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McGuffin

Sunday 9 October 2005 | Written by Richard Brunton | Blogging | Comments (2)

According to Webster's New Millennium Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.6), a McGuffin or MacGuffin is:

...in film, a plot device that has no specific meaning or purpose other than to advance the story; any situation that motivates the action of a film either artificially or substantively; also written MacGuffin . Alfred Hitchcock's term, based on a story where this device was used in a story set on a Scottish train

For a modern day example, it's used in Pulp Fiction. The briefcase with the shiny gold objects inside is a McGuffin.

So what you may ask?...

Well it got me thinking. In the context of this Blog, I am the McGuffin.

Comments

the snuffly one!
09-10-2005
09:53

eh!!If your a McGuffin..what does that make me?

Chris
28-10-2005
01:38

Pulp Fiction was exactly what came to mind as I started reading the definition. Lo and behold, it's listed two lines down.


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