History CassandraTruth / Literature

** Professor [=McGonagall=] is on the receiving end of this trope multiple times. In the first book alone, she refuses to believe Malfoy's claim about Harry trying to smuggle a dragon through the school and Harry's claim someone is trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone. Both of these claims are met with irritation. In the sixth book, she also expresses disbelief when Harry accuses Malfoy of being involved in an incident involving a cursed necklace in Hogsmeade. In this case, she had good reason to, as Malfoy was serving detention with her.

** So is the sneakoscope Ron gave Harry in ''Prisoner of Azkaban'': when it lights up there's always some foul play going on, but the characters don't realize it.

* ''Literature/TheBoyWhoCriedWolf'': After lying so much the villagers don't believe the little boy anymore, even when there's an actual wolf chasing him. In most tellings, this then gets subverted when the boy admits that there is a wolf, but it is too late...

* ''Literature/TheBoyWhoCriedWolf'': After lying so much the villagers don't believe the little boy anymore, even when there's an actual wolf chasing him. In most works, this then gets subverted when the boy admits it, but it is too late...

* ''Literature/TheBoyWhoCriedWolf'': After lying so much the villagers don't believe the little boy anymore, even when there's an actual wolf chasing him.

* ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'':
** Nobody believes the kids the first time they explain what's going on.

* PlayedForLaughs in ''Literature/{{Everworld}}'', with the TroperNamer herself. In the first chapter of the seventh book she burst in and declares a prophecy that, while vague, accurately predicts what's going to happen by the end of the story. The protagonists are fully aware of her story and that they ''should'' believe her...but can't. She probably isn't even the real Cassandra, right? In fact, they find her ''so'' unbelievable that their minds [[LaserGuidedAmnesia can't even hold onto what she said]] for more than a few seconds. Eventually she storms out of the room and [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment is never mentioned again]].

* Cassandra herself shows up in one scene of the ''Literature/{{Everworld}}'' series, displaying just how thorough her curse is. Despite knowing all about her story, and having lived in a world where every myth and legend from all cultures throughout history coexist, the heroes ''still'' refuse to believe a word she says, including the statement that she is Cassandra, thanks to the curse's influence. Just to rub salt in the wound, they actually consider making a concerted effort to believe her, on the off chance she is Cassandra, before forgetting what she actually said and then deciding to ignore it.

* The Warbrunn-Knight report in ''Literature/WorldWarZ''. Features detailed information on the first zombie attacks and forming patterns, and nobody in a position to affect meaningful change even reads it, save for Israel.

** As noted under film above, Gandalf's suspicions that Sauron had indeed returned and was amassing new armies were dismissed by the White Council. However it's subverted in that Saruman ''does'' believe him, and actually knows for a fact Gandalf is correct, he's just delaying acting for as long as possible in hopes of finding the Ring for himself, and fears driving Sauron out of Dol Guldur too soon will will interfere with his search. He only finally agrees to take action to avoid tipping his hand to the rest of the Council, and because Sauron has grown in strength to the point that he has now begun to endanger Saruman's planning.

* In ''Literature/{{Worm}}'', this tends to happen whenever Skitter and the Undersiders try to warn the heroes about a greater threat. Somewhat justified as circumstances lead the heroes to believe the Undersiders are just using disasters to gain power or are corrupting people in some way.

* Cassandra herself shows up in one scene of the ''Literature/{{Everworld}}'' series, displaying just how thorough her curse is. Despite knowing all about her story, and having lived in a world where every myth and legend from all cultures throughout history coexist, the heroes ''still'' refuse to believe a word she says, including the statement that she is Cassandra, thanks to the curse's influence. Just to rub salt in the wound, they actually consider making a concerted effort to believe her, on the off chance she is Cassandra, before forgetting what she actually said and then deciding ignore it.

* In Glen Duncans ''Literature/ILucifer'', the fallen angel Lucifer casually tells people exactly who he is, despite being in a mortal body, only to be seen as joking or eccentric. He even continues being himself when in talks to create a movie on his life story.

