All The Tropes:Example as a Thesis

• Main
• Laconic
• All Subpages
  • Self Demonstrating
• Create New

Example as a Thesis occurs when a trope is described by giving a generic example of it first.

Instead of trying to tell people what the trope is, it starts out describing a scenario, often written in the third person referring to Alice and Bob. The description takes a while to set up and execute even a few paragraphs. It concludes with a Title Drop before proceeding with a straight description. That straight description is the thesis.

In most cases, the better order of things is to tell the folks what you are going to talk about, then talk about it. Frequently—if the 'thesis' is good and does a good job describing the trope—you can just remove the example completely; after all, there's an entire list of perfectly serviceable examples right below the introduction... a good quote and image also tend to do a lot more than trying to work an example into the introduction text. Alternately, you can try moving the example to the middle of the description rather than the beginning so that readers know what they're supposed to be reading about ahead of time.

This isn't to say that the Example as a Thesis is never acceptable—it's just that 90% of the time, it's a weak way to introduce the trope. So if you're considering starting a description with an example, take a minute to think first about whether you should just cut to the chase instead.

In short, a trope needs a concise definition. A good quote and an image certainly help. Examples are strictly optional and a stylistic feature; an example shouldn't have to define the trope by itself.

If a description is written with an example as the thesis, list it here. This will help tropers who are in the mood to find and fix those tropes where Example as a Thesis is not the best format for the trope.

Tropes employing Example as a Thesis include:

A-E

• Actually, That's My Assistant
• Actually Not a Vampire
• Aesop Amnesia
• Ah, You Know Him
• "Alone with Prisoner" Ploy
• America Saves the Day
• And Then What?
• Aren't You Going to Ravish Me?
• Awesomeness Withdrawal
• Bad Mood As an Excuse
• Bad Powers, Bad People
• Bait and Switch Boss
• Bait the Dog
• Best Years of Your Life
• Better to Die Than Be Killed
• Big First Choice
• Binary Characterization Assumption
• Binding Ancient Treaty
• Bottled Heroic Resolve
• Bulletproof Human Shield
• Calling Me a Logarithm
• Cast as a Mask
• The Cat Came Back
• Catch the Conscience
• Changed My Mind, Kid
• Character Check
• Cincinnatus
• City of Weirdos
• Cliché Storm
• Close to Home
• Coincidental Accidental Disguise
• Coitus Ensues
• The Complainer Is Always Wrong
• The Cretaceous Is Always Doomed
• Conflict Ball
• Converse with the Unconscious
• Crazy Cultural Comparison
• Critical Backlash
• Crush Parade
• Curb Stomp Battle
• Cut the Safety Rope
• Cycle of Revenge
• Damsel Fight-and-Flight Response
• Dance Line
• Death Is Cheap
• Defensive Feint Trap
• Delayed Reaction
• Did You Just Have Sex?
• Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?
  • Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu
• Did You Just Scam Cthulhu?
• Did You Think I Can't Feel?
• Died Standing Up
• Disability Immunity
• Disappears Into Light
• Do Not Taunt Cthulhu
• The Dog Bites Back
• The Dog Was the Mastermind
• Domino Revelation
• Don't Shoot the Message
• Dungeon Bypass
• Easily-Conquered World
• Emergency Stash
• Escape From the Crazy Place
• Excuse Question
• Expecting Someone Taller
• Eyes Are Mental
• The Eyes Have It

F-J

• Fake Kill Scare
• Famous-Named Foreigner
• Fan-Preferred Couple
• Fidelity Test
• Finger Muzzle
• For Massive Damage
• Game Over
• Genocide Backfire
• Genre Adultery
• Get It Over With
• God and Satan Are Both Jerks
• Got the Call on Speed Dial
• Graduate From the Story
• Hangover Sensitivity
• Happily Ever Before
• Has Two Thumbs And
• He Panned It, Now He Sucks
• Hilarity in Zoos
• Hire the Critic
• Hit and Run Tactics
• Hold My Glasses
• Honest Advisor
• House Inspection
• House Rules
• Humanity's Wake
• I'm Not Hungry
• I Can Change My Beloved
• I Didn't Mean to Turn You On
• I Work Alone
• Idiosyncratic Cover Art
• Improvised Training
• Incompatible Orientation
• Insult Misfire
• Invisible Streaker
• It Is Not Your Time
• Jailbird of Panama
• Jury of the Damned
• Just Hit Him
• Justifying Edit

