Morton's Fork: Difference between revisions
→Western Animation
(update links) |
|||
| (31 intermediate revisions by 8 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{trope}}
{{quote|''"The king is [[Parental Incest|having sex with his daughter]], and to keep suitors from marrying her, he asks them to [[Engagement Challenge|solve a riddle]]. If they don't solve it, he kills them. If they do solve it, [[He Knows Too Much|he also kills them, since the answer is 'the king is having sex with his daughter.']]"''
|'''Narrator''', "Pericles, Prince of Tired Plots" by [http://www.yarnivore.com/francis/archives/000405.html Francis Heaney]}}
A character is presented two alternatives, A and B. If the character chooses A, then something bad happens. If he or she chooses B, a similar or identical bad thing
The name comes from the tax-collecting practices of John Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor under [[The House of Tudor|Henry VII]]. He reasoned that anyone who was living extravagantly was rich, and so could afford high taxes, while anyone who was living frugally had saved a lot, and so could afford high taxes. Bear in mind before you get ''too'' crazy that this was typically used to keep people well-known to be well-off anyway from trying to weasel their way into not paying; he wasn't exactly trying to collect from peasants in hovels. Instead, he was trying to abolish a then-common excuse for not paying taxes (that is, not having any money to do so).
A similar concept, if not the exact same, is associated with the phrase '''"catch-22"''', a reference to a plot point in a [[Catch-22|Joseph Heller book]]. A pilot who wants to leave the military by pleading insanity is told that he should be able to request to do so - but as one would have to be crazy to keep flying, and sane to want to leave, making the request would prove that he is sane, and so the request is denied. A "catch-22" is thus an either/or choice where both choices produce the same (unwanted) outcome.
This is often confused with "Hobson's choice." [[wikipedia:Thomas Hobson|Thomas Hobson]] leased horses, and in order to make sure all got used and exercised, he had customers automatically assigned the one nearest the door rather than let them pick which one they wanted; the customer's "choice" was "Take the horse assigned, or don't get any horse." A Hobson's choice is a false choice because although there are two results, one is so empty [[But Thou Must!|you must take the other]]. A Morton's Fork is a false choice because there is only one result to take.▼
▲
Compare [[Xanatos Gambit]], where this is weaponized in a specific type of [[
▲Compare [[Xanatos Gambit]], where this is weaponized in a specific type of [[Plan]] and often used by [[The Chessmaster]]. See also [[Sadistic Choice]], which similarly forces characters to choose between two untenable choices, except that it's [[Played for Drama]]. Characters often attempt to respond by [[Taking a Third Option]], with varying degrees of success. They may instead pick one to [[Get It Over With]]. If they get sick of being cheated, see [[Ballistic Discount]]. If the fork is deliberately placed into a test, this is [[Unwinnable Training Simulation]].
{{examples}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==▼
▲== Anime and Manga ==
* Utilized to epic proportions in the manga version of the final battle against Chaos in ''[[Sailor Moon]]'', in which the main character has the choice of either destroying Chaos utterly and the Cauldron with it, thus dooming their galaxy to a slow extinction as no new lives will be created from it or just possibly ''momentarily'' delaying the Ultimate Evil's return resulting in a massive intergalatic war...in which hundreds of billions of people may die anyway but would still end up being reborn because the Cauldron is still there. Guess which option she chooses?
** That's actually sugar-coating the choice. Chaos would likely return from being "destroyed utterly", too, and the second option listed there is actually the [[Take a Third Option|third option.]] The second option—which was taken by Sailor Cosmos in her original timeline—was simply to flee, leaving the Cauldron intact, but not even delaying Chaos.
* During the fight with Dynamis in ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'' {{spoiler|Dynamis fakes being downed then launches an attack that Negi can make go through him. If he does, his students will be hit and killed. If he doesn't, he takes a huge sword to the stomach, but can heal it off. Not stated but quite probable is that either choice will also probably cause him to go berserk, either due to having to use Magic Erebea for a healing factor or rage at what happened to his students.}}
* Episode 11 of ''[[Puella Magi Madoka Magica]]'' comes down to this. An incredibly powerful witch called Walpurgisnacht is coming, and Homura has three choices:
** Try to stop it without {{spoiler|Madoka
** Stop it with {{spoiler|Madoka
** Essentially flee by {{spoiler|going [[Alternate Timelines|back in time]] and [[Groundhog Day Loop|starting over]]}}.
== [[Comic Books]] ==▼
* There's a Chuck Dixon arc wherein Two-Face kidnaps Robin and forces him to choose between hanging [[Batman]] and District Attorney Meany. Robin attempts to [[Take a Third Option]] and reminds Two-Face of his schtick, Two-Face flips his coin, and Meany's number is up. The trapdoor drops, Meany starts to hang, and Robin, still thinking outside the box, throws a batarang to sever the rope—which causes Meany to drop into the water below, and drown. Two-Face then tries to kill Batman, with predictable results. Morton's Fork applies because not only was Two-Face clearly planning on killing both men no matter who Robin chose, but he also managed to plan for the third option.▼
▲== Comic Books ==
▲* There's a Chuck Dixon arc wherein Two-Face kidnaps Robin and forces him to choose between hanging Batman and District Attorney Meany. Robin attempts to [[Take a Third Option]] and reminds Two-Face of his schtick, Two-Face flips his coin, and Meany's number is up. The trapdoor drops, Meany starts to hang, and Robin, still thinking outside the box, throws a batarang to sever the rope—which causes Meany to drop into the water below, and drown. Two-Face then tries to kill Batman, with predictable results. Morton's Fork applies because not only was Two-Face clearly planning on killing both men no matter who Robin chose, but he also managed to plan for the third option.
