There are so, so many. Life is full of horrible things, unpleasant things, and unfair things. So I can’t really narrow this one down other than to say that I wish everyone had access to safety and what they need to survive and live good lives, I wish justice was always served (and included consideration of the grey areas) and I wish people truly treated each other they way they’d want to be treated. I can, however, share one trope I really dislike reading. That’s the love triangle. I don’t mind when it’s represented as being as complicated and painful and messy as it really is, because that’s part of what books do – interrogate life. But I hate the ones (this often happens in YA books, I’ve noticed) where there’s a central pair you’re supposed to be rooting for and then one of them has a partner already. Often this partner is nebulous and not really personified, more often they’re written as being a throw-away character somehow – they’ve been outgrown, lives have diverged, they’re not very nice, etc. But to me, there’s really no excuse for this behaviour. If you’re not happy with your partner or you’ve grown apart, break it off. Don’t pursue another relationship for the length of a book while stringing them along. No one deserves that. So this is one trope I could happily do without.
What about you guys? Anyone else out there similarly unimpressed by this trope? Any others you guys hate?
Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge is a blog hop hosted every Wednesday by Long and Short Reviews. The weekly prompts range widely, including both book-related and non-book-related topics. The idea is to get bloggers to interact, share a bit about their lives and connect with other bloggers. Click here for the list of upcoming topics, and visit here to join in the fun!
No to mention how so many of the ‘love triangles’ storylines aren’t even actually triangles – they’re just a woman being backed into a corner by two men! I have no patience for that, or any character leading another character on/not breaking off a relationship unless poly.
Right? So true!
Sometimes the historical context may justify that one, but in modern times it definitely should not happen.
I hadn’t thought about the historical context – good point! But yes, in most modern situations, it’s not something I’m a fan of!
Love triangles, are indeed, painful, and anytime a character ends up being more of a prop than a person, it kind of drives me crazy. And what you describing with love, triangles in fiction seem to fall into that category.
Exactly! You summed it up perfectly. It’s exactly that aspect that bothers me about it!
I agree with everything you said! Especially the part about breaking off previous relationships before beginning a new one, and of course, also the part about wanting good things for everyone. 🙂
Yes, I kind of went for obvious ones this week – I don’t expect much disagreement! Lol
I totally agree with you there. Thanks for stopping by earlier.
🙂