%%
%%
%%
%%
%% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Please add your example in the proper place. Thanks!
%%
%%
%%
%%
%%
%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1473975597011440300
%% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread.
%%
[[quoteright:200:[[Film/{{Watchmen}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/young_rorschach_and_mother_l.jpg]]]]

->'''Hunter:''' You have been found. You are dead. Just like your whore mother!\\
'''Dante:''' Whore mother? I don't know my mother, but if you're calling me a son of a bitch, you wouldn't be the first!
-->-- ''Videogame/DMCDevilMayCry''

A character whose mother is a [[TheOldestProfession sex worker]]. A "lady of the evening" is typical, but other "adult entertainment" jobs are depicted. Expect the kid or teen to be [[DisappearedDad fatherless]], implied to be the product of one of her many horizontal business dealings. Sometimes the character was merely raised in a brothel or NoTellMotel, without either of their parents working there, or being born of a SexSlave. Expect either angst over their origin. More common amongst {{Anti Hero}}es than others.

[[BerserkButton Don't remind him]] of his origin too much, because in some languages this trope name [[YourMom is the worst insult there is]]. [[note]]The English phrase "son of a bitch" has a similar origin; "bitch" was an insult based on a woman's purported promiscuity, by likening her to a female dog in heat.[[/note]] Some could take it more calmly, however, and give the offender a good retort; others would just smash his face in, since EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas. This is also commonly used as a FreudianExcuse to explain why a character might be rather messed up; in some works of fiction, characters whose mothers were sex workers have a high rate of becoming {{Serial Killer}}s (although there's usually some other form of abuse involved as well).

For some reason, this character is almost AlwaysMale. But in the rare case where the character is a ''daughter'' of a whore, there's the additional baggage that she may be expected to follow in her mother's footsteps, which either [[TurnOutLikeHisFather the mother]] or [[FollowInMyFootsteps the daughter]] (or both) may be determined to avoid.

If the Son of a Whore is lucky, their mother was a HookerWithAHeartOfGold. In less fortunate cases she may have been a PredatoryProstitute. The trope is adjacent but distinct from the SingleMomStripper, a mother who became a sex worker to feed her child, but only after giving birth to them, and who usually knows the child's father well. The Son of a Whore may be a HeroicBastard, a BastardBastard, or anywhere in between; at the very least, he'll have DisappearedDad or LoserSonOfLoserDad issues to work through.

[[TruthInTelevision Of course, sex workers]] ''do'' get pregnant and have children, all around the world. Any specific RealLife examples would thus be [[Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease redundant]].

[[noreallife]]

----
!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* ''Manga/SevenSeeds'' has Semimaru, whose mother was a night-worker and she didn't tell him who his father was, though he obviously wanted to know. Because he was the son of a prostitute, Semimaru was often bullied by other children that were egged on by their families.
* In Osamu Tezuka's ''Manga/ApollosSong'', Shogo's mother is a bar hostess who often sleeps with her customers, leading to [[PrimalScene many jarring moments]] in his childhood.
* ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'':
** [[spoiler:Historia Reiss]] was born to a domestic worker that became her master's mistress. The mother's resentment over the child's birth led to a neglectful and abusive relationship. Eventually, the mother was murdered to clean up loose ends.
** Likewise, [[spoiler:Levi's]] mother is implied to have been a sex worker whose brother Kenny sought her out because the rest of their family had been killed or forced into hiding, and once he found them he took the child she had with a client under his wing.
* In ''Literature/{{Bakemonogatari}}'', while she doesn't appear to have been an ''actual'' prostitute, the fact that Tsubasa Hanekawa's birth mother had a reputation for promiscuity and gave birth to her [[TeenPregnancy when she was only 17]] means that Tsubasa gets the stigma attached to this trope and has no idea who her biological father is. The verbal abuse she gets from her step-parents (when they aren't outright [[ParentalNeglect ignoring her]]) is implied to be based around this.
