Unreliable Narrator: Difference between revisions

Line 4:

{{quote|''"You just show that your first-person narrator was actually in an insane asylum and then OH MY GOD, did it actually happen? Who can say? Here, I can say. It didn't happen because your narrator was just no good. Listen. Never lend an unreliable narrator money."''|''[[Dinosaur Comics (Webcomic)|Dinosaur Comics]]'', "[http://www.qwantz.com/archive/001195.html Literary techniques comics: Unreliable Narrator]" [[Alt Text]]}}

In most narratives, there's an element of trust that the [[Narrator|person telling you the story]] is telling the truth, at least as far as they know it. This trope occurs when that convention is discarded. The narrator's facts contradict each other. If you ask them to go back a bit and retell it, the events come out a little differently. It can be like dealing with a [[Honest ~~Johns~~ Dealership|used-car salesman]] -- there's a real story in there somewhere, but you're left to piece it together through all the lies, half-truths, and mistruths.

In most narratives, there's an element of trust that the [[Narrator|person telling you the story]] is telling the truth, at least as far as they know it. This trope occurs when that convention is discarded. The narrator's facts contradict each other. If you ask them to go back a bit and retell it, the events come out a little differently. It can be like dealing with a [[Honest John's Dealership|used-car salesman]] -- there's a real story in there somewhere, but you're left to piece it together through all the lies, half-truths, and mistruths.

Reasons for the unreliability vary. Sometimes the narrator is a guilty party and is trying to mislead the audience as well as the other characters. If the narrator is insane, it's [[Through the Eyes of Madness]]. If the narrator has honestly misunderstood what's going on due to naivety or inexperience, it's [[Innocent Inaccurate]].

As an author, this is a difficult trick to pull off. It is a lot easier to tell a straight story than it is to deliberately mislead the audience, never mind that it violates the traditional assumption that [[Viewers ~~Are~~ Morons]].

As an author, this is a difficult trick to pull off. It is a lot easier to tell a straight story than it is to deliberately mislead the audience, never mind that it violates the traditional assumption that [[Viewers are Morons]].

One common technique is to use a [[Framing Device]], so that the narrator is presented as a character in the frame story, to emphasize that he is not actually the author. Another, even trickier method, is the [[Literary Agent Hypothesis]], where the narrator is supposedly relating things that happened in [[Real Life]]. Multiple unreliable narrators results in [[Rashomon Style]]. If it's a visual medium and the picture contradicts the narration, it's an [[Unreliable Voiceover]]. This can also be used as a trick in [[Advertising|commercials]], to evade claims of false advertising by having an unreliable character do the talking.

[[Unreliable Expositor]] is a variant with less than credible [[Exposition]] from specific characters, as opposed to narrators of the whole story. Contrast [[Maybe Magic Maybe Mundane]] where the evidence is reliable but insufficient, and [[Infallible Narrator]], when the narration is far more accurate than the character giving it ought to be capable of.

[[Unreliable Expositor]] is a variant with less than credible [[Exposition]] from specific characters, as opposed to narrators of the whole story. Contrast [[Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane]] where the evidence is reliable but insufficient, and [[Infallible Narrator]], when the narration is far more accurate than the character giving it ought to be capable of.

This can also be a source of humour for the work, too.

Line 20:

Note: as this is often a particularly subversive [[Reveal]], '''REALLY BIG spoilers''' ahead, especially in the Literature section.

== Anime and Manga ==

Line 40:

* In [[Love Hina]], Kitsune starts explaining Naru's past, and says that Naru and Seta were in a teacher-student romance at the time. She then immediately states "If that had happened, it would have been interesting."

* The narrator in the Japanese dub of ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' is extremely reliable. She gives all of the facts straight without cease. The English narrator, however, does not. While she still gives correct facts and has serious moments, most of the time, she is very snarky, [[Sarcasm Mode|sarcastic]] and witty.

