History RefugeInAudacity / Literature

* Invoked in Neal Stephenson's ''Literature/{{Zodiac}}'', when Sangamon notes that Gomez would never believe him if he said that Alkali Lane's pH of 13 is a hundred thousand times higher than is legal. So he tells Gomez it's "more than twice the legal limit", which is both technically true and credible.

* Creator/RoaldDahl's ''Literature/{{Matilda}}'' explicitly states that the [[SadistTeacher monstrous headmistress]] Agatha Trunchbull would not get away with being cruel and abusive anywhere else, but she gets away with using a girl for human hammer throwing, flinging kids out of windows and locking them in a torture device because [[CassandraTruth no parent would believe]] a child trying to tell on her. Dahl knew his stuff--his intended audience (elementary-school kids) were perfectly capable of buying that explanation. This is TruthInTelevision. The Trunchbull was based on Dahl's personal abuse in the British school system. A full account can be read in "Boy" -- St. Peter's was not a happy place and the matron was an inventive taskmaster.

** ThePlan to distract Sauron from Frodo's quest by marching the battered armies of Gondor and Rohan into a direct assault on the Black Gate relies heavily on its sheer audacity to fool Sauron into thinking Aragorn has the Ring.

* ''Literature/JKRowlingUsesMagicToTurnTransvestitesIntoSerialKillers'' is this trope, from the title to the plot.

---> '''Gandalf:''' Let folly be our cloak, a veil before the eyes of the eEnemy! For he is very wise and weighs all things to a nicety in the scales of his malive. But the only measure that he knows is desire, desire for power; and so he judges all hearts. Into his heart the thought will not enter that any will refuse it, that having the Ring we may seek to destroy it. If we seek this, will shall put him out of reckoning.

** In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheHalfBloodPrince'', a Potions lesson has Slughorn presenting a mystery poison to the class and the students must concoct an antidote based on the contents of the potion. Harry, who has been receiving help from the Prince's annotations, realizes there's no real foolproof cheat around this (as Hermione also gleefully remarks on), so he grabs a [[BrickJoke bezoar]] from the cabinet and presents that as his antidote. Slughorn rewards him 10 points for "sheer cheek." None of his classmates are amused ([[spoiler:though grateful that he later managed to save Ron from poisoning with it]]).

* Creator/RoaldDahl's ''Literature/{{Matilda}}'' explicitly states that the [[SadistTeacher monstrous headmistress]] Agatha Trunchbull would not get away with being cruel and abusive anywhere else, but she gets away with using a girl for human hammer throwing, flinging kids out of windows and locking them in a torture device because [[CassandraTruth no parent would believe]] a child trying to tell on her. Dahl knew his stuff--his intended audience (elementary-school kids) were perfectly capable of buying that explanation. This It is TruthInTelevision. The Trunchbull was based on Dahl's personal abuse in the British school system. A full account can be read in "Boy"--St. Peter's was not a happy place and the matron was an inventive taskmaster.
--->"Never do anything by halves if you want to get away with it. Be outrageous. Go the whole hog. Make sure everything you do is so completely crazy it's unbelievable."

** ''Literature/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy:'' Having been found by the captain of the Vogon Deconstruction Fleet, and forced to listen to some of his poetry (Vogon poetry being among the worst in the universe, enough to cause ''physical pain'' in those who hear it, and the Vogons know this), Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect are offered the choice of being thrown out into space, or... telling the captain what they thought. Arthur's immediate response is to say he thought it was good. This takes the captain and Ford back. Ford had never once considered the possibility of just outright BS-ing their way out of the situation. And unlike the radio and TV versions, it ''almost'' works.

** In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'', [[SadistTeacher Dolores Umbridge]] zigzags the trope somewhat. She gets away with torturing students and sacking teachers as she pleases because of the authority the Ministry of Magic has granted her, but keeps the worst of it out of their earshot ("What Cornelius doesn't now won't hurt him"). That said, she displays it early as the beginning of the book during Harry's trial, laughing off Dumbledore's suggestion that someone in the Ministry intentionally sent the Dementors to attack Harry as ridiculous, [[spoiler:which is exactly what happened, and ''she'' was the one who ordered it.]]

* Appears several times in ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings''.

*** To pitch this story Adams related it to discredited politician and convicted liar Jeffrey Archer, who promptly used it in one of his own books and claimed he'd thought of it first. Adams was inclined to be generous, putting it down to a misunderstanding, although other writers have also complained about Archer allegedly stealing their plot bunnies. ("Allegedly" used as a legal disclaimer here in the ''Series/HaveIGotNewsForYou'' sense.) Satirical magazine ''Magazine/PrivateEye'' related the tale of Archer sitting on a judging panel for new short fiction by unpublished writers and using it as a chance to steal their best ideas to use himself--then, in the days before his own downfall for fraud and lying on oath,he used his lawyers to threaten those who complained at this breach of trust with actions for defaming his character, in daring to allege he'd do such a thing.

