Basic Trope: A character grows up and (usually) matures during the events of the story.
- Straight: While still a young boy, Bill D. Ungsroman leaves his childhood farm for the faraway Fair of Fairs, growing to maturity on the way. He comes to realize the Fair is not worth traveling to, but what he gained on the way more than makes up for it.
- Exaggerated: Bill is catapulted from his quiet farm life into the big city, where he learns repeatedly that adult life is neither wonderful nor pleasant most of the time.
- Downplayed: Being relatively mature for his age, Bill already knows most of what's waiting for him as he matures. That doesn't change how much it's going to hurt.
- Justified:
- Bill is rather sheltered.
- Bill is at that time of his life where he needs to learn important skills to survive in the real world.
- Inverted: The precociously mature Arthur learns to become a selfish, childish crook over the course of his journey to adulthood.
- Subverted: Bill doesn't learn anything during his journey, or doesn't learn anything important, leaving him with absolutely no clue how to handle adulthood.
- Double Subverted: Just like everyone else.
- Parodied: Bill learns that life sucks, two wrongs make a right and the ends justify the means one minute after being born.
- Zig Zagged: Although Bill's journey teaches him a lot about living on his own, it doesn't teach him everything. After arriving at the Fair, he falls into a bad group despite his efforts, another scenario which teaches him further lessons about living on his own.
- Averted: Bill already knows how to cope with adulthood and doesn't learn anything important on his journey.
- Enforced: We all have to grow up sometime.
- Lampshaded: Realizing how far he's come in such a short time makes Bill feel confident and secure.
- Invoked: Bill's father wants him to grow up more quickly, and contrives a scenario where he has to go to the Fair to get him out of his comfort zone.
- Exploited: Bill's father has a number of wares he needs sold; his son's happy childhood takes a backseat to paying taxes on the farm.
- Defied: Bill stays carefree and unaware of life's hardships to his dying day.
- Discussed: After voicing his doubts, Bill's parents tell him he's more than ready to begin life on his own.
- Conversed: As an old man, Bill relays the tale of his journey and how it changed him.
- Implied: A strange feeling of melancholy permeates the start of Bill's journey.
- Deconstructed:
- Bill's journey teaches him things he already knew, making his journey pointless.
- Bill is given way too much to handle on his journey, the whole experience leaving him crippled, bitter and unwilling to improve his pittance of a lot for the rest of his life.
- Reconstructed: After a lot of soul-searching, Bill realizes he never really wanted that much out of life anyway. He makes his peace with where he's at and learns to care for others as well as himself.
You'll learn everything you need to know on your journey back to the main page.
