Misunderstandings in romances

[nancylebov]

From sartorias:

The Big Mis, or misunderstanding. I get really impatient when ten seconds of conversation would clear up the problem, which instead is protracted for the length of a book. Yet some of the funniest comedy is based on misunderstanding. I finally figured out when it works for me: it's when everyone thinks they know what's going on, but they perceive something different from what they are expected to know. So cross purpose talk, with several meanings, is going on. I see that as different from the misunderstanding in which there is no real reason why A won't ask B for clarification, and I am right out of the book when A does ask B, who says, "We don't have time now"--but then goes on to yap for pages about something completely different.

Are there any stories where it occurs to the characters that if they're afraid to ask each other important questions, that's a problem with their relationship?

Comments

[jim-p.livejournal.com]

Are there any stories where it occurs to the characters that if they're afraid to ask each other important questions, that's a problem with their relationship?

I doubt it... after all, hardly anybody would be able to identify with such characters...

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Heh!