Kishōtenketsu

Kishōtenketsu (起承転結) describes the four-part structure of many classic Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese narratives. The parts can be summarized as: introduction, development, twist or reversal, and resolution.

Kishōtenketsu as a narrative structure does not center conflict as part of its structure, especially when compared to common Western narrative structures like Joseph Campbell's "Hero's Journey." This has led to the structure being popularly described as "without conflict," although narratives created using kishōtenketsu, such as the 2019 South Korean film Parasite, can and often do contain conflict.