Naomi Lin - Amnesia Trope Sucks - Week 3
Amnesia Trope Sucks
A very common trope in romance stories, and in my opinion, the worst one, is the amnesia trope.
In many stories this trop usually appears after all the hard work to unite the main leads, one of them loses their memory after a traumatic event, and they have to fall in love again. At the end, after they fall in love again, they regain their memory and they live happily ever after. I’m assuming the appeal of this trope is to prove that they are destined to be and will fall in love no matter what. In my opinion, this trope only adds unnecessary drama and stress. Maybe the writers want the story to continue after the main couple got together, so they add this random plot twist at the end. However, stories are better when they leave the reader wanting more rather than when the readers lose interest in the end. Less is more.
This is very similar to the popular reincarnation plot in Chinese dramas. These stories always follow the storyline where the couple fall in love, but their love is doomed. They reincarnate over and over again, falling in love every reincarnation, but end up killing each other or dying in each other’s arms. They rarely end up with a happy ending and suffer in each of their lives, probably to show that love is pain and romanticize how these people are meant for each other, but for me, it is way too tiring to watch, especially because they are usually over 50 episodes long.
What are your thoughts on the amnesia trope?
Amnesia occurs in real life too. Would you rather lose your short term memory once every two months on a random day for 30 minutes or would you rather lose all of your memories once in your life at a random time?
here is a link for an edit of one of the most stressful reincarnation Chinese dramas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KK8t5Ud666Y&t=61s
this is from 100 days my prince, a kdrama with an actual good amnesia trope
Comments
I think this is a trend that many drama producers use to gain more watch time out of the revenue. Some of the audience like it while others don't. I do get that this amnesia trope does get overused by many once in a while. There is one that stands out from the others. I think it is also some sort of competition between the producers to see who can make the best version out of this kind of structure. Like you said it does give a sense of message that they are destined lovers ; however it might be something to do with Asian culture and belief.
I loved your connection and introduction of Chinese dramas in relation to memory! I remember learning about amnesia in the psychology textbook, and wondering how annoying it would be if I did one day have amnesia. Honestly, I would love to forget traumatic things that happened throughout my life, such as serious injuries or bad friendships with people. I also totally relate to what you said about how annoying it is whenever the main lead forgets and they have to fall in love again. Just when you think something good is about to happen, the whole plot changes and you’re forced to anticipate the ending once again.
Sincerely,
Faith Tong
I thought your blog was really interesting as it not only included an idea, but an example that goes along with it. I hate when movies are 3 hours long because a couple falls in love, but then they decided to break-up and then fall in love again (me core). This usually happens in Bollywood, but it is way more stretched out in a way that it includes was more effort into it than any other story. It's really annoying.
Sincerely,
Mrinmayee
I agree so much with you about the way amnesia has been used so much throughout medias to show some sort of conflict. It seriously at times have gotten so repetitive that it just ends up being more plot points and a very general one. Especially for romance tropes, it is so common and I just like how you brought up this topic!
The amnesia trope, just like many others, is added to just add a little drive into the story. It is a deviation from the classic romance plot as it adds depth into the relationship. It's great when it is done well, but it can get boring if it's just thrown in there in order to reach a higher episode count. At that point, I would just stop watching and leave myself with an episode that really should have ended the series. Being used as a trope in a story is a different situation than when it occurs in real life. In real life, having amnesia is dysfunctional, deviant, and disruptive to a normal life and also affects the people around you. About your question, I would rather lose my short term memory once every two months on a random day for 30 minutes than lose it all. I'm already quite a forgetful person, so perhaps a little more wouldn't hurt. However, if it happened in an important situation, that's a different story.
-Angel Susantin
Personally, I am a huge fan of reincarnation manhwas. Funnily enough, I don't think I have read a manhwa or seen a show with this amnesia troupe. Since you've mentioned it, I think that this troupe sounds really interesting. Would you recommend me some series?