** Two-Face, and occasionally other villains in the Batman mythos (particularly the Joker, depending on what day of the week it is) use stuff like this all the time.
* At one point in ''[[Ex Machina]]'', Mayor Hundred is on a talk-radio show and has been asked if he, in the eventuality that Osama bin Laden was captured and put on trial in the US, would support or oppose his execution. Answering yes goes against his own political statements as a firmly anti-death-penalty politician, but answering no makes him sound like he is sympathetic to bin Laden. [[Take a Third Option|He instead calls the interviewer a "motherfucker" and walks out]], pointing out to his staff that there is absolutely no correct answer to that question.
* While in the ''[[Saw]]'' series, most of the traps essentially did this, traps set by Amanda were inescapable. This left victims the choice of dying horribly from the trap or killing themselves horribly while trying to escape the trap with no option to survive.
* In ''[[Life of Brian]]'', Brian doesn't want to be the Messiah. Unfortunately:
Line 36 ⟶ 37:
* In ''[[Mystic River]]'', {{spoiler|Jimmy Markum (Sean Penn) confronts Dave Boyle (Tim Robbins) about the murder of Markum's daughter. Markum is wrongfully convinced that Boyle killed her, so he tells him to, "Admit it and I'll let you live." Boyle confesses to save his life, so Markum kills him.}} In the book this is made a little clearer, and (slightly) justified. {{spoiler|Jimmy needs to know WHY his daughter was killed, and he's demanding an honest answer. When Dave answers, Jimmy can tell that he's lying, and kills him for lying about the reason.}}
== [[Literature]] ==▼
▲== Literature ==
* Probably the most famous example amongst modern literature is ''[[Catch-22]]''. There are several instances of this used during the story, the most notable being the reason for why pilots had to fly missions: pilots would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if they didn't, but if they were sane they had to fly them. If they flew them they were crazy and didn't have to; but if they didn't want to they were sane and had to. This example is so famous that this dilemma is frequently ''called'' a Catch-22 in common usage.
* ''The Lady or the Tiger'', by Frank R. Stockton. A young man and a barbarian princess, the only daughter of the king, fall in love. Since this is [[Star-Crossed Lovers]], specifically Forbidden Love, the young man is condemned to the possibility of gruesome death in the arena: He must choose between two doors. Behind one is a hungry tiger, and behind the other is a beautiful woman whom he must marry. When he looks to the barbarian princess (who knows which door holds which) for a hint, she faces a Morton's Fork, since whether her lover is killed or given to a hated rival, either way she will lose him.
* In ''Chalice'' by Robin McKinley, one of the main characters is a former priest of fire and has to concentrate before touching anyone to avoid magically burning them. In order to manufacture a grievance against him, his feudal lord deliberately trips in front of him. If he catches his lord, he'll burn him, which is an insult; if he doesn't, he's letting him fall, which is also an insult.
* ''The Schrödinger's Cat Trilogy'' by Robert Anton Wilson contains a somewhat fictionalized description of the British [[wikipedia:Double Cross System|Double Cross System]] during the [[World War II|Second World War]], which puts it explicitly in these terms. It's described as feeding "Strange Loops" to German
* In [[Dan Abnett]]'s ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]'' novel ''[[Brothers of the Snake]]'', Khiron asks to be exposed to the sea serpents of their home world: if they eat him, he is acquitted and [[Due to the Dead|will be mourned]], and if they refuse, his fellow Space Marines will know he is tainted and execute him. He wants to [[Get It Over With]], as the evidence against him is very strong. Fortunately, new evidence turns up in time to rescue him.
** This is only Morton's Fork due to [[Values Dissonance]]. To the reader, the outcome is equally bad either way (death). The Adeptus Astartes, however, are '''extremely''' honor-conscious; a fatal acquittal is a FAR better fate in their eyes than being seen as tainted.
*** Another side here is whether "Battle Brothers" manage to save his geneseed. Which they won't do if it's presumed severely tainted, of course.
* In the classic
* ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'' has the protagonists given the choice of dying in the vacuum of space for refusing to say something nice about [[Giftedly Bad|Vogon Poetry]] or finding something nice to say about Vogon Poetry... and then dying in the vacuum of space. However, the Vogon Captain only reveals this additional clause to Option B after they've already tried to say something nice, so it's not clear whether he was going to do that all along or just felt offended by their pitiful attempt to compliment his work.
