Plot armor

Plot device wherein a fictional character is preserved from harm

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 website 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

  • Killing off

References

  1. ^ "Plot armor". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  2. ^ "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.)
  3. ^ a b Somers, Jeff (September 2023). "Twisty Business". Writer's Digest. Vol. 103, no. 5.
  4. ^ Handley, Brandi, ed. (2021). The Navigator: Excellent Writing Across the Disciplines. p. 22. JSTOR 31795394.
  5. ^ 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.
  6. ^ Chu, Andrea Long (Spring 2018). "Bad TV". N+1 (31): 10.
  7. ^ Sepinwall, Alan (29 April 2019). "'Game of Thrones' Close-Up: To Kill a King". Rolling Stone.
  8. ^ 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.
  9. ^ McGowan, Dale (30 August 2023). "For the Trump faithful, it comes down to plot armor". OnlySky. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  10. ^ 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.


  • v
  • t
  • e