{{quote| '''Narrator:''' Polish horses never charged German tanks at the battle of- [[Viewers ~~Are~~ Morons|right, anime fans.]] Germany invaded Poland in '39- right, ''American'' fans. Poland is a country, in Europe!}}

{{quote| '''Narrator:''' Polish horses never charged German tanks at the battle of- [[Viewers are Morons|right, anime fans.]] Germany invaded Poland in '39- right, ''American'' fans. Poland is a country, in Europe!}}

* In the [[Death Note (Manga)|Death Note]] anime, Mikami himself, rather than an omniscient narrator, narrates his flashbacks. He thus has an unfavorable view of his mother's advice to stop fighting against the bullies, whereas the manga's narrator noted that she was motivated by genuine concern for his welfare that was largely lost on him.

* According to [[Word of God]] nearly every installment in the [[Macross]] franchise is in fact an in-universe dramatization of the events depicted made several years after the fact. While the [[Broad Strokes]] of what happened is usually correct certain elements are tweaked somewhat due to [[Rule of Cool]], [[Rule of Drama]], or just the contemporary poltical climate.

Line 182:

** Another one of Nabokov's novels, ''[[Pale Fire]],'' deals with an unreliable narrator in Charles Kinbote. But in Kinbote's case, he is not only narrating multiple stories, he is also interpreting (and ''mis''interpreting) the poem of fellow university professor John Shade.

** But the above is only true if you assume that John Shade is a real person and that he wrote the poem in the novel. Or if you assume that Kinbote is who he says/thinks he is. You might want to also double-check who has claimed to write what part of the novel.

* In the ''[[The Bartimaeus Trilogy]]'' by Jonathan Stroud, much of the eponymous djinni's dry wit is based on his (probably intentionally) transparent attempts to cast himself in a favorable light in the chapters he narrates. This includes frequent (and often ironic) references to his own legendary power and cunning, and constant [[Historical in Joke|name-dropping]] of his past masters (Ptolemy, notably, but also Solomon, Tycho Brahe, Nefertiti, Gilgamesh, etc. etc.) This is all the more obvious since the chapters narrated by Bartimaeus are alternated with chapters of third person narrative focused on the POVs of the other two protagonists, Nathaniel and Kitty, often covering the same events from their perspectives.

* In the ''[[The Bartimaeus Trilogy]]'' by Jonathan Stroud, much of the eponymous djinni's dry wit is based on his (probably intentionally) transparent attempts to cast himself in a favorable light in the chapters he narrates. This includes frequent (and often ironic) references to his own legendary power and cunning, and constant [[Historical In-Joke|name-dropping]] of his past masters (Ptolemy, notably, but also Solomon, Tycho Brahe, Nefertiti, Gilgamesh, etc. etc.) This is all the more obvious since the chapters narrated by Bartimaeus are alternated with chapters of third person narrative focused on the POVs of the other two protagonists, Nathaniel and Kitty, often covering the same events from their perspectives.

** Especially noticeable on the occasion in the first book in which the events are being told from Bartimaeus's perspective, and he calmly tells Nathaniel to "Just watch and listen." The narrative immediately switches to Nathaniel's (third person) perspective, in which he says "Just shut up and watch!"

** Bartimaeus: Faquarl wasn't a sly old equivocator like Tchue; he prided himself on blunt speaking. Mind you, he did have a weakness for boasting. If you believed all his stories, you'd have thought him responsible for most of the world's major landmarks as well as being adviser and confidant to all the notable magicians. This, [[Hypocrisy Nod|as I once remarked to Solomon]], was quite a ridiculous claim.

Line 215:

* Elizabeth Peters uses a mild version of this in the ''Amelia Peabody'' novels as a form of wry humor. The books are primarily in the first person, and purport to be journal entries. Mild comic irony is created through what the narrator leaves out, misinterprets, plays down, or is clearly deluding herself on.

* ''Atonement'' - the story seems to end beautifully with the wronged protagonists united idyllically. It is then revealed that the story read so far is written by another character, Briony, who changes the ending to try and ''atone'' for wrong she wrecked on the protagonists who really die lonely and apart.