* Doctor Courtine's testimony in Charles Palliser's ''The Unburied'' is brilliant, forensic, mostly true and completely ignored, [[spoiler:leading to the hanging of an innocent man]].
* ''Literature/SeptimusHeap'':
** In ''Flyte'', only Beetle and Nicko trust Septimus when he tells them that Jenna has been kidnapped by Simon Heap.
** Jenna tries in vain to warn Septimus of the upcoming Darke Domaine in ''Darke''.
* ''Literature/KillTimeOrDieTrying'': Brad spends his entire first day at university trying to figure out where to go. The only reliable directions he's given come from a pair of stoners, who he ignores.
* ''Literature/TheChangeover'': Laura attempts to inform her muggle mother as to what her brother Jacko's condition truly is, to no avail. Subverted soon after with romantic lead Sorry, who doesn't believe her at first but then drops by and confirms Jacko's condition himself.
* Subverted in "Police Operation" by H. Beam Piper. The Literature/{{Paratime}} Police are shown to ''actively'' take action to make true accounts of Paratime doings seem false. Flying saucers, their existence, and the relevant 'smothering out' technique are particularly discussed.
* Dave Pelzer wrote ''A Child Called It'' about his experiences as the victim of the third-worst case of child abuse in Californian history. The evidence was clear across his body on a daily basis, up to broken bones (and worse!), and yet the school officials took several years to conclude it was bad enough to intervene. Worse because the couple of times he tried to tell, early on, they'd just call his mother, and send him back to her, and she'd abuse him even worse - so he stopped trying to tell anyone at all.
* In the ''Literature/TrylleTrilogy'', Wendy's mother stabbed her at the age of 6, claiming that she was a {{changeling|Tale}} switched at birth with her son. Wendy's family is horrified, and her mother is put into a mental hospital. Wendy eventually finds out that she is a changeling troll and her mother's real son is being raised by Wendy's biological mother Elora.
* ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear: Eaten Alive'', a ship called the ''Misanthrope'' crashes on an uncharted world that the natives call [[IDontLikeTheSoundOfThatPlace D'vouran]]. The twenty surviving crew find an abandoned lab that they hole up in, not trusting the natives, and find that one by one anyone who leaves disappears. [[spoiler: The scientists got the ground to come to life and eat people other than the natives.]] The captain, Kevreb Bebo, is able to leave thanks to a trinket that keeps him safe; when other people start landing on D'vouran he frantically tries to warn them, but isn't believed. There's never any evidence; when he takes the last of the crew with him to help convince people, she disappears too. Gradually, a sympathetic Tash Arranda does decide to hear him out, because she too is not believed when she talks about the bad feeling she has about the place.
* In ''Literature/GoodOmens'', Tadfield's local busy-body R.P. Tyler encounters Crowley driving around in [[TheAllegedCar the smoldering remains of Crowley's vintage Bentley]]. Afterwards Tyler mentally prepares a StronglyWordedLetter to the local newspaper about reckless young people driving around in flaming cars... but is forced to give up when he eventually realizes even ''he'' has a hard time believing his own eyes.
* ''Literature/TheMortalInstruments'':
** [[AdultsAreUseless Maia Robert's parents never believed her]] when she told them her brother was abusive.
** In ''City Of Glass'', Jace's outright dislike and suspicion of Sebastian raises a ''lot'' of eyebrows [[spoiler: despite the fact that he was right all along.]]
* ''Literature/TheMalloreon'': In ''Demon Lord of Karanda'' Polgara pronounces a curse on a grolim:
-->'''Polgara:''' You are now invincible. No one can kill you--no man, no demon--not even you yourself. BUT no one will ever again believe a single word that you say. You will be faced with constant ridicule and derision all the days of your life and you will be driven out wherever you go, to wander the world as a rootless vagabond.
-->'''Grolim:''' Who are you, woman? And what power do you have to pronounce so terrible a curse?\\
'''Polgara:''' I am Polgara. You may have heard of me.\\
'''Sadi:''' Do you think it was wise to reveal your identity, my lady?\\
'''Polgara:''' There's no danger, Sadi. He can shout my name from every rooftop, but no one will believe him.
** Not strictly a Cassandra, in that the grolim doesn't have perfect vision, but he does know at least one true and potentially valuable thing that he'd probably like to share.
* In the Literature/LeftBehind series, the prophecies concerning the coming judgments in Revelation were treated as religious ramblings by the general public during the Tribulation until [[PropheciesAreAlwaysRight they actually happen]], such as [[EarthquakesCauseFissures the Wrath of the Lamb earthquake]]. Even after they happen, though, there are [[TooDumbToLive some survivors who stubbornly insist that it isn't God behind it all]] and [[TemptingFate persist in continuing to live in their sins]].
* ''Literature/{{Lolita}}''. After emptying a couple of pistol magazines into fellow paedophile Claire Quilty, Humbert discovers some {{Upper Class Twit}}s have turned up for a dinner party at his house. He confesses to killing the man, but they just joke that someone should have done it a long time ago. It doesn't help that a [[RasputinianDeath dying Quilty then staggers into the room]].
* In fact, ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'' kind of summed up how this Trope works in their satire of ''Film/{{Gremlins}}'':
-->'''Billy:''' Why won't you guys believe me?
-->'''Cop:''' Because the police never believe the hero until it's too late. Haven't you ever seen old '60's sci-fi movies like ''Film/{{The Blob|1958}}''?

* ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'': When Rand first passes through Cairhien, where political maneuvering is effectively the national sport, all of his attempts to avoid notice instead convince the locals that he's [[TheChessmaster a Chessmaster]] playing his cards close to his chest. He gets fed up enough to burn a stack of nobles' invitations in an inn common room and loudly announce that he wants nothing to do with their "Great Game"... a claim so preposterous to the Cairhienin that they immediately assume he's up to something ''big'' and is ''very'' well connected.

* ''Literature/ABrothersPrice'': Princess Trini warned her sisters not to marry Keifer Porter (who, because of the special kind of polygyny practiced in their culture, would become her husband, too), but was not listened to. He turned out to be evil, but even got away with [[DomesticAbuse beating and raping her]], claiming that she "provoked him" when confronted by her elder sister, who liked his [[LoveMakesYouDumb pretty face]].

* TheBoyWhoCriedWolf: After lying so much the villagers don't believe the little boy anymore, even when there's an actual wolf chasing him.

* In Anne S. Lindbergh's ''The People in Pineapple Place'' August's mother does not believe his stories of Pineapple Place, an alley only he can see, filled with families, all of whom only he can see. However, it turns out that his mother is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure, and comes to believe him once she sees evidence of August's story (a child she (and August) can see, but no one else can, able to get away with considerable mischief, and a security guard, apparently making a fool out of himself in front of a large crowd of people, none of whom (except August) can see the girl he (truthfully) claims to have caught roller-skating in a museum).

