Basic Trope: Prophecies... rhyme. All the time.
- Straight: The prophecy that names The Chosen One is in rhyming verse.
- Exaggerated: The prophecy was written in rhyme in an ancient language from another time — and The Smart Guy translates it on-the-double into rhyming English with no trouble!
- Downplayed: The Cunning Linguist mentions that the original rhymes but he's not going to try and produce a rhyming translation.
- Justified:
- The prophecy has been passed down from a pre-literate society; rhyming verse was a useful mnemonic device.
- It's Nostradamus; it's his thing.
- The Quirky Bard is adept in Versomancy, an obscure twist on Magic Music that means she can divine the future as long as she recites it in the form of poetry.
- Inverted: In the middle of a rhyming work, The Fool speaking in plain verse delivers a chillingly matter-of-fact vision of things to come.
- Subverted: "...he conquers nation after nation, bent on possessing... bananas."
- Double Subverted: ...but then the translator realizes that a different word would make more sense, and also rhyme.
- Parodied: The ancient prophecy the heroes and villains have been working so hard to find is downright doggerel. They all wince at each Painful Rhyme as it is read out to them in reverential tones.
- Zig Zagged: There are a few prophecies from different sources; some were written in verse to disguise their true importance, others are more straightforward soothsaying. When translating them into English, the interpreter manages a couple of one-to-one rhymes, looking very pleased with himself when he does, but is ultimately more interested in preserving the meaning.
- Averted: Prophecies don't rhyme.
- Enforced: This is a Sung-Through Musical, so the prophecy would stand out more if it didn't rhyme (which could be a good thing; see Inverted).
- Lampshaded: "How'd you get it to rhyme in translation?"
- Invoked: An oracle makes sure his prophecy rhymes, as it's what people expect.
- Exploited: When looking for ancient prophecies, the heroes hunt down poetry teachers.
- Defied: The seer refuses to make the prophecy rhyme.
- Discussed: "Is there a reason why prophecies tend to rhyme?"
- Conversed: "Oh, I think they’re doing a rhyming prophecy! I wonder what word they’ll rhyme with ‘evil’."
- Implied: At one point, the heroes hear a poem that seems to reflect the plot of the series, but it's not confirmed to be a prophecy.
- Deconstructed: The heroes realize too late that they're on entirely the wrong track due to a translation error. When they confront the Smart Guy responsible, he complains that it's really hard to preserve both the rhyme and the meaning...
- Reconstructed: ???
- Played For Laughs: The prophecy is a limerick.
- Played For Drama: The prophecy is a dark, sad, beautiful poem.
Back to Prophecies Rhyme All the Time.