** Given the way Vogons are portrayed throughout the series, "was going to do that all along" sounds highly plausible.
Line 59:
* ''[[Myth Adventures|Myth Conceptions]]'': The king of Possiltum hires Skeeve as court magician to defeat an invading army. The fact that the army is apparently unstoppable and Skeeve and Aahz are likely to die in the attempt isn't the biggest problem; the problem is that it's now a matter of principle that the kingdom is choosing to rely on magic for its defenses rather than the military. If they lose, or take the money and run, the reputation of magicians everywhere suffers; if they win, they'll be assassinated on the way back, on the orders of the general who's pissed that the king hired a magician instead of using the army.
== [[Live-Action TV]] ==
* In one episode of ''[[Important Things with Demetri Martin]]'', a sketch has him choosing whether to sit next to a beautiful young woman or an old man at a wedding reception. Both scenarios end with the same savage beating by the same group of thugs.
* In the final episode of ''[[Blackadder]] II'', Blackadder is given a choice: admit to being in love with Satan "and all his little wizards" and get his testicles chopped off with a scythe and roasted over a fire, or don't admit it and be held upside down in a vat of warm marmalade...''and'' get his testicles chopped off with a scythe and roasted over a fire. Naturally he chooses the former, but is "rescued" before the threat can be carried out.
* In the penultimate episode of ''[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon]]'', the senshi find themselves facing down {{spoiler|Mamoru, who's been possessed and corrupted by Metallia}}. If they lose the battle, the world will be destroyed, but the only way to win the battle will ''also'' trigger the end of the world. {{spoiler|They win the battle and the world does end, though a [[Heroic Sacrifice]] helps it get better.}}
* Usually invoked [[Once an Episode]] on ''[['Allo 'Allo!
** One episode has this happen where he is forced to collaborate with the Nazis, the Resistance, and the ''Communist'' Resistance, all who will kill him if they find out he's been working with the other.
* In ''[[How I Met Your Mother]]'', Lily and Marshal have a bet to see who can collect 5 people's phone numbers first. If Marshall wins, they have sex in the bathroom. If Lily wins, they have sex in the bathroom. Lily comments that this is their standard wager.
* In an episode of ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'', after everything goes predictably wrong, Rodney is asked what options they have. His response?
{{quote|'''Rodney''': Let me see, we've got quick death, slow death, painful death, cold, lonely death...}}
* In the second episode of ''[[Yes Minister]]'', Sir Humphrey is asked a question that has no correct answer and cannot be ignored - but he brought the situation upon himself by saying the wrong thing at the wrong time to a visiting head of government:
{{quote|'''Sir Humphrey:''' Blackmail.
'''Charlie:''' Are you referring to me or my proposal?}}
== [[Music]] ==
▲== Music ==
* The Clash, "Should I Stay Or Should I Go":
{{quote|If I go there will be trouble
If I stay it will be double }}
== [[Newspaper Comics]] ==▼
* ''[[Doonesbury]]'' ran a picture of an American flag in response to the proposed anti-flag desecration amendment. Every way of disposing of it would be in violation of the amendment, meaning it had to be kept forever.▼
* ''[[Bloom County]]''
** In the 2015 reboot, Opus is conscripted into being a Presidential candidate, which he does not want. In the strip [https://www.gocomics.com/bloom-county/2015/09/29 seen here], a government official tells him he can't withdraw his candidacy, except by reason of insanity. When Opus tries that, the guy makes him swear he does not want to be President — which means he's clearly sane, and thus cannot withdraw.
** A similar joke is made in 2019. Milo tells Opus that simply ''running'' for President means the candidate is too nuts to do the job, and ''rejecting'' it means he's sane enough to do it. He calls it a "Presidential Catch-22".
== [[Oral Tradition]], [[Folklore]], Myths and Legends ==
* Cuchulain in Irish myth would lose his strength if he refused a meal, or consumed dogflesh. [[Weaksauce Weakness|His enemies learned this and promptly invited him to dine on dogflesh, meaning he'd lose his powers either way.]]
* [[Older Than Feudalism]] example from [[The Bible|the New Testament]]: The Pharisees tried this trick several times to try and turn Jesus' popularity against him. In [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+12:13-17&version=NIV Mark 12:13], they asked whether the Jews should pay the oppressive taxes imposed on them by their Caesar. If he said yes, then he was acknowledging that Caesar ruled over the Jews. If he said no, he was guilty of treason. [[Take a Third Option|He didn't let this trip him up]]. The phrase "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's" is familiar enough, but the subtext isn't quite obvious: apparently, when the Pharisees showed him the coin with Caesar's image, they must have realised they were dealing with the (obviously, forbidden) image of a false god, and for that reason were ready to stop arguing about matters of impiety.
** Another interpretation is that it was an intentional bit of ambiguous wordplay that can go either way. After all, what ''isn't'' God's?
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070529214313/http://www.nasruddin.org/ Nasruddin Hodja] acted as a [[Trickster Archetype|Trickster]], especially when people pestered him for a piece of wisdom. Once when he had to preach but wasn't in a mood for this, he talked his way out of it... three times in a row:
{{quote|'''Nasruddin''': O people of Akshahir! Do you know and understand what I am about to say to you?