* Brilliantly done in the novel ''Dead Romance'', by Lawrence Miles. The [[~~Firstperson~~ Smartass|Narrator]] freely admits she has a serious drug problem, and even [[Lampshade Hanging|hangs a lampshade]] when she takes a time out from describing an alien invasion to muse on the possibility that she's on the worst acid trip of her life.

* Brilliantly done in the novel ''Dead Romance'', by Lawrence Miles. The [[First-Person Smartass|Narrator]] freely admits she has a serious drug problem, and even [[Lampshade Hanging|hangs a lampshade]] when she takes a time out from describing an alien invasion to muse on the possibility that she's on the worst acid trip of her life.

{{quote| "Maybe this whole book's just a list of the states of mind I was in when I wrote it, like a catalogue of all the things I've been putting into my system. Paranoia for cocaine. Multicoloured planets for acid. I'll be relaxed again soon, so you'll think I'm writing it on dope."}}

* Done in ''[[Tales of MU]]'', where the narrator Mackenzie isn't lying to the audience -- just frequently clueless or in deep denial. It's written so that the audience almost always knows what's going on even if she doesn't, which is sometimes subtle (the slow build-up to the revelation about [[Dropped a Bridget On Him|Steff]]) and other times obvious (her overwrought [[Foe Yay]]-based crush on the [[Alpha Bitch]], Sooni).

Line 272:

*** In fact, Nick explicitly states that the reason he doesn't judge people is essentially because it's not their fault that they're morally inferior to him.

* Marcel Proust's ''Remembrance of Things Past''/''In Search of Lost Time'' consists of thousands upon thousands of pages of this trope. "Marcel" never explicitly acknowledges that he is unreliable, but constantly undermines his own recollections such that it's impossible to trust anything he says 100%. Of course, the entire series is an exploration of the nature and limits of memory, so yeah.

* In ''[[Nineteen Eighty Four]]'' a secret book of the Fraternity gives some knowledge of that world. Here's a problem: {{spoiler|the book was written by O'Brien, a member of the Inner Party. So it's not a "leaked truth", it's ''allowed'' "truth"}}.

* In ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four]]'' a secret book of the Fraternity gives some knowledge of that world. Here's a problem: {{spoiler|the book was written by O'Brien, a member of the Inner Party. So it's not a "leaked truth", it's ''allowed'' "truth"}}.

** Compounding this, orthodox Party members are supposed to be able to genuinely believe the Party Line, no matter how often it changes ("doublethink"). {{spoiler|O'Brien says he (co-)wrote The Book, but did he really? Everything we hear from O'Brien is suspect, and we have no idea how reliable The Book is.}} We can be sure about very little in Oceania.

* The young woman who narrates Sabina Murray's ''A Carnivore's Inquiry'' finds that her travels are accompanied by multiple murders, usually involving some sort of horrific mutilation. The end of the novel strongly implies that the book's real title should have been {{spoiler|[[I'm a Humanitarian|A Cannibal's Inquiry]].}}

Line 309:

* Most of the POV characters in ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' are reliable, if biased, narrators, but there's one interesting instance of true unreliability: Sansa's frequent "recollections" of Sandor Clegane kissing her during the Battle of the Blackwater. Which would be understandable, if in fact he ''had''. During the actual scene, "for a moment she thought he meant to kiss her," but he does not; by the next book she's making occasional references to the kiss occurring, and by the fourth, she can recall how the kiss ''felt''. [[Word of God]] confirms that it's all in her head. [[Ship Tease|This is typically seen]] as a hint that she's [[Bodyguard Crush|subconsciously falling for the Hound]].

** Sansa's misremembering what happened with Sandor is an indication that she's been so emotionally traumatized by the abuse heaped on her that she clings to the memory of someone who she saw as a protector in King's Landing, even though the kiss never happened and in fact he almost raped her.

