History Main / TheCareTaker

[[quoteright:350:[[{{Film/Serenity}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/simonandriver_4630.jpg]]]]

The Caretaker is a parent, spouse, [[PromotionToParent sibling]] or [[TheDutifulSon child]] of a CloudCuckooLander, IllGirl, [[TheOphelia Ophelia]], or SquishyWizard who takes care of them. They put their lives on hold to make sure their loved one is well taken care of and hopefully happy, often when the rest of the family actively passes the ball or abandons their relative entirely.

Needless to say, this is TruthInTelevision-- however it's not sad that this happens in real life; it's sad that there are sick people who have no family (willing or living) to take this role for them. ([[{{Glurge}} Now forward this trope to fifty people!]])

Not to be confused with CrustyCaretaker. Or caretakers in general, if you're British. See also LivingEmotionalCrutch. Has strong overlap with TheChampion, indeed is likely to be the same person. The CloudCuckooLandersMinder is more 'babysitting a weirdo' than 'caring for an invalid' and thus more comical, though they could overlap, if the invalid in question is well....weird. Compare {{Protectorate}}.

!!Examples

[[folder: Anime and Manga]]

[[folder: Comicbooks]]
* ''{{Superman}}'' is possibly an example of this trope, as odd as that may sound; as he is usually depicted as leaping into a situation based on his own assumption that he is doing what other people want, generally without bothering to actually stop and ask first. It's also implied that being a Caretaker for humanity is Supes' only real reason to exist.

[[folder: Fanfiction]]
* In ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5183586/7/The-Feel-of-Feelings-Rewrite The Feel of Feelings]]'' Hermione assumed this role for a partially-crazy Harry after his release from two years unjustly spent in Azkaban, only to be chided by a mutual friend that treating Harry like a child wouldn't exactly foster his ability to take care of himself.

[[folder: Film]]

** In [[Film/TheHaunting1963 the original film]], and the booked it's based on, it's Eleanor that was the caretaker, even to living as a recluse - the haunting took advantage of her feeling of isolation and resentment.

* Benny from ''[[Film/BennyAndJoon Benny & Joon]]''. An important subplot throughout the film is his struggle with the realization that Joon, his mentally ill sister, can take care of herself better than he thinks and that he uses her reliance on him as an excuse to not live his own life. By the end of the film he understands this, and is able to enter a real romantic relationship for the first time, while Joon is allowed to get her own apartment.
* ''[[Film/WhatsEatingGilbertGrape What's Eating Gilbert Grape]]'' is a perfect example of this.
* In ''[[Film/RepoTheGeneticOpera Repo! The Genetic Opera]]'', Nathan Wallace's wife Marni dies, leaving him to raise their newborn daughter, Shilo. He ends up keeping her locked in her bedroom for seventeen years to protect her from the outside world. [[spoiler: And then it turns out he takes the "co-dependent" and "overprotective" parts of this trope UpToEleven by administering a poison for those same 17 years to keep her bedridden and dependent, so she will never leave him. And this ''after he killed Marni trying to cure her!'' (Well, that's what ''he'' thought anyway.)]]

[[folder: Literature]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV]]

* ''{{Series/Fringe}}'': Peter Bishop reluctantly takes this role to get his MadScientist father, Walter, out of the mental institution where he's been held for the last 20 years, since Walter can only be released into the care of a blood-relative. Over time however, Peter comes to see that it was the institution ''itself'' that mentally damaged his father, to the point where when a case requires Walter to readmit himself to speak to another patient who holds vital information, Peter is furious at the suggestion.

* ''Mother And Son'': This trope was the premise of this sitcom, with the son both the caretaker and TheUnFavourite of a senile mother.

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': Dean Winchester, especially in regards to his Sammy. Dean is naturally nurturing and protective by nature. However, Dean has made it his purpose to take care of Sam his entire life.

-->[[spoiler:'''Castiel:''']] Will you look at her? My caretaker. All of that thorny pain. So beautiful.
-->[[spoiler:'''Meg:''']] We've been over this. I don't like poetry. Put up or shut up.

