When reading a story, you must accept the fictional worlds, characters, and situations in order to be fully immersed in the tale. But how can these works be believable when their subject matter doesn’t even exist in the real world?
This is where your suspension of disbelief comes into play. To enjoy a story, you must first accept its fictional elements, even if they’re impossible or fantastical in nature.
What Does Suspension of Disbelief Mean?
Suspension of disbelief (also called the willing suspension of disbelief) is the willingness of a reader to ignore critical thinking in order to enjoy a story.
All fiction needs a suspension of disbelief because, by definition, these stories aren’t real. For example, to enjoy Lord of The Rings, fans have to set aside the fact that there is no Middle Earth, no Sauron to defeat, and no Hobbit to bear the One Ring. And even if they did exist, they would definitely not speak in English like in the books or movies.
Suspension of disbelief also means overlooking the limitations of a medium to keep up the illusion of a fictional world.
Take a look at the people dressed in black above. In Japanese theatre, these stagehands, called Kuroko, move scenery or props and often play characters by holding props. Their costume implies that they’re invisible or not part of the play while they’re moving on stage, even though they’re obviously visible to you.
But as a viewer, you don’t nitpick on these obvious facts. Rather, you accept them as believable in the context of the story. By doing so, you’re able to fully immerse yourself into the narrative.
Origin of the Term
The term “suspension of disbelief” was coined by the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge in his Biographia Literaria:
It was agreed, that my endeavours should be directed to persons and characters supernatural, or at least romantic, yet so as to transfer from our inward nature a human interest and a semblance of truth sufficient to procure for these shadows of imagination that willing suspension of disbelief for the moment, which constitutes poetic faith.
It’s arguably a necessary element in experiencing works of literature, especially in drama or fiction. To fully comprehend what the artist is trying to convey, you must be able to accept that what you’re experiencing isn’t true.
Examples of Suspension of Disbelief
While it sounds like a highly technical concept, suspension of disbelief is simply a way of better enjoying a story by not digging into every little thing that’s happening in it. For the most part, you do it unconsciously.
Here are a few examples of this dramatic convention that are exhibited in modern entertainment formats:
1. Comics
Perhaps one of the most well-known disguises in fiction is Clark Kent’s use of eyeglasses and conservative clothes to hide the fact that he’s Superman.
The fact that the disguise is ridiculous, or that he works for a newspaper that constantly investigates his alter-ego doesn’t take away the enjoyment of experiencing the superhero’s adventures.
2. Movies
Action and Adventure movies benefit the most with a suspension of disbelief because of the number of stunts they add into their scenes. It’s why they get away with situations that don’t follow the laws of physics or common sense.
Take Fast and the Furious as an example. Throughout the franchise, they’ve come up with some of the most extreme stunts in movie history, including a car jumping from one skyscraper to another.
3. Video Games
Video games often ignore reality to make the experience more satisfying. Leveling systems, inventories, and character classes are only a few examples of this.
For more specific examples, consider the Call of Duty franchise. In the gameplay, characters recover health magically after a firefight, are able to expertly use every type of gun, and seem to be assigned to every high-profile operation.
The Limitations of Suspension of Disbelief
In exchange for this disregard of reality, the story must, in turn, provide and fulfill the promise of enjoyment.
To fulfill this promise, the story must at least be believable, which comes in two ways:
- Being realistic with elements that exist in reality and are added to the story. For example, if horses exist in the story, then they must behave like horses do in real life, unless specified otherwise. So it’s a no-no to portray a horse as traversing an entire continent within a day because it’s simply impossible in reality. If it were a magical horse though…
- Being consistent with its internal world. Just because it’s fictional doesn’t mean a story can get away with having no structure or faithfulness to detail. It must have its own internal rules and operate within established premises and canonical details. So if robots short circuit from EMP blasts, then they must remain so throughout the story, again, unless specified otherwise.
Non-fulfillment of these two things leads to inconsistencies and plot holes that prevent you from enjoying the story. They pull you off from reading, making you engage your critical thinking skills to make sense of a suddenly confusing narrative.
To illustrate, imagine a fantasy world where magical energy is sourced from the bodies of dead gods and used to fuel spells. If you suddenly insert a character who can use magic without going through this process, readers will cry foul. Disbelief is now at the forefront of their minds.
But if you add details that justify this character before they come into play, readers would understand this exception to the rule. Make the character the Chosen One who is granted more powers than the average magician, or secretly make them a god.
Suspending Doubt
Of course, different people have different thresholds of what they’re willing to believe. Something that breaks your suspension of disbelief may not necessarily break other people’s. What readers will never believe are blatant coincidences and situations that try to forcefully manipulate the story for some reason.
This is why a story’s coherence and faithfulness to its internal logic are crucial to making an enjoyable experience. Disregarding them only leads to constant criticism of your work as readers cannot fully immerse themselves in it.
What’s your favorite suspension of disbelief? Share it in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- Chekhov’s Gun: The Art of Foreshadowing
- Understanding Plot: Key Elements and Examples
- The MacGuffin: What It Is and How to Spot One
- The Idiot Plot: Why Characters Often Make Dumb Decisions
Cole is a blog writer and aspiring novelist. He has a degree in Communications and is an advocate of media and information literacy and responsible media practices. Aside from his interest in technology, crafts, and food, he’s also your typical science fiction and fantasy junkie, spending most of his free time reading through an ever-growing to-be-read list. It’s either that or procrastinating over actually writing his book. Wish him luck!
