History Main / ChekhovsGun

* RuleOfPool: You ''know'' what will invariably happen when you see any of these in a scene....

Chekhov, master of the short story, gave this advice: if it's not essential, don't include it in the story.

* NotSoSmallRole: Character #23 is played by ''who?'' [[NarrowedItDownToTheGuyIRecognize They'd never have signed on for so small a role!]]

** [[ExplodingFishTanks Fish Tank]]

The MagneticPlotDevice can be a standing Chekhov's Gun to blame the plot on. The ImpossibleTask may require one. Also see {{Asspull}}, which is what the viewer can sometimes confuse this with if they miss the gun the first time (or if the gun was [[EditedForSyndication edited out]] in the TV version).

* ChekhovsVolcano: How could a volcano be a Chekhov's Gun? Sooner or later, it's going to be of importance when it erupts, as volcanoes do.

-->--[[TropeNamers Trope Namer]] '''Creator/AntonChekhov''' (From S. Shchukin, Memoirs. 1911.)

Sadly the term has come to mean, around the internet, "an insignificant object that later turns out to be important." For example, a character may find a mysterious necklace that turns out to be the power source to the DoomsdayDevice, but at the time of finding the object it does not seem important. The necklace was essential to the story, but its introduction downplayed its importance. Chekhov's advice was not necessarily to conceal importance, but to just not spend time on things that are not important.

* ChekhovsGag: You thought Chekhovs Gun was only introduced for the RuleOfFunny, but later it [[PlayedForDrama goes off dramatically.]]

->''"If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. [[RedHerring If it's not going to be fired]], [[LawOfConservationOfDetail it shouldn't be hanging there]]."''

Also referred to as "the Indiana Jones principle" in Thomas C. Foster's ''How to Read Literature Like a Professor,'' named after [[IndianaJones Indy's]] early encounter with a snake at the beginning of RaidersOfTheLostArk and how it set up his much [[BerserkButton larger encounter with them]] later on.

Sadly the term has come to mean, around the internet, "an insignificant object that later turns out to be important." For example, a character may find a mysterious necklace that turns out to be the power source to the DoomsdayDevice, but at the time of finding the object it does not seem important. The necklace was essential to the story, but its introduction downplayed its importance. Chekhov's advice was not necessarily to conceal importance, but to just not spend time on things that are important.

** ChekhovsGun/HarryPotter
** ChekhovsGun/YoungWizards

Chekhov, master of the short story, gave this advice: if it's not essential, don't include it in the story. Despite this, TVTropes uses the term to mean "an insignificant object that later turns out to be important", which sadly has become the accepted meaning around the internet.

Chekhov's Gun is a literary technique whereby an unimportant element introduced early in the story becomes significant later on. For example, a character may find a mysterious necklace that turns out to be the power source to the DoomsdayDevice, but at the time of finding the object it does not seem important.

Many people consider the phrase "Chekhov's gun" synonymous with {{foreshadowing}} (and they are related), but statements the author made about the Gun can be more properly interpreted as "[[TheLawOfConservationOfDetail do not include any unnecessary elements in a story]]." Like Foreshadowing, the object's importance often goes unnoticed by the audience, and becomes clear [[FridgeBrilliance only in retrospect]], or during a second viewing.

Used properly, this rule gives the item in question some degree of presence before being used, enough to prevent a potential AssPull that might jar and grate on the viewer's WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief. It can, however, turn out to be a RedHerring later on.

Those hearing this term for the first time should note that a Chekhov's Gun is '''not necessarily a literal gun''' -- but is a metaphor for pretty much ''anything''.

TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chekhov%27s_gun has an article related to the subject.]] Chekhov, master of the short story, gave this advice: if it's not essential, don't include it in the story. Despite this, TVTropes uses the term to mean "an insignificant object that later turns out to be important", which sadly has become the accepted meaning around the internet.

TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chekhov%27s_gun has an article related to the subject.]]

* ChekhovsGag: The return of a forgotten joke.

Many people consider the phrase "Chekhov's gun" synonymous with {{foreshadowing}} (and they are related), but statements the author made about the Gun can be more properly interpreted as "[[TheLawOfConservationOfDetail do not include any unnecessary elements in a story]]." (Indeed, Chekhov himself first described the concept in reference to ''live theater productions'', where placing a loaded gun on the set would be a clear safety hazard.) Like Foreshadowing, the object's importance often goes unnoticed by the audience, and becomes clear [[FridgeBrilliance only in retrospect]], or during a second viewing.

'''Chekhov's Gun Depot also stocks:'''

* ChekhovsBlank: A Chekhov's Gun that is loaded to mislead the audience. Also known as a RedHerring.

** ChekhovsArmy: A whole stash of Chekhov's Gunmen.

** IronicEcho: Or {{irony}}.

-->--TropeNamer '''Creator/AntonChekhov''' (From S. Shchukin, Memoirs. 1911.)