* In ''[[Literature/MarthaSpeaks Perfectly Martha]]'', Martha tells Dr. Pablum that soup [[IngestingKnowledge is the reason she can talk]]. He doesn't believe her, but has to scram to avoid the angry customers and doesn't have time to get further clarification.
* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' has a condition called Cassandra's Tears, resulting in a person [[BlessedWithSuck having somewhat reliable visions of the future, which no one believes]]. If someone ''does'' believe, the condition may be cured -- but it's easily faked and a common confidence scam among the magical community. Which probably contributes to the fact that no one believes the predictions. More medically, genuine cases are also easy to mistake for garden-variety seizures, so people not in on TheMasquerade, or people in on it but not suspecting the condition, could end up trying to medicate the wrong problem.
* Cassandra herself shows up in one scene of the ''Literature/{{Everworld}}'' series, displaying just how thorough her curse is. Despite knowing all about her story, and having lived in a world where every myth and legend from all cultures throughout history coexist, the heroes ''still'' refuse to believe a word she says, including the statement that she is Cassandra, thanks to the curse's influence. Just to rub salt in the wound, they actually consider making a concerted effort to believe her, on the off chance she is Cassandra, before forgetting what she actually said and then deciding ignore it.
* ''Literature/WatershipDown''
** Part of its premise is a deliberate subversion of the trope with author Richard Adams wondering "What if the Cassandra character was believed?" So in this book, the WaifProphet, Fiver, is taken seriously by his brother and a select few who escape a doomed warren. There is some doubt when they enter the seemingly idyllic Cowslip's warren that Fiver warns not to enter while the gang ignores him. However, when the place's horrific secret is revealed, the company then accepts Fiver's counsel without question, such as when the group encounters a electricity transmission tower and Fiver firmly tells them that it is of no danger to them. Not all the rabbits who joined Fiver in the first place necessarily believed him (although Hazel did); they were dissatisfied with their life in the warren and thought they'd have it better elsewhere. It's only after he is proven right, both about their home warren and about Cowslip, that that all ''really'' start believing him.
** An El-ahrairah short story in the book relies on El-ahrairah constructing a Cassandra out of a suspected spy so that he would lose his credibility and be ordered to leave the warren.
** The very [[{{Epigraph}} first lines in the book]] are a Cassandra quote from Creator/{{Aeschylus}}' ''Agamemnon'', lampshading this.
-->'''Chorus:''' Why do you cry out thus, unless at some vision of horror?\\
'''Cassandra:''' The house reeks of death and dripping blood.\\
'''Chorus:''' 'Tis but the odor of the altar sacrifice.\\
'''Cassandra:''' The stench is like a breath from the tomb.
* Creator/JamesThurber's ''The Catbird Seat'' is about a man who plots to get rid of an incredibly obnoxious woman who works at his office; she's driven away most of his colleagues and is about to talk his superior into cutting out the man's department. The man, a clean-living, sober type who wouldn't hurt a fly, visits her apartment one night, at which point he drinks whiskey, smokes a cigar and discusses his plan to kill his boss using very harsh language. The next day, the woman tries to warn their boss of the man's plan... and is fired when the boss thinks she's having a breakdown.
* In Creator/JamesThurber's short story "The Unicorn in the Garden", a HenpeckedHusband finds a unicorn in the garden, but his wife doesn't believe him, telling him firmly that there's no such thing as unicorns, and calls for him to be taken away to a mental asylum. The tables are turned when the officials from the asylum arrive; when she tells them her husband saw a unicorn in the garden, he meekly says that there's no such thing as unicorns, leaving her looking like the unbalanced one.
* Children's book ''Voyage of the Basset'' (the movie ''Voyage of the Unicorn'' is based on it) has a mythology-loving college professor whose daughter, Cassandra, is specifically named after this character. Cassandra somewhat lives up to her name when her warnings to her father about what not to do and trouble that could be caused are completely brushed aside, resulting in him getting pissed off and acting nasty to her. He later apologizes when she turns out to be right. (In the movie, he has a nicer personality and the "ignored warnings" thing is avoided.)
* A short story started with a boy not being able to sleep because he had a fly in his ear. Then all four siblings got up and had a midnight party, playing make believe games so that when the toddler told the parents the next morning they assumed it was a dream, until he mentioned the fly in his brother's ear.
* Literature/{{Coraline}} calls the police to tell them that her parents are missing -- and she thinks they were taken by the creepy lady with buttons for eyes who lives in the AlternateUniverse connected to her house. The police tell her to go back to bed, sweetie.
* A major part of the plot in the ''Literature/WarriorCats'' book ''Dark River'': when a crisis on [=RiverClan=] territory forces them out of their camp, the other Clans all start preparing for invasion, since they believe that [=RiverClan=] will now try to steal territory. Hollypaw is seemingly the only cat on the lake that notices that all these fears are founded on nothing but paranoia, and that by preparing for a battle, everyone is making it that much more likely to happen. Naturally, nobody listens to her when she says they should try to ''help'' [=RiverClan=] with their problem, or at least get more information about it before jumping to conclusions, because she's just an apprentice and they are all "more experienced".
* This is the whole point of Lemony Snicket's ''Literature/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents''. No one ''ever'' believes Baudelaire children, no matter how many times they tell them that their new [[MasterOfDisguise principal/gym teacher/assistant/captain/chief of medicine/whatever]] is Count Olaf trying to kill them. Even if the current experience ''strangely'' mirrors that of the previous one. The majority of adults are [[AdultsAreUseless either evil, will become evil, or are morons]].
* ''[[Literature/TheNightsDawnTrilogy Night's Dawn]]'' trilogy by Creator/PeterFHamilton. Joshua Calvert always tells a different story over how his father damaged his spaceship ''The Lady [=MacBeth=]'', usually involving some form of selfless heroics. Eventually his girlfriend asks for the ''real'' story, and is given one involving terrorists and mysterious alien technology. Naturally she doesn't believe a word of it, much to Calvert's annoyance, but a short story by Peter F. Hamilton in another book reveals that he is in fact telling the complete truth.

