Something external must intercede (the magical helpers in fairy tales, Iago’s production of the handkerchief, the arrival in Miami of Bugs Moran and his thugs threatening Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in Some Like It Hot). The dramatic clock has run down at the zero point, and, after our immobility, we all are delighted and invigorated by the appearance of the unanticipated new thing, and thus the continuation of the story. In effect, “and then one day . . .” That’s how we appreciate stories, since that’s how we think.
