The Dark Circus: Lore Analysis - Reversals

There are many types of Reversals and many more factors that govern the switch. Among those factors are the conditional and consensual.

Shirlain and Tiral share the most common form of reversal, a consensual conditional reversal, meaning that a switch can occur when circumstances are met. In their case, a reflective surface to gaze into. Unlike a pure conditional, however, the switch is not enforced upon gazing into their reflection, and requires the intent to instigate the swap.

Others are not as privileged with such convenience, such as that of the diurnal nocturnal exchange, which refers to a swap enforced by the cycles of day and night. An environmental conditional that disregards consent.

Though reversals, can be resisted, doing so places a huge burden and stress on the body and in severe cases can lead to rending and what some have come to call "soul sundering".

Some other examples include the Blindsided switch which are most commonly indicated by heterochromia at birth when the souls have yet to fully differentiate. As the souls mature, so too does it stabilize in the body and the eyes take on that of each soul rather than the both of them. A swap is instigated and maintained only by the blockage of visual feedback through one eye or the other and is most easily observed by the color change of the iris. Having unobstructed vision during a swap however, can result in crippling nausea and migraines induced by the loss of stability as the souls residing in their respective eye have yet to fully withdraw or emerge.

There are of course anomalies to the standards of reversal, a majority of which remain undocumented due to the secrecy by which our society has come to covet.