Linear structure in editing

As I’ve found out its quite difficult to research the theory of linear structure in editing.  To describe linear structure I will first define the word linear. Linear is when things are aligned in a consecutive order in a straight line one after another. So linear editing would be lining up shots in the correct consecutive order so a film makes sense.  So this describes linear editing, but what is the theory of linear structure in editing?

            Linear structure in editing is basically the idea that one clip must be directly succeeded by another clip that finishes the action of the first clip. So an action in a clip acts as a result of the clip before it. For instance, if one clip shows Johnny walking around a corner, the next clip would complete the action of the first clip by showing Johnny finishing his walk around the corner, or showing Johnny bump into someone as he walks around the corner. Thus the main purpose of the second clip is to finish the action of the first clip.  This theory cannot only be useful for action in clips; it can also be useful to arrange moving and none moving shots in sequential order. The best way to think about his concept would be to think of a still picture slideshow. When watching a still picture slide show the viewer will notice when each picture appears, the camera movement that shows the picture will want move in from different sides for each new picture. This technique is used to keep the audience doesn’t get dizzy. Therefore, the point of linear structure in editing is to put clips in a sequential order that causes perfect harmony in a video.

An example of linear structure in editing would be the movie trailer below. As you will notice each new clip completes the action of the previous clip.