K-O

• Kaizo Trap
• Kids Prefer Boxes
• Kill It with Water
• Kill Me Now or Forever Stay Your Hand
• Kill Steal
• Kiss Diss
• Last Stand
• Least Is First
• Lethal Joke Character
• Lights Off, Somebody Dies
• Lightswitch Surprise
• Like You Would Really Do It
• Lost in a Crowd
• The Love Slap of Epiphany
• Love Will Lead You Back
• Lovecraft Lite
• Lover and Beloved
• Mainstream Obscurity
• The Man Behind the Curtain
• Manic Pixie Dream Girl
• Massive Multiplayer Scam
• Master of the Mixed Message
• Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane
• Meat-O-Vision
• A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Read
• Mind Over Manners
• Minor Insult Meltdown
• Mistaken Declaration of Love
• Mistaken for Badass
• Mobile Maze
• Molotov Truck
• Monster Protection Racket
• Monumental Damage
• Monumental Damage Resistance
• Mugging the Monster
• Mundane Wish
• The Mutiny
• My Life Flashed Before My Eyes
• My Skull Runneth Over
• Neoclassical Punk Zydeco Rockabilly
• Nerd Nanny
• Newspaper-Thin Disguise
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain
• No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine
• No Party Like a Donner Party
• No Sympathy
• No Zombie Cannibals
• Not Actually the Ultimate Question
• Not Brainwashed
• The Not-Secret
• The Not-So-Harmless Punishment
• Note to Self:
• Now Let Me Carry You
• Object Tracking Shot
• Opinion Myopia
• Orgasmically Delicious
• Orphean Rescue
• Our Hero Is Dead
• Overt Operative

P-T

• Parents as People
• Parody Retcon
• Passed Over Promotion
• Please Kill Me If It Satisfies You
• Police Brutality Gambit
• Postscript Season
• The Power of Acting
• Premature Aggravation
• Prescience Is Predictable
• Properly Paranoid
• Quote Mine
• Reality Ensues
• Rebellious Rebel
• Refitted for Sequel
• Revenge by Proxy
• Reverse Cerebus Syndrome
• Same Content, Different Rating
• Samus Is a Girl
• Say Your Prayers
• Schrödinger's Player Character
• Screw Learning, I Have Phlebotinum
• Seemingly-Profound Fool
• Separated From the Adults
• Settled for Gay
• Severely Specialized Store
• Shrug of God
• Shut Up and Save Me
• Silly Rabbit, Idealism Is for Kids
• Slept Through the Apocalypse
• The Slow Walk
• Smash Mook
• So Last Season
• Somebody Else's Problem
• Somebody Set Up Us the Bomb
• Spank the Cutie
• Staged Shooting
• Stalker Without a Crush
• Stand in Portrait
• Starring Special Effects
• Statistically Speaking
• The Stars Are Going Out
• The Stinger
• Stop Drowning and Stand Up
• Subtext
• Such a Phony
• Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome
• Super Team
• Superman Stays Out of Gotham
• Superpower Silly Putty
• Surprise Creepy
• Surrounded by Smart People
• Sympathetic Adulterer
• Take Your Time
• Taking You with Me
• Teleporting Keycard Squad
• Testing the Love Interest
• The Tetris Effect
• Thanks for the Mammary
• That Was Not a Dream
• Think Happy Thoughts
• Third-Act Misunderstanding
• Through the Eyes of Madness
• Tomato in the Mirror
• Too Dumb to Fool
• Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth
• Totally Not a Werewolf
• Tough Act to Follow
• A Tragedy of Impulsiveness
• Trauma Conga Line
• Treachery Cover-Up
• Turns Red

U-Z

• Unbuilt Trope
• Unnecessary Time Precision
• Unreliable Voiceover
• Voiceover Letter
• The Walls Are Closing In
• Wasn't That Fun?
• Wax Museum Morgue
• Weapon Tombstone
• Why Isn't It Attacking?
• With This Herring
• With or Without You
• Won't Take Yes for An Answer
• Working the Same Case
• Worlds Smallest Violin
• The Worm Guy
• Would Not Shoot a Good Guy
• You Are Already Checked In
• You Can Keep Her
• You Don't Want to Catch This
• Your Brain Won't Be Much of a Meal