History Main / AgainstTheGrain

** [[Characters/TheOwlHouseAmityBlight Amity Blight]] was once [[spoiler:forced to break up with Willow, her best friend, and have friends she hated but her parents considered suitable]]. They also expected her to join the coven when she was old enough, and she dyed her hair green like her mother. After befriending Luz and the rest of the owl gang, she learns she can be appreciated without having to follow others' expectations: [[spoiler:she becomes Luz' girlfriend, dyes her hair purple, refuses to join the coven, and makes friends with Willow again.]]

--> '''Predator Dad''': My father was a hunter, his father was a hunter, everyone in our planet is a hunter!

** In the first episode, RebelliousPrincess Bean does everything in her power to escape from an ArrangedMarriage. Instead, she prefers wearing pants, drinking and getting into all kind of trouble.
** All the citizens of Elfwood must produce candies and be cheerful all the time. Elfo gets sick of this because he wants be sad or happy in his own terms.

** Starting with [[Characters/TheOwlHouseLuzNoceda Luz Noceda]], who decided to spend some time at the Boiling Islands and follow her dream of becoming a witch instead of going to a camp that supposed to teach kids how to be "normal" ([[spoiler:it didn't work for Vee's friends]]). In the first episode, she frees from the Conformatorium people imprisoned there because of their quirks (like writing fanfics about food in love), repeating Eda's phrase "Weirdos must stick together." In "First Day", she rebels against studying only one kind of magic and meets other kids who study secretly what they want. They eventually convince Principal Bump to allow all the students to learn whatever they liked, and that makes them strong enough to [[spoiler:defeat the Emperor's Coven and save Hexside]] in "Labyrinth Runners".
** Eda Clawthorne spent years running away from Belos' coven and her sister because she didn't want to join them nor have her magic sealed.
** [[Characters/TheOwlHouseAmityBlight Amity Blight]] was once [[spoiler:forced to break up with Willow, her best friend, and have friends she hated but her parents considered suitable]]. They also expected her to join the coven when she was old enough, and she dyed her hair green like her mother. After befriending Luz and the rest of the owl gang, she learns she can be appreciated without having to follow others' expectations: [[spoiler:she becomes Luz' girlfriend, dyes her hair purple, refuses to join the cover and makes friends with Willow again.]]

* WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower:

** Bows' parents expect him to become a historian like them. Instead, he practices archery, builds gadgets and join the Rebellion.
** Frosta was sternly educated to rule the Ice Kingdom and was not allowed to have a childhood or friends; also, her kingdom had a neutral position towards the war. She joins the Alliance against the Horde, makes friends, develops a cheerful side and enjoys smacking robots.
** Played with Entrapta. Because of her autism and of the years she spent isolated, she is socially awkward at the point of wearing her usual, greasy stained clothes in Princess Prom, and frequently annoyes the other members of the Alliance with her quirks and love for science (and yet, they tolerate her because they need her scientific knowledge. Talk about {{Hypocrisy}}). She feels a lot happier in the Horde because she can be whoever she is there, as much as what they do is wrong, and her experiences with rejection makes it possible for her be empathetic to Hordak's issues. After Entrapta is brought back to the Alliance, she truly tries to atone, but feels forced to repress her quirks (a little). She loosens up during the trip to space, where her friends are very dependent of her habilities to survive (also, they are too busy to pick on her).
** Hordak is mistreated by Horde Prime for having shown initiative and given himself a name; he has his memories stolen and all his displays of personality (including clothes and hair color) washed away to become a living puppet. He hides the crystal Entrapta gave to him and, with it, the small memories he recovered; and, in the end, [[spoiler: shoots Horde Prime, telling him he's not just a regular clone, claiming back his name and his will.]]

** [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEdaClawthorne Eda Clawthorne]] spent years running away from Belos' coven and her sister because she didn't want to join them nor have her magic sealed.

Compare with IAmWhatIAm, DeliberateValuesDissonance, ScrewDestiny, CallingTheOldManOut, SquareRaceRoundClass, JackieRobinsonStory. Supertrope to AntiAntiChrist.

The character wanting to be an individual is usually rewarded for their behaviour, and may even spark change across their society. Those who refused change or were against it are thus depicted as foolish and closed-minded, and often receive comeuppance for resisting change. Parents in the trope may realise they need to stop [[MeddlingParents dictating their offspring's behaviour]], and start accepting their independence.

