History Main / ComeToGawk

* I've never seen ''TheElephantMan'', but {{pop cultural osmosis}} tells me this is pretty well what it's about.

* NathanielHawthorne's ''TheScarletLetter'' opens with Hester Prynne standing on a pillory before the crowd as part of her punishment.

* Prometheus to Oceanus in {{Aeschylus}}'s ''PrometheusBound''

*** Stephen Levitt discusses a creative example that has found some use in his [[{{Freakonomics}} discussions over incentives]]. Rather than fining pimps, prostitutes, and johns, the local authorities would post their convictions to a website. Levitt asks what would be more powerful incentive to avoid prostitution: a $500 USD fine or one's friends, family, and coworkers seeing you on [=JoesandHoes=].net?

* One Psychologist whose name escapes me at the moment described it as the "Freakshow principle" where people go out of their way to see things like the JerrySpringer Show, COPS and other trainwrecks like that solely so they can comfort themselves knowing they aren't as freaky as ''those people'' and boost their self-esteem.

* One Psychologist whose name escapes me at the moment described it as the "Freakshow principle" where people go out of their way to see things like the JerrySpringerShow, COPS and other trainwrecks like that solely so they can comfort themselves knowing they aren't as freaky as ''those people'' and boost their self-esteem.

*** Stephen Levitt discusses a creative example that has found some use in his [[{{Freakanomics}} discussions over incentives]]. Rather than fining pimps, prostitutes, and johns, the local authorities would post their convictions to a website. Levitt asks what would be more powerful incentive to avoid prostitution: a $500 USD fine or one's friends, family, and coworkers seeing you on [=JoesandHoes=].net?

*** Stephen Levitt discusses a creative example that has found some use in his [[{{Freakonomics}} discussions over incentives]]. Rather than fining pimps, prostitutes, and johns, the local authorities would post their convictions to a website. Levitt asks what would be more powerful incentive to avoid prostitution: a $500 USD fine or one's friends, family, and coworkers seeing you on [=JoesandHoes=].net?

* One Psychologist whose name escapes me at the moment described it as the "Freakshow principle" where people go out of their way to see things like the Jerry Springer Show, COPS and other trainwrecks like that solely so they can comfort themselves knowing they aren't as freaky as ''those people'' and boost their self-esteem.

If the gawkers spontaneously show up to mock someone over accidental embarassments, you're dealing with TheFreelanceShameSquad. The comedic equivalent is PassThePopcorn.

--> '''Pestage''': "Come to see if I was okay, or is your visit a harbinger of trouble?"
--> '''Fel''': "I just came to see how far the mighty had fallen. I had to remind myself you're a man like any other."
--> '''Pestage''': "Is that it, or are you here to gloat over my misfortune?"

** Also a Moment Of Awesome for Gordon, since it doesnt work.

*** Stephen Levitt discusses a creative example that has found some use in his [[{{Freakonomics}} discussions over incentives]]. Rather than fining pimps, prostitutes, and johns, the local authorities would post their convictions to a website. Levitt asks what would be more powerful incentive to avoid prostutition: a $500 USD fine or one's friends, family, and coworkers seeing you on JoesandHoes.net?

If the gawkers spontaneously show up to mock someone over accidental embarassments, you're dealing with TheFreelanceShameSquad.

* A black and white version of ''Murders in the Rue Morgue'' starts out with the mains character wandering through a kind of exhibit / freak show featuring (among other exhibits) [[ValuesDissonance Middle-eastern belly-dancers, Apache warriors,]] and a [[UnfortunateImplications gorilla]].

* In Stephen Hunt's ''The Court Of The Air'', the figurehead/scapegoat king is regularly displayed on balconies for the crowd to pelt with rubbish; a coronation starts with sending the new king around to many towns to be displayed and pelted.

** In DeusEx, when the player character is in jail, one of the QuirkyMinibossSquad comes to gloat.

* The climax of the 1930 German film ''The Blue Angel'' has the main character, a once proud ([[PrideBeforeAFall too proud]]) professor, dressed up as a clown and forced to crow like a rooster in front of a crew of his former colleagues, students, and neighbours. It's an incredibly difficult scene to watch. Then he goes [[BerserkButton berserk]].