[[folder: Theatre]]

[[folder: VideoGames]]

[[folder: VisualNovels]]

[[folder: WebComics]]
* Syphile played this to Ariel in ''Webcomic/{{Drowtales}}''. Granted, it was more of a PromotionToParent than anything else, but Syphile [[spoiler: knew Ariel was the product of a Drow-Spider mating]], and saw Ariel as a literal monster to be looked after rather than a daughter or even sister. Combined with lingering resentment over being rejected by her mother, she took it out on Ariel with brutal "combat training" and impossible tasks as part of her studies.

[[folder: WebOriginal]]
* In ''Roleplay/DeptHeavenApocrypha'', it fell to Milanor to slowly and painstakingly nurse Nessiah back to health after the latter's mind finally shattered. By now Nessiah has ''mostly'' snapped out of the [[EmptyShell catatonic state]] he was originally in, but is still fairly dependent on Milanor as of chapter 10. They're lovers, and Milanor [[TheAtoner felt kind of responsible for Nessiah's state]], so Nessiah's helplessness wasn't quite as awkward as it could have been, but...
** Much later, when Nessiah finally gets better, he points out rather bluntly that all of this has nearly destroyed his and Milanor's relationship and that they need to start over if they want to actually stay together.

* Benny from WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic looked after his mentally ill sister, and is Hyper's OnlyFriend.

[[folder: WesternAnimation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender''

[[folder: RealLife]]

* ''Lorenzo's Oil'' has a startling two parents work as Caretakers for Lorenzo, all while being Activists and independently researching a possible cure for his slow mental shutdown and helping dozens of others as the ending {{Montage}} advertises. Needless to say they were able to pull it off because they could rely on each other to care for Lorenzo, but they did become overprotective on his behalf.

NotToBeConfusedWith the musician [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Caretaker_%28musician%29 The Caretaker.]]

* Several of the Righteous Gentiles from WorldWarII obtained that status, not by great and exciting deeds but by taking in Jews and providing the necessities that were difficult or impossible for them to obtain. A long, terrible, and boring job done at tremendous peril.

* Lisa Garland, the nurse who [[spoiler:who took care of Alessa]] in ''{{Silent Hill 1}}''. In exchange for her care, she was granted a degree of protection from the horrors of the DarkWorld of Silent Hill, which she couldn't leave [[spoiler: because Kaufman had killed her, trapping her there. Fan theories speculate Alessa cared for Lisa, and was using her to manipulate Harry into ceasing his search for Cheryl. In the end, she reverts to a blood covered monster when Harry rejects her and she realizes what she is. She does get a comeuppance by killing Kaufman in the Good + ending, though.]]

TheCaretaker is a parent, spouse, [[PromotionToParent sibling]] or [[TheDutifulSon child]] of a CloudCuckooLander, IllGirl, [[TheOphelia Ophelia]], or SquishyWizard who takes care of them. They put their lives on hold to make sure their loved one is well taken care of and hopefully happy, often when the rest of the family actively passes the ball or abandons their relative entirely.

* Princess Marya in ''Literature/WarAndPeace'' acts as TheCaretaker for her old father until his death, and then becomes the primary caretaker of her nephew, whose mother [[DeathByChildbirth died in childbirth]] and whose father is off to war.

* Mrs. Medlock in ''Literature/TheSecretGarden''. She watched over the young lord's "ill" son Colin assiduously, and scolded Mary for being reckless when she worsened his condition. When it turns out it was years of overprotective care that left Colin unable to walk, which Mary cured, Medlock was reduced to [[HeroicBSOD a near friendless crying heap]].
** In the novel itself, Mrs. Medlock and the rest of the staff only kept Colin isolated and overprotected because their orders for caring for the kid were "Don't let him get worked up and give him what he wants." They initially worry about Mary's visits on the grounds that Colin tends to throw fits when guests come in, but are fine with his later requests to be taken outside and the like. In the 1993 film adaptation however, Mrs. Medlock goes so far as to lock Mary in her bedroom and force Colin to take baths in freezing water, while he screams that he's fine. [[spoiler:She's later yelled at by Colin's father, for not being able to better handle the situation.]]

