: Re: Why using the "It Was All Just a Dream" Trope? There is a particular trope that became quite infamous across many media: the "it was just a dream" revelation, where, usually at the end of

@Kevin153

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The bad reputation of this plot device comes from the fact that it can be used as a lazy, catch-all solution for writers who have written themselves into a box they can't get out of. It was perhaps most infamously used on the prime-time soap opera Dallas, when a year-long mystery about the murder of the main character was "solved" this way. People don't like it because they feel cheated into having cared about things that were unreal and inconsequential.

There are a few reasons it is still used. First, it's useful. It can be a way to reveal important info, show some of a character's inner life, illuminate relationships or cover meaningful psychological ground. Second, it can be a way to do genre changes --you can have fantasy within a realistic setting, or a thriller inside a comedy. In particular, back when people were less comfortable with fantasy as a mainstream genre, dreams were often used as an excuse to indulge. Third, it does (ironically!) reflect real life. We all dream, whether or not we remember those dreams, and many people at least occasionally have dreams that are long, vivid, realistic and/or psychologically rich.

The best advice for dream sequences is to make them worth the time for the reader. One way is to make them a complete sequence, like in The Wizard of Oz movie, where Dorothy has to complete her quest before she goes home. Another is to provide valid facts or psychological insight in them. They are also less likely to inspire rage in readers if it is made clear they are dreams, rather than serving as cheap "gotchas!"

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