** Starting with Luz, who decided to spend some time at the Boiling Islands and follow her dream of becoming a witch instead of going to a camp that supposed to teach kids how to be "normal" ([[spoiler:it didn't work for Vee's friends]]). In the first episode, she frees from the Conformatorium people imprisoned there because of their quirks (like writing fanfics about food in love), repeating Eda's phrase "Weirdos must stick together." In "First Day", she rebels against studying only one kind of magic and meets other kids who study secretly what they want. They eventually convince Principal Bump to allow all the students to learn whatever they liked, and that makes them strong enough to [[spoiler:defeat the Emperor's Coven and save Hexside]] in "Labyrinth Runners".
** Eda spent years running away from Belos' coven and her sister because she didn't want to join them nor have her magic sealed.
** Amity was once [[spoiler:forced to break up with Willow, her best friend, and have friends she hated but her parents considered suitable]]. They also expected her to join the coven when she was old enough, and she dyed her hair green like her mother. After befriending Luz and the rest of the owl gang, she learns she can be appreciated without having to follow others' expectations: [[spoiler:she becomes Luz' girlfriend, dyes her hair purple, refuses to join the cover and makes friends with Willow again.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]
* In Website/CollegeHumor's video "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfsFV7VGBzI Predator's Teenage Son]]", a [[Film/{{Predator}} predator]] catches a human and asks his son to kill it. His son (donning a Music/JustinBieber-esque haircut) doesn't want to, and says he's a vegetarian. The father feels disappointed by this, and tries to educate him on the importance of being a predator. The captured human, noticing the father-son conflict, explains that he experienced something similar after his son didn't want to play football. The two predators reconcile.
--> '''Predator Dad''': My father was a hunter, his father was a hunter, everyone in our planet is a hunter!

* Manga/SacrificialPrincessAndTheKingOfBeasts: Leonhart was raised to be a proper king, which meant to marry a princess, keep the status quo and follow the royal traditions, like the human sacrifice. Instead, he fights [[Fantastic Racism discrimination]] and tries to give equal treatment to all the beasts, independent of their clan or race. He nominates Jormungand, who was rejected for being a reptile, to be his captain and secretly lets the girls brought to be sacrificed to run away. And he decides to marry Sariphi, a human, scandalizing the entire kingdom.

* Manga/SacrificialPrincessAndTheKingOfBeasts: Leonhart was raised to be a proper king, which meant to marry a princess, keep the status quo and follow the royal traditions, like the human sacrifice. Instead, he fights [[Fantastic Racism discrimination and tries to give equality to all the beasts, independent of their clan or race. He nominates Jormungand, who was rejected from being a reptile, to be his captain and secretly lets the girls brought to be sacrificed to run away. And he decides to marry Sariphi, a human, scandalizing the entire kingdom.

** Starting with Luz, who decided to spend some time at the Boiling Islands and follow her dream of becoming a witch instead of going to a camp that supposed to teach kids how to be "normal" ([[spoiler:it didn't work for Vee's friends]]). In the first episode, she frees from the Conformatorium people imprisoned there because of their quirks (like writing fanfics about food in love), repeating Eda's phrase "Weirdos must stick together." In "First Day", she rebels against studying only one kind of magic and meets other kids who study secretly what they want. They eventually convince Principal Bump to allow all the students to learn whatever they liked, and that makes them strong enough to defeat the coven and save Hexside in "Labyrinth Runners".

** [[spoiler:Steve defects the coven because he's tired of scaring and oppressing other people.]]

** Starting with Luz, who decided to spend some time at the Boiling Islands and follow her dream of becoming a witch instead of going to a camp that supposed to teach kids how to be "normal" (it didn't work for Vee's friends). In the first episode, she frees from the Conformatorium people imprisoned there because of their quirks (like writing fanfics about food in love), repeating Eda's phrase "Weirdos must stick together." In "First Day", she rebels against studying only one kind of magic and meets other kids who study secretly what they want. They eventually convince Principal Bump to allow all the students to learn whatever they liked, and that makes them strong enough to defeat the coven and save Hexside in "Labyrinth Runners".

** Amity was once forced to break up with Willow, her best friend, and have friends she hated but her parents considered suitable. They also expected her to join the coven when she was old enough, and she dyed her hair green like her mother. After befriending Luz and the rest of the owl gang, she learns she can be appreciated without having to follow others' expectations: she becomes Luz' girlfriend, dyes her hair purple, refuses to join the cover and makes friends with Willow again.
** Steve defects the coven because he's tired of scaring and opressing other people.
** King refuses to be treated like a god [[spoiler: just because he is a titan.]]

