Zaxoth Arturos
(?)Community Member
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- Posted: Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:56:45 +0000
..what you think it means..
Princess Bride reference completed, and without further hesitation, I present the main event.
Table of Contents
1.Simplified point
2.Etymology
3.Correction of prevalent grammatical errors
4.Conclusion
5.Closing Sentiments
6.Criticisms and rebuttals
1. Simplified point
No matter what the intent was, if someone says an idea or story is "cliché," what they actually mean, whether they realize it or not, is that you simply need to develop it more and give it your own creative touch.
Feel free to read further to learn why.
2. Etymology
archetype: The original pattern from which copies are made.
In printing terminology, this would be the mold, usually made of paper pulp, of each letter. It is the original version of its kind.
(Yeah, so?)
stereotype: A simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group. Or, more simply, a widespread idea concerning a particular topic.
In printing terminology, this is the metal plate formed by using the aforementioned archetype mold, which is then used on the press to print on paper.
(Where is he going with this?)
Thus, a stereotype is literally a copy (usually multiple so as to use the same letter repeatedly on the same page) of an archetype, or an idea that's been copied based upon the original of a concept. Stereotypes may vary from person to person, as they each would copy from the archetype with a particular flair of their own design.
(What of it?)
When a particular stereotype is used for print, it would make the exact same thing, no matter how many times it presses against the paper. Thus, we come to the crux.
(FINALLY!)
Cliché (literary): a trite or hackneyed plot, character development, use of color, musical expression, etc.
Printer's jargon is where this originated from as an onomatopoeia of the sound made when the stereotype plate imprinted on the paper. Within printing, this has shifted to refer to the stereotype plate itself. Within literature, this has come to refer to what is being imprinted. Thus, a cliché occurs when the same stereotype is used multiple times, thus gaining familiarity and losing its original impact (hackneyed and trite, respectively).
3. Correction of prevalent grammatical errors
..but you cannot say that a plot, character development, use of color, or musical expression is cliché, and cliché is not synonymous with "trite" and/or "hackneyed."
(WTF? Why not?)
..grammatically, you would use, "clichéd," as that is the proper adjective form of the word. "Clichéd" is synonymous with "trite" and/or "hackneyed."
"Cliché" is a noun, particularly in the literary sense referring to a stereotype that has been used so much as to become trite and/or hackneyed. Thus it has gained a negative connotation that clichés must be avoided at all cost. This is not so.
(OMGWTFBBQ!)
4. Conclusion
Rather, a cliché can be used almost as if it were an archetype, in and of itself. A writer can take that which is cliché, add his/her own personal flair, and generate his/her own stereotype for use within his/her writing. This is creativity. Many think that using an idea that's already been done automatically makes what's being written now clichéd. This is only so if the writer does not add his/her own personal flair to the idea that's already been done, and also only if this same idea that's already been done has been done many times already.
(Just shut up already!)
5. Closing sentiments
(At last!)
...don't avoid a cliché, and don't discard a work simply because there is a cliché present. Simply locate the present cliché and add your own personal flair.
As well, don't use "cliché" as a derogatory term in order to get someone to avoid writing a project. You never know what personal imprint they might make upon the idea if they simply use creativity.
6. Criticisms and rebuttals
Then perhaps you should actually consider that there might be a reason the subject keeps coming up? So long as there is an issue with the term being used improperly, this sort of rant will continue to pop up repeatedly until such a time as the issue is corrected. And as they say, you're either part of the solution or part of the problem. I've chosen my side. Consider yours.
No, they're good for having a familiar basis for a story/character/what-have-you. They simply need to be altered.
That's exactly the point! Rather than avoiding clichés like the plague, writers should rather take what is clichéd, as it is familiar to potential readers, and adapt/mold it into something creative.
(Pedantry – an instance of being pedantic)
(Pedantic – ostentatious in one's learning; overly concerned with minute details or formalisms)
Incorrect on three points.
1.I did not do this or go into such detail in the attempt to impress anyone. Thus, the display of learning was not ostentatious.
2.The concern for details and formalisms, whether minute or not, was mandatory and not carried into excess. The starting with the origin of the term “cliché” was to build a basis on which the rest could be constructed. The formalisms regarding usage of the term (specifically noting the -d suffix for the adjective form) is a constantly repeated mistake, even, and possibly especially, among those who claim to be familiar with clichés and thus discourage them whenever possible. Thus, the rant was not pedantic.
3.I never sought to discourage pedantry, but correct a prevalent misnomer.
Considering I gave the literary definition of the word for all to see, no, I'm not. I'm simply giving a correction to the erroneous uses to which the word has been applied.
Princess Bride reference completed, and without further hesitation, I present the main event.
