A plot device or plot mechanism is any technique in a

narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether nonfictional ( memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travelogue, etc.) or fictional ( fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller, novel, etc ...

used to move the plot forward. A clichéd plot device may annoy the reader and a contrived or arbitrary device may confuse the reader, causing a loss of the

suspension of disbelief Suspension of disbelief, sometimes called willing suspension of disbelief, is the avoidance of critical thinking or logic in examining something unreal or impossible in reality, such as a work of speculative fiction, in order to believe it for t ...

. However, a well-crafted plot device, or one that emerges naturally from the setting or characters of the story, may be entirely accepted, or may even be unnoticed by the audience.

Stories using plot devices

Many stories, especially in the fantasy genre, feature an object or objects with some great magical power, such as a crown, sword, or jewel. Often what drives the plot is the hero's need to find the object and use it for good, before the villain can use it for evil, or if the object has been broken by the villains, to retrieve each piece that must be gathered from each antagonist to restore it, or, if the object itself is evil, to destroy it. In some cases destroying the object will lead to the destruction of the villain. In the

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise based on the adventures of Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., a fictional professor of archaeology, that began in 1981 with the film '' Raiders of the Lost Ark''. In 1984, a prequel, '' Th ...

film series, each film portrays Jones on the hunt for a mystical artifact. In ''

Raiders of the Lost Ark ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. It stars Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ro ...

'', he is trying to retrieve the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant,; Ge'ez: also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, is an alleged artifact believed to be the most sacred relic of the Israelites, which is described as a wooden chest, covered in pure gold, with an ...

; in ''

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' is a 1989 American action- adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, from a story co-written by executive producer George Lucas. It is the third installment in the ''Indiana Jones'' franchise and a s ...

'', Jones is on a search for the

Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracul ...

. This plot device is also used in the ''

Arabian Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian ...

'' tale of " The City of Brass," in which a group of travelers on an

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

expedition journeys across the

Sahara , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

to find a brass vessel that

Solomon Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...

once used to trap a

jinn Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources) – are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic ...

. Several books in the

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at ...

series orient around a search for a special object. In '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', Harry believes there is a magical stone in

Hogwarts Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scotland, Scottish boarding school of Magic in Harry Potter, magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Pot ...

with special powers.

Lord Voldemort Lord Voldemort ( , in the films) is a sobriquet for Tom Marvolo Riddle, a character and the main antagonist in J. K. Rowling's series of '' Harry Potter'' novels. The character first appeared in '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's S ...

needs this stone to bring back his body, and Harry looks for the stone first to prevent Voldemort's return. The

One Ring The One Ring, also called the Ruling Ring and Isildur's Bane, is a central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's ''The Lord of the Rings'' (1954–55). It first appeared in the earlier story ''The Hobbit'' (1937) as a magic ring that grants the ...

from J. R. R. Tolkien's novel, ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's bo ...

'' has been labeled a plot device, since the quest to destroy it drives the entire plot of the novel. However, as British Classical scholar

Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,

Examples

Deus ex machina

The term ''deus ex machina'' is used to refer to a narrative ending in which an improbable event is used to resolve all problematic situations and bring the story to a (generally happy) conclusion. The Latin phrase "

deus ''Deus'' (, ) is the Latin word for " god" or " deity". Latin ''deus'' and ''dīvus'' ("divine") are in turn descended from Proto-Indo-European *'' deiwos'', "celestial" or "shining", from the same root as '' *Dyēus'', the reconstructed chief ...

ex machina" has its origins in the conventions of

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

tragedy, and refers to situations in which a

mechane A mechane (; el, μηχανή, ''mēkhanḗ'') or machine was a crane used in Greek theatre, especially in the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Made of wooden beams and pulley systems, the device was used to lift an actor into the air, usually represen ...