** Starting with Luz, who decided to spend some time at the Boiling Islands and follow her dream of becoming a witch instead of going to a camp that supposed to teach kids how to be "normal" (it didn't work for Vee's friends). In the first episode, she frees from the Conformatorium people imprisoned there because of their quirks (like writing fanfics about food in love), repeating Eda's phrase "Weirdos must stick together." In "First Day", she rebels against studying only one kind of magic and meets other kids who study secretly what they want. They eventually convince Principal Bump to allow all the students to learn whatever they liked, and that makes them strong enough to defeat the coven and save Hexside in "

** Played with Entrapta. Because of her autism and of the years she spent isolated, she is socially awkward at the point of wearing her usual, greasy stained clothes in Princess Prom, and frequently annoyes the other members of the Alliance with her quirks and love for science (and yet, they tolerate her because they need her scientific knowledge. Talk about {{Hypocrisy}}). She feels a lot happier in the Horde because she can be whoever she is there, as much as what they do is wrong, and her experience makes possible to her be empathetic to Hordak's issues. After Entrapta is brought back to the Alliance, she truly tries to atone, but feels forced to repress her quirks (a little). She losens up during the trip to space, where her friends are very dependent of her scientific knowledge (and they are too busy to pick on her).

* ''WesternAnimation/Disenchantment'':
** In the first episode, RebelliousPrincess Bean does everything in her power to escape from an ArrangedMarriage. Instead, she prefer wearing pants, drinking and getting into all kind of trouble. Also, she writes a theather play, although women are not allowed to.

** Angella expects Glimmer to avoid a direct confrontation with the Horde and just help the population in need. Instead, Glimmer decides to talk the other princesses into bringing back the Alliance and open war against the Horde.

** Frosta was sternly educated to rule the Ice reign and was not allowed to have a childhood or friends; also, her reign took a neutral position towards the war. She joins the Alliance against the Horde, makes friends, develops a cheerful side and enjoys smacking robots.
** Played with Entrapta. Because of her autism and because she spent many years isolated, she is socially awkward at the point of wearing her usual, greasy stained clothes in Princess Prom, and frequently annoyes the other members of the Alliance with her quirks and love for science (and yet, they tolerate her because they need her scientific knowledge. Talk about {{Hypocrisy}}). She feels a lot happier in the Horde because she can be whoever she is there, as much as what they do is wrong, and her experience makes possible to her be empathetic to Hordak's issues. After Entrapta is brought back to the Alliance, she truly tries to atone, but feels forced to repress her quirks (a little) to not irritate the princesses. She losens up during the trip to space, where her friends are very dependent of her scientific knowledge (and they are so busy with other issues that don't pick on her).

** King refuses to be treated like a god just because he is a titan.

* ''Manga/TheSwordOfParos'': Both Ermina and Fiona are opressed because they won't fit in the local society. Ermina likes dressing like a man, fencing and riding horses, instead of obsessing over her appearance and talking about trivialities like hunks and sweets. Fiona, in turn, is ridiculed and mistreated by her class colleagues for daring to dream about a prince charming, although she is a poor orphan with no future.

* ''Manga/TheSwordOfParos'': Both Ermina and Fiona are opressed because they won't fit in the local society. Ermina likes dressing like a man, fencing and riding horses, instead of getting ready to have a husband who will inherit the royal throne. Fiona, in turn, is ridiculed and mistreated by her class colleagues for daring to dream about a lovely prince charming, although she is a poor orphan without no future but struggling to survive.

* ''Manga/TheSwordOfParos'': Both Ermina and Fiona are opressed because they won't fit in the local society; Ermina yearns for the freedom only man can have and Fiona is mocked because she dares to dream about a charming prince, even being a poor orphan with no future.

* ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'': Utena has a totally tomboy attitude and refuses to wear a girls' uniform even before the Academy Ohtori. In the manga, she explains she prefers a boys' uniform because she loves jumping fences and running, and she hates that the boys are always trying to see the girls' panties. The teachers, of course, don't buy any of this. They sigh in relief when Utena suddenly dresses a girl uniform and starts behaving as a ProperLady after she loses Anthy for Touga. And the boys... they practically throw themselves over the new, 'feminine' Utena(in the manga)! None of these people notices (or cares) that she's suffering a HeroicBSOD; fortunately, Wakaba snaps Utena out of this.