** It's also worth comparing different POVs of the same character: compare Catelyn's chapter with Jaime in ''A Clash of Kings'', where he comes off as an obnoxious, egotistical [[Jerkass]], and Jaime's own first chapter in ''A Storm of Swords'' where he becomes bitter, biting, and [[Jerkass Facade|well-aware of his own limits]]. Jon Snow has a similar disconnect; in his own chapters he reads like [[The Fettered]], but from Samwell's POV he's an exhausted [[Anti Hero]]. And then there's Stannis (whose head we've not got in as of yet), who from Catelyn's POV is a dour jerk, from Davos' POV is a [[Well Intentioned Extremist]], and from Jon's POV is [[To Be Lawful or Good]]. When we see Littlefinger from Catelyn's perspective, we feel bad for him, in Ned's, he seems like a [[Smug Snake]], and Tyrion consideres him a formidable foe, but it's not until Sansa meets him that it's clear how utterly ''[[Ephebophile|slimy]]'' he his. It should be interesting to see how other characters view Daenerys when they finally cross paths with her...

** It's also worth comparing different POVs of the same character: compare Catelyn's chapter with Jaime in ''A Clash of Kings'', where he comes off as an obnoxious, egotistical [[Jerkass]], and Jaime's own first chapter in ''A Storm of Swords'' where he becomes bitter, biting, and [[Jerkass Facade|well-aware of his own limits]]. Jon Snow has a similar disconnect; in his own chapters he reads like [[The Fettered]], but from Samwell's POV he's an exhausted [[Anti-Hero]]. And then there's Stannis (whose head we've not got in as of yet), who from Catelyn's POV is a dour jerk, from Davos' POV is a [[Well-Intentioned Extremist]], and from Jon's POV is [[To Be Lawful or Good]]. When we see Littlefinger from Catelyn's perspective, we feel bad for him, in Ned's, he seems like a [[Smug Snake]], and Tyrion consideres him a formidable foe, but it's not until Sansa meets him that it's clear how utterly ''[[Ephebophile|slimy]]'' he his. It should be interesting to see how other characters view Daenerys when they finally cross paths with her...

* [[CS Lewis (Creator)|CS Lewis]]'s ''[[The Screwtape Letters]]''. The book is an [[Epistolary Novel]] made up of letters written by a ''demon'', so of course he's more than willing to twist the truth to his own ends.

* ''[[I Lucifer]]'' can likely claim having one of if not ''the'' most unreliable narrator a person could hope to find in Lucifer himself. Well, [[The Bible (Literature)|The Bible]] was admittedly ''one-sided''.

Line 324:

* Kyon from the ''[[Haruhi Suzumiya]]'' series is a possible example here. Despite the title, he's the main character. He's also the narrator, and it seems at times he confuses the two. Dialogue made by himself the Narrator will be responded to by other characters as if he the Character said it; while he the Narrator will point out details that he the Character is either [[Selective Obliviousness|ignoring or supposedly isn't aware of.]] It's to little wonder that this has made a few people paranoid about him.

** Also, Kyon usually [[Obfuscating Stupidity|knows much more than he admits]], even to the reader.

* Timothy Kensington from the vastly underrated book, [[For Science|"SCIENCE!"]] a.k.a. [[For Science|"True Science,"]] may very well be the epitome of this trope. He skews every event to try to fit his point of view- which is that Stratton's theories about altering reality are pure craziness. Seriously, he remembers everyone wrong in order to convince everyone that his friend's theories about remembering everything wrong are insane. Yet, here he is, narrating this book, expecting you all to believe him unquestioningly.

* Timothy Kensington from the vastly underrated book, [[For Science!|"SCIENCE!"]] a.k.a. [[For Science!|"True Science,"]] may very well be the epitome of this trope. He skews every event to try to fit his point of view- which is that Stratton's theories about altering reality are pure craziness. Seriously, he remembers everyone wrong in order to convince everyone that his friend's theories about remembering everything wrong are insane. Yet, here he is, narrating this book, expecting you all to believe him unquestioningly.

