abstract | - A scapegoat is one who, willingly or otherwise, takes the blame and/or punishment for something for which he or she wasn't responsible--though depending on where the Sliding Scale Long Name is, the relative innocence of said scapegoat will also vary. Any poor sap who runs afoul of a Powder Keg Crowd can become this, especially if they have Torches and Pitchforks; Zero-Percent Approval Rating governments seem to execute nothing but innocent scapegoat victims just for the spectacle of it or to keep up the appearance that the government is tough on crime; the Glory Hound will find a subordinate to take the blame for any failure. Sometimes, in a Distant Finale, the scapegoat is finally cleared, if not in public, then at least in the eyes of those who cared for him or her and at least hoped, if not always believed, that they were innocent. Compare Silent Scapegoat, where the Scapegoat volunteered for the job, and Wounded Gazelle Gambit, where "Gazelle" wounds (or pretends to wound) themselves to frame someone else. See also Scapegoat Creator, in which someone is blamed for stuff despite that their involvement on the finished product might have been drastically reduced, and Mis Blamed, in which the scapegoat gets all the blame for the mistake. Contrast the Windmill, who among other things can be used as the scapegoat for something that hasn't even happened! Examples of The Scapegoat include:
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