-->'''Meera Reed''', ''Series/GameOfThrones''

** In [[Film/TheHaunting1999 the original film]], and the booked it's based on, it's Eleanor that was the caretaker, even to living as a recluse - the haunting took advantage of her feeling of isolation and resentment.

* In ''DeptHeavenApocrypha'', it fell to Milanor to slowly and painstakingly nurse Nessiah back to health after the latter's mind finally shattered. By now Nessiah has ''mostly'' snapped out of the [[EmptyShell catatonic state]] he was originally in, but is still fairly dependent on Milanor as of chapter 10. They're lovers, and Milanor [[TheAtoner felt kind of responsible for Nessiah's state]], so Nessiah's helplessness wasn't quite as awkward as it could have been, but...

* ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'' has Hank, who stays with Charles and looks after him for ten years of drunken misery.

* Shannon and Raquel are both caretaker and protector to their sister [[spoiler:not really]] Pacifica in ''ScrappedPrincess''. Though Pacifica isn't actually ill, she is hunted by agents of the state and religious authorities.

* General 'Uncle' Iroh from ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' voluntarily follows his nephew Zuko in exile, and cares for him as a son. Unfortunately, he only gets yelled at, insulted, abandoned, betrayed and imprisoned in return. It's not that Zuko doesn't care about his uncle, because he ''does''; he's just way too obsessed with [[WellDoneSonGuy proving himself to]] his EvilOverlord [[AbusiveParents father]], Fire Lord Ozai, to have eye for the more important things in life.
** After 51 of 61 episodes, [[spoiler:the message finally gets through, and he [[CallingTheOldManOut tells daddy]] (along with his HeelFaceTurn) that he will from now on consider Iroh his father. All say "aww".]]
*** And after 59 of 61 episodes, [[spoiler:[[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming we finally get to see his tearful apology, and that Iroh doesn't hold a single bit of grudge on him.]]]] Which is not surprising at all when you consider that Iroh was still trying to help Zuko ''while in jail because of him.''
*** Iroh's affection for Zuko might the result of [[spoiler: Iroh's own son getting killed.]] But this might be a small part of it, and it may be even irrelevant towards the end.
** We also see a toxic variant with the lengths Lao Bei Fong will go to keep his "[[DisabilitySuperpower blind]], [[CuteBruiser delicate]], and helpless" little girl Toph safe from harm.

* C.S. Lewis married a woman to protect her from her abusive husband; he later found out she was going to die of cancer but chose to take care of her.

* Reigen is something like this for Mob in ''Manga/MobPsycho100'', at least up until [[spoiler: he realizes that he's been possessive and a jerk who's been holding Mob back while simultaneously not moving on with his life, accomplishing his own goals, or even making any friends his own age]]. He gets better, and becomes more of a friend who still gives him advice.

** We also see a toxic variant with the lengths Lao Bei Fong will go to keep his "[[DisabilitySuperpower blind]], [[CuteBruiser delicate]], and [[BadAss helpless]]" little girl Toph safe from harm.

->'''Simon:''' River... It's okay! It's okay! It's okay... It's okay, I'm here.\\
'''River:''' ...Simon? ...Simon, they – they talk to me! They want me - they want me to talk –!\\
'''Simon:''' No, th-they're gone! They're gone. They're gone. They're gone — we're safe now! We're safe. We're safe — I'm here.
-->-- ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' pilot episode

* Mrs. Medlock in ''Literature/TheSecretGarden''. She watched over the young lord's "ill" son Colin assiduously, and scolded Mary when she worsened his condition as being reckless. When it turns out it was years of overprotective care that left Colin unable to walk, which Mary cured, Medlock was reduced to [[HeroicBSOD a near friendless crying heap]].