* ''Artemis Fowl'' was narrated by a faery psychologist at least a decade after the events occurred, the account rummaged together through the accounts of many involved. The end of the book itself states that at least 6% was 'unavoidable extrapolation', though it was likely a much higher percentage, seeing as many of the people involved in the storyline die in the following books. The narrator himself, Dr. Jerbal Argon, is a minor character in the book (as well as the later novels), though there is a good chance that he simply added himself in for the popularity that would ensue.

* The Time Traveller in ''[[The Time Machine]]'' by [[HG Wells]] forms various hypotheses about the nature of the Eloi as the story progresses. Also, due to the novel's [[Framing Device]], the narrator's spellings of the few samples of Eloi language that readers get are likely poor reflections of the actual phonology, as neither the Time Traveller nor the outer story's narrator is a linguist by profession.

Line 335:

* ''Lunar Park''. The narrator is a writer named after the author of the novel: [[Bret Easton Ellis]] who is an unreliable narrator, because he describes things the other characters don't see or feel. The main character is abusing drugs; some of the hallucinations might be to some extent related to that. Also, there is a intertextual reference: Ellis' character has apparently also written a novel titled ''American Psycho'' and he says: "Patrick Bateman is an unreliable narrator."

* Joanne Harris' psychological thriller ''blueeyedboy'' is told through blog postings from the titular character (a self-proclaimed murderer) and his online acquaintance "Albertine," both of whom take sizable liberties with the truth and blur the line between fiction and reality constantly.

* In ''[[Merlin Darkling Child of Virgin and Devil]]'', one chapter involves Merlin facilitating [[Brother Sister Incest|Arthur and Morgana's relationship]]. The next chapter has him explain that it never happened, he just induced a hallucination in Arthur (and himself, hence the [[Exact Words]] "If this is a dream, lord, it is one I share with you") ... and then immediately reveals that this is what he ''thought'' happened, but Morgana had other ideas. There are a few other moments when Merlin hides what's going on, thinks he knows what is going on but doesn't or -- as above -- both simultaneously. He has, after all, gone mad and is telling this story to a pig.

* In ''[[Merlin Darkling Child of Virgin and Devil]]'', one chapter involves Merlin facilitating [[Brother-Sister Incest|Arthur and Morgana's relationship]]. The next chapter has him explain that it never happened, he just induced a hallucination in Arthur (and himself, hence the [[Exact Words]] "If this is a dream, lord, it is one I share with you") ... and then immediately reveals that this is what he ''thought'' happened, but Morgana had other ideas. There are a few other moments when Merlin hides what's going on, thinks he knows what is going on but doesn't or -- as above -- both simultaneously. He has, after all, gone mad and is telling this story to a pig.

* The same author's ''Falstaff'' uses this to play with [[Shakespeare]]'s [[Anachronism Stew]]; the editor of Sir John Fastolfe's memoirs believes they cannot possibly be true because (for example) the drink "sack" was unknown in Fastolfe's time (and therefore, from the editor's perspective, doesn't exist). However, when he reaches the point of denying Fastolfe himself exists, despite being the man's stepson, it becomes open as to which of them is the less reliable.

* Zoe Heller's ''What Was She Thinking?'' (filmed as ''Notes on a Scandal''): Barbara purports to be a cool, unbiased narrator of her friend Sheba's disastrous affair with a fifteen-year-old boy. In fact, {{spoiler|she's a [[Psycho Lesbian]] [[Stalker With a Crush]] who's blatantly using the upheaval in Sheba's life to isolate and control her.}}

Line 363:

'''Ted:''' Doubtful. ''[[Framing Device|(narrating from the future)]]'' And then, kids, you'll never believe what happened! }}

*** {{spoiler|Particularly great, since the setup for the awesome end has been laced throughout the episode--so if Future Ted is making this up he's likely made up a fair chunk of the episode}}.

** This also happens to Ted when he goes to see a movie and finds out that the story is based on how Stella left him right before their wedding. It portrays him as a [[Jerkass]] and makes him the villain. Is he being [[Very Loosely Based On a True Story|slandered]] or does did he actually edit the events in his memory to make him look like the hero?

