| rdfs:comment | - Believe it or not, humans have an amazing ability to empathize with other humans and reasonably humanoid equivalents, even fictional ones! A lot of it has to do with the kind of focus a character receives, be it a Sympathetic POV, with Pet the Dog moments, or any of the dozens of Characterization Tropes. Supertrope behind Conservation of Ninjutsu, Mook, Red Shirt. See also: Rule of Cool, Rule of Funny, Rule of Drama. Examples of Rule of Empathy include:
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| abstract | - Believe it or not, humans have an amazing ability to empathize with other humans and reasonably humanoid equivalents, even fictional ones! A lot of it has to do with the kind of focus a character receives, be it a Sympathetic POV, with Pet the Dog moments, or any of the dozens of Characterization Tropes. This in turn extends a kind of Popularity Power onto the protagonist/focused on character, giving them a better chance of success in their endeavors than would otherwise be expected. So, one ninja can beat 10,000 ninjas because we've been following the one ninja the whole show; and we know nothing about any of the 10,000. On the other hand, when the villain comes, he's gonna put up an actual fight, because we know who he is, what he wants, and may even have developed sympathies for him as well. The Rule Of Empathy works hand in hand with Plot Armor; while The Rule Of Empathy gives a greater chance of success Plot Armor makes surviving long enough to reach that goal easier. Interestingly, it is by no means linked to intelligence. A compassionate fool is likelier to survive than a pragmatic Jerkass. This is also why the Littlest Cancer Patient cannot die of anything but their illness, we're simply too attached to them. Relatedly, it should be noted that the Rule Of Empathy is not an all-powerful charm that grants success and survival to sympathetic characters. It may well be used against the characters/audience with the likes of a Mauve Shirt being Killed Off for Real, or to hook us into rooting for the Boring Failure Hero. As noted earlier, making a villain sympathetic is a sure way of making the audience deeply invested in a story. Sure, they're bad, but they're not all bad. The Rule Of Empathy also informs viewers and characters (and at times authors) just how good or bad an action is within the context of the story. When a villain destroys a whole Throwaway Country, we don't care because we never saw those characters. But when they kill one character the audience or hero empathizes with, then they've crossed the Moral Event Horizon. The rule of empathy also has a dark side. There is a fate worse than being a "neutral" Innocent Bystander with no real attachment to the audience; characters who are notably unsympathetic will (with few exceptions) be in for a world of hurt. Whether it's because they Kick the Dog or do other heinous deeds that alienate them from (most) viewer's sympathies, these characters will have a comeuppance at the hands of something similar to karma, ranging from the Humiliation Conga, being Hoist by His Own Petard, suffering a Death by Irony, or falling to a Fate Worse Than Death. Related to Woobie and all variations thereof. Supertrope behind Conservation of Ninjutsu, Mook, Red Shirt. See also: Rule of Cool, Rule of Funny, Rule of Drama. Examples of Rule of Empathy include:
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