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The use of a MacGuffin as a plot device predates the name MacGuffin. The Holy Grail of Arthurian legend has been cited as an early example of a MacGuffin. The Holy Grail is the desired object that is essential to initiate and advance the plot, but the final disposition of the Grail is never revealed, suggesting that the object is not of significance in itself. [8]
In recent years, the term has also taken on the meaning of a plot element that is introduced early in a story, whose significance to the plot does not become clear until later. [5] [6] This meaning is separate from Chekhov's original intention with the principle, which relates to narrative conservation and necessity, rather than plot significance.
Japan — Such devices are often called "Pythagorean devices" or "Pythagoras switch". PythagoraSwitch ( ピタゴラスイッチ , Pitagora Suicchi ) is the name of a TV show featuring such devices. Another related genre is the Japanese art of chindōgu , which involves inventions that are hypothetically useful but of limited actual utility.
The July 14 shooting in Fargo, which killed one officer and wounded two others and a civilian, has put a spotlight on the device and other trigger modifications that are a growing concern for The ...
A plot device or plot mechanism [1] is any technique in a narrative used to move the plot forward. [2] A clichéd plot device may annoy the reader and a contrived or arbitrary device may confuse the reader, causing a loss of the suspension of disbelief. However, a well-crafted plot device, or one that emerges naturally from the setting or ...
Firearms use triggers to initiate the firing of a cartridge seated within the gun barrel chamber.This is accomplished by actuating a striking device through a combination of mainspring (which stores elastic energy), a trap mechanism that can hold the spring under tension, an intermediate mechanism to transmit the kinetic energy from the spring releasing, and a firing pin to eventually strike ...
A Glock switch, a tiny device that can turn a handgun into a machine gun, continue to show up in Columbus. Glock switches: How use of small device that makes guns automatic exploded in Columbus ...
State secrets of various kinds serve as MacGuffins in several of the spy films, especially his earlier British films The Man Who Knew Too Much, The 39 Steps, and The Lady Vanishes. Hitchcock has stated that the best MacGuffin, or as he put it, "the emptiest," was the one used in North By Northwest , which was referred to as "Government secrets".