| abstract
| - When one character gives a talk to another that does or is meant to somehow break down the recipient or gain a psychological advantage over them by claiming uncomfortable things that they can't deny. Also known as a Breaking Speech or Breaking Lecture. This is often achieved by a kind of "The Reason You Suck" Speech, telling the other character how pathetic they are or perhaps how guilty of something terrible, perhaps Not So Different from someone unpalatable, but there are other ways of breaking someone down by talking. You could for example instead deconstruct the world, other characters, or their relationship with the victim. The important part is that they can't deny your words, at least not in the heat of the moment, and you gain a psychological advantage over them. Results when successful range from the mere chance of getting to smirk in a satisfied way for rattling someone in an otherwise superior position; through distracting or demoralising an opponent to make them easier to beat; to bringing about Break the Cutie, Heroic BSOD, Villainous Breakdown or even Face Heel Turn, More Than Mind Control, or Driven to Suicide. The most extreme form would be Mind Rape by just talking, but be wary of automatically calling every instance of Breaking Them by Talking that. Obviously, this is easier to pull off from a relative position of power, such as when you have just defeated someone, or when interrogating a prisoner. But it goes both ways, and it's even more impressive when someone manages to turn the tables on someone who was in a superior position. When this is done by one being interrogated, and only then, it's the Hannibal Lecture. Naturally, in between these cases there is the one where both parties start out on an equal footing. Some characters have the ability to do this as a superpower, which may be an example of Awesome By Analysis. As stated above, there is frequent overlap with "The Reason You Suck" Speech, but the concepts are not the same. "The Reason You Suck" Speech is about what you say, this is about what you do by saying it. You can tell someone they suck without breaking them down or even intending to do so, particularly if you're just annoyed, and you can break someone down without telling them why they suck. The distilled version of this is the Armor-Piercing Question. If the declarations used as a weapon come from simple clues, this is a form of Sherlock Scan. Can be done as part of Evil Gloating. Shut UP, Hannibal is a way of countering this trope. The opposite effect is done by a World of Cardboard Speech, when the hero tells about his own flaws and how they don't matter now. The reverse or "good counterpart" is the Kirk Summation or Talking the Monster to Death. Hannibal Lecture is a specific subtrope. See also: To the Pain, Talking Your Way Out, Just Between You and Me, And Then What?, Verbal Judo. Examples of Break Them by Talking include:
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