* In the short story collection ''Far North & Other Dark Tales'', by Sara Maitland, the mythological story of Cassandra is retold as being the result of a Apollo severing her corpus callosum as revenge for her withholding the sex she had promised in exchange for the gift of prophesy. She can see the future, but because of her brain damage cannot articulate clearly enough to be understood.
* Fanny Price in ''Literature/MansfieldPark'' tries to warn Edmund that Henry Crawford is constantly flirting with his sister. Who is engaged to someone else. This does not end well.
** Miss Bates in ''Literature/{{Emma}}'' is also usually right, but her MotorMouth tendency causes people to tune her out.
** Charlotte Collins in ''Literature/PrideAndPrejudice'' is also frequently right. Elizabeth assumes she's just jealous.
** Elizabeth herself, when she tries to warn her father that allowing her sister Lydia to go to Brighton with the regiment will end in disaster. It does. He magnanimously tells her that "I bear you no ill will for being justified in your advice to me."
* In Stieg Larsson's ''Literature/TheMillenniumTrilogy'', Lisbeth [[spoiler: repeatedly told authorities as a child about her father's abuse of her mother, but no one did anything and she wound up being institutionalised after attempting to take matters into her own hands.]] There turned out to be [[spoiler:a giant government conspiracy responsible for covering up her father's crimes,]] so this isn't entirely a straight example of the trope. It's also largely responsible for turning her into the person she is today.
* PlayedForLaughs at the end of the Creator/DaleBrown novel ''Flight of the Old Dog'', where Patrick [=McLanahan=] casually tells his mother that he had just come back from bombing Russia. Mrs. [=McLanahan=] doesn't believe him. Also used seriously in ''Plan of Attack'', where no one outside of the Air Battle Force believes that a Russian attack is coming, as well as in ''Edge of Battle'' where no one believes just how dangerous Comandante Veracruz's plan really is.

* In Glen Duncans ''Literature/ILucifer'', the fallen angel Lucifer casually tells people exactly who he is, despite being in a mortal body, only to be seen as joking or eccentric. He even continues being himself when in talks to create a movie on his life story.

* In the ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' books, the few Solarians that recognise how far behind the times their Navy is are often casually dismissed as alarmists and defeatists.
* It would benefit the protagonist of ''LightNovel/TheLongingOfShiinaRyo'' greatly if he did not suffer from this.