** Moist admitted to himself (numerous times) the mastery of ''Discworld/GoingPostal's'' antagonist, [[MagnificentBastard Reacher Gilt]]. Gilt ''deliberately'' made himself resemble a pirate (complete with talking cockatoo shouting "[[StealthPun twelve and a half percent]]"), essentially ''advertising'' he was a CorruptCorporateExecutive.
** ''Discworld/MakingMoney'' featured the most gloriously audacious moment of his entire career to screw over a blackmailer. Said blackmailer is threatening to expose the fact that Moist was a crook. so what does he do? [[spoiler:He gets on the stand in front of ''the entire city'' and admits it.]] As he waited for this crucial moment, he witnessed a cute dog named Mr. Fusspot come skirting out behind a curtain in to the middle of the room chasing after and wanting to chew a thick leather vibrating dildo. No one dare bat an eye at it. Moist decided if he lived in a world where that can happen and be accepted, he can make his confession on the stand.

** Vimes' disarming of a riot in ''Discworld/NightWatch'': He goes outside the watch house, unarmed, with a PowderKegCrowd forming and sits down on the front porch drinking cocoa and smoking a cigar. He makes very sure everyone can see that both his hands are full and neither hand has a weapon. Later in the book he disables a piece of siege equipment by walking right up to it like he owns the place and acting like his sabotage is maintenance.
** ''Discworld/GuardsGuards!''. Four Night Watch members get a long way into the Shades, a district of Ankh-Morpork so dangerous that ''assassins'' are afraid of going in, and avoid death by being loudly drunk, confusing the criminals tailing them. They later arrest someone for committing murder with a blunt instrument. Said blunt instrument was a forty-foot dragon. In fact, the dragon is also arrested.

** Vimes {{Lampshades}} his own use of this trope in ''Discworld/{{Thud}}'':

** In ''Discworld/CarpeJugulum'', Count de Magpyr (an evil vampire) confronts the peasant mob with critical appraisal of their weapons, and promises to send out snacks later. Then he goes back into the castle trailed by "the puzzled mumbling of players who have had their ball confiscated."
** In ''Discworld/{{Jingo}}'', two armies are about to fight a battle. When Commander Vimes protests that they can't be arrested, Carrot does not see why not. They could charge them with Action Likely to Cause a Breach of Peace. He then ''does it successfully'' and among other charges: Loitering with Intent, and Loitering ''within'' Tent[[note]]"Hah!"[[/note]], one count of offensive language for the commanding general who protests this (this is commanding officer of Vimes' own city by the way) and Carrying Concealed Weapons because ''he'' isn't looking at the weapons at the time.
** Also in ''Discworld/{{Jingo}}'', Vimes insults a member of the nobility loudly, repeatedly and to his face, because he knows Lord Rust's worldview does not admit the possibility of such a thing and Rust, therefore, will not notice.

** In ''Discworld/TheLastHero'', Commander Vimes sends him to arrest ''Cohen the Barbarian and his Silver Horde'', who may accidentally blow up the world. The charge? Conspiracy to cause an affray.

** Cohen qualifies, too. At one point, he explains to a group of soldiers that they aren't as scary as they could be, and reminds them of "the element of ''SURPRISE''!" before slaughtering them all in five seconds. In ''Discworld/InterestingTimes'' he intends to steal [[spoiler: the entire Agatean Empire.]] The idea is ''so'' audacious that nobody thought to defend against such a plan and it works flawlessly.

** Vetinari uses this in ''Discworld/NightWatch'' to kill Lord Winder. Instead of creeping about like a normal assassin, he walks in, bold as brass, disables the bodyguards, and draws his sword. He never actually ''uses'' the sword, its mere presence is enough to tip the already unhinged Winder over the edge and into a heart attack.

* Later in the ''Charles Augustus Milverton'' story, when Lestrade is looking for the two (ultimately innocent) suspects of murdering the title character, Sherlock Holmes points out to Lestrade that the description of one of the suspects may fit that of John Watson. They laugh it off, without Lestrade ever realizing that Holmes and Watson are actually those two suspects.

** In ''Literature/CaptainVorpatrilsAlliance'', the Cordonahs [[spoiler:asking for 10% of the profits of a cache of stolen property below [=ImpSec=] Headquarters as a finders fee, while on trial for (among much else) ''sinking'' [=ImpSec=] Headquarters.]]