* Mako "Nakama" Nakarai from ''Manga/{{Bokurano}}''. Her mother Miko is an ex-prostitute, now bar hostess (which in Japan is often considered as "dishonorable" as prostitution); Mako's been bullied all of her life because of this, but she nevertheless loves [[HookerWithAHeartOfGold Miko]] since otherwise [[GoodParents she's a genuinely good mom.]] [[spoiler:At some point, Mako tries to get into CompensatedDating to get the money she needs for a small goal she has, but is steered away from it since the guy she tries to get as her SugarDaddy is a friend of her mother]].
* In ''Manga/CesareIlCreatoreCheHaDistrutto'', 16-year-old Cesare Borgia tells main character Angelo, "My mother is a whore, and [[UsefulNotes/PopeAlexanderVI my father]] is a monster." His close friend and real-life right-hand enforcer Miguel clarifies that Lady Vanozza isn't a whore, or at least, not ''that'' kind of whore. It doesn't stop that quote from being the headline of the back cover copy, and Cesare's first line in [[Theatre/CesareIlCreatoreCheHaDistrutto the musical adaptation]]. In real life, Vanozza dei Cattanei was a successful businesswoman with fingers in many pies, who did at least rent rooms to prostitutes, and who was the mistress of several cardinals before becoming the mother of Rodrigo Borgia's four most famous children.
* Kai of ''Manga/ForestOfPiano'' is the son of Reiko, who's explicitly shown to be a prostitute in the manga, and lives with her in the red light district at the start of the series. The anime movie, geared toward a more general audience, downplays this aspect.
* Satellizer L. Bridgette, the lead female from from ''Manga/{{Freezing}}'', as the daughter of a nobleman and said nobleman's mistress.
* In ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', [[spoiler:Roy Mustang's (foster)]] mother was revealed to be one Madame Christmas, proprietor of a brothel/pub. It's stated in one of the guidebooks that [[spoiler:she's really his aunt, his biological parents died when he was young]].
* It's almost easier to list the characters in ''{{Manga/Gangsta}}'' who ''aren't'' this trope, as [[WretchedHive Ergastulum]] is home to many prostitutes, many of whom are [[FantasticRacism Twilights]] forced into the business because no one else will accept them, who in turn have Twilight children. Main characters Nicholas and Worrick actually bonded over their shared background, and the [[LittleMissBadass young head]] of the Cristiano family, Loretta, tells Alex (herself a former prostitute) that her mother was a prostitute who caught her father's eye and retired from the business prior to having her so casually that it's apparently not a source of shame in that world.
* In ''Literature/{{Gate}}'', Princess Piña Co Lada is the daughter of the Emperor and a concubine. She is acknowledged and holds a position as leader of the Rose-Order of Knights, but it is clear that her father doesn't really care about her that much.
* [[spoiler:The title character]] in ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'' is revealed to be the daughter of a prostitute in the final arc. While they were raised as their father's legitimate child, they didn't exactly have a good family life [[spoiler:[[BigScrewedUpFamily though it probably wouldn't have improved much even if her parents had been married]].]]
* ''Manga/MagiLabyrinthOfMagic'':
** Alibaba is the son of Anise, a servant who had an affair with the king of Baldhad, and once this was discovered she was thrown out and forced to sell her body to care for herself and her son.
** [[spoiler:Princess Kougyouku]]'s mother is also revealed to be a harlot too, which prompts her to ask Alibaba to be her friend.
* ''Literature/MushokuTenseiJoblessReincarnation'': [[spoiler:It is revealed that Sylphiette's grandmother is none other than the adventurer Elinalise Dragonroad, who is infamous for her curse that requires her to have sex on a daily basis in order to live. Although she enjoys how she ReallyGetsAround, she knows that her proclivities would shed a negative light on any of her children as she lets them go once they are old enough to fend for themselves. It is this association that led to Sylphiette's father facing much difficulty in his life]].
* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'': [[spoiler:The final arc reveals that All for One and his brother were the children of a prostitute from the time before Quirks became public knowledge. In a disturbingly young example of SelfMadeOrphan, it's heavily implied his Quirk drained her life and Quirk ''while he was still in the womb, entirely out of instinct'']].
* ''Manga/RecordOfRagnarok'': UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper's mother was a prostitute named Mary who aborted all five of her previous children and only spared him because his father promised to one day come back and marry her. When his father breaks his promise by marrying someone else, Mary shows her true colors by revealing she never cared about Jack, leading to her becoming his first victim.
* This is [[spoiler:Laertes Montague]]'s FreudianExcuse in ''Anime/{{Romeo x Juliet}}''. [[spoiler:His father was supposedly a Capulet noble whom could have taken his son and his prostitute mother out of poverty but didn't, causing the death of the latter as well as making the first an ''incedibly'' broken and bitter StreetUrchin. This provides a convinient FreudianExcuse for Montague's [[FromNobodyToNightmare murderous rise to power]], in which he [[SelfMadeMan works his way to the top of the rival clan]] and then massacres ''everyone'' in the Capulet group -- save for a two-year-old Juliet who barely manages to escape thanks to the family retainers.]]
* ''Manga/RurouniKenshin'':
** While one bad guy tries to play on Yahiko's supposed shame over his origin, he [[ShutUpHannibal defends his mother]] and doesn't seem ashamed at all. Quite the contrary, as Yahiko takes pride in that his mother did whatever she had to in order to raise him until it killed her (syphilis eventually did). This also works as an EstablishingCharacterMoment.
** Seta Soujiro exemplifies this trope straight, as his mother was TheMistress of a rich man. When his parents died, he was taken in by his evil paternal family (the old man's widow as well as his younger uncles and stepsiblings) and from there it went FromBadToWorse. [[spoiler:So much that he snapped and killed them all.]]
** In the sequel ''Ashitaro Zenka Ari'', Ashitaro's half-breed OnlyFriend Alan Inoue is ''very'' strongly implied to be the son of one of the prostitutes that "service" foreigners (especially Americans) in Japanese harbors. He not only has two names of different ethnicities, but has natural blond hair that he dyes black to avert being abused ''and'' he dreams of leaving Japan and go to America at the beginning. When the BigBad of ''Ashitaro Zenka Ari'' properly sees his blond hair, he lampshades the trope in a '''very''' cruel BreakingSpeech he deals to the [[BrokenTears tearful]] young man; Ashitaro defends Alan and tells the BigBad [[ShutUpHannibal to shut the fuck up and stop judging people for their origins]].
* According to ''Manga/SoulEater'' chapter 78, [[spoiler:Liz and Patti Thompson]] are an example of both this and ParentalAbandonment.
-->'''[[spoiler:Liz]]''': I hate the mother who abandoned [[spoiler:Patti]] and me... But I guess since she was the most beautiful whore in town... I should thank her for bearing two pretty girls...
* [[spoiler:Soichirou Ashida]] from ''Manga/SteppingOnRoses''. [[spoiler:His mother was the concubine of a rich man, and that's why his family loathes so much.]]
* Draken in ''Manga/TokyoRevengers''. He was born the son of a prostitute, not knowing who his father is, who left him when he was two. His home is a brothel and he states that he grew up around pink towels and the smell of lube.
* Ryuuji Takasu from ''Literature/{{Toradora}}'' is the illegitimate son of a beautiful bar hostess and a Yakuza. And he was born when his mom was, at most, [[TeenPregnancy 16-17 years old]].
* Prince Seiliez from ''Manga/VampireGame''. This made him TheUnfavorite of his family's three adopted kids. [[spoiler:Thing is, though, this also makes him the only legitimate heir to the throne of his country - while his mother was a whore, his ''father'' was the king.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* In the adults-only comic ''ComicBook/BettyByTheHour'', Betty's son Pepito qualifies.
* ''ComicBook/{{Blade}}'', at least the comic version. Spending a chunk of his childhood in a whore house didn't have any lasting affects on his psyche surprisingly. He has issues, but more from having his mom, father figure, childhood friends and girlfriend all murdered by vampires as he grew up. ''Comicbook/TheTombOfDracula'' actually has him console another character on her sexual insecurities.
* ''ComicBook/{{Deathstroke}}'': Rose Wilson is a rare female example. Her mother worked in a brothel in New York where Rose would spend the first 14 years of her life.
