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Activity 5: Stakes

What are the stakes?
A scene from Pixar's film "Toy Story 3" where the characters are swimming in a sea of trash and look very afraid.
Part A: Return to the main characters from your three favorite films.
  • What was one important choice they had to make where the stakes were high?
  • What were the stakes?
  • Can you identify them as internal, external or philosophical?
Part B: Think about a difficult choice you had to make in your own life. What was at stake?
Part C: Return to one of the obstacles your character might face from the previous exercise. Now think of the choice this obstacle forces them to make. Answer the following:
  • What are the possible stakes of this choice?
  • Can you come up with an internal, external or philosophical stake which applies to this choice?

Want to join the conversation?

  • blobby green style avatar for user p5c07EmmanuelUlloa
    Activity 5
    What are the stakes?
    Exercise 5: Stakes

    Part A: Return to the main characters from your three favorite films.
    Woody had to go back looking for Buzz in Sid’s house. Gru had to rescue his foster children. Sully had to risk his life so he can take Boo back into her bedroom.
    Buzz might have been lost forever in Sid’s house. Gru might have never become a good Father figure. Sully might’ve been alone forever.
    They are all internal because they risked there lifes for the greater good.
    Part B: I had to choose to either start studying or lose my hobby soccer.
    Part C: Return to one of the obstacles your character might face from the previous exercise. Now think of the choice this obstacle forces them to make. Answer the following:
    He might have been stuck on the elevator if he didn't take a risk.
    He is an internal because he turned brave instead of being scared.
    (45 votes)
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  • duskpin ultimate style avatar for user Michael Antonelli
    Part C:
    - His people could become slaves, he and his fellow guardians would be publicly humiliated and/or executed, and his childhood friend, as a princess, could face any or all of those three; he could sink back under the influence of the council, represented by the visor, and would then be subjected to torture and forced to commit acts of evil
    - Internal: his relationship with Embla, External: pain/death, Philosophical: his people being ruthlessly ruled over by either the council or foreign armies
    (19 votes)
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  • old spice man blue style avatar for user Finn Murphy
    In my opinion, stakes are a huge part of the story, they can shape the character in a good way or a bad way, and how much they learn is how good the stakes are.
    For example: In one of my favorite movies, UP. Carl has met his idol (Nobody knows how he is older than him and still alive?) But a good writer knows that the best way to lose the respect of an idol is by meeting them in the flesh. Charles Muntz is something of a poacher and is trying to walk off with and kill their beloved bird friend Kevin. Carl has to risk losing his only memory of Ellie and the life of Russel, Dug, Kevin, and his own to stop Muntz. Which results in a high-tension battle above the clouds with many close calls and,


    Spoiler alert!
    Carl has to kill his idol to keep everyone else safe, but in doing this, he has lost Ellie or the house that held his memories of her. He learns that he needs to let go, but still remember her, he realized how abundant he needs people and stops trusting his head only. And lives a happier life with Russel and became the father that he was neglected.


    Overall, UP does have many risks in the story, which makes it all the better to watch. Carl and Russel are two people that I will keep close in my heart, always.

    But anyway, I hope I explained it understandably. I was never taught of this at my school, (Hopefully not yet) I thought UP was a great movie to explain this with.
    (15 votes)
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  • male robot hal style avatar for user Diogo Fouto
    It's a Wonderful life

    External stakes: Bank goes bankrupt; George's family become poor and can't sustain well; George may suicide.
    Internal stakes: George senses he would have ultimately failed his family and everything he built; He will be very sad
    Philosophical stakes: If George fails to get the lost money it means that being good all your life won't help you when you need.
    (13 votes)
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  • duskpin tree style avatar for user Paige Chandler
    in the movie, the civil war captain America's whole story is finding bucky. the stakes are really high if he doesn't save him then he could accidentally hurt more people. as well if he goes to jail then Cap may never see him again. this is an internal stake.

