: Re: What are some tropes associated with social acceptance or rejection of infants with supernatural abilities? Are there any tropes regarding how societies react to children with supernatural abilities,

@Carla500

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I think you now know as much as there exists in terms of tropes derived from ancient cultures around this; TVTropes is usually pretty good with this.

But I agree with @Cloudchaser ; while it's definitely important to research this, don't be limited in worrying about what's a common trope and what's not. Instead, think of all the many possible reactions to a child with special abilities that people might have, especially the parents. Then, once you extrapolate that to society, you'll have a world like our own in how we treat different races, family pedigrees, intellect, sexual orientations, and gender identities, one that truly feels organic.

For starters, I'm thinking of the following reactions to children with superpowers and the ways they might grow up or respond to these:

Fear for their physical safety, for society bending over to accommodate for them, for their potential rise to power and corruption
Confusion, either talking down to them or doing their best to ignore them; bullying, difficulty in making or keeping friends
Exile or abandonment; often out of fear and/or confusion
Envy, leading to mistreatment, extortion, bribery for special services, toward both the child and the parents; fair-weather friends, like when a family member wins the lottery
Curiosity, obsessed with learning more about them; scientist
Awe and amazement, the "god" status; the celebrity treatment
Ridicule; also the celebrity treatment; ex: "TMZ"
Pity; the "special" kid that all the adults feel sorry for and bend over backward to "help" them
High expectations, especially from parents; people wanting to live vicariously through them; huge burdens on their shoulders
etc.

When you think about how our own world lives with people who are "different", the more you read and listen to people even just within the U.S., the more you see that it's not just "love" or "hate", but everything in between and more. The more you make the reactions relatable, even the trope answers will be engaging, because it's no longer mythologized; these will be real people with real opinions.

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