--- title: Tricks the mind plays: inner voices, superstitions and being sure but wrong — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «Tricks the mind plays: inner voices, superstitions and being sure but wrong», a lesson of the reflection course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: One sentence said in a bad moment can move into your head and live there: a month ago Ava's --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Reflection](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/) / Tricks the mind plays: inner voices, s… # Tricks the mind plays: inner voices, superstitions and being sure but wrong Lesson 27 of the reflection course of Mova's primary school: 18 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/0/) — One sentence said in a bad moment can move into your head and live there: a month ago Ava's best friend snapped, "You're so annoying," they made up the very next day, and yet every time Ava talks a bit too long she hears it: "Shut up, Ava. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/1/) — Everyone thinks so." - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/2/) — At first it was a sharp sting; by now it is a quiet voice that makes her stop in the middle of her stories; it is an old recording playing on its own, not the truth, and not even what her friend thinks any more. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/3/) — When she told her friend, the friend said, "I didn't mean it, I was grumpy"; Ava started answering the voice, "That's not true," and over the next weeks it got quieter; going silent had only fed it. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/4/) — The mind plays other tricks too: rare things on the news feel common, a lucky pencil seems to work because we remember only the hits, the crowd's laugh pulls ours out, and being sure can still be wrong, as when Grace nearly told everyone her friend stole, and it was a different girl in the same coat. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/5/) — Knowing the tricks does not switch them off, but it lets you catch them: "Is this a fact, or is it my brain doing that thing again?" - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/6/) — An inner critic is the mean voice in your head; it can replay someone's words long after they meant them, and it is not the truth. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/7/) — Answering the inner critic with "That's not true" and checking with the real person usually makes the voice quieter over weeks. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/8/) — The news shows rare, scary events, which makes them feel common; flying is one of the safest ways to travel, and thousands of planes land safely every day. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/9/) — Superstitions feel true because we remember the times they seemed to work and forget the times they did not. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/10/) — People often go along with a crowd, even laughing at jokes they don't find funny; noticing the pull is the first step to choosing differently. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/11/) — Bedwetting is common in children, even at nine or ten, and is nothing to be ashamed of; one bad memory can make you fear the same situation, and talking about it shrinks the fear. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/12/) — An urban legend is a made-up scary story that spreads as if it were true; knowing it was invented helps the fear fade. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/13/) — Eyes and memory can trick us; being sure doesn't always mean being right, so it is wise to check before telling others. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/14/) — Daydreaming is normal and good for imagination, but it can make you miss instructions; writing them down or sitting nearer the front helps. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/15/) — Most people don't notice small things like a spot; feeling that everyone sees it is called being self-conscious. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/16/) — Dreams can be strange and mixed up; dreaming about doing something bad does not make you a bad person. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/27-tricks-the-mind-plays-inner-voices-superstitions-and-being-sure-but-wrong/17/) — "Touch wood" and "jinx" are sayings people use as if words could bring luck or bad luck; they cannot change what happens. - ← previous: [The mind at night: replays, worst-case thinking and nightmares](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/26-the-mind-at-night-replays-worst-case-thinking-and-nightmares/) - next →: [Reading people in hard times: what's really behind the mean face](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/28-reading-people-in-hard-times-whats-really-behind-the-mean-face/) - ↑ back to [Reflection](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/reflection/)