* ''ComicBook/TheEaglesOfRome'': Priscilla is revealed to be the daughter of Morphea, a HighClassCallGirl in high demand in Rome. It speaks greatly to Morphea's social status that Priscilla was legitimated as the legal daughter of the Roman patrician who sired her.
* Tommy Monaghan from ''ComicBook/Hitman1993'' was the son of a town whore back in Ireland. All her children were the offspring of one of her various clients all around town, who all treated her like dirt, but she took some small measure of revenge by giving them a name based on their father. This had disastrous consequences when she became pregnant with Tommy, whose father was a violent psychopath who decided to brutally murder her and her entire family for "sullying his good name", and followed her all the way to the U.S just to do that. She lived long enough to give birth to Tommy, then died of her injuries at a convent. As an adult, Tommy returns to Ireland and kills his monster of a father to avenge his mother and siblings.
* [[AntiHero John Difool]], the main character in ''ComicBook/TheIncal'' series by Creator/{{Moebius}} was born in the red light section of a [[CrapsackWorld soulless]] [[SingleBiomePlanet world-encompassing city]] in a [[{{Dystopia}} dystopian future]].
* ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'':
** Rorschach developed a number of sexual hangups thanks to growing up around his mother's work. Well, that and [[AbusiveParents being beaten and verbally abused by his mother]], and bullied by other kids for his upbringing.
** About the only known instance of Rorschach showing mercy was when he refused to take revenge on his landlady for lying about him to the TV reporters. When he called her a whore she begged him not to say ''that'' in front of her children: "they... they don't know". He let the matter drop, after a short silence in which he may well have been thinking that at least she was a better mother than his.
** Laurie in ''ComicBook/BeforeWatchmen'' receives a watered-down version of this trope -- Sally's former career as a pinup/B-movie star/Tijuana Bible favorite is more intensely stigmatized and repellent to her teenage daughter, as well as more known, than if she had a SingleMomStripper. Her hangups about her mother [[ForegoneConclusion never really go away]], but the trauma of the sexual element is temporary.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* Overlaps with ChildByRape in the ''Azumanga Daioh'' fic ''Fanfic/{{Control}}''. Yukari ends up pregnant by her drug dealer and pimp [[spoiler:Hyang-sung]]. She's certain it's him because he's the only man who didn't use protection. Yukari contemplates getting an abortion, but ultimately decides to keep the baby.
* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' works of Creator/AAPessimal, Rebecka Smith-Rhodes is a [[CatholicSchoolGirlsRule pupil]] at the Convent School of the Spiteful Sisterhood of Seven-Handed Sek. She reflects that her friends come from all families in all walks of life, and that she wouldn't be seeing the same mix of social backgrounds had she gone to the Assassins' School. She considers her friend Joyce, who is a perfectly normal, sensible, level-headed girl with no hang-ups or issues, and reflects that while Joyce is from a single-parent family, her mother runs a clean happy home, Joyce and her sisters are well fed, well clothed, have more than one pair of shoes each, and are happy and loved. And that their mother works a very specialised night shift two or three times a week as a Seamstress. Bekki considers the morality of this and asks if it might be more ethical and moral somehow, than her own mother's profession of Assassin. After all, Bekki mused, clients of Joyce's mother get to walk away afterwards, feeling happier and healthier and refreshed...
** When "Shauna's Gang" leave their [[CatholicSchoolGirlsRule school]], they get together to compare notes about the wonderful world of work. Joyce has joined the Seamstresses' Guild and has been offered lucrative training which will lead to a well-paid career. Joyce notes that people tend to give her funny looks when she mentions this. Why is that so funny? If one of my parents was a plumber and I went into plumbing, nobody would think twice about it, but just because it's the ''Seamstresses''...[[note]]Joyce is being trained in financial and administrative management, with a view to her eventually being a non-practicing Guild member who runs a brothel.[[/note]].Joyce even calls out [[FightingIrish Shauna]], who describes Lady Regina Rust as "a whore's get".[[note]] an Irish pejorative meaning something like "son of a bitch." or ''"hija de puta"''[[/note]]
--->Shauna? ''I'm'' a whore's get. ''Literally''.
