Markup View

Author: FantiSci

Feb 1st 2008 at 5:49:50 PM

I think this trope is better left out of "pure" fiction - that's PrisonersOfPollyanna, where the real person is expected to live up to a fantasy character's standards. This is where the ''actual'' people on the show are being held up as role models (''Blue Peter''), or the whole show is one big promotion for a particular set of values (Disney/''Extreme Makeover''). In those circumstances, it's not unreasonable for viewers to expect the people preaching at them to uphold the virtues they promote (am I the only one who bursts out laughing when Tyra Banks starts lecturing prospective ''America's Next Top Model''s about humility?). Songs are borderline - we assume the person believes what they're singing unless it's satirical, even though logically we know they might not even have written the thing.
Fiction can only cross the line into this trope when the crime actually ''is'' a crime...or morally reprehensible enough that it's not only the MoralGuardians who are going "wait a minute, this really, ''really'' isn't right." Where the line is drawn depends largely on the type of show, which perhaps isn't fair but reflects reality. A builder gets into a particularly violent fight outwith work and it probably won't affect his job too much...but if a teacher gets caught in the middle of a bar brawl then their career's probably on the line.