Freedom Baird
Non-Linear and Interactive Narrative
April 3, 1996


Demolition Man Morphemes

1. cityscape (S) - We're introduced to a city, L.A., in a state of near-ruin due to crime.

2. briefing (Br) - The chopper pilots deliver the hero to the crime scene where he is to confront the Evil Villain. During the flight they brief him about the Evil Villain.

3. duel (D) - The hero confronts the Evil Villain, they fight. The hero subdues him and drags him out of an exploding building.

4. mistake (Mi) - The hero, has made an error in judgment, and is held responsible for the deaths of the Evil Villains hostages, who were still in the building.

5. transformation (T) - The hero is sentenced for his mistake. He is stripped, tanked, drowned and frozen. He remains frozen for decades. During his cryo-sentence, his behavior is modified with programming.

6. new city (Nc) - Decades have passed. The city is peaceful. The city cops have grown soft, except for one, Huxley, who is obsessed with 20th century violence, and is bored by all the calm.

7. resurrection (Rt) - The Evil Villain is thawed for his parole hearing, during which he escapes. He knows all the codes he needs to escape, but doesn't know why he knows them.

8. command (Co) - The Old Villain, Dr. Cocteau, instructs his staff to eliminate the underground Rebel Leader, Ed Friendly.

9. alternate resurrection (Ar) - The hero is prematurely thawed to combat the Evil Villain.

10. meets partner (M) - The hero meets Huxley, who is to be his new partner. They bond. He is impressed by her spunkiness.

11. tracking (Tk) - The hero and his partner track the Evil Villain who is robbing a museum to obtain a gun. He eludes them.

12. discovery of programming (Dp) - The Evil Villain happens upon the Old Villain and tries to kill him. He can't, and is thereby made partially aware of his programming.

13. accusation (Ac) - The hero meets the Old Villain, who is the builder of the cryo-prisons, and the new city laws. The hero reveals the agony of his sentence. The Old Villain justifies his actions.

14. missions (Ms) - The Rebels commit crimes. The hero thwarts them, but thinks they may be justified, as they are hungry and trying to steal food.

15. coercion (Cn) - The old Villains meets with the Evil Villain, and explains that he has programmed him to carry out a specific plan, to kill the Rebel leader. He also instructs him to kill the Hero. The Evil Villain doesn't like feeling manipulated.

16. failed romance - The hero and his partner try to make love, but fail because their styles are from different eras, and are incompatible.

17. exposure (Ex) - The hero reviews security tapes, and learns of the Evil Villain's allegiance to the old villain. His programming expresses itself as he knits a sweater for his partner.

18. pursuit (P) - The hero pursues the Rebel. He finds him and hears his side of the story.

19. gang rally (Gr) - The Evil Villain thaws thugs. They prepare to kill the hero.

20. battle of robots I (Br1) The Evil Villain and the hero fight. It ends in a draw.

21. revenge (Rv) - The Evil Villain kills the Old Villain, his programmer.

22. main mission (Mm) - The hero has to prevent the thawing of 80 criminals. Huxley accompanies him at first.

23. mentoring (Mg) - Huxley kills for the first time. The hero talks to her about it, then knocks her out and leaves her behind to protect her.

24. battle of robots II (Br2) - The hero destroys the evil villain by freezing him and shattering him into thousands of icy shards.

25. reunion (R) - The hero and partner reunite and kiss for the first time.


Return to FB's morphology assignment page.

baird@media.mit.edu