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 Screenshot as of July 16, 2020 | |
Type of site | Wiki |
|---|---|
| Available in | 13 languages[1] |
| Owner |
|
| URL | tvtropes |
| Commercial | Ad-supported |
| Registration | Required for all features other than viewing |
| Users | 16,000+[3] |
| Launched | April 2004; 21 years ago (2004-04) |
| Current status | Active |
Content license | CC-BY-SA[4] before July 2012 CC BY-NC-SA[5] from July 2012 |
| Written in | PmWiki (very heavily modified with no current source code used)[6][7] |
TV Tropes (also written asTVTropes) is awiki founded in 2004 that collects and documents descriptions and examples ofplot conventions and devices, which it refers to astropes. Its contents cover many creative works and non-media subjects, which are written and maintained by a community ofvolunteers, known as "Tropers". The nature of the site as a provider of commentary on pop culture and fiction has attracted attention and criticism from several web personalities and blogs.
Established in 2004, TV Tropes initially focused on various tropes in television, but has since shifted to those in general media, toys, writings, and their associatedfandoms. It also covers non-media subjects such as history, geography, and politics.[8][9][10] Contents of TV Tropes are written and maintained by a community ofvolunteers, known as "Tropers". According to the site'sGoogle Analytics in August 2020, tropers primarily consist of 18-34 year olds.[11][12]
From April 2008 until July 2012, TV Tropes publishedfree content.[13] After that, the site modified its license to allow onlynon-commercial distribution of its content but continued to host the prior submissions under a new distribution license.[14][15]
TV Tropes runs on its ownwiki engine software, an extremely modified version ofPmWiki to the point where the PmWiki website lists that it "no longer uses PmWiki in any way; the only trace that remains is in the URL" and that "no code is in use" but is notopen source.[6][16] Before October 2010, it was possible to edit anonymously; however, registration is now mandatory for all other activities besides viewing the website.[17]
TV Tropes has two subwikis meant to categorize the more informal tropes and is held to less rigorous standards. Darth Wiki, named afterDarth Vader fromStar Wars as a play on "the dark side" of TV Tropes, is a resource for more criticism-based trope examples or common ways the wiki is inappropriately edited. Sugar Wiki, on the other hand, is about praise-based tropes, such as funny or heartwarming moments in works, and is meant to be "the sweet side" of TV Tropes.[citation needed]
TV Tropes was founded in 2004 by a programmer under the pseudonym "Fast Eddie." He described himself as having become interested in the conventions ofgenre fiction while studying atMIT in the 1970s and after browsing Internet forums in the 1990s.[18] He sold the site in 2014 to Drew Schoentrup andChris Richmond, who then launched aKickstarter to overhaul the codebase and design.[19]
Initially focused on the TV seriesBuffy the Vampire Slayer, TV Tropes has since expanded its coverage of many forms of media, includingfan fiction,[18] and many other subjects, including Internet works such asWikipedia (often referred to in a tongue-in-cheek way as "The Other Wiki").[19] Articles on the site often relate to real life or point out real situations where certain tropes are applied. It has used its informal style to describe topics such as science, philosophy, politics, and history under its Useful Notes section. TV Tropes does not have notability standards for the works it covers.[18]
On March 19, 2025, TV Tropes launched its own mobile app.[20]
In October 2010, in what TV Tropes refers to as "The Google Incident",Google temporarily withdrew itsAdSense service from the site after determining that pages regarding adult and mature tropes were inconsistent with its terms of service. The site separated NSFG articles (Not Safe for Google) from SFG articles (Safe for Google) in order to allow discussion of these kinds of tropes.[17][21]
In a separate incident in 2012 (referred to as "The Second Google Incident"), in response to other complaints by Google, TV Tropes changed its guidelines to restrict coverage ofsexist tropes andrape tropes. Feminist blogThe Mary Sue criticized this decision, as it censored documentation of sexist tropes invideo games andyoung adult fiction.[22]ThinkProgress additionally condemned Google AdSense itself for "providing a financial disincentive to discuss" such topics.[23] TV Tropes has then created "The Content Policy" to restrict works and tropes that are explicit sex contents or depictions of sexual activity between children. Several tropes and works were removed per the content policy.[24] Someforks were created after the change, notably All The Tropes and Tropedia.[25][non-primary source needed][26][non-primary source needed]
In an interview with TV Tropes co-founder Fast Eddie,Gawker Media's blogio9 described the tone of contributions to the site as "often light and funny".Cyberpunk authorBruce Sterling once described its style as a "wryfanfic analysis".[27] Essayist Linda Börzsei described TV Tropes as a technological continuum of classicalarchetypal literary criticisms, capable of deconstructingrecurring elements from creative works in an ironic fashion.[28] EconomistRobin Hanson, inspired by a scholarly analysis of Victorian literature,[29] suggests TV Tropes offers a veritable treasure trove of information about fiction – a prime opportunity for research into its nature.[30] InLifehacker, Nick Douglas compared TV Tropes toWikipedia, recommending to "use [TV Tropes] when Wikipedia feels impenetrable, when you want opinions more than facts, or when you've finished a Wikipedia page and now you want the juicy parts, the hard-to-confirm bits that Wikipedia doesn't share."[31] Writing forThe Believer, Chantel Tattolli commented that "It is deeply satisfying to go there and reckon with the patterns made over time, across culture, medium, and genre—and to catch them in rotation."[19]
In the bookMedia After Deleuze, authors David Savat and Tauel Harper say that while TV Tropes does offer a "wonderful archeology of storytelling", the site undermines creativity and experience by attempting to "classify and represent" every part of a work.[32] The site is described in Reference Reviews as "an excellent example oflinked data", but pointedly "lacks accountability as a reliable resource" due to its standards on notability.[33]
