random item

Troperville

Tools

Find recent edits by troper:

back to: Main / TheCassandra

edit article | go to discussion page

19th May '13 12:57:40 PM Viira

Send Viira a PM notification explaining the badness of natter: natter-fy

Changed line(s) 107 (click to see context) from:

to:

28th Mar '13 9:52:57 AM Chariset

Send Chariset a PM notification explaining the badness of natter: natter-fy

Changed line(s) 6,14 (click to see context) from:

A character is almost always right about something (or everything) and yet continues [[CassandraTruth to be mistrusted, mocked or otherwise ignored]]. You would think that after several years, the other characters would get the idea, but they seldom do, and then when they do, it's usually the one time the character is wrong, so as to [[StatusQuoIsGod maintain the status quo]]. To be fair, the character usually has some sort of personality quirk that makes them seem less believable, but a near-perfect track record really should be enough.

The title comes from the [[ClassicalMythology mythical seer Cassandra, whose prophecies were always accurate but never believed, due to a curse from the god Apollo]], thus making this trope OlderThanFeudalism.

In natural {{Disaster Movie}}s or ScienceIsBad stories, TheCassandra will usually be an IgnoredExpert, a scientist or other expert acting as the [[OnlySaneMan lone voice of sanity]] warning against a particular course of action that will, of course, be taken. Unless of course he's a street preacher or one of those sign-carrying CrazyHomelessPeople, in which case the {{Doomsayer}} trope applies.

Subtrope of CassandraTruth. Compare CryingWolf, where a character is not believed because he's always lying, and DudeWheresMyRespect, which is often the result of this. See also HarbingerOfImpendingDoom.

If The Cassandra is a WaifProphet or an OracularUrchin, this may be because of AllTheOtherReindeer.

to:

A person characterized by two things -- she gives correct and accurate warnings and predictions, and what she says is consistently mocked or ignored by the rest of the cast. You would think that the other characters would eventually decide that she can be trusted, but they seldom do.  A particularly cruel plot twist is for the rest of the cast to believe Cassandra on the one and only time she is wrong, just to [[StatusQuoIsGod maintain the status quo]]. Cassandra usually has some sort of personality quirk that makes her seem less believable, or her information may come from epistemologically shaky grounds like Tarot cards or dreams, but her record of near-perfect accuracy really should be enough to make the others listen to her.

The TropeNamer is the [[ClassicalMythology mythical seer Cassandra]], who was cursed by the god Apollo to give prophecies which were always true but never believed, thus making this trope OlderThanFeudalism.

In natural {{disaster movie}}s or ScienceIsBad stories, Cassandra will usually be an IgnoredExpert: a scientist or other expert acting as the [[OnlySaneMan lone voice of sanity]].  This character's role is to warn the others not to take a particular course of action -- that will, of course, be taken. On the other hand, if Cassandra is one of the underclass, such as a street preacher or one of those CrazyHomelessPeople, the {{Doomsayer}} trope applies.

Subtrope of CassandraTruth. Compare CryingWolf, where a character is not believed because what he says is always a lie, and DudeWheresMyRespect, which is often the result of this. See also HarbingerOfImpendingDoom.  CassandraDidIt is when the cast add insult to injury by blaming Cassandra for the very disaster she tried to warn them about.

If Cassandra is a WaifProphet or an OracularUrchin, this may be because of AllTheOtherReindeer.

28th Mar '13 9:36:32 AM Chariset

Send Chariset a PM notification explaining the badness of natter: natter-fy

Changed line(s) 2,3 (click to see context) from:

to:

5th Mar '13 8:40:08 PM ChaoticNovelist

Send ChaoticNovelist a PM notification explaining the badness of natter: natter-fy

NO NATTER

Changed line(s) 92,94 (click to see context) from:

* HarryPotter, despite being TheChosenOne, frequently gets this treatment in his own books, ''especially'' from his best friends. So much so that Dumbledore freely admits that part of his BatmanGambit in the seventh book is ''counting on'' Hermione's ArbitrarySkepticism to slow Harry down long enough to think things through properly.
** Harry's not the best example. While he's usually the first to catch onto the larger plots, he usually misinterprets the evidence and comes to some very flawed conclusions. Believing him would have only made the situations worse.
** In a way, Professor Trelawny is a reverse Cassandra, as the only time she dismisses one of her predictions is when it's correct. A more subtle one occurs in ''HalfBloodPrince''. Harry is hiding from Trelawny, who's wandering drunkenly through the school, and pulling cards from a deck. Though it's never stated, it's entirely possible she's doing a reading on Harry. One of the cards she interprets as meaning the subject dislikes her (Harry can't stand Trelawny). She thinks about it for a second, and says "that can't be right," and starts going through the cards again.

to:

Deleted line(s) 96 (click to see context) :

21st Feb '13 12:04:07 PM Slenderphobe

Send Slenderphobe a PM notification explaining the badness of natter: natter-fy

Changed line(s) 23 (click to see context) from:

to:

Changed line(s) 99 (click to see context) from:

to:

10th Feb '13 1:44:50 PM EarlOfSandvich

Send EarlOfSandvich a PM notification explaining the badness of natter: natter-fy

Changed line(s) 36 (click to see context) from:

to: