History Main / ChildMarriageVeto

* In DorothyLSayers's ''Theatre/TheEmperorConstantine'', when the match between Constantine and Fausta has been all but concluded, Constantine politely insists on consulting her, and she agrees -- her father clearly had not expected even to consider this trope.

* ''RanmaOneHalf'' - Genma, and Mr. Tendo had arranged for Ranma and Akane to marry. The kids swear they won't because they hate each other, but most people who've seen the series swear it's more akin to AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther.

* Mandatory for arranged marriages in the Catholic Church, as lack of consent is an impediment to marriage.

* Notably averted in ''DragonAgeOrigins'' when during the City Elf origin, despite best efforts of a reluctant PC the ceremony will still go forward. [[spoiler: However, it will [[RapeAsDrama not]] [[TearJerker finish]]]].

* In ''Literature/{{Catskin}}'', she attempts to evade with demands, and then runs off.

* ''Film/Arthur'' refuses to marry Susan, the woman his family wants him to, [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules even when threatened with being cut off from the family fortune.]] While his father refuses to back down, his grandmother eventually overrules her son and allows Arthur to remain rich even after he chooses love over money.

* The ''Series/{{Babylon 5}}'' episode "The War Prayer" had this with a couple of Centauri, each arranged to marry someone else, but wanting to marry each other.
* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', "Haven": Deanna Troi has been arranged to be married to Wyatt Miller. It's not Deanna who breaks off the marriage, though; it's Wyatt, who has had dreams of a non-Deanna woman since he was a child...and then he finds her on a plague ship.

* ''Disney/SleepingBeauty'' has Prince Phillip engaged to Princess Aurora from the day of her birth (he looks about five at the time). Sixteen years later he tells his father he has no intention of going through with it because he has met someone else, and "[[WhereDoYouThinkYouAre this is the 14th century]]", so such arrangements are outdated. Subverted in that the girl he has met ''is'' the princess, but neither of them know it.

* In [[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/bearskin/index.html "Bearskin"]], a man promised that for Bearskin's aid to him, he would marry one of his daughter. The older two reject the notion out of hand, but the youngest agrees.

* In TheBorgias, Lucrezia starts doing this in the second season, due in no small part to her [[MaritalRapeLicence very unhappy marriage]] in the first season. Her family are not pleased, but by this point she's gotten strong enough that she can only be ''persuaded'' to do something rather than simply ''ordered''.

->''No, father; you may cut off my head, if you choose, but marry that horrible beggar--I never will!''

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* In ''FiddlerOnTheRoof'', the main protagonist is Tevye, the struggling patriarch of a poor family. Managing to arrange a marriage between his oldest daughter and the wealthy, older man Lazar Wolf makes him very happy at first. Sure, he doesn't even ''like'' the guy - but Lazar has money and social position that will guarantee that his new wife will never have to starve. When the girl finds out about her upcoming marriage - and this is ''after'' the deal has been made and the men in the village has celebrated it - she takes it very badly. Tevye takes pity on her, sparing her from the marriage. But in this society, letting the wife-to-be have a say in the matter is so shameful that he have to make up a cover story to fool people that it was his own idea to change his mind.
** She later marries the man she loves. Lazar attends the wedding, and makes two things clear. First that he doesn't resent her for rejecting him, second that he will never forgive her father for ''letting'' her reject him. Tevye had promised his daughter to Lazar, and breaking this agreement by letting his daughter have a say in the matter makes Tevye a man without honor as far as Lazar is concerned.

* In ''RomeoAndJuliet'', Juliet refuses to marry Paris, as her parents want her to. Hell, she [[SecretRelationship marries Romeo]] the very next day just to distance herself from Paris.