Table of Contents
1.Simplified point
2.Etymology
3.Correction of prevalent grammatical errors
4.Conclusion
5.Closing Sentiments
6.Criticisms and rebuttals
1. Simplified point
No matter what the intent was, if someone says an idea or story is "cliché," what they actually mean, whether they realize it or not, is that you simply need to develop it more and give it your own creative touch.
Feel free to read further to learn why.
2. Etymology
archetype: The original pattern from which copies are made.
In printing terminology, this would be the mold, usually made of paper pulp, of each letter. It is the original version of its kind.
(Yeah, so?)
stereotype: A simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group. Or, more simply, a widespread idea concerning a particular topic.
In printing terminology, this is the metal plate formed by using the aforementioned archetype mold, which is then used on the press to print on paper.
(Where is he going with this?)
Thus, a stereotype is literally a copy (usually multiple so as to use the same letter repeatedly on the same page) of an archetype, or an idea that's been copied based upon the original of a concept. Stereotypes may vary from person to person, as they each would copy from the archetype with a particular flair of their own design.
(What of it?)
When a particular stereotype is used for print, it would make the exact same thing, no matter how many times it presses against the paper. Thus, we come to the crux.
(FINALLY!)
Cliché (literary): a trite or hackneyed plot, character development, use of color, musical expression, etc.
Printer's jargon is where this originated from as an onomatopoeia of the sound made when the stereotype plate imprinted on the paper. Within printing, this has shifted to refer to the stereotype plate itself. Within literature, this has come to refer to what is being imprinted. Thus, a cliché occurs when the same stereotype is used multiple times, thus gaining familiarity and losing its original impact (hackneyed and trite, respectively).
3. Correction of prevalent grammatical errors
..but you cannot say that a plot, character development, use of color, or musical expression is cliché, and cliché is not synonymous with "trite" and/or "hackneyed."
(WTF? Why not?)
..grammatically, you would use, "clichéd," as that is the proper adjective form of the word. "Clichéd" is synonymous with "trite" and/or "hackneyed."
"Cliché" is a noun, particularly in the literary sense referring to a stereotype that has been used so much as to become trite and/or hackneyed. Thus it has gained a negative connotation that clichés must be avoided at all cost. This is not so.
(OMGWTFBBQ!)
4. Conclusion
Rather, a cliché can be used almost as if it were an archetype, in and of itself. A writer can take that which is cliché, add his/her own personal flair, and generate his/her own stereotype for use within his/her writing. This is creativity. Many think that using an idea that's already been done automatically makes what's being written now clichéd. This is only so if the writer does not add his/her own personal flair to the idea that's already been done, and also only if this same idea that's already been done has been done many times already.
(Just shut up already!)
5. Closing sentiments
(At last!)
...don't avoid a cliché, and don't discard a work simply because there is a cliché present. Simply locate the present cliché and add your own personal flair.
As well, don't use "cliché" as a derogatory term in order to get someone to avoid writing a project. You never know what personal imprint they might make upon the idea if they simply use creativity.
6. Criticisms and rebuttals
”A”
This has been done before!
Then perhaps you should actually consider that there might be a reason the subject keeps coming up? So long as there is an issue with the term being used improperly, this sort of rant will continue to pop up repeatedly until such a time as the issue is corrected. And as they say, you're either part of the solution or part of the problem. I've chosen my side. Consider yours.
”B”
Clichés are no good!
No, they're good for having a familiar basis for a story/character/what-have-you. They simply need to be altered.
”C”
But if a person takes something that's clichéd and changes it into something else by adding their own personal creative touches, it's not a cliché anymore!
That's exactly the point! Rather than avoiding clichés like the plague, writers should rather take what is clichéd, as it is familiar to potential readers, and adapt/mold it into something creative.
”D”
You've fallen into the same casual pedantry that you sought to discourage.
(Pedantry – an instance of being pedantic)
(Pedantic – ostentatious in one's learning; overly concerned with minute details or formalisms)
Incorrect on three points.
1.I did not do this or go into such detail in the attempt to impress anyone. Thus, the display of learning was not ostentatious.
2.The concern for details and formalisms, whether minute or not, was mandatory and not carried into excess. The starting with the origin of the term “cliché” was to build a basis on which the rest could be constructed. The formalisms regarding usage of the term (specifically noting the -d suffix for the adjective form) is a constantly repeated mistake, even, and possibly especially, among those who claim to be familiar with clichés and thus discourage them whenever possible. Thus, the rant was not pedantic.
3.I never sought to discourage pedantry, but correct a prevalent misnomer.
”E”
You're trying to change the definition of the word.
Considering I gave the literary definition of the word for all to see, no, I'm not. I'm simply giving a correction to the erroneous uses to which the word has been applied.
