Sleight of Hand - Deceit

Deceit

Sleight-of-hand techniques can also be used to cheat in gambling games, in street con games such as the three-shell game, or three-card monte to steal, or, in some cases, to claim supernatural powers, as in the performances of some 19th- and early 20th-century spirit mediums. For this reason, the term "sleight of hand" frequently carries negative associations of dishonesty and deceit, and is also used metaphorically outside the above contexts. The techniques used by gamblers, however, are often very different from those employed by magicians; similarly, the techniques used by some psychics or spirit mediums are often different from those found in "straight" close-up magic and mentalism. The differences, however, are due to the different working conditions and the different degrees of proximity between spectators and performer; the same basic techniques and approaches are common in all the areas of deception mentioned.