    in my life, this is a story from a few years ago. one day my sister and I were home alone my mom had told us we could go to the park for lunch. when we got there I saw one of my friends and went to go talk to her my sister went to play with some kids on the swings. about 15 minutes later my best friends little brother went out the gate after talking to a teen boy I imminently stopped her to tell her what I saw she ran toward the gate and dragged her brother screaming back to the gate and into the stroller she buckled him up and said she had to go she called me later that day it turned out that he had been offered to watch the boy beat up another teen there she only saw him walk away and knew something was up she took him home and talked with there mom. If I had not told her what I saw he may have been lured into trying drugs or alcohol. the stakes were high for me knowing that I had seen something and not said anything would have stuck in my head forever.
    (11 votes)
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  • blobby green style avatar for user Jeff Bedrick
    A. Deckard had to choose to kill each of the replicants with increasing reluctance until the strongest one spares his life. He then chooses to spare Rachel so that they can go on living together. The stakes were life and death and met all three criteria of internal, external, and philosophical.
    B. The biggest challenge in my life was realizing that the only way to preserve a vital relationship was to fight for it when it is not in my nature to be a fighter.
    C. For Deckard, the stakes of sparing Rachel's life meant that his own life could never be the same. Internally, his priority changed from maintaining status quo to choosing life and love. Externally, it meant that they would probably have to spend the rest of their lives on the run. Philosophically, the choice was between a safe life in isolation or a riskier life with a deep connection to someone else.
    (12 votes)
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  • blobby green style avatar for user Rebekah Dubon
    The external stakes of Tangled are that Rapunzel isn't allowed to leave the tower because there might be a danger. She ignores this warning and leaves, putting herself in danger.
    The internal stakes of Gravity Falls are that Dipper has to deal with feelings of shame and regret if he wants his family to believe him about the monsters. But he doesn't care about his own thoughts he only cares about his uncle and his sister, as well as his crush Wendy.
    The internal stakes of Stranger Things are kinda the same as Gravity Falls. Joyce knew that her son was alive but she couldn't get anyone to believe her, resulting in shame and anger.
    (11 votes)
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  • blobby green style avatar for user JahanJones11
    Part A:
    Joy: accepting sadness as one of Riley's emotional feel. Stakes would be when wanting to rescue sadness from the cloud. Internal stake
    Claire: Vroom off to the Jurassic World headquarter. Stakes= when dinosaur isn't seen in its area. External Stake
    Koozco: Not trusting his ownly new friend and leaving. Stakes=going back to the palace as an animal, lama. Philosophical stake
    Part B:
    Being asked to go to school after coming from an amazing trip to Disneyland, but staying up half of the time on the ride back. I would be caught up on what everyone knows or I can catch up on sleep
    Part C:
    Character M would probably face slumber decisions, while it is seen in his culture as bad to over sleep.
    (8 votes)
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  • blobby green style avatar for user firstepicmike
    In Warriors, the stakes are that if FireStar fails, the entire habitat around him will crumble, many cats will die, and he will die.
    (6 votes)
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  • starky tree style avatar for user Charlie Fernandez
    In my opinion, stakes are a huge part of the story, they can shape the character in a good way or a bad way, and how much they learn is how good the stakes are.
    For example: In one of my favorite movies, UP. Carl has met his idol (Nobody knows how he is older than him and still alive?) But a good writer knows that the best way to lose the respect of an idol is by meeting them in the flesh. Charles Muntz is something of a poacher and is trying to walk off with and kill their beloved bird friend Kevin. Carl has to risk losing his only memory of Ellie and the life of Russel, Dug, Kevin, and his own to stop Muntz. Which results in a high-tension battle above the clouds with many close calls and,


    Spoiler alert!
    Carl has to kill his idol to keep everyone else safe, but in doing this, he has lost Ellie or the house that held his memories of her. He learns that he needs to let go, but still remember her, he realized how abundant he needs people and stops trusting his head only. And lives a happier life with Russel and became the father that he was neglected.


    Overall, UP does have many risks in the story, which makes it all the better to watch. Carl and Russel are two people that I will keep close in my heart, always.

    But anyway, I hope I explained it understandably. I was never taught of this at my school, (Hopefully not yet) I thought UP was a great movie to explain this with.
    (5 votes)
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