Clichés and Stereotypes

There’s this story about this wizard. He’s very old, but not nearly as old as he looks. He’s got long, white hair and a long, white beard. He wears these robes and a pointy hat… How did you guess? Well, yes, he is very mysterious and knowledgeable! Wise, too! A wise old wizard!

Now isn’t that an original picture?

I won’t quote the dictionary, but just so we’re “on the same page” (haha), a cliché is an overused expression, plot, character type, etc. A common stereotype. How many fantasy novels do you know with a “wise old wizard” who helps the hero? A beautiful “damsel in distress”? I’ll bet you can think of at least a dozen clichéd ideas.

In a day and age where and remakes dominate our movie screens, books, music, and video games, you begin to wonder if there are any original ideas left. Does anyone try to be unique? Is anyone else tired of the same quoted lines, the same plot devices, the “same ol’ story”?

To break the mold can be scary. Trying something different—that’s risky. Someone might resist the change. Someone might not like what you’ve done. Someone just may not “get it.”

Personally, clichés insult me. Those trite lines that are cast in the water with dangling worms… I scoff at them. This fish refuses to be caught. If I’m expected to laugh at something so predictable and overused, I downright refuse to submit to the ploy. You have to be clever to gain my response…that is, if you want my response to be something other than rolling my eyes.

Matt and I tried to avoid clichés in our novels. Variations on the old and familiar can be refreshing but not overwhelmingly so. A little predictability isn’t so bad, so long as the whole novel isn’t a “dead giveaway.” So just what is it I’m trying to say?
Clichés. Bad. Insulting. To be avoided! At all costs? Are they completely evil? Is there no redemption for the stereotypical?

In very modest instances, clichés can be…(hear me struggle here) acceptable. Flat characters, for instance, do not need to be developed to be different. Sometimes you need to toss a personality in a novel here and there—just to add a random, unimportant character. Who cares if Mr. Boring is your clichéd fool? He’s going to be devoured by the dragon anyway. We’ll never see him again. Good riddance!

The only other instance where I can attempt to justify a cliché is if you’re in the midst of a parody or comical work. That’s right. You’re making fun. You accentuate the cliché because it is so obviously ridiculous.

In the end, this was, in truth, just a rant. You can forgive me or not, but there must be someone else in this whole wide world that feels as I do. Be original. Find a new path. Take that chance. Someone will appreciate it. Just not that pointy-hatted, white-bearded guy with a wand in his hand.

-Stef