Narratology refers to both the theory and the study of
narrative and
narrative structure and the ways that these affect our perception. While in principle the word may refer to any systematic study of narrative, in practice its usage is rather more restricted. It is an anglicisation of French
narratologie, coined by
Tzvetan Todorov (
Grammaire du Décaméron, 1969). Narratology is applied retrospectively as well to work predating its coinage. Its theoretical lineage is traceable to
Aristotle (
Poetics) but modern narratology is agreed to have begun with the
Russian Formalists, particularly
Vladimir Propp (
Morphology of the Folktale, 1928).