History Main / InWhichATropeIsDescribed

!!In Which the Indexes are listed and there may be an Advertisement:

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]

[[folder:Fanfiction]]

[[folder:Film — Live-Action]]

[[folder:Literature]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]

[[folder:Music]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]

[[folder:Video Games]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]

[[folder:Web Original]]

[[folder:Other]]

* Creator/TerryPratchett uses this trope in the Moist von Lipwig novels (currently, ''Discworld/GoingPostal'' and ''Discworld/MakingMoney''), probably as a parody of its use by Creator/JulesVerne and other Victorian-era authors. Notably, these are the only ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novels apart from the YA entries to use chapters.

* The ''Literature/DoctorWhoNewAdventures'' novel ''The All-Consuming Fire'' (a ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' crossover). The headings usually use LiteralMetaphor or sardonic {{Understatement}}, so when you get to the relevant part you think "Wait, ''that's'' what that meant?"

* [[Literature/ThisIsTheTitleOfThisStory This Is the Title of This Story, Which Is Also Found Several Times in the Story Itself]], because... [[CaptainObvious yeah]].

* ''Series/PrivatePractice'''s IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming takes this effect.

* A first season episode of ''Series/{{Fringe}}'' is entitled "In Which We Meet Mr. Jones." In it, WickedCultured villain [[ShoutOut David]] Robert [[Music/DavidBowie Jones]] is, in fact, introduced.
* Each episode of the Steed-and-Peel era of ''Series/TheAvengers'' opened with some cryptic, usually punning statements describing what would happen in the episode. They did not actually contain with the words "in which," but the effect was otherwise similar.

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]

[[folder: Web Original ]]

%%[[folder:Western Animation]]
%%[[/folder]]

[[folder: Anime & Manga ]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

[[folder: Fan Fic ]]

[[folder:Film]]
* ''Film/{{Dogville}}'', which starts with "The film Dogville as told in nine chapters and a Prologue." and then proceeds to do [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin exactly that]], with a description for each chapter.

* ''Literature/MobyDick'' , unsurprisingly
* For Brits of a certain age, the ''Literature/{{Molesworth}}'' books - as ane fule kno
* Used in ''Literature/VanityFair'', e.g. Chapter XXVIII: In Which Amelia Invades the Low Countries
* ''Literature/TheLateGeorgeApley'' (1937) uses this for every chapter. Chapter VIII, when we read of George's youthful romance with an Irish girl, is titled "Interlude: Dealing with a Subject Which Would Not Ordinarily Be Discussed in a Work of This Nature." The DirectLineToTheAuthor FramingDevice for the story imagines that it is a biography of George Apley by his old friend Horatio Willing. In 1937 this was already an old-fashioned, outmoded style, and InUniverse it serves to mark Willing as an old fogey out of touch with the times.
* ''Literature/TheDiamondAge'' by Creator/NealStephenson. In which the [[FutureImperfect Victorians rise again]]; Extensive use of nanotechnology and robot-horses in PostCyberpunk China.
* ''This is the Way the World Ends'', a novel about nuclear war, uses headings with its characteristic [[GallowsHumor bitter, bitter humor]]: (paraphrased) "In which the limitations of civil defense are explored in a manner that some readers may find disturbing."
* ''Literature/{{Dragaera}}'':
** As it is a parody of Dumas's work, the ''Literature/KhaavrenRomances'' have chapter titles in this style, sometimes playing off of specific Dumas chapter titles--which are, of course, also in this style. The most memorable was probably "In Which The Plot, Behaving In Much The Same Manner As A Soup To Which Cornstarch Has Been Added, Begins, At Last, To Thicken."
** Several of the Vlad Taltos books have front-cover blurbs in this format. "In Which Vlad and His Jhereg Learn How the Love of a Good Woman Can Turn a Cold-Blooded Killer Into a Real Mean S.O.B. ..." or "In which Vlad must survive among an alien race: ''his own.''"
* The 18th century Spanish novel ''Friar Gerund'' makes fun of this with titles like "In Which We Accomplish The Promise Made By The Previous One", "In Which Something Happens", and "In Which Someone Sneezes And The Story Continues".

