The antagonist's the parent trope. What makes it cliche?

starrystorm · Jul 28, 2019

So, in my story the antagonists end up being the MC's parents. I know this is cliche, but the story doesn't work without it. I've been hinting slowly at it through the book until this moment (a little more than halfway). But I know it's still cliche.

What about this trope/cliche makes your skin crawl? What aspects do you wish stories like this would stay away from? I want to make this story as unique as possible and since I can't remove her parents being the antagonists, I want to know what makes this cliche. Or is it just overdone?

The Second Moon · Jul 28, 2019

Honestly, I LOVE this cliche. I think it adds a pain to the MC that can't be found anywhere else. I mean, parents are supposed to be there for you and I can imagine that many things are going though the MC's head (betrayal, feeling like they weren't good enough as a child, etc.)

I also think that this works better when the MC doesn't know that their parent is a villain or the MC doesn't know the villain is their parent. (if that makes sense)

Anyways, I say do it, but I'd love to see if others agree with me or disagree.

Sage · Jul 28, 2019

First off, what makes you say the parents as antagonists is a cliche?

starrystorm · Jul 28, 2019

The Second Moon-- I personally love this trope for all the reasons you've listed.

Sage-- I guess because I've seen it on lot's of lists of cliches and have heard it talked about as a cliche. Really, I love this trope and wish there would be more of it.

litdawg · Jul 28, 2019

I don't think this is a cliche in all genres. I'm not surprised to see it in YA because ambivalent feelings towards parents is part of adolescence. They can be god or the devil in a moment's notice. A character discovering that mom has been the villain dogging her life could be powerful if this occurs when mom is being moved to a nursing home for dementia and character discovers evidence of villainy in packing up the house. But Thanos-like parents seem to exist in certain genres to give a tragic element to characters who have a hard time trusting authorities. It's a bit freudian.

Dennis E. Taylor · Jul 28, 2019

A thing isn't a cliche just because it's used a lot. A thing is a cliche because it gets used a lot as a plot device without developing it, or trying to be original with it, or even really justifying it. The mega-villain trying to take over/destroy/blackmail the world is a cliche because the author doesn't generally bother explaining why the villain is a villain and where he/she got the money for the super-lair under the volcano. Sitcoms become cliche when they use the same setups for misunderstanding that could be resolved by three seconds of dialog. And so on.

For that matter, most of the standard tropes in most genres could be considered cliche, especially when not done well.

Give your parents a good solid motivation for their actions. Throw in a twist or a little bit of originality. That's all it needs.

Marian Perera · Jul 28, 2019

starrystorm said:
What about this trope/cliche makes your skin crawl?

The trope doesn't make my skin crawl, but when poorly done, it makes me roll my eyes and call the MC Luke. I'm also tired of speculative fiction where the reveal comes at a big climactic moment. It rarely if ever surprises me, because the moment I realize the male MC is orphaned or adopted, I'm guessing who the biological father could be.

That said, there's nothing wrong per se with making the antagonist the MC's parent. I'm working on a romance where the antagonist is the hero's grandfather, and during the course of the story, it's revealed that he committed a murder he successfully covered up. But at the start, it looks like he's just the typical slightly overbearing grandpa who wants more than anything to see his beloved grandson happily married with kids of his own.

starrystorm · Jul 28, 2019

Marian Perera said:
The trope doesn't make my skin crawl, but when poorly done, it makes me roll my eyes and call the MC Luke. I'm also tired of speculative fiction where the reveal comes at a big climactic moment. It rarely if ever surprises me, because the moment I realize the male MC is orphaned or adopted, I'm guessing who the biological father could be.

That said, there's nothing wrong per se with making the antagonist the MC's parent. I'm working on a romance where the antagonist is the hero's grandfather, and during the course of the story, it's revealed that he committed a murder he successfully covered up. But at the start, it looks like he's just the typical slightly overbearing grandpa who wants more than anything to see his beloved grandson happily married with kids of his own.

