I'm not sure if my conception was too strict. I remember being very firm that it should be a hole in the plot, ie. sequence of choice, rather than the premises, but maybe the premises should count too. Eg. if you postulate cheap teleportation, but have no explanation why R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, and Z don't happen to the economy.
Perhaps the distinction I was searching for was (to borrow complex analysis terminology) between removable plot holes and essential plot holes. A removable plot hole is something like a McGuffin: the explanation *given* for Q doesn't make sense, but there any number of explanations which would have done perfectly fine, and it occurs early enough we can accept it as a premise and not have the ending ruined. Conversely, an essential plot hole is one where the essential elements of the plot conflict each other and pretty much can't be removed.
something unbelievable in which you're supposed to suspend disbelief, and something unbelievable which is a plot hole
Yeah. I guess some of the rows about this come because different people are willing to accept different cues to believe something.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-09 04:20 pm (UTC)I'm not sure if my conception was too strict. I remember being very firm that it should be a hole in the plot, ie. sequence of choice, rather than the premises, but maybe the premises should count too. Eg. if you postulate cheap teleportation, but have no explanation why R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, and Z don't happen to the economy.
Perhaps the distinction I was searching for was (to borrow complex analysis terminology) between removable plot holes and essential plot holes. A removable plot hole is something like a McGuffin: the explanation *given* for Q doesn't make sense, but there any number of explanations which would have done perfectly fine, and it occurs early enough we can accept it as a premise and not have the ending ruined. Conversely, an essential plot hole is one where the essential elements of the plot conflict each other and pretty much can't be removed.
something unbelievable in which you're supposed to suspend disbelief, and something unbelievable which is a plot hole
Yeah. I guess some of the rows about this come because different people are willing to accept different cues to believe something.