* [[spoiler: Demon pox]] in ''Literature/TheInfernalDevices'' is considered to be an urban legend, and no one believes the protagonist when he says that it's spreading.
* Creator/KimStanleyRobinson's ''Icehenge'' plays with this. [[spoiler:It's unclear whether the first third of the book is narrative or excerpts from a document that may or may not be contradicted by the rest of the novel.]]
* Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium:
** As noted under film above, Gandalf's suspicions that Sauron had indeed returned and was amassing new armies were dismissed by the White Council. However it's subverted in that Saruman ''does'' believe him, and actually knows for a fact Gandalf is correct, he's just delaying acting for as long as possible in hopes of finding the Ring for himself, and fears driving Sauron out of Dol Guldur too soon will will interfere with his search. He only finally agrees to take action to avoid tipping his hand to the rest of the Council, and because Sauron has grown in strength to the point that he has now begun to endanger Saruman's planning.
** A double example in ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'': after Gollum's temporary HeelFaceTurn due to Frodo's kindness, Sam refuses to believe Frodo's insistence that Gollum has indeed earned their trust. Meanwhile, Frodo dismisses ''Sam's'' warnings that Gollum is still a danger to themselves and the Quest. Ironically, it was Sam's own distrust that delivered the final HeelFaceDoorSlam when Gollum was genuinely considering repenting and abandoning his plan to betray the Hobbits to Shelob.
* In the ''Literature/AscendanceTrilogy'', [[spoiler: Sage repeatedly tells Mott and Connor that he is the prince. They interpret him as expressing willingness/desire to be the one chosen to impersonate the prince.]] Frequently employed in various situations throughout all three books, often coupled with SarcasticConfession.
* In ''[[Literature/DoNotTakeTheShells DO NOT TAKE THE SHELLS]]'', Harris's friends don't believe him when he tells them about [[spoiler: the Eldritch Abomination living below the water]], although they do promise not to go back to the beach that day.
* In ''Literature/MidnightsChildren'', one of the titular children has the power of TimeTravel. They warn the other children of impending doom, but nobody believes them, and they eventually leave the Midnight's Children Conference out of frustration.
* In ''Literature/CharlottesWeb'', a spiderweb appears near the pigpen of Mr. Zuckerman's barn with the words 'SOME PIG' written in it. Later, more spiderwebs appear with more words. While everyone is praising the miracle and believe that the pig must be extraordinary, Mrs. Zuckerman is the only character who thinks maybe the ''spider'' might be the extraordinary one. Her husband quickly shoots the idea down.
** The book, the 1971 film adaptation, and the stage adaptation all maintain this plot hole. The only version to explain it is the 2006 film adaptation, where it's explained that Mr. Zuckerman looked for the spider that spun the web, but couldn't find one.
* In ''Literature/TheMazeRunner'', Gally repeatedly tells everyone that Thomas is not to be trusted, and that he probably has something to do with them all being stuck in the maze. Obviously, considering that Gally’s proven himself to be a {{Jerkass}} with a mean streak, most of the Gladers ignore him. [[spoiler:It’s later revealed that Thomas and Teresa were actually the ones in charge of building and designing the Maze project]].
* In the first book of ''Literature/TheRavenCycle'' Noah consistently tells the others he's [[spoiler: a ghost]]. His first line in the series is literally "I've been dead for seven years," yet the others ignore him until [[spoiler: they find his body in the woods]]. When this happens Noah's response is point out that he ''did'' tell them several times.
* It's a RunningGag in the ''Literature/EighthDoctorAdventures'' novel ''Alien Bodies'' that Colonel Kortez of UNISYC keeps insisting things are "not what they seem", leading to the other characters dismissing him as a paranoid loon. And he probably ''is'' a paranoid loon, but the fact is everything he says that about turns out not, in fact, to be what it seems.

