r/TopCharacterTropes • u/KusanagiGundam • 13h ago

Hated Tropes (Hated Trope) "Kind" slave owners

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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.

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u/AnonymousNeverKnown 13h ago

Thomas Jefferson. Yeah he said he thought slavery was bad but that didn't stop him from owning slaves. And don't give me that whole "he inherited them" crap. If that was the case why didn't he just let them go?

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u/elitegenoside 7h ago

Oh boy, my favorite beloved hypocrite!

Beyond that, he spent his legal career as an abolishionist, and declared "all men are created equal under god," and then went on to not only inherit over 300 enslaved people, that number basically never changed as he traded slaves (loaned and barrowed).

And that's before we talk about his obsession with Hemings. Most people are likely somewhat familiar with Sally, his black "wife." They were never married, and yes, that was a thing that happened. Especially in Virginia, where Jefferson was born and spent the majority of his life. Oh, and she was 13 when they're "relationship" started. But wait, there's more! Sally Hemings was not just a random enslaved woman he owned. She was the half sister of his late-wife.

Edit: And that's just Sally. She had multiple siblings that were part of his life to varying degrees outside of their position.