The Narrative Features of Involuntary Time Loops

This essay introduces the category of involuntary time loop (ITL) stories and investigates their narrative specificities. These are stories in which the protagonist repeatedly lives through a certain period of time while all or most of the other characters do not experience the repetition. After a certain amount of time has passed in the protagonist's timeline, or after a specific event has occurred in the storyworld, the loop resets, and the character finds herself back at the beginning. I will argue that the involuntary loop is distinct from other time loops as well as other forms of time travel narratives not only on the subject level but formally. For this purpose, the essay outlines a typology of ITL narratives from different genres and media. I will demonstrate how recent examples explore and expand the possibilities of this peculiar narrative device. Case studies include Stuart Turton's murder mystery novel The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (2018), Leslye Headland, Natasha Lyonne, and Amy Poehler's TV drama Russian Doll (2018), Max Barbakow's romantic comedy movie Palm Springs (2020), and the adventure video game 12 Minutes by developer and designer Luis Antonio (2020).