'''The people''': No, we don't.
Line 90 ⟶ 97:
'''The people''': ''(Some shout "No", some "Yes")''
'''Nasruddin''': Wonderful! Now let those who know tell those who do not know. }}
* Buddha met his death this way when he was kindly offered a meal which unknowingly contained bad food. While Buddha knew the food wasn't safe to eat, the people offering it to him didn't. Either Buddha could have gone against his beliefs and refused hospitality, or eaten the food and let his health suffer. He ate the food and died from it, but was fine as it was his time to die.
* The [[w:Kuchisake-onna|Kuchisake-onna]] is a malevolent [[yokai]] mentioned in Japanese urban legends and media. She approaches a typically-male victim appearing as a woman wearing a surgical mask (which is very common in Japan and neighboring countries, even before the [[COVID-19 pandemic]]), and asks the victim if he thinks she is pretty. A “no” causes her to produce a pair of shears and stab him to death - a “yes”, however, causes her to remove her mask, revealing a horrific [[Glasgow Grin]], and then repeat the question. This time, a “no” results in an even more brutal death, possibly by being cut in half, while a “yes” results in her restraining the victim and using the shears to give him a Glasgow Grin like hers - in one version, she lets the victim leave, only for her to come to his house and murder him in his sleep.
** This seems like a no-win situation; running away won’t work, as she is a ghost after all. but there are a few ways to [[Take A Third Option]]: giving a neutral answer, like “I’m not sure” (which confuses her and gives you time to escape), telling her you’re busy or late for an appointment ([[Villainous Valor|causing her to let you go]]), or offering or throwing money or [[Sweet Tooth|hard candy]] in her path, which [[Delicious Distraction|she’ll stop to pick up]].
* Also from Japan, the [[w:Aka Manto|Aka Manto]] a demon that [[The Can Kicked Him|haunts school or public restrooms]].<ref>For Western Tropers who are more familiar with American urban legends, the genre is different in Japan, where villains of unambiguous supernatural origin are far more common.</ref> It offers the victim a choice between red or blue toilet paper; choose red and the demon kills the victim by stabbing (or in one version, flaying) them, while choosing blue results in being strangled. Trying to insult its intelligence by asking for a different color will get the victim [[Dragged Off to Hell]]. There are ways to [[Take A Third Option]] here, too; to survive, one must [[Just Ignore It|ignore the demon]], run from it (possibly because it is [[Ghostly Goals|magically bound to the place it haunts]]), or saying you don’t need any paper.
* There is a legend that says one of the Han Emperors of China one day met a Silver Lightning Snake. The snake said
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
* ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'':
** One issue of ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' magazine has a list of [[Riddle of the Sphinx|riddles the gynosphinx might use]], with the usual deal that if the PCs fail to answer them correctly, they're lunch. One of them, to be issued when the sphinx's hunger overcomes her fairness, has the solution "Kill me".
** Paladins sooner or later tend to face the dilemma of "[[To Be Lawful or Good]]?" - which both is an in-character trouble and may mean fall from grace on the spot
▲**** Part of the material compiled in ''Book of Exalted Deeds'' was dedicated to things like giving the Paladin a way out or [[Take a Third Option|third option]]: when faced with this dilemma, protecting pure love is more important and takes precedence, and therefore you ignore the order. In fact, you are encouraged to figure out whether the 'legitimate' authority might actually be corrupt, because a just leader wouldn't (knowingly) give you such an order.
*** [[Forgotten Realms]] materials specifically noted that while paladins generally agree on "Paladin's Virtues" per classic work of a retired paladin, different faiths and orders has each its own dogma and agenda, so they have different priorities and interpretations. In other words, paladins of gods promoting optimism and vigilance obviously may have disagreements that don't fall under "[[To Be Lawful or Good]]", with each clearly following their own dogma. While being inclined to resolve these unresolvable conflicts in the spirit of goodwill and cooperation, what's with being Lawful Good. That's even before an individual paladin runs into something truly non-standard.
* ''[[Paranoia (game)|Paranoia]]'' is all about setting up situations where The Computer and your secret society both assign you dangerous, mutually contradictory goals, and have the means to punish you if you don't deliver. And then you have to deal with your fellow Troubleshooters and all of ''their'' contradictory goals.
** And if you're still alive, the debriefing may involve variations of the old "Have you stopped beating your wife yet?"
*** One of the best examples is from the adventure module ''Me and My Warbot Mark IV'', which includes a "debriefing questionnaire" to be completed at the end of the adventure. Instructions on the form include the line "Answer all questions fully, completely, correctly, and honestly. Failure to do so is treason!". And of course, Question #6 is "YOUR SECURITY CLEARANCE IS INSUFFICIENT TO VIEW THIS QUESTION. HAVE A NICE DAYCYCLE." But it still has a blank for the character to write in his answer...
Line 108 ⟶ 118:
* Pretty much the only strategy possible in Tic Tac Toe beyond "hope your opponent is an idiot".
== [[Theater]] ==
* The page quote is a reasonably accurate summary of act I of ''[[William Shakespeare|Pericles, Prince of Tyre]]''. The title character tries to [[Take a Third Option]] by stalling; this leads the king becoming suspicious of him and deciding to kill him anyway.
