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erlandish Inner circle Vancouver, Canada 1254 Posts |
Your character is a mentalist who doesn't use a disclaimer in his act, and uses standard card techniques in order to pass himself off as a mind-reader. Ethical? (I say yes)
You don't perform in a venue. Your claim to be Jesus Christ reborn. You use magic techniques in order to convince people you have real powers. Ethical? (I say no) Your character is a card gambling expert, and you're doing a gambling demonstration. After showing off your skill with cards, you do an effect using a magic technique and pass it off as part of your skillset as a card shark. Ethical? (don't really know) Your character is a Tarot Card Reader who does readings at the local flea market. You charge money for your readings, which feature a slightly altered process so that you can force a card on them and read it so that it makes them feel good. The reading itself is accurate and consistent with what they'd find for themselves if they had some tarot card book handy. Ethical? (don't really know) |
Jonathan Townsend Eternal Order Ossining, NY 27297 Posts |
The term character implies a theatrical context.
What is the performing venue? Is the intended audience aware in advance that the performer will be serving as entertainment?
...to all the coins I've dropped here
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erlandish Inner circle Vancouver, Canada 1254 Posts |
Quote:
On 2007-07-12 11:20, Jonathan Townsend wrote: Yes to the mentalist, although he gives no disclaimer and the show's advertising is ambiguous. No to Jesus Christ Reborn. The guy doing the gambling demonstration is billed as a sleight-of-hand gambling expert. The Tarot Card Reader works in a tent that says "Tarot Card Readings" and the price, and that's it. |
ChristopherM Special user UK 844 Posts |
I can think of a lot of performers on this very website who fall into the first category. Not putting a disclaimer is not unethical of itself, and neither is 'ambiguity'. The entertainer is not making any outright claims.
Category 2 reminds me of the evil Sai Baba. I think he is a disgrace and lacks any sense of humanity. Very exploitative and sickening. People like him prey on the most vulnerable in the world. If the 'gambling expert' is proficient at manipulating cards, then he has the skills he purports to possess. When you say "do an effect" - is this a magic trick, or a demonstration of gambling technique? Please do clarify on that point. The Tarot reader - the way it's set up seems to leave it open to the participant/person looking at the sign outside to make up their own mind. For me, I would never partake in such a session; others who do so must be diligent about what the reader is claiming to be doing. If they truly believe there's something supernatural about the reader, I personally would think them much mistaken. To my mind, the scenario mentioned seems undesirable, yet still a far cry from psychics who pretend to contact dead people. |
erlandish Inner circle Vancouver, Canada 1254 Posts |
Quote:
On 2007-07-12 18:51, ChristopherM wrote: The gambling expert claims to be doing a very difficult card cheating maneuver, when in fact it's a relatively simple magic trick. For instance, I've got a stacked deck that allows me to deal a Royal Flush to myself. I've got the duplicate cards for the Royal Flush which I insert, cull out, and all my shuffles are Zarrows. By the way, if anybody actually does this (!!!) I'm not trying to call you out as a fraud or anything. It was just a presentation I quickly thought up off the top of my head. |
stoneunhinged Inner circle 3067 Posts |
I would guess that *MOST* gambling demonstrations are fraudulent in the way you mention. 99% of "gambling" demonstrations are magic shows. If this is unethical, then most gambling demonstrations are unethical. Just think: a real cheater would never deal a Royal Flush to himself. In fact, what a real cheater would do would be boring in a demonstration.
Can Ricky Jay do a middle deal? Hard to say. How many gambling demonstrations use real middle deals? Again, hard to say. It's much easier to deal seconds or bottoms and persuade your audience that you are dealing middles. Which is what Ricky does. Is Ricky unethical? As for Tarot cards: I would again say that *most* Tarot readings involve techniques which people here would say belong to the performance of magic. Perhaps they aren't using sleight of hand to manipulate the cards, but they are cold reading, whether they call it that or not. Unethical? These aren't really questions of genre mixing, but about the line between levels of deception. Since magic is entirely about deception, I see no problem whatsoever with the gambling demonstration, because I'm performing as a "deceiver". Why must I be entirely honest about how I am deceiving them? That would simply be exposure. With the Tarot cards, I'm performing as a "reader", not a deceiver. It's problematic, yes. But then, I could always set up my tent as a "Tarot reading as pure magical entertainment and fun" act, and then not worry about it. I don't see any inherent ethical dilemmas here. It's all about how the performer presents him or her self. Jeff |
erlandish Inner circle Vancouver, Canada 1254 Posts |
That's one of the things I've been trying to figure out. One aspect of magic performance is that we make a contract (stated or not) about how valid what we're doing is, and the arena we choose is going to come with presuppositions of legitimacy.
Whether or not Tarot reading is bunk, many people treat it as though it were real, and so there's a bit of a difference between someone who uses the Tarot to do actual readings (shuffling up and dealing in order -- in essence, shouting into the void and seeing what shouts back), and somebody else who sets about deliberately emotionally manipulating you. Similarly, I might feel like a bit of a twit if I invested my money in the material of somebody who passes off seconds as centers in the hope I can learn about legitimate card techniques (heh, even if those legitimate techniques are for illegitimate purposes). In any case, thanks for the insight so far guys, it's interesting. |
Andy the cardician Inner circle A street named after my dad 3362 Posts |
Difficult question - perhaps the line in the sand is the purpose of deception. Entertainment or your personal benefit . . .
Cards never lie
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Jaz Inner circle NJ, U.S. 6111 Posts |
One card routine I've been working on is a pseudo-gambling demo that involves second, bottom and middle deals and ending with a royal flush poker deal.
There will be no claims of my being an expert. What they see me as is thier choice. I'm sure that they will see me as skilled with cards and that's fine because it does take skill. To me, a Tarot reader at a fair should keep things in check. If I were doing readings at such a place I wouldn't feel right giving a reading of dispair, danger and death. At a private reading maybe. |
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