Older Than They Think: Difference between revisions

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Latest revision as of 21:20, 28 February 2023

Simply defined, a fan thinks a trope, plot, or line was invented by a show he or she watches, when in truth its origins lie farther back in history.

Ponder Stibbons was indeed first drawn in 1996. I, of course, used a time machine to 'get the idea' of Unseen University from Hogwarts; I don't know what Paul used in this case. Obviously he must have used something.

—Terry Pratchett, on the similarities between Discworld and Harry Potter, quoted at The Annotated Pratchett File page discussing The Last Hero

Tropes tend to be much older than they appear, even if they aren't one of The Oldest Ones in the Book, so it's increasingly likely that a viewer of a specific program won't be familiar with the original source of whatever is on display.

This can also be inverted by fans, who see a modern adaptation of some older classic they're unfamiliar with, and incorrectly assume some newly introduced trope was part of the original work. The ultimate expression of this is the Unbuilt Trope — someone did it previously, examined it, deconstructed it, zig-zagged it, all spectacularly, finished the story's run, but is now remembered mostly nostalgically, not for its trope.

See also the more extreme Fleeting Demographic Rule. Compare with classical music Covered Up, Name's the Same, Popcultural Osmosis, Seinfeld Is Unfunny, Revival by Commercialization, Sequel Displacement, and the "Weird Al" Effect. Somewhat related to Adaptation Displacement. Contrast with Newer Than They Think. Do not confuse with Older Than They Look. There will be a short quiz at the end of class.

For examples of people referencing trope in fiction, see It's Been Done.

Examples of Older Than They Think are listed on these subpages:

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 {{trope}}
+[[File:Let's Make America Great Again button.jpeg|thumb|250px|This trope even applies in politics.]]
-{{quote|''I, of course, used a time machine to "get the idea" of Unseen University from Hogwarts; I don't know what Paul [Kidby, the illustrator] used in this case. Obviously he must have used something.''|'''[[Terry Pratchett]]''', on the similarities between ''[[Discworld]]'' and ''[[Harry Potter]]''}}
+{{quote|''Ponder Stibbons was indeed first drawn in 1996. I, of course, used a time machine to 'get the idea' of Unseen University from Hogwarts; I don't know what Paul used in this case. Obviously he must have used ''something''.''|'''[[Terry Pratchett]]''', on the similarities between ''[[Discworld]]'' and ''[[Harry Potter]]'', quoted at [http://www.lspace.org/books/apf/the-last-hero.html The Annotated Pratchett File page] discussing ''[[The Last Hero]]''}}
 Simply defined, a fan thinks a trope, plot, or line was invented by a show he or she watches, when in truth its origins lie farther back in history.
-Tropes tend to be much older than they appear, even if they aren't one of [[The Oldest Ones in The Book]], so it's increasingly likely that a viewer of a specific program won't be familiar with the original source of whatever is on display.
+Tropes tend to be much older than they appear, even if they aren't one of [[The Oldest Ones in the Book]], so it's increasingly likely that a viewer of a specific program won't be familiar with the original source of whatever is on display.
-This can also be inverted by fans, who see a modern adaptation of some older classic they're unfamiliar with, and incorrectly assume some newly introduced trope was part of the original work. The ultimate expression of this is the [[Unbuilt Trope]] -- someone did it previously, examined it, deconstructed it, zig-zagged it, all spectacularly, finished the story's run, but is now remembered mostly nostalgically, not for its trope.
+This can also be inverted by fans, who see a modern adaptation of some older classic they're unfamiliar with, and incorrectly assume some newly introduced trope was part of the original work. The ultimate expression of this is the [[Unbuilt Trope]] — someone did it previously, examined it, deconstructed it, zig-zagged it, all spectacularly, finished the story's run, but is now remembered mostly nostalgically, not for its trope.
-See also the more extreme [[Fleeting Demographic Rule]]. Compare with classical music [[Covered Up]], [[Name's the Same]], [[Popcultural Osmosis]], [[Seinfeld Is Unfunny]], [[Revival By Commercialization]], [[Sequel Displacement]], and the [[Weird Al Effect]]. Somewhat related to [[Adaptation Displacement]]. Contrast with [[Newer Than They Think]]. Do not confuse with [[Older Than They Look]]. There will be a short quiz at the end of class.
+See also the more extreme [[Fleeting Demographic Rule]]. Compare with classical music [[Covered Up]], [[Name's the Same]], [[Popcultural Osmosis]], [[Seinfeld Is Unfunny]], [[Revival by Commercialization]], [[Sequel Displacement]], and the [["Weird Al" Effect]]. Somewhat related to [[Adaptation Displacement]]. Contrast with [[Newer Than They Think]]. Do not confuse with [[Older Than They Look]]. There will be a short quiz at the end of class.
 For examples of people referencing trope in fiction, see [[It's Been Done]].
-{{examples}}
-* [[Older Than They Think/Anime and Manga|Anime and Manga]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Comic Books|Comic Books]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Film|Film]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Literature|Literature]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Live Action TV|Live Action TV]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Music|Music]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Tabletop Games|Tabletop Games]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Technology|Technology]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Theatre|Theatre]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Video Games|Video Games]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Web Comics|Web Comics]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Web Original|Web Original]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Western Animation|Western Animation]]
-* [[Older Than They Think/Other|Other]]
+{{examples on subpages}}
 {{reflist}}
+{{The Oldest Ones in the Book}}
+[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
 [[Category:Audience Reactions]]
-[[Category:Sketch Comedy]]
 [[Category:Common Fan Fallacies]]
 [[Category:Trope Makers]]
-[[Category:index]]
-[[Category:Older Than They Think]]
-[[Category:Trope]]