* At the end of ''Literature/TheDireSaga'', Dire tries to explain her actions to the heroes and they assume she's inventing a story to justify villainy. Although, frankly, it is a little implausible that [[spoiler:a low-level street gang is being led by history's most scary villain, long thought dead but revived by a vampire, and is colluding with a group of techno-mercenaries to help a group of artificial intelligences to use Y2K as a smoke screen as an opportunity to kill off an earlier group of AI]].
* In ''Literature/AngelInTheWhirlwind: The Oncoming Storm'', the Commonwealth's stated reason for annexing the Cadiz system is so that the Theocracy won't get it. They know however much the Cadizians hate the Commonwealth and want the OccupiersOutOfOurCountry, the Theocrats will be ''much'' worse. After the Theocracy forces the Commonwealth Navy to cede the system, local resistance fighters essentially give a "Dang, you weren't kidding" reaction to some Commonwealth SpaceMarines who got stuck on-planet with them.
* ''Lterature/TheStormlightArchive'' features Szeth. He interpreted events to mean there was a coming [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt Desolation]]. He was banished and made "Truthless", meaning he was honor-bound to follow the orders of his master, resulting in him becoming the infamous Assassin in White. He ends up, of course, being correct in his prediction, but the rest of Shinovar seems to prefer remaining with their heads in the sand.
** ''Literature/{{Edgedancer}}'' (a novella of ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'') has similar events, as [[spoiler:Szeth]] keeps on telling Nale and his acolytes that the Desolation they've been trying to prevent is already here, but Nale is too keen on BelievingTheirOwnLies to listen to him, and his acolytes trust him more than they do [[spoiler:Szeth]].
* ''Literature/SecondApocalypse'': Sorweel hates the Anasûrimbor family because they invaded his kingdom and killed his father. The goddess Yatwer puts a glamor over his face so that the Anasûrimbor family cannot use their Dunyain abilities to see his thoughts through his expression. Moënghus, who has no Dunyain blood, tries to convince Serwa that ''of course'' he hates the family, but Serwa insists on trusting her perceptions.
* It's complicated in ''Literature/{{Below}}''. Brenish can't safely tell Gareth the treasure map is a forgery, yet he repeatedly expresses doubts about it, hoping to get Gareth out of the equation. Since everyone knows Brenish is a ConsummateLiar, Gareth interprets this as an attempt to cut him out of the treasure, and lets his own desire to see [[DungeonCrawling the ruins]] push him into accepting the map at face value (at least once the Expert signs off on it). Brenish loves to exploit this trope, but this rare backfire gets him and his friends dragged into a quest he knows the map can't complete.
* In ''Literature/ForestOfAThousandLanterns'', the [[TragicVillain protagonist]] guiltily enjoys sadistic fantasies of murdering her romantic rival, despite knowing they are morally wrong. When she confides in Wei about them, he assumes it's just bog-standard jealousy that she shouldn't worry about. (Partly justified by the fact that the primitive society they live in barely understands mental illness, much less '[[spoiler:a GodOfEvil is [[MoreThanMindControl trying to corrupt]] people's souls]]'.)
* ''Literature/OneFatSummer'': When Bobby Marks is asked by his sister what he did the previous night, Michelle thinks he's being cheeky when he answers that he spent the night on Make-Out Island. Of course readers already know he DID get marooned on the island the previous evening and only got home less than an hour before her.

*** In ''Chamber of Secrets'', on who's the heir of Slytherin: "Maybe he murdered Myrtle, that would have done everyone a favor." And the previous victim of the Heir of Slytherin is indeed her.

** "You don't understand, Professor. Harry Potter's coming - he's got a dragon!" "Someone's trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone", "Sirius Black is innocent", "Voldemort has returned", [[spoiler:"Draco is trying to KILL people"]]...

* ''Literature/{{Edgedancer}}'' (a novella of ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive''): [[spoiler:Szeth]] keeps on telling Nale and his acolytes that the Desolation they've been trying to prevent is already here, but Nale is too keen on BelievingTheirOwnLies to listen to him, and his acolytes trust him more than they do [[spoiler:Szeth]].

* When [[{{''Literature/OneFatSummer''}} Bobby Marks]] is asked by his sister what he did the previous night, Michelle thinks he's being cheeky when he answers that he spent the night on Make-Out Island. Of course readers already know he DID get marooned on the island the previous evening and only got home less than an hour before her.

* When [[''Literature/OneFatSummer'' Bobby Marks]] is asked by his sister what he did the previous night, Michelle thinks he's being cheeky when he answers that he spent the night on Make-Out Island. Of course readers already know he DID get marooned on the island the previous evening and only got home less than an hour before her.

** An interesting twist on the classic trope is that anytime Ron makes a snarky comment, half the time he's right. In ''Philosopher's Stone'':
*** "I'll kill Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll." And they're doing just that a chapter or two later.