(crane) was used to lower actors playing a god or gods onto the stage at the end of a play. The Greek tragedian

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars ...

is notorious for using this plot device as a means to resolve a hopeless situation. For example, in Euripides' play '' Alcestis'', the

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

heroine agrees to give up her own life to Death in exchange for sparing the life of her husband, Admetus. In doing so, however, Admetus grows to regret his choice, realizing the grief of her passing would never leave him. Admetus is seized by guilt and sadness, wishing to keep her or die alongside her, but held by his obligations to raise their children. In the end, though,

Heracles Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptiv ...

shows up and seizes Alcestis from Death, restoring her to life and freeing Admetus from the grief that consumed him. Another example of a ''deus ex machina'' is

Gandalf Gandalf is a protagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels '' The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is a wizard, one of the ''Istari'' order, and the leader of the Fellowship of the Ring. Tolkien took the name "Gandalf" from the Old Nor ...

in '' The Hobbit.'' With the help of seemingly limitless magical capabilities, he rescues the other main characters from all sorts of troubles. Likewise, the eagles in both ''The Hobbit'' and ''

'' perform unexpected rescues, serving both as the eucatastrophic emissary and the agent of redemption. The first person known to have criticized the device was

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ...

in his ''

Poetics Poetics is the theory of structure, form, and discourse within literature, and, in particular, within poetry. History The term ''poetics'' derives from the Ancient Greek ποιητικός ''poietikos'' "pertaining to poetry"; also "creative" an ...

'', where he argued that the resolution of a plot must arise internally, following from previous action of the play.

Love triangle

A frequently used plot mechanism in romances and dramas is the

love triangle A love triangle or eternal triangle is a scenario or circumstance, usually depicted as a rivalry, in which two people are pursuing or involved in a romantic relationship with one person, or in which one person in a romantic relationship with ...

, a conflict where two characters compete for the affection of a third character.

MacGuffin

A MacGuffin is a term, popularized by

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

, referring to a plot device wherein a character pursues an object, though the object's actual nature is not important to the story. Another object would work just as well if the characters treated it with the same importance. Regarding the MacGuffin, Alfred Hitchcock stated, "In crook stories it is almost always the necklace and in spy stories it is almost always the papers." This contrasts with, for example, the One Ring from ''The Lord of the Rings'', whose very nature is essential to the entire story. Not all film directors or scholars agree with Hitchcock’s understanding of a MacGuffin. According to George Lucas, "The audience should care about it he MacGuffinalmost as much as the dueling heroes and villains on-screen". Thus MacGuffins, according to Lucas, are important to the characters and plot. MacGuffins are sometimes referred to as ''plot coupons'' (especially if multiple ones are required) as the protagonist only needs to "collect enough plot coupons and trade them in for a dénouement". The term was coined by

Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

used a quibble in ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'': Portia saves Antonio in a court of law by pointing out that the agreement called for a pound of flesh, but no blood, so Shylock can collect only if he sheds no blood.

Red herring

The function of a red herring is to divert the audience's attention away from something significant. Red herrings are very common plot devices in mystery, horror, and crime stories. The typical example is in

whodunit A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with the c ...

s, in which facts are presented so that the audience is tricked into thinking that a given character is the murderer, when it is actually another character.

Shoulder angel

A shoulder angel is a plot device used for either dramatic or humorous effect in animation and comic strips (and occasionally in live-action television). The angel represents conscience and is often accompanied by a shoulder devil representing temptation. They are handy for easily showing inner conflict of a character. Usually, the angel is depicted on (or hovering near) the right shoulder and the devil or demon on the left, as the left side traditionally represents dishonesty or impurity (see Negative associations of left-handedness in language). The idea of a shoulder angel and devil consulting the person in the center of the dispute is a tripartite view of the divided soul, that contributes to a rich tradition involving Plato's

Chariot Allegory :''See also the chariot allegory in the Indian work Katha Upanishad, and another in the story of Vajira.'' Plato, in his dialogue '' Phaedrus'' (sections 246a–254e), uses the Chariot Allegory to explain his view of the human soul. He creates ...

as well as id, ego and super-ego from Freudian

Psychoanalysis PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: + . is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a body of knowledge. In what might ...

. The difference with other views is that the shoulder angel and devil emphasize the universal ideas of good and bad. This device was humorously used in ''

The Emperor's New Groove ''The Emperor's New Groove'' is a 2000 American animated slapstick comedy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 40th animated film produced by the studio, it was directed by Mark Dindal and p ...

'' and its sequel, '' Kronk's New Groove''. The character Kronk consults his shoulder angel and devil in order to determine whether to follow Yzma's orders or not.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plot Device Plot (narrative) Narratology Fiction