History Main / ArmorPiercingQuestion

* This idea, applied reflexively, is the idea behind Zen [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C5%8Dan koans]]. The teacher, when asked a question by the student, provides an answer which is supposed to prompt the student to ask the right question to pierce their own ignorance.

Compare ''and'' contrast ArmorPiercingResponse, when it's a response (instead of a question) that brings the other guy to a shock. It can be used to answer an Armor-Piercing Question, but it's just as likely to be used against an entirely innocent remark.

* ''Theatre/TheCrucible'': "Is Your Husband a Lecher?" Repeated a few times.

* ''Theatre/DearEvanHansen'' has several, but "How did you break your arm?" and, in the same scene, "Did you fall? ''Or did you let go''?" is by far the most shocking.

* In one strip of ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', Calvin asks his father, "Dad, how do soldiers killing each other solve the world's problems?" His father has no answer for him.

* Linus does this in one ''{{ComicStrip/Peanuts}}'' strip when he asks a doomsday prophet who has been terrorizing (or boring) the camp kids for a week: "Have you ever considered that you might be wrong?".

-->'''PETER:''' Don't go.
-->'''JASON:''' Peter, stop.
-->'''PETER:''' God, but the rave--
-->'''JASON:''' Was different. We don't live at a rave. Look, you have to stop acting like this.
-->'''PETER:''' Like what? Your boyfriend?

-->'''PRIEST:''' People come to the church in times like these for answers, but I have none... Most words seem to fall empty, but I'll try. It's a horrible thing that no one should have to go through, losing...a friend, at such a young age. You know, or you should know, that he's in a better place. We'll always ask ourselves if there was something more that could've been done, that's natural.
-->'''PETER:''' Do you ask yourself that, Father?

Now that he has everything?''\\

Then, slightly later:

-->'''Orpheus''': ''Where is the treasure inside of your chest?\\

Who stands in the garden, with nothing to lose?''\\

* [[Theatre/HeathersTheMusical]]: When Veronica tries to justify hurting [[spoiler:Martha]] when she comes a bit too close to [[spoiler:finding out the truth about Ram and Kurt's deaths]], Heather Chandler shoots back with:

* ''Theatre/SeventeenSeventySix'': When Adams and Jefferson speak out in support of the anti-slavery clause in the Declaration, Jefferson describes it as an infamous practice that wounds human nature. Rutledge immediately points out Jefferson's and Massachusetts' hypocrisy:
-->"Then see to your own wounds, Mr. Jefferson, for you are a--''practitioner'', are you not?"\\
"[singing] Who sails the ships out of ''Boston?''"

* ''Theatre/TheCrucible'': "Is Your Husband a Lecher?" Repeated a few times.
* "Now tell me, how do you take religion?" Asked by Gretchen to Theatre/{{Faust}}, in Creator/JohannWolfgangVonGoethe's version. Having made a DealWithTheDevil, he has a hard time answering it. Became so influential that "Gretchenfrage" [[TropeNamer entered the German vocabulary]].
* ''Theatre/SeventeenSeventySix'': When Adams and Jefferson speak out in support of the anti-slavery clause in the Declaration, Jefferson describes it as an infamous practice that wounds human nature. Rutledge immediately points out Jefferson's and Massachusetts' hypocrisy:
-->"Then see to your own wounds, Mr. Jefferson, for you are a--''practitioner'', are you not?"\\
"[singing] Who sails the ships out of ''Boston?''"
* ''Theatre/DearEvanHansen'' has several, but "How did you break your arm?" and, in the same scene, "Did you fall? ''Or did you let go''?" is by far the most shocking.
* ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}'':
** In "Aaron Burr, Sir", Hamilton asks "if you stand for nothing, Burr, what will you fall for?". It takes Burr half the play to find what he wants: he wants to be in [[TitleDrop the room where it happens]].
** To Hamilton, in "Non-Stop", Burr asks "How do you write like you're running out of time? ''Are'' you running out of time?"
* ''Theatre/IntoTheWoods'' has "Last Midnight," a song sung in the second act by the Witch. The whole first verse consists of simple questions delivered to the Baker, Jack, Cinderella, and Little Red Riding Hood: "Told a little lie... stole a little gold... broke a little vow, did you?" Those questions force the heroes to admit that their shortsighted, self-centered wishes and "small" wrongdoings have had major consequences for everyone.
* In ''Theatre/CompanySondheim'', Bobby, with a little help from Joanne, manages to give one to ''himself'':
-->'''Joanne''': I'll take care of you.\\
'''Bobby''': But who will I take care of?\\
'''Joanne''' ''(a big smile)'': Well, did you hear yourself? Did you hear what you just said, kiddo?

