Definitions
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun narratology A
plot element or other device used to catch the audience's attention and maintainsuspense , but whose exact nature has fairly little influence over the storyline.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun (film) a plot element that catches the viewers' attention or drives the plot
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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A perfectionist MacGuffin is a word or concept that your perfectionism has found is particularly triggering for you, and so it starts using that word as a club to bash you with whenever you feel emboldened to write.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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A perfectionist MacGuffin is a word or concept that your perfectionism has found is particularly triggering for you, and so it starts using that word as a club to bash you with whenever you feel emboldened to write.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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A perfectionist MacGuffin is a word or concept that your perfectionism has found is particularly triggering for you, and so it starts using that word as a club to bash you with whenever you feel emboldened to write.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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It may come back into play at the climax of the story, but sometimes the MacGuffin is actually forgotten by the end of the film.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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It may come back into play at the climax of the story, but sometimes the MacGuffin is actually forgotten by the end of the film.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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Commonly, though not always, the MacGuffin is the central focus of the film in the first act, and then declines in importance as the struggles and motivations of characters play out.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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It may come back into play at the climax of the story, but sometimes the MacGuffin is actually forgotten by the end of the film.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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In the Task Force X episode of Justice League, the MacGuffin is a sinister artifact that draws on negative emotions (aggression, fear, etc).
Superhero Nation: how to write superhero novels and comic books » Black Cat’s Review Forum 2009
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Commonly, though not always, the MacGuffin is the central focus of the film in the first act, and then declines in importance as the struggles and motivations of characters play out.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
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Commonly, though not always, the MacGuffin is the central focus of the film in the first act, and then declines in importance as the struggles and motivations of characters play out.
Hillary Rettig: Perfectionists Love MacGuffins Hillary Rettig 2010
Prolagus commented on the word MacGuffin
Wow, that's quite specific.
October 29, 2010
rolig commented on the word MacGuffin
Coined by none other than Alfred Hitchcock. I placed this on my bywords list (for now at least) because this sounds like a person's name; presumably the MacGuffin in movie could be an (unnamed) character.
February 24, 2012