Changes

Let us begin by drawing the two axes. Draw a sideways T, making the vertical axis the G-I axis, and the horizontal axis the B-E axis. We will call the intersection of the B-E and the G-I axes “Normality”. Let us start the plot at Normality.

Let us begin by drawing the two axes. Draw a sideways T, making the vertical axis the G-I axis, and the horizontal axis the B-E axis. We will call the intersection of the B-E and the G-I axes “Normality”. Let us start the plot at Normality.

Let us define “good” and “ill fortune” as those of Lain<ref>Inquisitive readers (spoiler alert!) might ask which version of Lain we are using. This is a completely reasonable question to ask, as a big part of the series focuses on the complex interplay between the different personalities of Lain. But since we are expected to view the world from her perspective, we will use the timid “real-world” Lain.</ref>. And let us define happiness as inherently implying “good fortune”<ref>It naturally follows that its loss, or the danger of its loss, is “ill fortune”. Also, the converse is not necessarily true. For that reason, the first few minutes of Layer 1 (depicting Chisa’s suicide) do not matter for our purposes, as Lain is not immediately revealed or known to the audience at that point.</ref>.  

Let us define “good” and “ill fortune” as those of [[Iwakura Lain|Lain]]<ref>Inquisitive readers (spoiler alert!) might ask which version of Lain we are using. This is a completely reasonable question to ask, as a big part of the series focuses on the complex interplay between the different personalities of Lain. But since we are expected to view the world from her perspective, we will use the timid “real-world” Lain.</ref>. And let us define happiness as inherently implying “good fortune”<ref>It naturally follows that its loss, or the danger of its loss, is “ill fortune”. Also, the converse is not necessarily true. For that reason, the first few minutes of Layer 1 (depicting Chisa’s suicide) do not matter for our purposes, as Lain is not immediately revealed or known to the audience at that point.</ref>.  

We first see Lain walking to school (on strange ground!), taking the train<ref>The train suddenly stops; this will be important later.</ref>, and arriving at school. Her only friend, Alice, tells her about Chisa’s suicide, and berates her about not checking her email regularly<ref>Is getting to know the Wired good or bad for Lain? This is a manifestation of the philosophical question “was civilization an improvement for mankind?”—one that is a main theme of the series. I suppose we shall have to act on the definition that happiness is always good (even if it is only in the short run) and plot it according to that.</ref>.

We first see Lain walking to school (on strange ground!), taking the train<ref>The train suddenly stops; this will be important later.</ref>, and arriving at school. Her only friend, Alice, tells her about Chisa’s suicide, and berates her about not checking her email regularly<ref>Is getting to know the Wired good or bad for Lain? This is a manifestation of the philosophical question “was civilization an improvement for mankind?”—one that is a main theme of the series. I suppose we shall have to act on the definition that happiness is always good (even if it is only in the short run) and plot it according to that.</ref>.

How can the plot we have drawn be best described? It does not neatly conform to any of the eight standard shapes of stories, befitting its status as an avant-garde anime. At the beginning it resembles the “Man in Hole” shape, while later it starts to seem like the “Cinderella” shape. By the end we have drastic changes in Good- and Ill-Fortune<ref>Consequently, we also obtain another definition for the “plot arc”: The derivative of a story plotted on the B-E/G-I axes. That is, when the plot arc is high, change in Good- and Ill-Fortune are also high. Due to insufficient time and skills, the actual production of the graph is left as an exercise to the reader.</ref>

How can the plot we have drawn be best described? It does not neatly conform to any of the eight standard shapes of stories, befitting its status as an avant-garde anime. At the beginning it resembles the “Man in Hole” shape, while later it starts to seem like the “Cinderella” shape. By the end we have drastic changes in Good- and Ill-Fortune<ref>Consequently, we also obtain another definition for the “plot arc”: The derivative of a story plotted on the B-E/G-I axes. That is, when the plot arc is high, change in Good- and Ill-Fortune are also high. Due to insufficient time and skills, the actual production of the graph is left as an exercise to the reader.</ref>