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I never thought much about ‘Accomplishment vs Failure’ stories. One could argue that every story touches on this. The protagonist needs to succeed in whatever they are attempting in regards to the main plot. If they don’t accomplish their goals then they’re going to fail. Makes perfect sense, right? So, why would there be a separate theme for something that comes off as a given?
From what I was reading, this type of conflict connects primarily to sports or any type of competition plot. This article also notes it would encompass performance stories such as musicians, dancers, etc. Considering this aspect, I can see what the difference is between general success. In a sport or performance, the character is trying to achieve a victory on some level. It isn’t to save the world, but maybe to win the big game, earn a spot on Broadway, or sell a painting to make rent. This is at a smaller scale than ‘life vs death’, but just as important to the characters. It’s the life and death of their dreams that is at stake here.
An aspect of these stories is that the protagonists always have the option to quit and give up on their dreams. This would fall under failure and be an acceptable result if written correctly. Other heroes don’t have this option such as in horror when they can’t just walk away from the serial killer. There’s a much easier out in giving up here, which is always looming over the character. Many times, they will quit at some point and then enter the third act with renewed determination. Kind of predictable, but audiences still get into the ‘phoenix’ effect.
I think this is a very relatable conflict for people. Most have had dreams at some point in their lives. A reader can understand the passion the character has even if they lost or area delaying their own. Seeing that the character has talent for what they want to do helps us believe in them achieving their dreams. They become a surrogate for hope, which can be inspiring to a reader. Think about sports movies and how a viewer who doesn’t like the real sport might really get into the heroes winning in the end. It’s not the sport we are stirred by, but the strong desire to win. Everyone wants to have that in their life instead of crushing failure. Through these stories, an author may rekindle hope and passion in a person too.
Touching on the failure side of the equation, I think all of us can remember a time we feared losing. Not only that, we all know what it’s like to come up short and lose, which is what the alternative to accomplishment. So, our own ‘fear’ of failure and the pain it gives us can pull us into a story. We start internally, or externally, cheering for this character and become emotionally invested. Probably more than in the previous conflicts since we’re more likely to have experience here.
What do you think of this conflict? It does seem fairly straightforward and deeper once you look at it from a sports/performance perspective.