Glamour: Difference between revisions

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{{trope}}
Traditionally, [[The Fair Folk]] are reputed to have a powerful and subtle magic that disguises their true (and less than fair) form into one that is beautiful, beguiling and beatific. This was called a '''Glamour'''. It not only cast an [[Master of Illusion|illusion of physical perfection]], but made any hapless viewer think of the fae as graceful, wise, a lifelong friend, and made them easily suggestible if not utterly enthralling them in [[More Than Mind Control]].
 
Now imagine a character who has this power, and ''can use it on crowds''. We'll wait for you to stop shivering.
 
Characters with this power become the center of attention. Anyone who looks at the character will suffer effects similar to [[Love Is in the Air]]: they'll consider the character to be flawlessly beautiful, smart, funny, and fall over themselves to do whatever the character says.<ref>(even if the character in question is hideous, dressed in rags, covered in garbage, clumsy, and has the IQ of room temperature... in Celsius!)</ref>. While this isn't direct [[Mind Control]] or a [[Charm Person]], it does affect people psychically by making them want to help the character. Sort of a cross between [[Mass Hypnosis]] and [[The Charmer]]. While weak glamours or strong willed characters probably won't do unethical things or that go against their interests, they ''will'' act at least slightly [[Out-of-Character Moment|out of character]] while under its effects: disliking the character will seem unnatural, arguing against them impossible, and attacking the character would be like committing blasphemy. When it's a powerful glamour (or a [[Weak-Willed]] victim) victims won't hesitate to obey any of the character's whims.
 
But as soon as he or she leaves the room (or a certain ammount of time passes) the former awestruck followers will get the psychic equivalent of a hangover and wonder what the heck happened. If the character has an especially powerful Glamour the effects may be permanent, require either special shielding to cut off, or the equivalent of [[Mind Control]] [[Deprogram|deprogrammingdeprogram]]ming to return victims to normal. If a character has [[God Mode Sue]] class Glamour, nothing less than [[No Ontological Inertia|killing him or her will end the spell.]]
 
This is usually a borderline case of [[Bad Powers, Bad People]]. An ethical character that doesn't abuse those affected might actually accrue ''less'' [[Mind Over Manners]] related [[Squick]] than using straight [[Mind Control]]. As a power, it does have a certain degree of [[Blessed with Suck]]. If the glamour [[Power Incontinence|can't be turned off]] the character may very quickly despair at having no intelligent conversation since everyone agrees with them, no ''real'' love since anyone they meet will instantly love them, and otherwise having all the conflict leached out of their life.
 
Since this is basically a character trait of [[Mary Sue Classic]] turned into a power, it is often explicitly wielded by [[Parody Sue|Parody Sues]]s in fanfiction. When this power [[No Sell|fails]] or comes into conflict with an equal and or greater Glamour, sparks fly.
 
Often the [[A Wizard Did It|explanation]] behind a [[Weirdness Censor]] or [[Invisible to Normals]].
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** ''Elves are wonderful. They provoke wonder. Elves are marvellous. They cause marvels. Elves are fantastic. They create fantasies. Elves are glamorous. They project glamour. Elves are enchanting. They weave enchantment. Elves are terrific. They beget terror. The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes look for them behind words that have changed their meaning. No one ever said elves are nice. Elves are bad.''
** Also from the Discworld, the charismatic Captain Carrot might have this, but balance of the evidence is that he really is [[The Ace|just that good]].
* In [[The Dark Tower]] series (and a lot of other books by Stephen King), there exists a (kinda )subtle type of magic, and along with it a type of Glamour. Used quite often to veil [[Eldritch Abomination|Eldritch Abominations]]s from, well, everyone that doesn't want to [[Go Mad From the Revelation]]. Which is quite a bit of people.
* In [[Sword of Truth]] books, Witch Women like Shota or Six do this unconsciously, and sometimes unintentionally, to those around them.
* In Shannara books, (namely the Sword of Shannara), a siren uses a glamour to appear as a beautiful woman sitting by a tree just before the tree eats a hapless traveller.
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== Real Life ==
* This is how certain individuals who claim to be part-dragon justify the fact that no one else can see their supposed claws and scales. Insanity, perhaps, but a shared insanity if so--theyso—they even have Internet support groups! (They're generally classified as a particularly out-there branch of the Otherkin, themselves an out-there branch of the [[Furry Fandom]].)
* Hey, here's your dose of [[Paranoia Fuel]] today. Modern neurology, while advanced, isn't quite exact. Technically it wouldn't be defying modern neurological science for this to happen. Not paranoia fuel yet? well there's also a distinct lack of proof that this hasn't been done subconsciously by everyone you love.
** Oxytocin? If one could secrete it into the air...
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