* In the ''Literature/{{Dragonlance}}'' books, Caramon Majere takes on this role for his SquishyWizard brother, Raistlin, who greatly resents needing the help. Made particularly toe-curling by the fact that Raistlin is perfectly capable of murdering his caretaking brother, a fact which Caramon is well aware of - and yet, he stays. True to the trope, when Raistlin overcomes his sickness and achieves godlike power, [[DesperatelyLookingForAPurPoseInLife Caramon is left as a drunken wreck without a direction in life... ]]

* Princess Marya in ''Literature/WarAndPeace'' acts as TheCareTaker for her old father until his death, and then becomes the primary caretaker of her nephew, whose mother [[DeathByChildbirth died in childbirth]] and whose father is off to war.

* Nadine Cross in ''Literature/TheStand'' to an orphan she calls "Joe" who had been rendered mute and feral due to the trauma of seeing his family due to the plague. True to the trope, she ultimately needed him much more than he needed her. Things go downhill fast the moment he recovers from his trauma and he doesn't need her to such an extent anymore.

* Jo, towards Beth in the second half of ''LittleWomen''. [[spoiler: When poor Beth dies... [[TearJerker Sniff]].]]
* Will Parry in ''HisDarkMaterials'' starts out as a caretaker for his mother who suffers from mental illness and having to leave her for a time weighs heavily on him.
* In the ''{{Dragonlance}}'' books, Caramon Majere takes on this role for his SquishyWizard brother, Raistlin, who greatly resents needing the help. Made particularly toe-curling by the fact that Raistlin is perfectly capable of murdering his caretaking brother, a fact which Caramon is well aware of - and yet, he stays. True to the trope, when Raistlin overcomes his sickness and achieves godlike power, [[DesperatelyLookingForAPurPoseInLife Caramon is left as a drunken wreck without a direction in life... ]]

* Princess Marya in ''WarAndPeace'' acts as TheCareTaker for her old father until his death, and then becomes the primary caretaker of her nephew, whose mother [[DeathByChildbirth died in childbirth]] and whose father is off to war.
* The Old Man in ''BeingThere'', with his maids, was this to the mentally challenged Chance the Gardener. The story proper begins when the Old Man dies and the now-middle-aged Chance is forced to venture out into the world for the first time, as the Old Man forbade him to leave their townhouse, with the threat of institutionalization if he did. What's particularly sad about this is the possibility that Chance is his (unknowing) son. In the movie version, the black maid Louise is a kindly caretaker and was likely closer to Chance than the Old Man... but she resents his later success as "Chauncey Gardiner" because she knows he's an idiot; as she sees it, he gained power solely because he's white.

* Many of Creator/JodiPicoult's novels have this, though usually the caretaker is somewhat narcissistic. The caretaker is always a mother taking care of her child, who has a chronic, usually life-threatening illness. They often will ignore anyone else and focus solely on the child. Sara in ''MySistersKeeper'' cares about her daughter Kate to the point of having a child specifically to donate blood and tissue to Kate and ignoring the other child. Charlotte in ''Literature/HandleWithCare'' actually sues her best friend so she can get money to take care of the child.

* The backstory of ''ChronoCrusade'' reveals that Rosette ''almost'' took on this role for her little brother Joshua. After they [[ConvenientlyAnOrphan became orphaned]], Joshua developed holy powers which also caused him to be [[IllBoy constantly sick]]. Rosette tells Chrono that she wants to become a doctor to cure him (giving up on her dream of being an explorer), but Joshua overhears her and attempts to [[DefiedTrope defy the trope]] by agreeing to become a member of the Magdalan Order. However, Aion gets to him first and promises him the chance to gain enough power to control his illness...and kidnaps him, which sets off the events of the main storyline.

* ''{{Seinfeld}}'': PlayedForLaughs several times, where Elaine's boyfriends have a tendency to wind up horribly injured, suffering a heart attack, or going through heroin withdrawal just as she's about to dump them.

* Nadine Cross in ''TheStand'' to an orphan she calls "Joe" who had been rendered mute and feral due to the trauma of seeing his family due to the plague. True to the trope, she ultimately needed him much more than he needed her. Things go downhill fast the moment he recovers from his trauma and he doesn't need her to such an extent anymore.