* ''Nathan the Wise'' is set in Jerusalem during a ceasefire in the course of the Crusades. In the interest of keeping that peace, Saladin and the Catholic Church have agreed on a law that makes both proselytizing and apostasy punishable by death. The local representative of the [[Corrupt Church]] asks the title character to answer which of Judaism, Christianity, or Islam is the true religion, knowing that because of those laws, Nathan will be put to death if he chooses any of the three. Nathan takes a third (technically fourth) option.
* Repeatedly played for laughs in ''[[The Merchant of Venice]]''.
** Launcelot, who wants to get out of working for Shylock, reasons that his master is a devil...but still, if he runs away and breaks his contract, he'll commit a sin, and then he'll be working for the devil anyway. He finally makes up his mind to run away, since he figures that the ''real'' devil is the lesser of two evils.
** Later, Launcelot explains to Jessica that because the children suffer for the sins of the parents, she'll go to hell for being Shylock's daughter—the only way out is to turn out
* In ''[[As You Like It]]'', Touchstone tries to argue for unchastity in this manner. It doesn't work.
{{quote|'''Touchstone ''': No, truly, unless thou wert hard-favoured; for honesty coupled to beauty is to have honey a sauce to sugar.
Line 120 ⟶ 130:
'''Touchstone ''': Truly, and to cast away honesty upon a foul slut were to put good meat into an unclean dish. }}
== [[Video Games]] ==▼
* In the first ''[[Marvel Ultimate Alliance]]'': In Mephisto's Realm, you are faced with the [[Sadistic Choice]] of letting either Nightcrawler or Jean Grey fall to their death (and it's impossible to [[Took a Third Option|save them both]]<ref>Unless {{spoiler|you have recruited Magneto}} - who is downloadable content - the only way to get the [[Golden Ending]]</ref>). At the end of the game, if you chose to save Nightcrawler, {{spoiler|Jean comes back as the Dark Phoenix}}. On the other hand, if you chose to save Jean, {{spoiler|Mystique (Nightcrawler's mother) murders Charles Xavier in revenge, and the X-Men consequently disband}}. Either way, the Watcher will tell you that "It was unfortunate..."▼
▲== Video Games ==
▲* In the first ''[[Marvel Ultimate Alliance]]'': In Mephisto's Realm, you are faced with the [[Sadistic Choice]] of letting either Nightcrawler or Jean Grey fall to their death (and it's impossible to [[Took a Third Option|save them both]]). At the end of the game, if you chose to save Nightcrawler, {{spoiler|Jean comes back as the Dark Phoenix}}. On the other hand, if you chose to save Jean, {{spoiler|Mystique (Nightcrawler's mother) murders Charles Xavier in revenge, and the X-Men consequently disband}}. Either way, the Watcher will tell you that "It was unfortunate..."
* ''[[Deus Ex]]'' and its sequel.
** None of the endings are outright ''happy'' endings. In two endings of the sequel, they are decidedly downbeat.
Line 136 ⟶ 145:
** Your first visit to Nar Shadaa has you confronted with a beggar asking for money. Whether or not you give him anything, something horrible happens, ending with someone getting stabbed. The only difference is in who does the stabbing (the beggar if you didn't give him money) and in who is getting stabbed (the beggar if you ''did'' give him money). Kreia uses this as evidence for her [[Ayn Rand]]-esque personal philosophy.
** Whenever you make any choice that nets you light side or dark side points, Kriea will berate you for disturbing the balance of the universe. ''And'' for not choosing a side. Apathy is Death.
* In ''[[Star Wars: The
** Republic Trooper players get confronted with a classic halfway through the third chapter of their storyline - Havoc Squad respond to a distress call from {{spoiler|Sergeant Ava Jaxo, a decidedly feisty young Special Forces soldier who is a non-companion romance option for male characters on Coruscant.}} Summoning them to a hidden Imperial prison facility currently containing more than three hundred important Republic personnel. Storming the prison goes smoothly at first {{spoiler|but turns out to be a cunningly laid trap by Imperial General Rakton, who shows up with a fleet of destroyers and start shooting the station apart hard}}. The player is given the choice of A) {{spoiler|diverting power from the maintenance levels where Sergeant Jaxo is hiding to the shields, which will kill her but buy enough time for all three hundred and fourteen prisoners to make it to the escape ship}} or B) {{spoiler|rescuing Jaxo, who is begging for her life, but condemning half or more of the prisoners to die in the process and causing Jaxo to suffer from survivor's guilt and never forgive you}}.
* In the ending of ''[[Grand Theft Auto IV]]'', whether you choose to take the money or kill {{spoiler|Dimitri}} in the penultimate mission, {{spoiler|you will lose Kate}}. If you kill {{spoiler|Dimitri}}, the mob boss you were working for gets pissed at you for souring the deal and {{spoiler|kills Kate in a drive-by shooting}}. If you take the money, {{spoiler|Kate}} will call you out on abandoning your morals and will {{spoiler|leave you anyway}}.
