Waverley

Walter Scott's first novel, which is often considered to be the first work of Historical Fiction. The novel followed the title character, the young English gentleman Edward Waverley, as he falls in with a group of Scottish rebels during the 1745 Jacobite Uprising.


 * Altum Videtur: Bradwardine speaks a large portion of his dialogue in latin
 * Author Filibuster: There are several places where the story is put on pause and Scott departs on a lecture about a tangential point.
 * The Beautiful Elite: Everyone in this book is described as improbably physically attractive. Even the daughter of a cattle thief, who is living in the woods, wakes up with perfect hair and sparkling white teeth.
 * Badass Bookworm: Waverley
 * Betty and Veronica: Flora and Rose.
 * Bonnie Scotland: The Trope Maker.
 * Character Title
 * Clarke's Third Law: The Scots mistake technology (specifically a pocket-watch) for live animals.
 * Costume Porn
 * Culture Equals Costume: All of the Highland Scottish characters wear tartan at all times.
 * Culture Clash: Surprisingly averted, in spite of a language and culture barrier between the main character and most of the people he interacts with.
 * Dead Guy on Display:
 * Did Not Do the Research, with the result being the trope-defining Theme Park Version of Scotland and the Jacobite Rising.
 * The Dulcinea Effect: Waverley does this with Flora MacIvor, although he is volunteering for a cause and not fighting for her specifically.
 * Even the Guys Want Him: Charles Stuart. Though given many writings of the period, this may be fairly accurate. Also the main character, who is positively gushed over by other characters and the third person narrator at every opportunity.
 * Even the Girls Want Her: Flora, who is described as being more beautiful than the other absurdly attractive women. Also, other women, including Rose, appear to have serious girl crushes on her.
 * Face Death with Dignity:
 * Historical Domain Character: Charles Edward Stuart
 * Going Native: Waverley, with the Scots.
 * Gratuitous Foreign Language: Done with Scots and Scottish Gaelic; however, Scott had some technical difficulties with it (errors made more unfortunate by attempts to be scholarly about it).
 * Idiot Ball: Waverley frequently has it
 * Just Like Robin Hood: Donald Lean
 * La Résistance: The Jacobites
 * Locked Out of the Loop: Waverley has no idea that Donald Lean has been writing to his superior officers for him.
 * Mighty Whitey: The English in general, though averted with the title character.
 * Noble Savage: the Scottish rebels. Played painfully straight.
 * Inverted with Talbot, who is portrayed as more noble than his Scottish captors by dint of being "civilized"
 * Pinball Protagonist: Waverley
 * Planet of Hats: the Scots
 * Proud Warrior Race Guy: Fergus
 * Scenery Porn
 * What Beautiful Eyes!: Waverley. The author describes them in detail.
 * Wide-Eyed Idealist