* In ''{{Theatre/Six}}'', Catherine of Aragon spends most of "No Way" giving Henry a thorough tongue-lashing for trying to divorce her for Anne Boleyn, when she's spent years biting her tongue about his many affairs. Towards, the end, she calms down and sincerely asks him, does he have a good reason for not wanting her around anymore?
-->'''Catherine:''' I've swallowed my pride all along. If you could just explain a ''single'' thing I've done to cause you pain... I'll go. ''[{{Beat}}.]'' No? You've got nothing to say?
* In ''Theatre/KnickerbockerHoliday'', Brom gives one to the council as they prepare to hang him (again):
-->'''Brom''': Gentlemen, I used to think there was something wrong with me because I couldn't take orders--but now I know it was a virtue--and one you'd better learn if you want to live!\\
'''Stuyvesant''': Cut that speech short! Cut that speech short!\\
'''Brom''': I'm sentenced for saying that your government was better than his, and now if you don't want him to hang you all, one by one, you'll throw down that rope and speak up to him!\\
'''Stuyvesant''': Take in the slack! Up with him! No hesitation!\\
'''Tienhoven''': Ve petter pull! Come on!\\
'''Brom''': Does he do your thinking for you, or have you minds of your own!\\
''(There is a pause.)''\\
'''Roosevelt''': No, ve vouldn't pull! ''(Drops rope)''\\
'''Stuyvesant''': What?\\
'''Roosevelt''': Ve vouldn't pull! My name's Roosevelt and ven I get a idea it sticks! Ve vouldn't pull!\\
'''Stuyvesant''': Will you let him outwit you again?\\
'''The Council''': ''(Sings "No, Ve Vouldn't Gonto Do It")''

* There are multiple in ''Theatre/BareAPopOpera'', most coming from Peter.
** The first happens during ''Birthday, Bitch!'' as Jason rejects Peter's attempts to be more open about their relationship
-->'''PETER:''' Don't go.
-->'''JASON:''' Peter, stop.
-->'''PETER:''' God, but the rave--
-->'''JASON:''' Was different. We don't live at a rave. Look, you have to stop acting like this.
-->'''PETER:''' Like what? Your boyfriend?
** The final and most impactful one is near the end of the show, [[spoiler: after Jason dies]], where Peter confronts the priest about his actions towards Jason.
-->'''PRIEST:''' People come to the church in times like these for answers, but I have none... Most words seem to fall empty, but I'll try. It's a horrible thing that no one should have to go through, losing...a friend, at such a young age. You know, or you should know, that he's in a better place. We'll always ask ourselves if there was something more that could've been done, that's natural.
-->'''PETER:''' Do you ask yourself that, Father?

* In ''Theatre/{{CompanySondheim}}'', Bobby, with a little help from Joanne, manages to give one to ''himself'':

* On the July 11th, 2011 edition of ''[[Wrestling/{{WWERaw}} Raw]]'', Wrestling/JohnCena delivers one to Wrestling/CMPunk. Punk had spent the entire promo MovingTheGoalPosts while talking over his contract to renew with the WWE and trying to win over the audience in the process. Cena comes out and hits Punk with a KirkSummation, pointing out how big of a {{Hypocrite}} Punk is before asking him this question; if you love the WWE universe so much, why are you trying to leave the WWE? Punk, who'd been in full MagnificentBastard mode all night, [[VillainousBreakdown gets furious]] and tries to lay the blame on Cena, but the fact he'd just been offered the very things he'd been complaining about Cena having and ''more'' but still hadn't gotten enough to stay in WWE renders him unable to effectively answer this. Punk would then piss off Cena, by deriding his claim of being the underdog. He stated that Cena, like his hometown of UsefulNotes/{{Boston}}, has long since become a dynasty, comparable to the [[UsefulNotes/MLBTeams New York Yankees]]. Cena, unable to argue against that claim and angered over the comparison, promptly decked him in the face.

