Foreshadowing, a plot device where what is to come is hinted at, to arouse interest or to guard against disappointment MacGuffin, a plot motivator that is necessary to the plot and the motivation of the characters, but insignificant, unimportant, or irrelevant in itself Red herring, drawing attention to a certain element to mislead Shaggy dog story, a long-winded anecdote designed to lure the audience into a false sense of expectation, only to disappoint them with an anticlimactic ending or punchline.