Literature Has Become A Series Of Easily Digestible Tropes

Once upon a time, you could find a summary on the backs of books. It would tell you a little about where the plot would go, give you a glimpse into who the characters are, and give you an idea of what you were about to read. Now, all you find is a list of meaningless tropes.

When TikTok came along, it brought the birth of “BookTok,” which is a niche side of TikTok dedicated to reading and literature. It was an open place for people to discuss their new reads and give out recommendations to others. It even allowed authors and readers to interact and for authors to advertise their books. This, of course, came with many benefits: readers were allowed to find a larger community, less popular books gained more traction, authors could directly interact with readers, etc.

However, like most things, there were some clear downsides when social media became involved. Especially as the discussion of tropes within a series became more popular, such as enemies-to-lovers or hero-turned-villain—vague but generally common themes or arcs within a storyline. And let’s be honest, we all have one that we love and would check out any book if they had it. Personally, I have always been partial to a good childhood-friends-to-lovers storyline.

However, with the concept of tropes getting increasingly popular, it quickly became a way for a large part of BookTok to determine if they would read a book or not even consider it. This created a huge marketing scheme within the publishing community where authors advertise their novels based on the tropes they contain, leaving out a basic summary.

This not only changed how we consumed books, many choosing half-assed tropes rather than significant stories that teach and expand our minds, but also how books are written. Novels have become hollow, relying deeply on these abstract themes and tropes rather than diving deep into the actual story or characters. More and more writers are focusing on tropes rather than the overall narrative and including some specific trope without making much sense to the story. Instead of a trope adding to the overall story, the story is added to the trope, creating an entire genre of trope-heavy but empty books.

Literature has become a series of digestible tropes, easy to understand and quick to consume. But that stops you from engaging with a piece of literature - or any piece of media, for that matter - in a meaningful and earnest way that allows you to read through a different or more difficult narrative. While we all love a trashy romance novel and easy-to-read murder mystery, books should also challenge you and force you to think from another perspective.

Good books can’t be defined by a vague trope that gives no effort to look deeper into the narrative. Good writers focus on the narrative and characters, not vague tropes that lose any meaningful impact. It’s why more and more people are scrolling past TikToks, recommending books based on their tropes and begging for a basic summary.

Like every kind of media, it’s time we start engaging with media more critically instead of looking for our favorite tropes in everything we read. It’s time we go back to look for a summary on the backs of books.

Strike Out, 

Rameen Naviwala

Boca Raton

Rameen Naviwala is a content writer for Strike Magazine Boca. A water sign that enjoys rom-coms and reading melodramatic novels, she spends most of her time with headphones on and scribbling down whatever thought comes to mind. You can reach her at rameen.naviwala@outlook.com.