The Hurt Delay

As recorded by Aristotle in Poetics, this invention's blueprint is a plot that discloses to the audience that a character is going to get hurt.

Aristotle hypothesised that this invention could stimulate catharsis, releasing the emotional tension after a traumatic fear. Modern research supports this idea. The hurt delay can increase our self-efficacy, a kind of mental strength that makes us better able to recover from our own experiences of trauma.