Line 157 ⟶ 166:
* One of the many sidequests in ''[[Xenoblade]]'' requires you to fetch a jewel used as an engagement present and give it to one of two corners of a love triangle. However, Shulk's precognition tells him that the woman, at least, will end up unhappy either way.
* A small side quest in ''[[The Elder Scrolls]] 3: Tribunal'' deals with a down on his luck elf who asks you for some gold. If you give him gold, he'll demand more and more until he finally declares you're lying about having that much gold and are trying to mock him with your kindness. If you turn him down at any point, he declares you to be a heartless bastard. If you [[Take a Third Option|attack him]], he vanishes. Either way, he reappears later as a [[Boss in Mook Clothing]].
* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'': In the ‘’Battle for Azeroth’’ expansion, you find a Lost Goat in the wilds of the Drustvar region with a collar that reads “Marzipan”. You have two options when you speak to it: You can be nice and say, “Hey there, Marzipan, you look a little lost. Why don’t you come with me and we’ll get you home, okay?” OR, you can be mean and say, “Dumb goat, let’s go before you get eaten by monsters.” Unfortunately, both options cause the same result, a [[Boss| Gluttonous Yeti]] appearing, crushing the poor goat and attacking the player.
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* [http://www.lukesurl.com/archives/1243 This page] by ''Luke Surl''.
** [[Fridge Logic|If what happens on page 72 is that he explains why he believes in predestination]], that actually makes perfect sense, since of course he's going to do that regardless of what you believe.
Line 171 ⟶ 180:
:: And as he points out, no matter what Elan does he's ''already'' lived like a king for years and Elan doesn't have a chance of taking him down for quite some time. Even if he died completely forgotten and anonymous, he still thinks he's won.
* Bun-bun faces this at the top of [http://sluggy.com/comics/archives/daily/020428 this] ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'' strip.
* ''[[Nip and Tuck]]'' [https://web.archive.org/web/20120512062258/http://www.rhjunior.com/NT/00766.html take] on headaches feminism can give even its [[Straw Feminist|most dedicated supporters]].
** If you use sex appeal, you're pandering to the patriarchy, but you can do what you want with your own body; just don't get on anyone else's case for using sex appeal. If you aren't sexy, you may be repressed, or modest, or poor, or simply not wanting to bother; it all depends on ''why''. Some women can take care of themselves, some can't, and it's irresponsible to treat one as the other. Unless one member of the relationship (male or female) is either fabulously rich or dead broke, it's inappropriate to ALWAYS pay (control freak) or NEVER pay (irresponsible jerk/tightwad); as with all other obligations, a healthy balance works best. The lesson, as always: Use your head and don't listen to ignorant loudmouths (which could apply to several other entries on this page).
* ''[[Amazing Super Powers]]'' has [http://www.amazingsuperpowers.com/2009/03/milk-money/ this one].
Line 185 ⟶ 194:
}}
* ''Dorkly'' had Voldemort's assistant in [http://www.dorkly.com/post/59737/voldemorts-assistant-kevin-in-baby-blues "Baby Blues"] pointing out that an attempt to use [[There Is No Kill Like Overkill|his most powerful spell]] to [[Nice Job Breaking It, Herod|murder a baby]] can have only two possible results - it either will do the job, or for some reason won't - either of which [[Never Live It Down|he will never live down]].
* ''[[Dilbert]]'' has "[http://dilbert.com/search_results?terms=catch-22 catch-22]" tag for this and [[No Except Yes]]. E.g. "[http://dilbert.com/strip/2016-10-24 Mandatory Safety Meeting]". Occasionally it's played on the [[Pointy-Haired Boss]], too ("[http://dilbert.com/strip/2015-07-21 Why Can't You Be Happy?]").
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'':
** [[Lampshaded]] in one episode, when Bart and Lisa are being hazed by cadets at a military academy:
Line 192 ⟶ 202:
'''Lisa''': Is there any answer I can give that won't result in you making me do more push-ups?
''(Cadets talk amongst themselves for a few seconds)''
'''Cadet''': No.
* In one of the last episodes of the [[Rocky and Bullwinkle]] series, Boris was caught in one where, after stealing a raft-load of goods, the award he received for the deed caused the raft to begin sinking. If the goods sunk, Boris would be shot, and if he threw away the award to stop the raft from sinking, he'd still be shot.
* In the animated version of ''[[Pac-Man (animation)|Pac-Man]]'', the episode where the Ghost Monsters accidentally zap themselves with the Nightmare Ray they intend to use on Pac-Man, Clyde has a nightmare where he's on trial, charged with crimes that include Chomping Without a License and Chomping ''With'' a License.
