Sorry if the thread description was a bit vague. What I meant is, a character tries to avoid doing or saying something, and they go to such extremes, and then at one point, the thing they were afraid of doing happens…but even worse than they could have imagined.
To give a concrete example, in the novel Rebecca:
I looked on TVTropes under Rebecca, but they didn’t mention it, so I’m not sure if it actually exists as a trope or is just something I’ve mentally decided is a trope. It feels like it should be one, though. Anyone know? Thanks.
I understand what you’re talking about, but I’m not sure there’s a precise name for this device. It strikes me as being similar to the self-fulfilling prophecy device. We recently had a thread about Oedipus, the classic tale of a terrible prophecy that came true as a result of the actions people took to avoid it. But what you’re describing is a bit different because there isn’t any actual prophecy, the character is just afraid of something. The self-fulfilling prophecy trope also doesn’t require that the outcome be even worse than what was feared.
The greeks/romans certainly had the idea of prophecy and destiny. But did they not also have a concept of where when you worked to avoid your destiny, not only did it still happen but you made it worse? Sorry, no name comes to mind at the moment.
Though, I think Cartman would call it “hella-destiny”
I didn’t think there was. Thanks for the responses. I guess I’ll see if anyone else can think of one…
Emily, I’m not sure if that’s it, because putting your foot in your mouth doesn’t necessarily imply that you were trying not to offend before you actually did.
Last night I saw part of a TV show (I think it’s called What Would You Do) where they had a scruffy looking Hispanic man at a gas station asking women to help him out by buying him a little gas. They were all telling him they couldn’t help him or asking him to leave them alone.
The psychologist who commented on the video said that while the man’s physical appearance was an issue, part of the problem was his behavior. He was uncomfortable begging and expected to be rejected, so he wasn’t smiling and didn’t seem confident or friendly. The psychologist described this as “sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy” because his awkward demeanor came across as creepy to the women and made them more likely to refuse to help him.
Not sure what it’s called, but that was the main theme of the classic John Cleese sitcom Fawlty Towers. Most shows started out with Basil Fawlty telling one small lie or making a small assumption in the hopes of preventing X from happening. Utter catastrophe by the end.
