A twist on an old story - Not!

[keith99]

I was watching a film on TV that included the rather old meme of the princess who has a planned marriage to be against her wishes. For a while I thought it had an interesting twist. The groom to be seemed to be a decent guy. Turned out to be that he was even worse than usual.
So my question. Can anyone think of a book (or film) story with the detested arranged marriage where the groom to be turns out to be a decent person?
I can think of one but will not say it to start. But I will say the detested groom is the cousin of the woman's real true love who she grew up with and that her true love does have what would be an outside love interest that never really starts because it was far too forbidden.

 

[Endeavourer]

My guilty pleasure is watching "Married at First Sight". It's a modern day tale on the topic. Sometimes the groom is a prince, sometimes he is a toad.

 

[Chesterton]

I was watching a film on TV that included the rather old meme of the princess who has a planned marriage to be against her wishes. For a while I thought it had an interesting twist. The groom to be seemed to be a decent guy. Turned out to be that he was even worse than usual.
So my question. Can anyone think of a book (or film) story with the detested arranged marriage where the groom to be turns out to be a decent person?
I can think of one but will not say it to start. But I will say the detested groom is the cousin of the woman's real true love who she grew up with and that her true love does have what would be an outside love interest that never really starts because it was far too forbidden.

You might like the play The Surprise by G. K. Chesterton. Maybe not exactly what you're asking for, but it's a very interesting twist on the meme.

 

[keith99]

My guilty pleasure is watching "Married at First Sight". It's a modern day tale on the topic. Sometimes the groom is a prince, sometimes he is a toad.

Does the show deal with marriages arranged without the consent of the participants, especially the woman or is it something the parties sign up for?

 

[Endeavourer]

Does the show deal with marriages arranged without the consent of the participants, especially the woman or is it something the parties sign up for?

It arranges marriages with the consent of both parties. Both parties sign up for it.

 

[mothcorrupteth]

I'm told Monsoon Wedding ends with a happy arranged marriage. But I wouldn't know. I find Indian culture boring, and when you stack romance drama on top of it, I think I would rather watch Troll 2 again.

 

[grandvizier1006]

Till we have faces sort of has this concept, since Psyche is chosen to be the wife of a god, but it turns out this god is kind. That Simpsons episode where Apu is forced into an arranged marriage and tries to get out only to accept it is another example.

 

[Quid est Veritas?]

Any detested groom that turns out okay, can ultimately just be called Stockholm Syndrome - like Beauty and the Beast.

It is a better trope than the Japanese one from the Tale of Genji, in which a girl is essentially groomed to be the perfect wife for her husband to be.

 

[Dave-W]

My guilty pleasure is watching "Married at First Sight". It's a modern day tale on the topic. Sometimes the groom is a prince, sometimes he is a toad.

I have seen the listings.

To me anyone who would consent to such a thing, male or female, is completely loony. Maybe "Institutionalized at first sight" would be more realistic.

 

[Endeavourer]

I have seen the listings.

To me anyone who would consent to such a thing, male or female, is completely loony. Maybe "Institutionalized at first sight" would be more realistic.

The study of marital behaviors fascinates me, so that's probably what draws me to it. Nearly all of the 25+ couples that have been matched (with a few exceptions) absolutely could have made great marriages if one (sometimes both) of the spouses had been able to moderate their own behaviors better.

I watched the first season where a couple was matched and the woman wasn't physically attracted to the husband at all. Right after the wedding she escaped to the bathroom, sat down on the floor and cried about the husband she got. However, the husband was GREAT husband material and pursued her very beautifully through the 8 week trial. At the end of the trial she was in love with him and they are still happily married today.

After that season I was hooked, especially given my fascination with the topic. I wish some of them would post here at CF for help during their 8 weeks of marriage before they have to decide to stay married or get a divorce. The problem behaviors are easily fixable but, not having the tools to fix them, they escalate out of hand and destabilize the marriages.