this idea very well, and has within the past few years become one of my favorite places to eat in the whole city. Though the fried chicken itself is beyond compare, one thing that stands out just as much is it's branding and decor. Dave's started as a small, late-night food stand in between Downtown and Hollywood in 2017, squashed between a number of small businesses in a little-visited strip mall. Being in the main part of the city, a majority of the buildings are covered in graffiti, murals, or other forms of art and self expression; Daves adopted this idea, which helped make their branding fit right in to the Los Angeles culture. The stores themselves are vibrant and colorful inside, covered in graffiti-stye artwork that depicts LA in every sense. The artwork is done by Los Angeles based artists, who have even been able to provide the artwork for the various new locations across the country, helping to being LA street culture to new places. 

Fame and celebrities are almost inseparable from the identity of Los Angeles, which Dave's has been able to benefit from. The small business exploded quickly into a franchise, with many celebrities investing early in order to help the company start stores across the nation only 5 years after they began. Celebrity endorsements often indicate high quality and popularity in the city, with names such as Drake and Michael Strahan as investors in the company. Though they might seem to have a small menu, they stick to the Los Angeles culture of getting a good deal for what your spending, as you are usually left with leftovers that are still just as crave-able later. The spices and used for their varying heat levels are also reminiscent of many other classic quick meals, as chicken and chicken sandwiches are a staple across the city. 

Los Angeles culture can be seen in many different forms when it comes to restaurants and eateries, but Dave's Hot Chicken is a fresh representation of city and street culture. Not only do they provide a gloriously huge helping of a well-known comfort food, but they back it up with the art and street expression of graffiti and LA based artistry. With the amount of popularity that Dave's has gained in the past few years, I believe we will soon be able to see a new store pop up in most states (Oregon already has one). I speak highly of the food most often, but am still aware and can appreciate the cultural influence that Los Angeles has on popular restaurants. 

Cultural analysis helped me to actually further inspect a well known restaurant that I am already familiar with in a different way. It helps give a face to the brand, and helps a reader to recognize the aspects of a culture within a restaurant that might go unrecognized to some. Had this exercise not been done, it may have left me to fail to consider what it took for the restaurant to become so well known and recognize to begin with.