--> "[[GoldenSnitch (95 pts.)]] '''[[StereoFibbing Which tire?]]'''"

* There's an [[https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/tire-sum-excuse/ urban legend]] of a group of college students who miss a final exam (in most variations, the students had gotten piss drunk the night before and overslept thanks to a hangover) and then go to their instructor after the final and lie to the instructor that they got a flat tire trying to drive to the exam together. The instructor offers them another chance -- or rather, [[HopeCrusher appears to]] -- by having them take a make-up final, on the caveat that they all take it in separate rooms to prevent any collaborative cheating. The students go into their assigned rooms, complete a few easy low-value questions, but when they turn the page, they're faced with the following question, which is worth the vast majority of the points (usually 95%):
--> '''[[StereoFibbing Which tire?]]'''

* In ''Theatre/{{Company}}'', Bobby, with a little help from Joanne, manages to give one to ''himself'':

* John Cena has been on the receiving end of armor-piercing questions as well. Such as on the March 2, 2015 edition of ''[[Wrestling/{{WWERaw}} Raw]]'', when Wrestling/StephanieMcMahon -- after [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech raking him over the coals]] for demanding a spot in the Wrestling/AndreTheGiant Memorial Battle Royal at Wrestling/WrestleMania XXXI without (in her view) doing anything notable to earn it -- makes a bone-chilling, soul shaking comment: "It's not where would WWE be without John Cena. It's where would John Cena be without WWE!" (Which Cena, of course, successfully sells.)

* John Cena has been on the receiving end of armor-piercing questions as well. Such as on the March 2, 2015 edition of RawIsWar, when Wrestling/StephanieMcMahon -- after [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech raking him over the coals]] for demanding a spot in the Wrestling/AndreTheGiant Memorial Battle Royal at Wrestling/WrestleMania XXXI without (in her view) doing anything notable to earn it -- makes a bone-chilling, soul shaking comment: "It's not where would WWE be without John Cena. It's where would John Cena be without WWE!" (Which Cena, of course, successfully sells.)

Sunbtrope of ThePowerOfLanguage. Compare BreakThemByTalking, HannibalLecture, WhatIsEvil, TheOnlyWayTheyWillLearn, FigureItOutYourself, {{Koan}}, CrypticConversation, WhamLine.

* In ''ComicStrip/DykesToWatchOutFor'' #452, Conservative lesbian student Cynthia relates her problems with her homophobic parents to her professor Ginger. Ginger tries to end this conversation by saying "Oh. Jeez. Well, uh ... maybe you should talk to someone." Cynthia's response ("I thought I was.") may not be framed as an armor-piercing question, but functions like one ("What do you think I was trying to do just now?").

* In {{Theatre/Hadestown}}, several delivered by Orpheus to Hades in his song appealing to the love Hades held in the past.

* In ''Theatre/Hadestown'', several delivered by Orpheus to Hades in his song appealing to the love Hades held in the past.

->'''Detective Del Spooner''': Robots don't feel fear. They don't feel anything. They don't eat, they don't sleep...\\
'''Sonny''': ''I'' do. I have even had ''dreams''.\\
'''Detective Del Spooner''': ''Human beings'' have dreams. Even ''dogs'' have dreams. But not you. You are just a machine. An ''imitation'' of life. Can a robot write a symphony? Can a robot turn a canvas into a beautiful masterpiece?\\
'''Sonny''': ...Can you?
-->-- ''Film/IRobot''

Compare BreakThemByTalking, HannibalLecture, WhatIsEvil, TheOnlyWayTheyWillLearn, FigureItOutYourself, {{Koan}}, CrypticConversation, WhamLine.