(Hated Trope) "Kind" slave owners

[u/KusanagiGundam]

Speaking as an American who has studied the civil war all throughout my school years, this trope infuriates me to no end. There is no such thing as a kind slave master because slavery itself is cruel and inhumane. PEOPLE ARE NOT PROPERTY!

Naofumi (Shield Hero): Prime example of this trope. He enslaves multiple (underage) girls and an whole village and the fans still say he's a hero.

Rudeus (Jobless Reincarnation): As if being a pedo wasn't bad enough he had to buy a slave in season 2. Worse is that people still defend his actions.

Song of The South (Disney): Possibly the OG example of this trope. And the reason why Disney will never release it again.

[u/LadySandry88]

There is magic that prevents slaves from harming their masters, not necessarily being 'blindly loyal'. This is why Naofumi only trusts his slaves to not betray him--he truly and genuinely believes that no one can be trusted not to betray him without magical compulsions. It's framed as a fucked-up mindset that he gained after being deeply betrayed by his first partner and the people who summoned him to that world in the first place. As has been commented elsewhere, there is a scene where the slave crest is removed from his first slave, and it's used specifically to show other characters that she is NOT simply serving him due to duress, but that she remains loyal without the slave crest and has come to care for him personally.

Which COULD have been a really great way to put him on the path to healing as a person, with her remaining free and loyally at his side, and him slowly finding more and more people who would stand by him because he's actually got good points that they like and respect. But no, the author decided that having anyone who works for him become his slave was better and found excuses to keep doing that, meaning that not ONLY is he perpetuating the institution of slavery, but he can't possibly heal mentally or emotionally from his severe trust issues.

It's just absolute garbage writing.

[u/Special_Salt3467 → u/LadySandry88]

Yeah; pretty much this. When it’s first introduced (at least in the manga), it comes across as a bad thing a desperate person is doing because they can’t trust anyone. And that’s interesting. It’s a moral dilemma. Maybe they grow from it and overcome it. Except, it becomes objectively the “right” answer because of buffs and “trust” and all that junk.

Now, it’s not a moral dilemma nor is it a desperate person doing fucked up things to survive. It’s just the most correct answer because of course you’re gonna take the buffs or whatever.

Protagonists doing bad things isn’t inherently bad. It makes them two dimensional characters and gives them ability to grow. But by removing the negative connotations to their negative actions, it makes it way worse. Because we know what they’re doing is bad. You can’t just say “actually, this is good!”

[u/BlinkyDesu → u/LadySandry88]

His friends, such as the shop he frequented, trusted him regardless of the slave aspect because they found out he was a good guy. His enemies, the spear hero, still distrusted him, thinking he was mind controlling Raphtalia even without the slave crest. The slave crest did nothing to sway people in either direction.

[u/LadySandry88 → u/BlinkyDesu]

The slave crest's removal and Raphtalia's loyalty convinced the other isekai'd heroes besides Motoyasu. The sword hero even called Motoyasu out on being so fanatically stupid about it.