-->'''Don Giovanni de la Fortuna'''

* In ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/bearskin/index.html Bearskin]]'', a man promised that for Bearskin's aid to him, he would marry one of his daughter. The older two reject the notion out of hand, but the youngest agrees.
** Similarly in ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/bearskin/stories/dongiovanni.html Don Giovanni de la Fortuna]]'' and ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/bearskin/stories/rewardkindness.html The Reward of Kindness]]''

* In ''BeautyAndTheBeast'', Beauty's sisters veto the idea of going to the Beast; only Beauty agrees.
* In ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/facetiousnights/night4_fable1.html Costanza / Costanzo]]'', Costanza nobly refuses a suitor with merely BlueBlood, even though her lack of a dowry -- her father's realm having been divided into three parts for her sisters' dowry, before she was born -- meant she was unlike to attract a suitor with RoyalBlood.

* Disney/SleepingBeauty has Prince Phillip engaged to Princess Aurora from the day of her birth (he looks about five at the time). Sixteen years later he tells his father he has no intention of going through with it because he has met someone else, and "[[WhereDoYouThinkYouAre this is the 14th century]]", so such arrangements are outdated. Subverted in that the girl he has met ''is'' the princess, but neither of them know it.

* Merida's efforts in this regard kick off the plot in ''{{Brave}}''

* In ''RomeoAndJuliet'', Juliet refuses to marry Paris, as her parents want her to. They don't know that it's because she's already [[SecretRelationship married to Romeo]].

* The ''BabylonFive'' episode "The War Prayer" had this with a couple of Centauri, each arranged to marry someone else, but wanting to marry each other.
* ''StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', "Haven": Deanna Troi has been arranged to be married to Wyatt Miller. It's not Deanna who breaks off the marriage, though; it's Wyatt, who has had dreams of a non-Deanna woman since he was a child...and then he finds her on a plague ship.

* In ''BeautyAndTheBeast]]'', Beauty's sisters veto the idea of going to the Beast; only Beauty agrees.

An ArrangedMarriage is set up for a young person (usually a daughter) by her parents, but the child refuses to go through with it. Her refusal may be eventually accepted, with or without a lot of conflict and drama, so that she is free to remain single or marry her true love. Or, she may suffer HonorRelatedAbuse, depending on just where on the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism the show is.

The child may be adult or underage, the trope covers the entire spectrum from the nicest forms of ArrangedMarriage to OldManMarryingAChild.

* In ''FiddlerOnTheRoof'', the main protagonist is Tevye, the struggling patriarch of a poor family. Managing to arrange a marriage between his oldest daughter and the wealthy, older man Lazar Wolf makes him very happy at first. Sure, he doesn't even ''like'' the guy - but Lazar has money and social position that will guarantee that his new wife will never have to starve. When the girl finds out about her upcoming marriage - and this is ''after'' the deal has been made and the men in the village has celebrated it - she takes it very badly. Tevye takes pity on her, sparing her from the marriage. But in this society, letting the wife-to-be have a say in the matter is so shameful that he have to make up a cover story to fool people that it was his own idea to change his mind.

* Jasmine's propensity towards this is how {{Disney/Aladdin}} gets his foot in the door.

* In the flashbacks of ''{{LOST}}'', Sun is very reluctant when her father forces her into a arranged marriage with the son of one of the father's business partners. After a little while she opens up and falls in love in with the guy... but then HE vetoes the whole thing. It turns out that he already has a girlfriend, it's just that he hadn't dared to tell his family about it.

* In ''RoyalPains'', Divya breaks off her ArrangedMarriage to Raj, though this comes with the consequence of being disowned by her family and being forced to repay Raj's family for what they put into wedding plans.

* In ''DragonQuestVIII'', [[ProperLady Princess Medea]] is engaged to [[PrinceCharmless Prince Charmles]]. Although she's willing to go through with it in order to honor the treaty between their kingdoms, it's clear that ''nobody'' (aside from Charmles himself) is really pleased with the match, and eventually [[spoiler: she decides to pull a RunawayBride, with her father and friends defending her]]. Depending on the ending you earn, she either [[spoiler: escapes with TheHero, or the King of Argonia exploits a loophole so she can marry the hero instead]].

* In ''SpaceBalls'', King Roland never has to back off from his demand that his daughter shall marry a prince. Sure the horribly boring Prince Valium was the only prince left in the galaxy, but [[spoiler: it turns out that the hero is actually also a prince.]] Problem solved.