The Essential Implausible : Implied Settings and Requisite Characters in Narrative Construction
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| Year of publication | 2023 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | This paper will suggest that there is a certain kind of fictional device, often unremarked but visible in many stories on close examination, that has not yet been theoretically identified or named. This device is related to what is popularly known as the “plot hole,” an illogical or implausible moment or twist in a story. Plot holes are common, are often just mistakes or carelessness on the storytellers’ part, and a minor industry has developed among fans that aims to identify them, compile them into YouTube videos and treat them as unintended comedy. In the cases to be described here, however, the plot “hole” is actually essential, an enabling element without which the story could not exist at all. Presenting a few highly varied examples, the paper will propose new theoretical terms for elements of this type – the “implied setting” and the “requisite character” – and will briefly attempt to distinguish these devices both from “mere” plot holes, and from the kinds of familiar implausibilities (for instance, in fantasy stories) that routinely call for the “willing suspension of disbelief.” |
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