A Comparison of Narrative Timing in the Novel Track 143 and the Film Adapted from It

Using a descriptive-analytical method and adopting an interdisciplinary, narratological approach, the present study seeks to explore the structure of time in the novel Track 143 and the film adapted from it. To this aim, based on Genette’s narratology model, the present research studies two concepts of ‘order’ and ‘duration’ in the abovementioned media to uncover underlying narrative structures of the text and the film to grasp underlying meaning of both media to better understand them. Besides, this research might be regarded as an introduction to narrative criticism of film adaptations. In the novel Track 143, because of its genre, duration of the narration is full of descriptive pauses and internal monologues that sometimes slow down narration to the extent that it becomes tedious for the reader. Therefore, in this novel, constant pace that includes ellipsis and summary is used less than descriptive and scene pauses, and the author has applied ellipsis between chapters more frequently to let the narration flow smoothly. Compared to the novel version, the Track 143 film is more consistent and because there are fewer locations, it narrates a more limited time. Thus, unlike the novel, the film tends to make more use of ellipsis and summary than pause. Moreover, the film, by nature, has made the best use of dialogue and scene in order to transfer information about and emotions of characters.