Good. I'm doing something right since my MC fully believes she is human and her parents died in a car crash. Something keeps nagging at her that the antagonists are her parents, but she shakes it off with logic.

Brightdreamer · Jul 28, 2019

starrystorm said:
Good. I'm doing something right since my MC fully believes she is human and her parents died in a car crash. Something keeps nagging at her that the antagonists are her parents, but she shakes it off with logic.

To me, this a bigger potential pitfall than the parents being antagonists. If you keep waving red-flag clues in the reader's face only to have the MC dismiss them, the reader is more likely to kill the MC than the antagonist... Beware of how blatant you make your clues. Maybe introduce another suspect or two who could plausibly be the bad people. Because, seriously, nothing makes me grind my teeth harder than a deliberately obtuse MC who claims their utter blindness to obvious facts, ones that keep whacking them over their heads again and again and again, is "logic."

(This has been a public service message from Readers Against Clueless Characters.)

Lou Trent · Jul 28, 2019

Dennis E. Taylor said:
A thing isn't a cliche just because it's used a lot.

Dennis E. Taylor said:
Give your parents a good solid motivation for their actions. Throw in a twist or a little bit of originality. That's all it needs.

I completely agree with these two points that Dennis wrote. As long as there is a good reason for the actions then it can work. If it is right for your story then write it. Although you might call me a bit biased as my current main WIP involves an antagonist who is the MC's mother.

indianroads · Jul 28, 2019

"Luke, I am your father."

Yeah, maybe it's a trope, but how you handle it will make all the difference.

Marian Perera · Jul 28, 2019

indianroads said:
Yeah, maybe it's a trope, but how you handle it will make all the difference.

It might be a good idea not to rely too much on the reveal to be a shock or an amazing twist. Develop the characters, and make the relationship or effect on the MC more than "Luke, I am your father".

indianroads · Jul 28, 2019

Marian Perera said:
It might be a good idea not to rely too much on the reveal to be a shock or an amazing twist. Develop the characters, and make the relationship or effect on the MC more than "Luke, I am your father".

Yes indeed. IMO antagonists are at their most insidious when we can relate to their POV.

Will Collins · Jul 28, 2019

I'm guessing because of Star Wars, but it can still be done really well.

frimble3 · Jul 28, 2019

It's not a cliche unless you write it that way. What it is is a classic. Literally.
Remember 'Oedipus'? It was his parents trying to trick fate that caused that whole mess.

SwallowFeather · Jul 28, 2019

I actually find it intriguing that it's her parents, plural, and not her father. That seems less cliche to me. I may just be a little out of the loop since Star Wars...

That said, I somehow wasn't gathering from what you said that there was going to be a big reveal of this. I thought we would know from the start. That actually would feel innovative to me! But...

Brightdreamer said:
To me, this a bigger potential pitfall than the parents being antagonists. If you keep waving red-flag clues in the reader's face only to have the MC dismiss them, the reader is more likely to kill the MC than the antagonist... Beware of how blatant you make your clues. Maybe introduce another suspect or two who could plausibly be the bad people. Because, seriously, nothing makes me grind my teeth harder than a deliberately obtuse MC who claims their utter blindness to obvious facts, ones that keep whacking them over their heads again and again and again, is "logic."

(This has been a public service message from Readers Against Clueless Characters.)

I have to agree with this. What would change if your character actually realized the truth earlier? Even much earlier? Who knows--maybe your story would get way more interesting rather than being (as I'm sure it must appear on the face of it) ruined.

It's only an idea, though, and you know your story better than I do. Maybe you weren't intending to do a Big Reveal. But anyway... make your character smart, be open to weird changes that may bring to your story, sometimes they're for the better because they complicate things.

Ichabod · Jul 28, 2019

I must be missing something. I don't see it as a trope or a cliche. Maybe it's the genre I've been reading, but I don't remember both parents being antags. The closest in my memory was The Americans ,but that was a TV series. I say write on, for I think it's fresh.

Cliché a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.
Trope a figurative or metaphorical use of a word or expression.

