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]
- ^ "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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