Plot and Story in "42"

            Plot, story, theme, genre, category. How does “42” fit into these slots? Category is easy. It fits into the quadrant on Johnston’s grid that encompasses realistic films with educational value. As for genre, “42” is a biopic. It tells the story of how Jackie Robinson became the first African-American baseball player in the major leagues. I said in my last post that the movie was about Branch Rickey, and I implied that the movie’s theme had to do with America’s ongoing struggle with racial injustice. I don’t know why I said these things. The story is about Jackie Robinson and the theme is courage. I must have been asleep.

            Now, about plot. In The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory, J. A Cuddon writes that plot is the “plan, design, scheme or pattern of events in a play, poem or work of fiction; and, further, the organization of incident and character in such a way as to induce curiosity and suspense in the spectator or reader.” This definition, of course, applies to movies too. Cuddon goes on: “In the space/time continuum of plot the continual question operates in three tenses: Why did that happen? Why is this happening? What is going to happen next—and why?” Story is one thing; we wouldn’t go to the movies if we didn’t think we were going to get a good story out of it. Stories tell us about life. They show us people working through problems similar to ours. Plot is another; it’s the mechanics of telling the story. It’s what makes the story work. It’s what keeps the story moving toward its finish.

            If we recognize courage as the theme of “42,” we can see how plotting organizes incident and character so as to emphasize the theme of courage.

            There are three main plot points, which coincide with Cuddon’s three-tensed question. (1) Rickey brings Robinson into his office and tells him the plan won’t work unless he, Robinson, has the guts to hold in his temper and refuse to react to racial slurs. Rickey tests him by getting in his face and yelling insults at him. Why did this happen? Robinson has a reputation for being gutsy and having a hot temper. (2) Robinson is at bat and the Giants manager steps out of his dugout and onto the field to taunt him with invective. This is, Paco tells me, the apex, the pinnacle of the film. It sums up, within the limits of a PG-13 rating, the horror that Robinson went through. Why is this happening? Because, in the beginning, nobody but Rickey and Robinson wanted the plan to succeed.

            The theme is courage in the face of racial injustice. According to Johnston, theme in a movie is relevant not only to the main character but to other characters and situations as well. “42” demonstrates the opposite of courage: the fear of change; the fear of stepping outside the established boundaries of everyday life. In our first plot point, Rickey says the time has come for baseball, and he means for America, too. He isn’t afraid for his career nor is he concerned about what the public might do or say. In our pinnacle plot point, the Giants manager displays the fear of the public.

(3) In our last plot point, a Pittsburgh pitcher taunts Robinson in another way, lobbing balls over his head and behind his back. Finally, Robinson says, “Give me something I can hit. What are you afraid of?” A suspenseful moment. The viewer wonders, What is going to happen next? The pitcher winds up and throws a screamer across the plate, thinking this will fix him—and Robinson hits the home run that wins the pennant for the Dodgers. Why did this happen? In terms of the plot, it happened to illustrate the triumph of Branch Rickey and Jackie Robinson.

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