* William Caxton's printing of Sir Thomas Malory's ''Literature/LeMorteDarthur''. Every one of the [[{{Doorstopper}} 507 chapters]] is named in this way.
* OlderThanPrint: The ''Literature/{{Nibelungenlied}}'' consists of 39 chapters (âventiuren). The first is untitled, the second is called "Of Siegfried", but the other 37 have titles starting with ''Wie'' ("How"), starting with "How Siegfried Came to Worms" and ending with "How Lord Dietrich Fought With Gunther and Hagen".
* In ''Literature/DonQuixote'', every chapter's title as it appears at the top of the page is different from the chapter's title as stated in the index, maybe because it is too long to fit.
** {{Inverted|Trope}} in Some Chapters that don’t Summarize really Anything:
--> Part II, Chapter 70 WHICH FOLLOWS SIXTY-NINE AND DEALS WITH MATTERS INDISPENSABLE FOR THE CLEAR COMPREHENSION OF THIS HISTORY
--> Part II, Chapter 66 WHICH TREATS OF WHAT HE WHO READS WILL SEE, OR WHAT HE WHO HAS IT READ TO HIM WILL HEAR
** Quite possibly {{lampshade|Hanging}}d with a couple of others:
--> Part II, Chapter 9 WHICH RECOUNTS WHAT WILL SOON BE SEEN
--> Part II, Chapter 227 REGARDING MATTERS WHICH BENEGALI SAYS WILL BE KNOWN TO THE READER IF HE READS WITH ATTENTION
* ''Literature/TheCityOfDreamingBooks'' by Creator/WalterMoers includes ''"A very short chapter, in which not much is going to happen".'' ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin.
* The majority of chapter summaries from ''Literature/AVoid'' are like this. They rarely refer to any of the major events in the chapter.
--> ''In which luck, God's alias and alibi, plays a callous trick on a suitor cast away on an island''
* Creator/UmbertoEco's book ''Literature/TheNameOfTheRose'', in part a wonderful pastiche of SherlockHolmes set in a 14th century monastery, in which most of the divisions are headed with such a description, except for the Seventh Day, "In which, if it were to summarize the prodigious revelations of which it speaks, the title would have to be as long as the chapter itself, contrary to usage." Done largely to avoid having to put something like 'In which it is revealed that X is the murderer'
* ''Literature/TheAdventuresOfPinocchio'', by Carlo Collodi. Every chapter is titled with a description. For example, the very first chapter is ''HOW IT HAPPENED THAT MAESTRO CHERRY, CARPENTER, FOUND A PIECE OF WOOD THAT WEPT AND LAUGHED LIKE A CHILD.'' Collodi was contemporary with Queen Victoria.
** Also notable for a chapter title that memorably {{subverted|Trope}} a SpoilerTitle: "In Which Pinocchio Finds In The Body Of The Dogfish... Whom Does He Find? Read This Chapter And You Will Know, My Children."
* Daniel Defoe's ''[[http://www.rinkworks.com/bookaminute/b/defoe.moll.shtml The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders Who Was Born In Newgate, and During a Life of Continu'd Variety For Threescore Years, Besides Her Childhood, Was Twelve Year a Whore, Five Times a Wife [Whereof Once To Her Own Brother], Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a Transported Felon In Virginia, At Last Grew Rich, Liv'd Honest, and Died a Penitent]]''. And to lesser extent ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe''
* Creator/ETAHoffmann created deliberately misleading chapter summaries for his comic story ''The Golden Pot''; for example, in the section summarized as "How Deputy Headmaster Paulmann put out his pipe and went to bed", that is hardly the most important thing that happened -- it's actually about Paulmann's daughter Veronika slipping out of the house after her father is in bed, to pay a visit to a witch for some love magic.
* Kim Stanley Robinson's ''Literature/TheYearsOfRiceAndSalt'' is divided into several sections, but the first section features chapter headings in this style.
* Used in Creator/LloydAlexander's ''The Remarkable Journey Of Prince Jen'', with short collections of titles, such as ''Mafoo Comforts His Toes - The Ear of Continual Attentiveness'' and etc. However, chapters dealing with the six [[MacGuffin key items]] are simply titled, ''The Tale of the Thirsty Sword,'' et alia.
* Creator/RickRiordan uses this in four of his five series, sans the "in which," usually to great comedic effect. Individually (and with specific examples), they are:
** ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'': Percy sees the three Fates for the first time in "Three Old Ladies Knit The Socks Of Death".

