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Reverse Psychology Ploy: Difference between revisions
copyedits, added examples from Reverse Psychology
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{{trope}}
A standard sitcom plot, where one party (usually the parents) attempts to dissuade or encourage another party (usually the kids) by, naturally, encouraging or advocating doing the opposite. Often begins with one parent reading a child psychology book and going "Hmmm..."▼
Usually involves second party figuring it out, and either doing [[Exact Words|exactly what they're told]], or pretending to "fall" for it and [[Bothering by the Book|being totally obnoxious in the other direction]] -- in other words, some flavor of [[Reverse Psychology Backfire]]. And sometimes the second party does exactly as expected... [[Gone Horribly Right|with totally unexpected consequences]].▼
▲A standard sitcom plot, where one party (usually the parents) attempts to dissuade or encourage another party (usually the kids) by, naturally, doing the opposite. Often begins with one parent reading a child psychology book and going "Hmmm..."
Contrast [[Briar Patching]], which is the (usually) successful use of [[Reverse Psychology]] against an opponent or other unfriendly person, and [[Fence Painting]], where one person convinces another to do a task he finds onerous by depicting it as more fun than humans should be allowed to have.
▲Usually involves second party figuring it out, and either doing [[Exact Words|exactly what they're told]], or pretending to "fall" for it and [[Bothering by the Book|being totally obnoxious in the other direction]].
{{examples}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* ''[[Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki]]'' begins this way. Tenchi has repeatedly been warned by his grandfather that he must never, ever, under any circumstances enter the cave behind their ancestral shrine where a demon was supposedly imprisoned centuries before. Go on, guess how the first episode played out... Of course, it's later revealed that this was a case of his grandfather being a [[Genre Savvy]] [[Trickster Mentor]], since he knew full well what Tenchi would do and what the likely result would be.
** He pretty openly goads Tenchi into opening the cave, as he tells him that he can have the key [[When You Snatch the Pebble|as soon as he's able to take it from him through combat or trickery]], and eventually Tenchi succeeds.
* In an episode of ''[[Adventures of Mini-Goddess]]'', Skuld has a [[Big Red Button]] with a "Do Not Touch" label. Urd and Gan-chan fight over it until she changes the sign to say "Please Touch", at which point they stop. And then Belldandy presses it herself.
== [[Comic Books]] ==
* In the ''[[Legion of Super-Heroes (comics)|Legion of Super-Heroes]]'' "Legends of the Dead Earth" annual, Wildfire is trying to recreate both the Legion and the UP spirit of inter-species cooperation. He doesn't expect his current group of trainees to do it, instead pinning his hopes on their descendants, who will be ''raised'' with Legion values. To ensure there ''are'' descendants, he tells them they're forbidden to "fraternise".
== [[Film]] ==
* In ''[[Attack of the Clones|Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones]]'' Count Dooku uses reverse psychology on the Jedi by telling them in a [[Sarcastic Confession]] exactly what's going on with the Sith conspiracy. It backfires: they take the wise course of action and decide not to flat out believe it, but keep their eyes peeled.
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'''Leonard:''' No, no, no, I can do it. ''(gets up)''
'''Mrs. Cooper:''' Well, isn't that sweet. }}
* Played with in a ''[[Fresh Prince of Bel Air]]'' episode where Will's little cousin Nicky wants to run away from home, so Will sides with him, giving him all sorts of advice on how to survive in the streets. [[Overly Long Gag|After this goes on for a while]], Nicky announces he's not leaving anymore, "but not because of that reverse psychology stuff you were doing." "Oh? Why then?" "I'm five years old, you moron!"
== [[Newspaper Comics]] ==
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[[Category:Psychology Tropes]]
[[Category:The Plan]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Plots]]
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