suspend one's disbelief
Buy the story
To suspend one's disbelief is to temporarily set aside skepticism and accept the premises of a fictional or improbable scenario.
The phrase describes what audiences do when engaging with stories—accepting that superheroes fly or that characters burst into song.
You have to suspend your disbelief to enjoy the movie.
The concept, from Coleridge, suggests that enjoyment requires not questioning what we know to be impossible.
- world-buildingCreating fictional universes
- imaginationFaculty for forming ideas
- wonderAmazement or curiosity
- storytellingRecounting events aloud
- fictional worldImaginary narrative setting
empathy · acceptance · plot devices · plot holes · fourth wall · allegory · escapism · audience participation · speculative fiction · dramatic irony · mental flexibility · awe · curiosity · character development · immersive experiences · excitement · rationalization · genre conventions
suspend one's disbeliefpick apart
Criticize piece by piece
nitpick · call into question · debunk · fact-check · interrogate
suspend one's disbeliefdisengage
Break free from attachment
detach · deconstruct · stand apart · overthink · intellectualize
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