* The ''[[DC Super Hero Girls]]'' episode #BackInAFlash starts with an assembly at the school where Babs is eating a breakfast burrito with beans. This causes her to pass gas while the principal is talking, and while she tries to conceal it, [[Troll| Leslie]] quickly shouts that it was her, humiliating Babs and making her a pariah. Babs convinces [[The Flash| Barry]] to use his [[Time Travel]] abilities to go back and prevent it from happening by replacing the bean burrito with a veggie burrito. Then they decide to [[Mundane Utility| do a few other things]] like watch a movie she loves when it was still in theaters and buy a rare collectible comic book when it was still easy to obtain. But when they return to the present, they find their actions have caused a [[Butterfly of Doom]] that resulted in a [[Bad Future]] with General Zod ruling the world! They go back and undo everything ''except'' the burrito switch (Babs being very reluctant to undo that one), but that makes it worse (Starro has now conquered the world) so it becomes clear that the key event was the burrito switch. The decision Babs must make is clear: save the world by restoring the key event to what it was, or save her reputation by letting the change stand. Now, this is [[Batgirl]] we’re talking about, and one would assume the choice is obvious for anyone worthy of calling herself a hero; Babs does indeed decide on the first choice… but there’s a twist. Before she can do so, she is stopped by several alternate timeline versions of herself that did ''not'' prefer that choice, and now want to stop her. Then just as many versions of herself who agree with her choice show up to give her backup. Babs finally [[Take a Third Option| sees a third option]] - she gives the burrito to her past self with a warning of what both paths entail and lets ''her'' decide, deleting both timelines and starting anew. Thus, while she isn’t able to avoid farting at the assembly, she does not try to hide it and admits it, getting everyone to laugh and avoiding further scorn.
* ''[[Harley Quinn (TV series)|Harley Quinn]]''; In the episode "Killers Block", after Barbara is shot and crippled by the Joker (a clear shout out to ''[[The Killing Joke]]'') Harley goes gunning for revenge, captures the Joker, and drags him to the zoo where she threatens to feed him to Bud and Lou, her two hyenas. Unfortunately, as much as Harley ''wants'' to kill him, he can't exactly do so in order to avenge Barbara, as she's trying to prove to Barbara she's no longer a villain. And the Joker knows this. He tells Harley she can either prove she's good and let him live, or prove she hasn't changed and kill him. Eventually, Harley decides to [[Take a Third Option]], she dumps him on Jim Gordon's doorstep (gift-wrapped) and let ''him'' deal with the Joker - [[Papa Wolf| as he is very very anxious to do]].
▲* There is a legend that says one of the Han Emperors of China one day met a Silver Lightning Snake. The snake said: If you cut my head off, I will destroy you, if you cut my tail off, I will destroy your empire. The emperor cut her in half. From the remains sprang Wang Mang, the guy who split the Han-Dynasty in half and was later overthrown by Han Guangwu, who founded the Later Han.
▲== [[Newspaper Comics]] ==
▲* ''[[Doonesbury]]'' ran a picture of an American flag in response to the proposed anti-flag desecration amendment. Every way of disposing of it would be in violation of the amendment, meaning it had to be kept forever.
== Other Media ==
* There's a well-known story that the Caliph Umar whose army sacked the Library of Alexandria said of its books that either they contradicted the Koran and thus were heretical and should be burned, or they agreed with the Koran and thus were superfluous and should be burned. Either way, they wound up on the bonfire. Though [[You Fail History Forever|almost certainly false]], this legend can be traced back [http://www.nybooks.com/articles/3517 at least] to the 13th century.
** It's reused to similar effect in the pastiche of the Alexandria burning in [[
** Also referred to in ''[[Final Crisis]]: Submit'', where Black Lightning, having been subjected to the [[The Virus|Anti-Life Equation]], is burning Darwin's ''The Origin of Man'' and states "What disagrees with [[Omnicidal Maniac|Darkseid]] is heresy. What agrees with Darkseid is superfluous."
*** [[Grant Morrison]] had previously used the same line in ''[[Justice League of America|JLA]]: Rock of Ages'' in an alternate future where Metron, New God of Knowledge had been subjected to the Equation.
* There's a classic [[Jewish Mother]] joke that works like this: She gives her son two nice ties for his birthday. Next week he goes to dinner at her house wearing one of them. The mother says, "What's the matter, you didn't like the other one?"
** Some version go further. Following week, the son bring the other tie, and the mother remarks "You used to like the other, why don't you like it anymore?". A week later, the son tries to play smart, wearing no tie (or both at once) to the
*** The only possible alternative, probably, would be to bring both ties and keep changing in and out of them at equally timed intervals - and, when Mother complains that the tie keeps changing color, tell her it's the same tie and that she's going colorblind.
* And another classic joke referred to by ''[[Futurama]]'' where captured male explorers are required to choose death or Snoo-snoo. The first one chooses Snoo-snoo since anything is better than death, and is [whatever it actually is changes wildly depending on who's telling it]. The other chooses death and the verdict is announced. "Death!...by ''Snoo-snoo''!"
** Excellently depicted [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WikYiI8Hels here].
* Morton's fork is sometimes employed by [[Fan Dumb]] character bashers. For example, [https://web.archive.org/web/20120528072940/http://www.journalfen.net/community/the_hms_stfu/510013.html this] HMS STFU entry for the ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'' fandom features someone who bashes Hermione for being studious and Ron for not being studious.
* If one player manages to get three corners in [[Tic-tac-toe]] and has two open paths to win by the other player is left with simply choosing which place their opponent wins with. This is also a common victory scenario in Connect 4.