Ellis Clover · Jul 28, 2019

'You can't choose your family' is a saying for a reason. Parents as antagonist seems less a trope than a relatable human experience, imo.

starrystorm · Jul 29, 2019

Brightdreamer said:
To me, this a bigger potential pitfall than the parents being antagonists. If you keep waving red-flag clues in the reader's face only to have the MC dismiss them, the reader is more likely to kill the MC than the antagonist... Beware of how blatant you make your clues. Maybe introduce another suspect or two who could plausibly be the bad people. Because, seriously, nothing makes me grind my teeth harder than a deliberately obtuse MC who claims their utter blindness to obvious facts, ones that keep whacking them over their heads again and again and again, is "logic."

(This has been a public service message from Readers Against Clueless Characters.)

This is a good point, I might have to re-think this. I just think for her it's just a big step because then being her parents would mean she's also a different species--one she didn't even believe in for the longest time.

starrystorm · Jul 29, 2019

Also, I forgot to mention that she ran away (but forgot those memories) and that her parents have been searching endlessly for her ever since. They are so overjoyed at having her back in their lives, and she eventually lets herself go to them.

Kat M · Jul 29, 2019

starrystorm said:
Also, I forgot to mention that she ran away (but forgot those memories) and that her parents have been searching endlessly for her ever since. They are so overjoyed at having her back in their lives, and she eventually lets herself go to them.

Ooh, you could do SO much with that! I'm also of the opinion that making this plot point a source of conflict rather than a huge twist would make a better story, and this conflict—especially if the parents' joy is genuine and loving—makes it all the juicier!

SwallowFeather · Jul 29, 2019

starrystorm said:
Also, I forgot to mention that she ran away (but forgot those memories) and that her parents have been searching endlessly for her ever since. They are so overjoyed at having her back in their lives, and she eventually lets herself go to them.

Well, I do find that intriguing. The part about going back to them, and them overjoyed to have her. That's also less cliché than the whole "person I'm fighting turns out to be my parent" thing.

ETA: you'll need a really good reason for her to forget, though. It sounds like you're doing a certain amount of non-real (fantasy or sci-fi, I dunno, you implied she's not human) and I'd make up a really specific non-real explanation for the forgetting if I were you, not just "I blocked that out." Maybe you've done so already--just you asked us to point out potential pitfalls!

maggiee19 · Jul 29, 2019

I don't think this is a cliche. I think this is interesting, for an MC's parents to be antagonists.

starrystorm · Jul 29, 2019

SwallowFeather said:
Well, I do find that intriguing. The part about going back to them, and them overjoyed to have her. That's also less cliché than the whole "person I'm fighting turns out to be my parent" thing.

ETA: you'll need a really good reason for her to forget, though. It sounds like you're doing a certain amount of non-real (fantasy or sci-fi, I dunno, you implied she's not human) and I'd make up a really specific non-real explanation for the forgetting if I were you, not just "I blocked that out." Maybe you've done so already--just you asked us to point out potential pitfalls!

Thank you. I make her erase her memories because she tried to start a rebellion against her parents and ended up failing. she just wanted to run somewhere else without the guilt of her past on her shoulders. She lives as a high-tech alien species that mine magical substances. She takes some of the magical substance and loses her memories. When she gets back home though and recovers her memories, her parents have forgiven her, but also keep a watchful eye on her.

ETA: This is also just the first draft, so things might change about how she lost her memories.

Thomas Vail · Jul 29, 2019

It's popular because it inherently loaded with built-in tension and conflict, right from the get go. As I recall from the 1st season of 'Heroes,' the head of the government department after the supers didn't know his daughter was one of them. The existing familial relationship adds a new dynamic to the relationship between protagonist and antagonist.

Where it tends to go wrong is when it's assumed that just because their related that adds tension to plot. If there is little or no pre-existing family relationship to begin with, the MC finding out, 'you're really related to X!' probably doesn't mean that much, and then the narrative insists that changes everything, even when it shouldn't.

The antagonist's the parent trope. What makes it cliche?

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