Hypnosis takes control

 Hypnotism and breast cancer awareness joined in an event on Friday night, as Zeta Tau Alpha brought hypnotist Marshal Manlove for a fundraiser for the Zeta Foundation.

The foundation donates its proceeds to breast cancer research and awareness. The vice president of ZTA, Kim Herzog, said she decided to bring a hypnotist to Towson because she thought it would be a very interesting show, and that it would make students want to attend.

The ZTA girls raised breast cancer awareness by wearing “Think Pink” shirts and handing out pink ribbons.

Manlove’s performance consisted of a few group exercises, which he identified as waking hypnosis. He was able to persuade his audience to perform certain actions he suggested even when they were fully awake and conscious. Manlove defined hypnosis as “an intense state of relaxation,” and he said being hypnotized is like having a very vivid dream.

Later in his show, Manlove called volunteers on stage who appeared eager to be hypnotized. There were about 20 people on stage, including some girls from ZTA. Manlove told them to close their eyes as he relaxed them into a very deep sleep. He then took them through an adventure in which they were attempting to travel to a place he called “Magic Island.”

Although they could open their eyes, they seemed to be under the power of Manlove’s suggestion and would do most anything that he told them to.

At the end of his show, Manlove took his participants out of their subconscious state and asked them a few questions. Many of them did not remember anything that just happened and they thought that they had just been called up on stage despite the fact that they had been up there for about two hours.

Manlove asked how many of them didn’t think they could be hypnotized and a good half of them raised their hands, although participants did each of the actions Manlove requested.

Freshman Ryan Aloe was a participant in Manlove’s show.

He said he is “assuming [he] got hypnotized,” but he is not completely sure. He remembered volunteering to go up on stage to be hypnotized, but other than that he only remembered blurs.

He thought that Manlove’s performance was pretty cool, but he did not remember much of it.

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