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'''Plot armor''' is a [[plot device]] wherein a fictional character is preserved from harm due to their necessity for the plot to proceed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/plot-armor|title=Plot armor|work=[[Dictionary.com]]|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' identified the term as originating in the 2000s, with its first reported use on the Usernet forum alt.games.dur-trs-trap.<ref>{{Cite OED|plot armor|3086855677|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> While [[protagonist]]s and heroes within fictional works are often shielded from destruction by plot armor, their deaths in certain works function as a [[plot twist]].<ref name=Somers>{{cite magazine|title=Twisty Business|magazine=[[Writer's Digest]]|first=Jeff|last=Somers|date=September 2023|volume=103|issue=5}}</ref> |
'''Plot armor''' is a [[plot device]] wherein a fictional character is preserved from harm due to their necessity for the plot to proceed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/plot-armor|title=Plot armor|work=[[Dictionary.com]]|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> The ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' identified the term as originating in the 2000s, with its first reported use on the Usernet forum alt.games.dur-trs-trap.<ref>{{Cite OED|plot armor|3086855677|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> While [[protagonist]]s and heroes within fictional works are often shielded from destruction by plot armor, their deaths in certain works function as a [[plot twist]].<ref name=Somers>{{cite magazine|title=Twisty Business|magazine=[[Writer's Digest]]|first=Jeff|last=Somers|date=September 2023|volume=103|issue=5}}</ref> |
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Within certain works of fiction, elements of the story can provide an explanation for why the protagonist is protected.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Navigator: Excellent Writing Across the Disciplines|editor-first=Brandi|editor-last=Handley|date=2021|jstor=31795394|page=22}}</ref> Various iterations of [[James Bond]] have been cited as defining examples of plot armor.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/28/crosswords/daily-puzzle-2021-05-29.html|title=Low-Key: Adam Aaronson sneaks up on us with a subtly strenuous Saturday puzzle.|first=Caitlin|last=Lovinger|date=28 May 2021|access-date=31 January 2024|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Other works eschew plot armor for main characters. The deaths of [[Ned Stark]] and other main characters within ''[[A Game of Thrones]]'' and its [[Game of Thrones|television adaptation]] have been considered examples of protagonists defying expectations that their role in the plot protected them from harm;<ref name=Somers/><ref>{{cite journal|title=Bad TV|first=Andrea Long|last=Chu|journal=[[N+1]]|date=Spring 2018|issue=31|page=10}}</ref> [[The Long Night (Game of Thrones)|a battle]] where many main characters escaped harm within the same series has also been cited as examples of plot armor.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-reviews/game-of-thrones-review-the-long-night-sepinwall-828477/|title='Game of Thrones' Close-Up: To Kill a King|first=Alan|last=Sepinwall|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=29 April 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/arts/television/fans-reaction-game-of-thrones.html|title='Game of Thrones' Fans Are Thrilled, Confused and Setting the Internet on Fire|first=Niraj|last=Chokshi|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=30 April 2019|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> Outside of fiction, ''plot armor'' has been used to describe how a dominant political |
Within certain works of fiction, elements of the story can provide an explanation for why the protagonist is protected.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Navigator: Excellent Writing Across the Disciplines|editor-first=Brandi|editor-last=Handley|date=2021|jstor=31795394|page=22}}</ref> Various iterations of [[James Bond]] have been cited as defining examples of plot armor.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/28/crosswords/daily-puzzle-2021-05-29.html|title=Low-Key: Adam Aaronson sneaks up on us with a subtly strenuous Saturday puzzle.