5) “An Education” – The 4th and Final Part of this Story

The Conclusion of a 5-post Deconstruction of the Oscar-Nominated Film and Screenplay The final act of this highly character-driven story can be broken down into two parts.  The first is launched by the Second Plot Point itself – Jenny discovers letters in David’s glove box from his wife – which soon gives way to what […]

4) “An Education” – Part 3 of the Story

The Continuing Deconstruction of the Oscar-Nominated Film You might like this… I found the script for An Education online… you can read it free by downloading the PDF from a site called Media Fire.  Just click the download link, it’s safe and it works.  It’s an early draft (David is called Alan at this point), […]

3) “An Education” – the Deconstruction Continues

The last post on this gem of a little movie identified the First Plot Point as the moment when David invited Jenny to skip school to attend an art auction. As is the function of the FPP, this thrust the story into Part 2, which is all about the response of the hero to the […]

2) “An Education” – the First Plot Point

The thing I like most about the First Plot Point in this story is the way it illustrates the absolute need for the 16 scenes that precede it.  That set it up. In An Education, it’s a subtle and delicate moment, indeed. Some people argue that something huge and compelling that occurs within the first […]

1) “An Education” – The Opening Act (Part 1)

A Story Deconstruction Welcome to another opportunity to jack your learning curve to an even steeper angle.  Because nothing says “I get it” better than knowing what to look for in a story… seeing it… and understanding why it works. When analyzing a story, especially one as good as An Education, there are several levels […]

Welcome to “An Education”

A deconstruction wherein we analyze this critically-acclaimed story… part by part, milestone by milestone, scene by scene. Let’s do this. I always get a little nervous when I tear into a deconstruction.  What if the milestones are in the wrong place?  What if the storytelling principles I write about are contradicted and blown to smithereens? […]