Labirintos narrativos: a produção de sentidos por meio da composição narrativa da série Westworld

Abstract

This final research paper aims to explain how the narrative composition of the first season of the HBO series Westworld (2016-present) enables the viewer to convey meaning from a structure that is perceived as labyrinthine. At first, we present an overview of key concepts pertaining to narrative and its internal elements, which allow for the production of meaning. Afterwards, we examine the context of TV as a cultural form, in order to comprehend how Westworld is historically and materialistically inserted in a specific mode of producing and consuming television. We proceed to analyze the series using a list of analytical operators intersected with central thematic axes found in its episodes. Lastly, we conclude that the viewers explore their own labyrinth while searching for meaning, in a double effort to apprehend the complete plot of Westworld, while also uncovering its mysteries, which open up endless possibilities of comprehension.