To behave contrary to an established belief or
assumption for the purpose of
being fresh and interesting. Usually used in the arts when
analyzing the reaction of the audience to a performance or piece of writing. Sometimes mistakenly used as a positive when the result in neither fresh nor interesting.
A. Star Wars:
The Last Jedi did
a great job of subverting audience expectations!
B. No, it was just a narrative mess.
A. Your report written in crayon was very
unprofessional.
B. Come on! I was just trying to subvert expectations!