** This also happens to Ted when he goes to see a movie and finds out that the story is based on how Stella left him right before their wedding. It portrays him as a [[Jerkass]] and makes him the villain. Is he being [[Very Loosely Based on a True Story|slandered]] or does did he actually edit the events in his memory to make him look like the hero?

*** More likely he sees the movie as being far worse and "Jed Mosely" as way more of an asshole than in reality, because he's too close to the events to see the movie objectively and is oversensitive about every bad trait Jed Mosely displays. The movie's financially successful, no one else seems to notice how utterly stupid and poorly-written the movie is, even people who are supposedly down-to-earth like Lily and Robin, so it's probably just a typical shallow romcom with a [[Disposable Fiance]].

** Subverted in episode 5.5, "Duel Citizenship:" Future Ted says, "And then it happened...Marshall and Lily morphed into one big married blob." This is shown literally happening, indicating Ted's narration is being exaggerated for comic effect. Then Present Ted blinks and says, "Whoa...I gotta dial back on the Tantrum." This refers to a highly caffeinated beverage he'd been consuming, implying that he was hallucinating.

Line 453:

* Indie storytelling game The Adventures of Baron Munchausen makes every player into an unreliable narrator, and has specific mechanics governing how players can challenge the veracity of each others' tales.

* The''[[Deadlands]]'' source books are divided into two to three sections. The Posse Territory sections are for general use, and give about as much information as the world at large knows. No Man's Land is for information only certain people would know, like the existence of Harrowed or how Huckster magic works. Both of these sections are filled with untruths, ranging from simple misinformation to [[Blatant Lies]]. The Marshall's Only sections have the lowdown on how things ''really'' work. Part of the setting's mystique is having the inner workings of the Reckoning remain a mystery to the players.

* The First and Early Second Edition Sourcebooks of the ''[[Legend of the Five Rings]]'' RPG were all written from the subjective in-universe point of view of the Clan or Faction that was the primary focus of the book. This was done both for flavor and to give the GM the freedom to decide what was true and what wasn't in his campaign. This approach was eventually abandoned during the Second Edition because [[Wizards of the Coast]] [[Viewers ~~Are~~ Morons|thought it was too confusing]] for d20 players.

* The First and Early Second Edition Sourcebooks of the ''[[Legend of the Five Rings]]'' RPG were all written from the subjective in-universe point of view of the Clan or Faction that was the primary focus of the book. This was done both for flavor and to give the GM the freedom to decide what was true and what wasn't in his campaign. This approach was eventually abandoned during the Second Edition because [[Wizards of the Coast]] [[Viewers are Morons|thought it was too confusing]] for d20 players.

Line 538:

* The [[SCP Foundation (Wiki)|SCP Foundation]] website is made up largely of documents. Given the nature of the Foundation, much of it is deliberate misinformation. Also, there tends to be a lot of stuff with black marker over it and a large amount of [DATA EXPUNGED].

** There was one instance however in which all of the blacked out sections and [DATA EXPUNGED] were removed, allowing the article to be read in its entirety. Let's just say that there is a ''very, very good reason'' for those edits.

* During The Third Night of ''[[The Tale of the Exile]],'' Gaven Morren (who tells the story from a first person POV) is dosed with a potent [[Mushroom Samba|hallucinogen]]. What follows is a trip into [[Daydream Surprise]], dream logic, and [[~~Schrodingers~~ Butterfly]], helped along by {{spoiler|a character actively lying to him about events to [[Dream Apocalypse|prevent herself from disappearing]].}}

* During The Third Night of ''[[The Tale of the Exile]],'' Gaven Morren (who tells the story from a first person POV) is dosed with a potent [[Mushroom Samba|hallucinogen]]. What follows is a trip into [[Daydream Surprise]], dream logic, and [[Schrodinger's Butterfly]], helped along by {{spoiler|a character actively lying to him about events to [[Dream Apocalypse|prevent herself from disappearing]].}}

* Rather common in [[The Slender Man Mythos]]. Examples on the wiki include [[Marble Hornets|J]] and [[Dreams in Darkness|Damien]] {{spoiler|in no small part thanks to his multiple personalities}}. A possible example (via [[Alternative Character Interpretation]]) would be {{spoiler|[[Seeking Truth|Zeke Strahm]], according to the final entry in the blog.}}

** A notable example in that the recent video of [[Tribe Twelve]] 'The Envelope', there is a piece of paper torn in half that says "unrel/ narra/". Noah may not be telling us everything...