* With ''Foundling'' implying that Yukari was prostitute, Ran, adopted by the former, would be this, though she doesn't quite know that, just that Yukari's past wasn't a happy one.
* Being a struggling single mother in the Earth Nation, Ursa sometimes prostitutes in ''Fanfic/TheMasksWeWearJiggleWigs''. She also [[SexualExtortion gets her son out of trouble with her body]]. Zuko is horrified when he learns this, but his sister refuses to believe him.
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10693377/1/Once-Upon-a-Time-was-a-Backbeat Once Upon a Time was a Backbeat]]'': Minx's mother got pregnant at fifteen and was kicked out of her rural home. She became a prostitute in the city in order to take care of Minx, but she soon became drug addicted. When Minx hit puberty, she forced her daughter to prostitute as well.
* In the ''Fanfic/EmpathTheLuckiestSmurf'' story "Smurfed Behind: Smurfing In Heaven", Empath refers to Heftargan as a "motherless beast" after hearing how he (supposedly) raped and killed Smurfette.
* ''Fanfic/OfTheRiverAndTheSea'': Protagonist Ryuishi was supposed to follow into her mama's footsteps but was snatched by the shinobi because she was very much a tempting prospect. She wasn't really unhappy there and her later life keeps many ties with various brothels.
** Naruto himself is quasi-adopted by sex workers who give him the love and attention his own village denied him. It also left him a healthy understanding of the female psyche, hobbies such as shopping and hair-styling and a very expanded vocabulary.
* ''Fanfic/RWBYScars'': Summer was raised by her [[{{Nephewism}} aunt]], Ivory, who was a prostitute. Though her aunt was nice, Summer didn't like her home life and seldom visited her aunt after going to Beacon. Ruby didn't even know her mother had extended family until she coincidentally ran across Ivory.
* Part of Tsuna's backstory in the ''Manga/Reborn2004'' fanfic ''Fanfic/TheSkyThatAcceptsAll'' is that [[GenderFlip she]] was practically raised by prostitutes since the age of ten because her own mother had mental health issues that made it difficult for her to properly raise a child.
* Ganondorf from ''Webcomic/ATaleOfTwoRulers'' was raised in a brothel. His mother, the only other Gerudo he's ever known, was a prostitute who was considered "exotic" by Hylians. Ganondorf's mother [[MissingMom died]] he was a toddler.
* ''Fanfic/TheMountainAndTheWolf'': One of the Wolf's go-to insults. On learning Ramsay goes by Bolton instead of Snow (and not knowing how Westerosi naming conventions work), he asks if Ramsay's mother was a whore who slept with a man called Snow and another named Bolton at the same time and couild never figure out which was the father.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
* In ''Film/ThreeTenToYuma2007'', one of the robbers states Ben Wade to be the offspring of a hooker and makes the idiotic mistake of insulting dear old mom in front of him. Wade kills him and notes that [[EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas he loves her anyway]].
* Audrey (actually named Doris) in ''Film/AliceDoesntLiveHereAnymore'' is by her own account the daughter of one.
* The title character of the 1961 Biblical epic ''Film/{{Barabbas}}''.
* ''{{Film/Byzantium}}'': Eleanor, whose mother was a {{sex slave}}.
* As far as a family film can take it, ''Film/TheChristmasBunny'' implies that Julia's mom, Pamela, is a prostitute. That, and a drug addict.
* This is why Scott in ''Film/DayOfAnger'' is [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer mistreated]] by the whole town he lives in.
* Sonoko in ''Film/DoctorAkagi''.
* Someone tosses this in the face of Teri Hatcher's character in ''Film/HeavensPrisoners'' (1996). She calmly replies that her mother was a good businesswoman.
* The Austrian movie ''Film/{{Hurensohn}}'' is about a teenage boy who discovers that his Yugoslavian mother is actually a sex worker.
* The title character of Creator/RichardPryor's ''Film/JoJoDancerYourLifeIsCalling'' is the son of a presumably married prostitute working in a whorehouse with her sisters. This is based on Pryor's own life, as his mother worked in the brothel that his grandmother operated.