* Fielding's ''Literature/TheHistoryOfTomJonesAFoundling''. The book is divided into "Books" which are subdivided into "Chapters." Each "Chapter" is about ten pages and the header summarizes it. The first chapter of each book is an analysis of literary techniques used in the upcoming book. It's worth pointing out that Fielding wrote the book serialized, publishing roughly a chapter a week from 1742-49, so perhaps the clunky chapter titles are necessary for the reader to remember what was going on.
* Howard Whitehouse's ''Mad Misadventures of Emmaline and Rubberbones'' has three books:
** ''The Strictest School in the World: Being the Tale of a Clever Girl, a Rubber Boy and a Collection of Flying Machines, Mostly Broken''
** ''The Faceless Fiend: Being the Tale of a Criminal Mastermind, His Masked Minions and a Princess with a Butter Knife, Involving Explosives and a Certain Amount of Pushing and Shoving''
** ''The Island of Mad Scientists: Being an Excursion to the Wilds of Scotland, Involving Many Marvels of Experimental Invention, Pirates, a Heroic Cat, a Mechanical Man and a Monkey''
* Creator/PatriciaCWrede's ''Literature/EnchantedForestChronicles'' uses this trope extensively. Perhaps the height of it would be the chapter "In Which It Is Exceedingly Muddy." The same volume also contains "In Which The Plot Thickens", followed shortly by "In Which The Plot Positively Curdles".
* Quite a few in ''Literature/TheConfidenceMan'' -- "in which the last three words of the last chapter are made the text of discourse, which will be sure of receiving more or less attention from those readers who do not skip it."
* ''Telly Brats and Topless Darts'': A non-fiction example: Chris Horrie and Adam Nathan do this at length, their history of the notorious cable TV channel, L!ve TV. The result of this is that the table of contents not only gives a pretty decent overview of the subject before you get into the book's content proper, but is also hilarious.

* The novel ''Nameless Magery'' plays with this by giving its chapters titles beginning with "In Which I Don't..." (e.g. "In Which I Don't Keep My Dress Clean").
* The chapter titles of ''[[Literature/JoesWorld Forward the Mage]]'' by Creator/EricFlint use this. Notable in that several chapters consist solely of their title. How the book starts:
-->In Which We Introduce the Gentle Reader to Our Tale Through a Most Cunning Usage of the Ancient Narrative Device of The Plunge Direct Into the Turbulence of the Times. Taken From the Autobiography of the Notorious Scapegrace, Benvenuti Sfondrati-Piccolomini.
* ''Literature/GulliversTravels'' has such subtitles for each chapter.
* [[Literature/ThisIsTheTitleOfThisStory This Is the Title of This Story, Which Is Also Found Several Times in the Story Itself]], because... [[CaptainObvious yeah]].
* Creator/PhilipKDick's ''Literature/AMazeOfDeath'' {{subvert|edTrope}}s this; the table of contents contains a brief summary-like name for each chapter, but every such "summary" is about one of the fourteen characters doing something that has nothing at all to do with the chapter contents, or the novel at all. [[spoiler:It might be symbolic of how all the events and backstories in the book are just part of a virtual simulation, one of the hundreds of different ones that the characters have already experienced.]]
* Many of the chapter titles in ''Literature/LesMiserables''. [[SarcasmMode Because Hugo was]] [[{{Doorstopper}} short on words.]]