* A classic [[Stock Lateral Thinking Puzzle]] is built around this idea. A man is to be executed, based on whatever he says next. If it is true, he will be shot. If it is false, he will be hung. The trick is for him to [[Take a Third Option]] and say "I will be hung" (or alternatively "This statement is a lie").
Line 229 ⟶ 233:
*** If "Yes.", then cocksucker = true
*** If "No.", then dirtycocksucker = true
* [https://twitter.com/TheBestOfTumbIr/status/767088885088284673 Fandom].{{dead link}}
*# If you don't watch a series entirely, ''you are not a true fan''.
*# If you do watch a series entirely, ''[[Fanon Discontinuity|you are not a true fan]]''.
Line 236 ⟶ 240:
* The trial of [[Joan of Arc]] had a famous unsuccessful one. She was asked if she believed she was "in God's Grace." If she said yes, her overconfidence would brand her as a dangerous fanatic, since no one but God is supposed to know who's in his grace or not. If she said no, however, then it would mean she had been masquerading as a religious figure for trivial ends. Joan, however, figured out the trap quickly enough to answer: ''"If I'm not, may God put me in it; If I am, may God keep me there."'' The wording was considered both humble and pious. Centuries later, this witty reply was actually considered as an argument in favor of her canonization.
** Her death sentence was allegedly based on another one: Given only men's clothing, she had a choice between wearing it (and being condemned for impropriety) or going naked (and being condemned for impropriety, as well as exposing herself to [[Prison Rape|certain other dangers]] in the enemy prison that she was held in).
*** Punishment for improper clothing or indecency was fine or flogging at the time. Joan of Arc was already considered a militant rebel,
* The medieval and early colonial practice of "dunking" those accused of witchcraft could very easily become this. The accused would have a rope tied to her waist and get thrown into a body of water. If she floated, pull her out and, depending on the region and era, either imprison, hang, or [[Burn the Witch|burn her at the stake]]. If she sank, pull her out and let her go... and if she happened to drown, at least she died innocent.
* The "Jonah Complex" in psychology, where if you fail something you beat yourself up over it because you're not skilled enough, yet if you succeed you attribute it to pure luck and still beat yourself up over it for not being skilled.
* In the United States, tax forms include a line for "illegal income." [http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/295/are-you-required-to-report-illegal-income-on-your-tax-return If you don't report it you're evading taxes, if you do report it they turn you in]. This is mainly so that when [[Al Capone]] is arrested for tax evasion, he can't
** One person took this to court, after being arrested for tax evasion for failing to declare his earnings as a bookmaker, he used the
*** After Nixon used people's tax records to harass people with the FBI, the IRS [http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/26/usc_sec_26_00006103----000-.html is no longer allowed] to disclose information if there isn't already an investigation.
* A good chunk of history points to those suspected of treason or heresy running into this problem. If you confessed, you were severely punished; if you ''didn't'' confess (innocent or not), you were tortured and put through all kinds of hell until you confessed, and then you were severely punished.
Line 252 ⟶ 256:
** Speaking of Nazis, some international lawyers have been appealing the [[Nuremberg Defense]] ("We were just following orders.") on the grounds that its rejection places soldiers in a Morton's Fork situation: Either be thrown in prison and possibly executed for war crimes, or be thrown in prison and probably executed for insubordination.
*** Just for clarification, this argument is based on the safe premise, because it was a Morton's Fork only if the fall of the Third Reich was assured (in which case they could have capitulated).
* Saddam Hussein had [[wikipedia:Blood
** A similar problem when fringe cults write their loony apocrypha into their copies of the Christian [[The Bible|Bible]] - it is against Biblical law to add anything more to it (with the Revelation of Saint John of Patmos being canonically the final book), but what's a Christian supposed to do with these tainted copies if he or she ends up with one from a big box of books purchased at a yard sale? It'd be kinda wrong to burn it, since most of the text is still [[Word of God|God's Word]].
** In Catholic Church, biblical texts that do not have Imprimatur (i.e. are not approved by a proper canonical body) are treated as any other secular book.
Line 259 ⟶ 263:
* If a baseball game is tied in the ninth inning and the home team is up, has the bases loaded, there are no outs and the count is 3 balls and no strikes, a pitcher basically has two options: either try to be tricky and risk walking in the winning run, or throwing a juicy pitch down the middle and hope that the batter either misses or something supremely lucky in the field keeps the winning run from scoring if he does hit it.
* Ending slavery in America probably could not have been accomplished in any less bloody way than it was. To quote Thomas Jefferson on the matter "But, as it is, we have the wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him, nor safely let him go. Justice is in one scale, and self-preservation in the other." - Thomas Jefferson to John Holmes, (discussing slavery and the Missouri question), Monticello, 22 April 1820
* "[http://esr.ibiblio.org/?p=2122 Kafkatrapping]" — the demagoguery version of [[Heads I Win, Tails You Lose]].
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Narrative Devices]]
[[Category:Older Than Feudalism]]
▲[[Category:Morton's Fork]]
| |||