| The center tear is the oldest and most practised | | | | without unfolding the paper. |
| sleight of hand move in mentalism. Mentalism has its | | | | The mentalist then takes the paper, and without |
| origins in spiritualism, contacting the spirit world, and the | | | | opening it, tears it to pieces. |
| center tear was a method used by fraudulent | | | | What happens next will depend on the mentalist's |
| mediums to fake contact with the spirits. Modern | | | | choice of presentation. To keep this explanation simple, |
| mentalists, unlike their spiritualist descendents, do not | | | | we will say that the mentalist simply predicts the name |
| claim to be able to contact anyone in the afterlife but | | | | written on the paper. Looking deep into space, the |
| instead use this sleight to perform their mentalist | | | | mentalist suddenly calls out the name previously |
| effects on stage. The method is the same but the | | | | known only to the spectator. |
| effect is different. | | | | For the spectator this effect is amazing as there was |
| How to perform the center tear | | | | no apparent way the mentalist could have seen what |
| In this explanation we will refer to the person | | | | was written on the paper at any time. |
| witnessing the effect as 'the spectator'. That is, the | | | | The method is simple but requires practice. As with |
| spectator is the person the mentalism trick is being | | | | most magic and mentalism tricks some misdirection is |
| performed for. In a stage show, the spectator is | | | | necessary. While the mentalist tears up the paper, he |
| typically a member of the audience who has | | | | keeps eye contact with the spectator. The reason for |
| volunteered to come on stage. | | | | this is simple, if the spectator is looking into the |
| The spectator is given a small slip of paper and asked | | | | mentalist's eyes she is not looking at his hands. During |
| to write some information known only to them on one | | | | the tearing process, the mentalist keeps the middle of |
| side of the paper. Usually this information is the name | | | | section at the back of the torn pieces. This section is |
| of someone only they know. Only the spectator who | | | | subtly 'stolen' away when the pieces are discarded. |
| is doing the writing can see what is being written. The | | | | At some later point, this tiny shred of paper is opened |
| mentalist will often may a show of not looking at the | | | | by the mentalist and read. Because it is the middle |
| spectator during this process. | | | | section of the original piece of paper it will contain all, or |
| The spectator then folds the paper in half, and half | | | | almost all, of the word written down by the spectator. |
| again, so that the written name is impossible to see | | | | |