--> "How Candide was brought up in a magnificent castle; and how he was driven out of it"
--> "How the Portuguese made a superb auto-da-fe to prevent any future Earthquakes, and how Candide was publicly whipped"
--> "Candide and his Valet arrive in the country of El Dorado. What they saw there"
* Creator/TerryPratchett uses this trope in the Moist von Lipwig novels (currently, ''Discworld/GoingPostal'' and ''Discworld/MakingMoney''), probably as a parody of its use by Creator/JulesVerne and other Victorian-era authors. Notably, these are the only ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novels apart from the YA entries to use chapters.
** This is also a [[TakeThat gentle teasing]] of Tom Paulin, from [=BBC2's=] Late Review, who once famously described Pratchett as "a complete amateur... doesn't even write in chapters".
** Sir Terry also uses it in ''Literature/{{Dodger}}'', as one of the many nods to Creator/CharlesDickens which include the main character's nickname, and Dickens himself as a supporting character.
* The classic textbook ''Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach'' does this in chapter subtitles. For instance, the chapter titled "Knowledge Representation" begins with:
--> In which we show how to use first- order logic to represent the most important aspects of the real world, such as action, space, time, thoughts, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and shopping]].
* Creator/CatherynneMValente's Fairyland books - currently published are ''[[Literature/TheGirlWhoCircumnavigatedFairylandInAShipOfHerOwnMaking The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making]]'' and ''The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There'', with chapters like ''In Which a Girl Named September is Spirited Off By Means of Leopard, Learns the Rules of Fairyland, and Solves a Puzzle'' and ''In Which a Girl Named September Keeps a Secret, Has a Difficult Time At School, Turns Thirteen, and Is Finally Nearly Run over by a Rowboat, Thereby Finding Her Way into Fairyland''.
* Creator/AAMilne's ''Literature/WinnieThePooh'' books follow this style for the chapter names. The first story, for example, being: ''In which we are introduced to Winnie-the-Pooh and some Bees, and the stories begin''.
* ''Literature/ProfessorMmaasLecture'' uses this for some, but not all chapters: "Wherein Professor Mmaa Begins His Lecture", "Wherein The Reader Will Find A Further Section Of Professor Mmaa's Lecture on the [[HumansThroughAlienEyes Bold Ape]]", etc.
* ''Literature/HowlsMovingCastle'' and its sequel ''Literature/CastleInTheAir'' use this trope in the chapter titles. First chapter: "In which Sophie talks to hats".
* Creator/JulesVerne:
** ''Literature/FiveWeeksInABalloon'', for instance:
-->The End of a much-applauded Speech.—The Presentation of Dr. Samuel Ferguson.—Excelsior.—Full-length Portrait of the Doctor.—A Fatalist convinced.—A Dinner at the Travellers' Club.—Several Toasts for the Occasion
** And Verne's ''Literature/AroundTheWorldInEightyDays''. The last chapter's title is "IN WHICH IT IS SHOWN THAT PHILEAS FOGG GAINED NOTHING BY HIS TOUR AROUND THE WORLD, UNLESS IT WERE HAPPINESS"
* Creator/MichaelEnde did this in every single chapter of both ''Literature/JimButton'' books.
* Like the comics examples above, both Creator/NeilGaiman's ''Literature/AnansiBoys'' and ''Literature/{{Stardust}}'' use this [[PlayedForLaughs for comedy]] Clearly something of AuthorAppeal for Gaiman.
* The chapter headings in ''Literature/TheDragonHoard''.
* ''Literature/AManCalledOve'' gives every chapter a title which begins with "A man called Ove..." and always has something to do with the events therein. For example the chapter in which Ove reluctantly allows a disowned gay teenager and a stray cat to stay at his house is called "A man called Ove isn't running a goddamned hotel".
* The Polish novel ''Księga urwisów'' uses the "plot point listing" variant for nearly all chapters. Such as "An opportunity comes up. Unforeseen obstacle. Escape".
* Howard Pyle does this with his chapter names in his children's literature versions of ''Myth/RobinHood'' and ''Myth/KingArthur''.
* Every chapter of ''Literature/{{Water Margin}}''.
* The multiple-sentence-long "In which..." chapter titles in ''Literature/TheRestOfUsJustLiveHere'' tell a typical teen UrbanFantasy story. The chapters themselves tell a slightly overlapping story of "normal" students in the same world.
* ''The '44 Vintage'' by Creator/AnthonyPrice has chapter titles like "How Corporal Butler Was Saved By His Boots" and "How the Germans Spoilt a Good Plan".
* ''Mariken'', a Dutch children's novel by Peter van Gestel, is an adaptation of the miracle play or prose novel (depending on who you ask) ''Mariken van Nieumeghen'' from the 16th century and it straight up uses this trope. E.g.: 'Waarin Archibald uit de stad wordt verjaagd en tussen de bloeiende ganzeriken een klein meisje vindt', which is in English: 'In which Archibald is driven from the city and finds a little girl between the flowering cinquefoils'.
** The original uses a variant: it has no clearly marked chapters because it's written like a play, but the acts are divided by descriptions beginning with 'How', e.g.: 'Hoe heer Ghijsbrecht Mariken zijnder nichten tot Nimmeghen ghesonden heeft./Hoe heer Gijsbrecht zijn nicht Mariken naar Nijmegen zond.', which is in English: 'How mister Gijsbrecht sent his niece Mariken to Nijmegen.'[[note]] Nieumeghen/Nimmeghen are old spellings of the Dutch city Nijmegen.[[/note]]

* A book by Carl Sanburg called ''The Huckabuck Family: and How They Raised Popcorn in Nebraska and Quit and Came Back''.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

* A Television Series, Being A Merry Situational Comedy, Concerning Series/{{Friends}}, In Which Most Episodes Are Named "The one with ''''" and [[ButtMonkey Ross]] [[RunningGag Obtains A Divorce]].

* "This is an / album by / ''Music/The Black Keys''. / The name of / this album is / ''Music/{{Brothers}}''."

* "This is an / album by / ''The Black Keys''. / The name of / this album is / Brothers."