* Prometheus to Oceanus in {{Aeschylus}}'s ''Prometheus Bound''

* In ''The Scar'' by China Mieville, the Brucolac is hung up atop a ship's mast and left there. Being a vampire, he is slowly dying of exposure to sunlight before he is finally taken down.

* In Alan Moore's Batman story ''TheKillingJoke'', Jim Gordon is locked naked in a cage with a bunch of carnival freaks staring at him while the Joker makes a speech about how frail and pathetic man is, in an attempt to drive Gordon insane.

--> [[GenreSavy Phoenix:]] "No, it's a trap. If we laugh, he'll get mad... [[StoicWoobie or burst into tears.]]"

The threat of this trope may lead characterse to BetterToDieThanBeKilled or LeaveBehindAPistol.

* In Alan Moore's Batman story ''TheKillingJoke'', Jim Gordon is locked naked in a cage with a bunch of carnival freaks staring at him while the Joker makes a speech about how frail and pathetic man is.

[[AC:Anime and Manga]]
*In ''RoseOfVersailles'' when Jeanne Valois is publicly branded as a criminal, many spectators came to gawk at her.
*In ''UminekoNoNakuKoroNi'' [[spoiler: Beatrice forces Battler in a HeroicBSOD to parade around nude and be used as furniture in front of a pack of goat-servants. Shortly afterwards, he's devoured.]]

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* In the XWingSeries comics, the self-appointed new Emperor, Sate Pestage, fled the Empire to save his life. He'd been planning to strike a deal with the Rebel Alliance / New Republic, sparing his life and giving him about thirty planets in exchange for leaving the Imperial capital undefended, but he was found out and captured. He was held in a prison, and the Rebels broke him out but couldn't flee offplanet with him yet, so they set up camp. While he was there, an ex-Imperial pilot who had [[DefectorFromDecadence defected]] came to [[http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/4917/swrsmr311.jpg visit him]].

[[AC:Film]]

* The climax of the 1930 German film ''The Blue Angel'' has the main character, a once proud ([[PrideBeforeAFall too proud]]) professor, dressed up as a clown and forced to cock like a rooster in front of a crow of his former colleagues, students, and neighbours. It's an incredibly difficult scene to watch. Then he goes [[BerserkButton berserk]].

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[[AC:Music]]

[[AC:Live Action TV]]

*Referenced by ''MysteryScienceTheater3000'' when they watched the short "Junior Rodeo Daredevils". After one youngster loses a competition and throws his hat in the air in frustration:

* In the StarTrekTheNextGeneration episode "The Most Toys," Data is captured by a greedy alien collector named Kivas Fajo who wants him as a centerpiece for his series of unique and valuable items (being the only sentient android in existence). By putting Data into his collection, and showing him off to other thieves, Fajo is using him for a ComeToGawk purpose, claiming it's okay since Data has no emotions and therefore can't find his imprisonment distasteful. At the end of the episode of course, Data is returned to the Enterprise and Fajo is locked up in the brig, his collection of stolen items being returned to their owners. When Data comes by to watch him in the brig, Fajo asks him if he's enjoying watching him being kept captive by the Enterprise, only for Data to reply that as an android, he finds no pleasure in such things.

[[AC:Theater]]
*WilliamShakespeare:
**At the end of [[{{Macbeth}} the Scottish play]] Macduff threatens Macbeth with public humiliation if he won't fight. Macbeth's pride won't allow him to submit, so he has no choice but to fight even though [[YouCantFightFate it's been prophesied that it will mean his death]].

*Sadly, this HAS been TruthInTelevision. Mostly, indigenous natives were brought over to more developed countries and put on display for everything from [[ForScience "study"]] to...well, [[HumansAreBastards entertainment]]. Needless to say, this was ValuesDissonance UpToEleven.
** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ota_Benga Ota Benga]] was, after slavers killed his wife and children, made to perform at several events (including the Lousiana Purchase Exposition). In 1906, they put him in the Monkey House at the Bronx Zoo for demonstration, where he shot targets with a bow and arrow and wrestled with orangutans. They made him an "interactive" exhibit two days later, walking the grounds where people could physically and verbally abuse him as they pleased. Needless to say, he took this poorly and became violently depressed. Ten years later, he committed suicide.