* Heavily implied to be the case with Bill in ''Film/KillBill''. The only person who knows his whereabouts just happens to be [[ParentalSubstitute a pimp]] who apparently raises the sons of his prostitutes to become his enforcers. Totally explains the big age and appearance difference between Bill and his brother Budd as well as his penchant for getting women to do his dirty work for him. Snake Charmer indeed.
* Subverted in ''Film/KingArthurLegendOfTheSword''. Arthur is told that he is the bastard son of a prostitute who died in childbirth. In reality, he is the lost son of the murdered King and Queen, and the rightful heir to the throne of England.
* A DeletedScene of ''Film/LittleNicky'' reveals that [[BigBad Adrian]] and [[ScaryBlackMan Cassius]]' mothers are not angels but are prostitutes.
* Most of kids, including Momo, in the titular ''Film/MadameRosa'''s care are these. Momo's mother was murdered by pimp.
* Brian in ''Film/MontyPythonsLifeOfBrian''. He also gets the bonus points. His father is a Roman he never knew.
* ''{{Film/Mythica}}'': Dagen's mother was a {{sex slave}}.
* Cheyenne in ''Film/OnceUponATimeInTheWest'' describes his mother as "the biggest whore in Alameda, and the finest woman who ever lived".
* ''[[Film/OrMyTreasure Or (My Treasure)]]'', an Israeli film about the title character and her mother, a prostitute. She later goes into the profession herself when her mother is growing too old for it and has been raped by a client. Her mother is implied to be very upset by this unsurprisingly, but says nothing.
* Violet, the character played by Brooke Shields in ''Film/PrettyBaby''.
* ''{{Film/Sweetwater}}'': Sarah's former madam is revealed as also being her mother at the end of their conversation.
* ''{{Film/Watchmen}}'': Just as in the comic book, Rorschach's mother (pictured above) was an abusive prostitute.
* ''Film/TrueLies'': In a throwaway line in the opening mission, Faisil mentions that he was born in a whorehouse.
* Cosmo (Luis Guzmán) in ''Film/WelcomeToCollinwood'' uses this insult as blistering abuse (he is Latino, after all), but after his death another character casually remarks that Cosmo's mother was of that profession.
* Creator/MelGibson's character in ''Film/WhatWomenWant'' was the son of a Las Vegas ShowGirl of the Ostrich Feather variety, but still about the same story.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jokes]]
* An argument overheard in a bar:
-->'''Man 1: '''Lawyers are sons of whores.
-->'''Man 2: '''You take that back, or else!
-->'''Man 1: '''What, you're a lawyer?
-->'''Man 2: '''[[EvilLawyerjoke No, my mom is a prostitute.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* From ''Literature/AlmostNight'', Stella's mother is a prostitute. The whole reason the plot happens is because she has to move away so that her mother can open a legal brothel.
* The protagonist of John Burdett's ''Bangkok'' novels is the son of a Thai prostitute who works her way up to becoming the madam of her own brothel. The protagonist is a cop who also works part-time as an organizer/benevolent pimp in his mother's business.
* In ''Literature/{{Barrayar}}'' Sergeant Bothari reveals that his mother was a whore. Cordelia is unsurprised by this (Betan, you know), but expresses outrage when Bothari reveals that his mother used to sell him to her clients.
* ''Literature/BelisariusSeries'': Belisarius' stepson Photius started his life as this, and when he was [[AChildShallLeadThem formally adopted by]] Empress Theodora this aspect of his status did not in fact change.
* ''Literature/TheBoneWars'': While the word prostitute and its synonyms are never mentioned, Thad's mother worked in a rough saloon where she would spend time with men who would give her money while having Thad stay under the bed or go to another room down the hall. She throws Thad a meager but touching birthday party every year and talks about saving enough money for a better life, a dream that never comes true before a customer strangles her when Thad is five.
* ''Creator/SimonaAhrnstedt'' does this with Markus Järv, who's the male protagonist in her novel ''Betvingade''. His mother was thrown out of her home when she became pregnant without being married, and that gave her no choice but to become a prostitute.