!! In Which the Details of the literary Convention "In Which a Trope Is Described" will be Disseminated

Often a SpoilerTitle and/or [[OverlyLongTitle (Overly]] LongTitle. Compare TheNounWhoVerbed, which is more modern-sounding, and with the EitherOrTitle, which also has a very {{Retraux}} feel. Easily subverted if the title doesn't match up with what happens, making it a straight example of a NonIndicativeName. Not to be confused with a WordSaladTitle, which is more like an inversion of this trope.

* ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' uses this, sans the "in which," usually to great comedic effect. The chapter in which our hero Perseus first sees the Fates is entitled "Three Old Ladies Knit The Socks Of Death." Many of Rick Riordan's young adults novels feature this such as in ''Literature/TheKaneChronicles'': "I Have a Date with the God of Toilet Paper"

Often a SpoilerTitle and/or LongTitle. Compare TheNounWhoVerbed, which is more modern-sounding, and with the EitherOrTitle, which also has a very {{Retraux}} feel. Easily subverted if the title doesn't match up with what happens, making it a straight example of a NonIndicativeName. Not to be confused with a WordSaladTitle, which is more like an inversion of this trope.

* Used frequently by Jeffery Farnol in his historical novels, particularly his Regency romances.

* The novelization of the video game, ''Literature/OracleOfTao'' has its own chapter system. It has mini-chapters with the name of the character [[SwitchingPOV that the point-of-view centers around]], then it has larger chapters that start with "in which" (may of which are punny or deliberately misleading), such as Chapter 5:
-->''Ummmm, Leeroy Jenkins. Everyone dies because Ambrosia is stupid. But don't worry, God resets everything.''

* The novelization of the video game, ''Literature/OracleOfTao'' has its own chapter system. It has mini-chapters with the name of the character [[SwitchingPOV that the point-of-view centers around]], then it has larger chapters that start with "in which", such as:
->'''Chapter 4'''
-->''In which Ambrosia learns the Way, and discovers rhythm and dance. Also, six months pass.''

* Every chapter of ''Literature/DonQuixote'' - interestingly, the chapter's title as it appears at the top of the page is different from the chapter's title as stated in the index, maybe because it is too long to fit.
** Then It's {{inverted|Trope}} in Some Chapters that don’t Summarize really Anything:

** And quite possibly {{lampshade|Hanging}}d with a couple of others:

* ''Literature/HowlsMovingCastle'' and its sequel ''Literature/CastleInTheAir'' use this trope in the chapter titles. First chapter: In which Sophie talks to hats.
* Creator/JulesVerne's ''Literature/FiveWeeksInABalloon'', for instance:

* The ''DoctorWhoNewAdventures'' novel ''The All-Consuming Fire'' (a ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' crossover). The headings usually use LiteralMetaphor or sardonic {{Understatement}}, so when you get to the relevant part you think "Wait, ''that's'' what that meant?"

* ''Mariken'', a Dutch children's novel by Peter van Gestel, is an adaptation of the miracle play or prose novel[[note]] depending on who you ask[[/note]] ''Mariken van Nieumeghen'' from the 16th century and it straight up uses this trope. The first chapter: (Dutch) 'Waarin Archibald uit de stad wordt verjaagd en tussen de bloeiende ganzeriken een klein meisje vindt' (English) 'In which Archibald is driven from the city and finds a little girl between the flowering cinquefoils'.
The original uses a variant: it has no clearly marked chapters because it's written like a play, but the acts are divided by descriptions beginning with 'How', e.g.: 'Hoe heer Ghijsbrecht Mariken zijnder nichten tot Nimmeghen ghesonden heeft./Hoe heer Gijsbrecht zijn nicht Mariken naar Nijmegen zond.', which is in English: 'How mister Gijsbrecht sent his niece Mariken to Nijmegen.'[[note]] Nieumeghen/Nimmeghen are old spellings of the Dutch city Nijmegen.[[/note]]

* Creator/UmbertoEco's book ''Literature/TheNameOfTheRose'', in part a wonderful pastiche of SherlockHolmes set in a 14th century monastery, in which most of the divisions are headed with such a description, except for the Seventh Day, "In which, if it were to summarize the prodigious revelations of which it speaks, the title would have to be as long as the chapter itself, contrary to usage." Done largely to avoid having to put something like 'In which it is revealed that [[spoiler:go and read the damn book... or watch [[TheFilmOfTheBook the movie]]]] is the murderer'

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic has the season five episode 'The one where Pinkie Pie knows' which is a parody on the comedy series Friends.
[[/folder]]