Discussion RoFan Trope: The Paranoid Male Threatening his Female Lead With His Sword/Weapon

I read the manhwa chapter where he killed an innocent maid and I already figured that he is typically cursed like the other sad murderous bloodthirsty Male Leads in the Rofan Genre.
Likewise, I'm also done with the Cursed Prince or Duke Trope.
It is so easy to redeem a cruel Tyrant when there is conveniently a Curse to blame.
What do you think about the Trope: "Love Will Save The Cursed Male Lead"?

 

Fair enough, I can see why that wouldn't be fun to see.

 

I'll Raise You Well in This Life, Your Majesty! Ch.83




May I Kill You, Your Majesty? Ch.3


How Could You Repay the Kindness I Raised You With Obsession / Obsessed With Hazel the Sweet Witch, Ch.6



I Was Forced to Get Married in This World Where Beauty and Ugliness Are Reversed, "Yes, Please!" Ch.2


Food Truck Owner Inside the Dungeon, Ch.2


Trumping My Tragic Destiny, Ch.10


Try Begging


This Time I'll Change My Husband, Ch.4


The Father and the Daughter / Like Father, like Daughter, Ch.7 (Not a ML, but still a Male Main Character)



The Homeless Saint in the Abandoned Park, Ch.2

 

man it's one thing to point a sword at another person, but its even crazier to do it at a child. deadbeat fathers should have their own special section here. eg Claude *cough cough*.... though i imagine you've done a thread on this before, no?

 

The Rofan Novel that started Trope 'Shit Father Blames His Daughter For His Beloved Wife's Death'?

 

Getting Married Without My Badge

This is the closest thing I could find at the moment: A Female Lead threatens her Male Lead with her sword.

 

See, the difference compared to the other novel covers is 1) the sword is actually sheathed so its not really cutting anything anytime soon, and 2) the ML has a playful smirk on his face so he doesn't real feel threatened, thus it implies he trusts the FL won't actually hurt him, and she's doing so more out of annoyance.

Unless, anyone wants to make corrections...

(Plus, I also like the fact that both are wearing converse shoes lmao, nice couple's clothes)

 

Truck Driver Knight Takjin / Truck Knight Taekbae / Mr. Delivery Knight, Ch.4

 

Context?

 

Just another Northern Male Lead with Dark Hair & Red Eyes who wants to intimidate a person with his sword.
But this time the protagonist is a Korean Middle-Aged Delivery Truck Driver who can stand up against him.

 

To be honest, most of these incidents are before the ML knows the FL. It isn't a power dynamic where the male is exercising power over the smaller frail woman, it's actually the opposite. In many of the scenes th ML is holding the sword up because they don't see them as a man or woman but as an opponent not to be looked down on. Anyone who lives in a place where public order is questionable, looking down on someone be it man, woman or child is quickest way to end up dead.

It isn't meant to be romantic, it's suppose to be tense

 

I would agree more with your point that "ML views FL as an adversary" if they didn't live in a monarchist, patriarchal and classist fantasy world where girls and women are at the receiving end of society.
I've seen enough MLs who look down on other girls or women.
It's a romanticized common plot:
The NLOG Heroine has to survive the most powerful Problematic Royal, Duke, Magician, Demon, Demigod etc. who can murder anyone he wants, and then (unintentionally) makes him fall in love with her so she alone can become a Happy Fairytale Princess.

 

While I don't disagree with you about the male dominance part, I will point out even during real medieval times pointing a sword at a lady was a breach of chivalry. This didn't mean women had rights, if anything it viewed them as beneath them.

As for why authors use that plot point in romance novels. The answer is simple, what the author is going for is trying to show that ML is cold towards everyone be it man, woman or child. That the don't even see women as women.
Then come the FMC and melts the ML heart.

The romantic goal here is to have a ML who only loves the FMC and won't even see any other woman as a woman

I mean think about it, you have a duke who all the women fall heads over heals for. How do you assure readers he isn't a playboy? Pointing a sword at a woman is symbolism that the guy won't cheat

If anything, look at the child rearing versions where the duke is the father. It's not uncommon for him to have had multiple women. But that's because a dad isn't a romantic interest. For the romantic interest, he can't be a cheater so making him popular but keeping women away even as far as holding a sword to their throat

 

I agree with most of your arguments.
But I still don't like seeing any privileged elite ML pointing his swords easily at lower-ranked characters. His targets or opponents are never on equal footing with him.

Another common method for the Rofan authors to make their ML only available for FL is to make him cursed.
No other women want to or can touch the ML because they don't have the convenient cure or body to heal him.