|first=Caitlin|last=Lovinger|date=28 May 2021|access-date=31 January 2024|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Other works eschew plot armor for main characters. The deaths of [[Ned Stark]] and other main characters within ''[[A Game of Thrones]]'' and its [[Game of Thrones|television adaptation]] have been considered examples of protagonists defying expectations that their role in the plot protected them from harm;<ref name=Somers/><ref>{{cite journal|title=Bad TV|first=Andrea Long|last=Chu|journal=[[N+1]]|date=Spring 2018|issue=31|page=10}}</ref> [[The Long Night (Game of Thrones)|a battle]] where many main characters escaped harm within the same series has also been cited as examples of plot armor.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-reviews/game-of-thrones-review-the-long-night-sepinwall-828477/|title='Game of Thrones' Close-Up: To Kill a King|first=Alan|last=Sepinwall|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=29 April 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/arts/television/fans-reaction-game-of-thrones.html|title='Game of Thrones' Fans Are Thrilled, Confused and Setting the Internet on Fire|first=Niraj|last=Chokshi|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=30 April 2019|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> Outside of fiction, ''plot armor'' has been used to describe how a dominant political figure like [[Donald Trump]] has survived multiple major scandals<ref>{{cite web|url=https://onlysky.media/dale/for-the-trump-faithful-it-comes-down-to-plot-armor/|title=For the Trump faithful, it comes down to plot armor|author-link=Dale McGowan|first=Dale|last=McGowan|work=OnlySky|date=30 August 2023|access-date=31 January 2024}}</ref> and the societal benefits of [[white privilege]].<ref>{{cite journal|title="What Should Have Been, But Sadly Wasn't". Commoning HIV/AIDS History in "Pose"|first=Kilian|last=Schmidt|page=87|journal=Femina Politica|date=2023|volume=32|issue=2|doi=10.3224/feminapolitica.v32i2.07|doi-access=free}}</ref> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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Revision as of 13:04, 15 May 2024
Plot armor is a plot device wherein a fictional character is preserved from harm due to their necessity for the plot to proceed.[1] The Oxford English Dictionary identified the term as originating in the 2000s, with its first reported use on the Usernet forum alt.games.dur-trs-trap.[2] While protagonists and heroes within fictional works are often shielded from destruction by plot armor, their deaths in certain works function as a plot twist.[3]
Within certain works of fiction, elements of the story can provide an explanation for why the protagonist is protected.[4] Various iterations of James Bond have been cited as defining examples of plot armor.[5] Other works eschew plot armor for main characters. The deaths of Ned Stark and other main characters within A Game of Thrones and its television adaptation have been considered examples of protagonists defying expectations that their role in the plot protected them from harm;[3][6] a battle where many main characters escaped harm within the same series has also been cited as examples of plot armor.[7][8] Outside of fiction, plot armor has been used to describe how a dominant political figure like Donald Trump has survived multiple major scandals[9] and the societal benefits of white privilege.[10]
See also
References
- ^ "Plot armor". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
- ^ "plot armor". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/OED/3086855677. Retrieved 31 January 2024. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
- ^ a b Somers, Jeff (September 2023). "Twisty Business". Writer's Digest. Vol. 103, no. 5.
- ^ Handley, Brandi, ed. (2021). The Navigator: Excellent Writing Across the Disciplines. p. 22. JSTOR 31795394.
- ^ Lovinger, Caitlin (28 May 2021). "Low-Key: Adam Aaronson sneaks up on us with a subtly strenuous Saturday puzzle". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
- ^ Chu, Andrea Long (Spring 2018). "Bad TV". N+1 (31): 10.
- ^ Sepinwall, Alan (29 April 2019). "'Game of Thrones' Close-Up: To Kill a King". Rolling Stone.
- ^ Chokshi, Niraj (30 April 2019). "'Game of Thrones' Fans Are Thrilled, Confused and Setting the Internet on Fire". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
- ^ McGowan, Dale (30 August 2023). "For the Trump faithful, it comes down to plot armor". OnlySky. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
- ^ Schmidt, Kilian (2023). ""What Should Have Been, But Sadly Wasn't". Commoning HIV/AIDS History in "Pose"". Femina Politica. 32 (2): 87. doi:10.3224/feminapolitica.v32i2.07.
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