Sight is a psychic talent. It is, in short, that of seeing ghosts' visual manifestations and one of the three talents, the other two being touch and listening. This talent at its simplest allows people to see the apparitions of visitors. Additionally, those with this Talent are able to see death-glows, the residue left at the site of a death, not necessarily linked to a Source. For sensitives with exceptionally strong sight like Anthony Lockwood, these death-glows can be searingly bright, and Lockwood is known to carry sunglasses on his person to counteract this inconvenience[1]. Interestingly, agents with lesser Sight often have to use their peripheral vision to see the forms of fainter ghosts[2]. Nevertheless, it is likely most agents possess at least some small degree of Sight, as fighting with a rapier is standard for agents[3].
Goggles made by the Orpheus Society allowed even those without Sight to see ghosts[4].
Advantages[]
A small amount of talented sight is invaluable to any agent, as it allows for effective fighting against ghosts. If an agent completely lacks sight, fighting a manifestation becomes significantly harder, as seen when Quill Kipps, after having lost his sensitivity and therefore sight, tries to fight a weak visitor and fails miserably[5]. Still, more powerful sight allow for much better analysis of a visitors appearance, allowing quick determination of type of visitor, as they often differ most in apparition, possible sources, as clothing or injuries may provide clues, and the dangers posed by the manifestation[2][6]. Less talented individuals may take a long time to be able to see these details, which is most often too late[2]. Agents talented in sight are able to work alone more effective than people mostly gifted in one of the other talents, but they still work better in groups, as they can't easily identify sources and may miss sound-related cues completely.
Death-glows can be used by seers to determine the location of more recent deaths and estimate the strength of the apparition based on the brightness of the glow after a known amount of time[1]. They can also provide clues to possible locations of sources, although this is rather rare.
Disadvantages[]
Sight has few disadvantages, except for the sheer brightness of some apparitions or death-glows. These can sometimes be blindingly bright, but are most often neutralized by simply carrying sunglasses. Still, in the heat of the moment, this can severely limit the abilities of even a talented agent.
Notable Users[]
Anthony Lockwood[]
- Main article: Anthony Lockwood
Anthony Lockwood is a talented agent, specializing in sight. Operating his own agency, Lockwood & Co., he is a exceptionally talented and well-known sensitive, working in a team with Lucy Carlyle, a talented listener able to converse with type three ghosts, and George Cubbins, an all-rounder with a talent for research[7]. He was able to quickly identify ghost-types and use hints from their appearance to effectively fight them[2][6].
Tom Rotwell[]
- Main article: Tom Rotwell
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Screaming Staircase, I: The Ghost, Ch. 1
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 The Screaming Staircase, III: The Necklace, Ch. 14
- ↑ The Screaming Staircase, Glossary
- ↑ [citation needed]
- ↑ Not The Eternal: 10:50
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 [citation needed] I remember a case with a motorbike where lockwood used his sight to identify a uniform, but I can't locate it in the books
- ↑ This Will Be Us