Line 552:

== Western Animation ==

* A truly bizarre example in ''[[The ~~Emperors~~ New Groove (Disney)|The Emperors New Groove]]'': at one point, the Emperor Kuzco breaks the fourth wall to argue with the narrator's version of events. The twist being that Kuzco ''is'' the narrator.

* A truly bizarre example in ''[[The Emperor's New Groove (Disney)|The Emperors New Groove]]'': at one point, the Emperor Kuzco breaks the fourth wall to argue with the narrator's version of events. The twist being that Kuzco ''is'' the narrator.

* Two ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' cartoons, ''The Trial of Mr. Wolf'' and ''Turn Tale Wolf'', have the Big Bad Wolf tell alternate versions of ''Little Red Riding Hood'' and ''The Three Little Pigs'', respectively, with him as the victim.

** A modern short featuring Daffy as "Superior Duck" had him getting frustrated with [[Thurl Ravenscroft]]'s apparent inability to announce him as being faster than a bullet and more powerful than a locomotive.

Line 568:

* In one episode of ''[[The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy]]'' Grim deliberately tell Billy and Irwin distorted versions of clasic american stories claiming that he was there.

* In ''[[The Simpsons (Animation)|The Simpsons]]'', Homer Simpson is this in-universe. In one episode, he wanted to buy a bottle of expensive hair-regrowth formula. After the pharmacist tells him the price, Homer realizes he can't afford it, he breaks down crying and says, "Forget you, pal. Thanks for nothing," as he leaves. This is changed in his story to his friends to an angry, "Forget you, pal! Thanks for nuthin'!" as he "stormed" out.

* In one episode of ''[[My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic (Animation)|My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic]]'', [[Cloudcuckoolander|Pinkie Pie]] tells the Cutie Mark Crusaders how she got her cutie mark. It apparently involved her being raised by Amish-looking ''rock farmers'', and she closes her tale with "And that's how Equestria was made!" On top of that, Pinkie follows it up by offering to tell the CMC how she got her cutie mark.

* In one episode of ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (Animation)|My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic]]'', [[Cloudcuckoolander|Pinkie Pie]] tells the Cutie Mark Crusaders how she got her cutie mark. It apparently involved her being raised by Amish-looking ''rock farmers'', and she closes her tale with "And that's how Equestria was made!" On top of that, Pinkie follows it up by offering to tell the CMC how she got her cutie mark.

* [[Greek Chorus|The Muses]] from ''[[Hercules (Disney)|Hercules]]''.

* In ''[[Iron Man Armored Adventures]]'', Pepper claims to have found information on AIM by [[Ceiling Cling|clinging to the ceiling]] listening onto her father talking the the FBI. She later breaks down and admits her father just forgot to log off his computer.

Line 597:

** Really, any and all historians are subject to this. No matter how unbiased they try to be, there's always some level of it present.

* Before it was deleted, Troper Tales was this in spades, which is, in fact, why it was deleted.

** [[Self Demonstrating Article|I thought it was because of all the flame wars or the really disturbing stories.]]

** [[Self-Demonstrating Article|I thought it was because of all the flame wars or the really disturbing stories.]]

* The Autobiography of [[Theodore Roosevelt]]. He had a tendency, both in person, in his diary and his autobiography, to ignore events that he didn't remember fondly, ending up with a seemingly overly rosy life of manly exploits and little unfortune, if he said so himself. His first wife, who died young, on Valentine's Day, days after the birth of their only daughter, is never mentioned at all, and his parents, mentioned as being just about the greatest persons who ever lived, just disappear. He goes places and does things for seemingly no reason, as the context was too bitter and he abandons it with little to no explanation, for the same reason.