* John the Savage in ''Literature/BraveNewWorld'' was an outcast among his peers because he was born to a stranded outsider woman who offended the locals with her [[FreeLoveFuture open sexual mores]]. In this case, however, he was conceived before he wound up there and knows who his father is.
* The official story behind the eponymous villain's ancestry in ''Literature/{{Brokenclaw}}'', is that his father was a Chinese trader who was captured by Native Americans and later made part of them, with him as a result. The rumours indicate that he was an illegimate child of a Chinese tailor and a prostitute. Literature/JamesBond uses the knowledge of latter to insult him as he is about to be fed to the guy's pet wolves.
* There are two kinds of prostitute in the world of ''Literature/ABrothersPrice''. There are whores, women who sexually pleasure other women for money, and there are the much less fortunate [[SexSlave crib captives]], men who for whatever reason - usually they [[DefiledForever lost their virginities]] and/or are popularly thought to have sexually transmitted diseases - could not get married and were sold to "cribs" and kept drugged. Women without the [[UnableToSupportAWife resources for a husband]] pay the crib owners for nights with different men, trying to get pregnant. Most women without much in the way of land ownership have crib fathers, making them this trope, and it isn't seen as shameful. Cira mentions that she had a lover whose mother was a whore and who must have gone to the cribs, making that unnamed woman technically double this trope.
* Cal and Niko, from the ''Literature/CalLeandros'' series. Their mother [[PosthumousCharacter Sophia]] was a GoldDigger of the worst sort, abusive, violent and [[TheAlcoholic an alcoholic]] and made no attempt to hide that she thought of Cal as a monster. He usually pretends to not care much, but when, in ''Deathwish'', Cherish accidentally calls him a whoreson, Cal takes it personally, assuming his heritage is obvious even to outsiders.
* David Wingrove's ''Literature/ChungKuo'' has Stefan Lehmann, the son of a woman who has been a concubine to many different men.
* In one of the ''Literature/CircleOfMagic'' books, there is a serial killer killing performers and dumping them in highly-respected places, which really causes problems because of that city's superstitions about death. It turns out the killer was the son of a whore and a noble.
** The little we hear about Briar's mother implies that she may have been a prostitute. In ''Street Magic'', he remarks that if she'd had magic (i.e., a way to earn a living), "she wouldn't have been out late the night she got killed."
* Felix and Mildmay of ''Literature/DoctrineOfLabyrinths'', though technically she didn't become a prostitute until after Felix's birth. But she ''was'' a bit... free with her affections even then. Neither knows who their either of their fathers is, it never becomes a plot point despite Felix's remarkably strong magical abilities, and neither particularly cares.
* The protagonist of the Chinese classic ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_of_Mount_Deer Duke of Mount Deer]]'' (adapted countless times into movies and serials), Wei Xiaobao, rises through a series of misadventures from the mere son of a whore (one adaptation even shows an altar to ''seven men'' suspected of being his father) to the chief confidante and best friend to the Emperor himself.
* A huge theme in ''Literature/EastOfEden'' is that [[spoiler:Aron and Cal]] are this trope. [[spoiler:They've been told that their mother is dead. Cal finds out the truth, but he keeps the knowledge hidden from Aron, since he know his brother wouldn't be able to take the news. In a moment of fury, he leads Aron to the brothel to meet their mother, effectively breaking him]].
* Brutus in Conn Iggulden's ''Literature/{{Emperor}}'' series. Though if memory serves, his mother became a prostitute after he was born. Still, she pretty much abandoned him in order to pursuit that career, so that ought to be pretty scarring.
* ''Music/EvilliousChronicles'':
** Gatt Coulomb cites his mothers profession, along with their being descended from the [[FamousAncestor infamous mercenary Gast Venom]] as the reason he's unable to advance further in the Asmodean military.
** Lemy Abelard's birth mother was this as well. She [[OffingTheOffspring attempted to drown him]] as a young child, which leads to him developing an utter contempt for prostitutes and recurring nightmares of drowning.
* Amos of ''Literature/TheExpanse'', as he reveals in ''Caliban's War''.
* In Lilian Lee's novel ''Farewell My Concubine'', main character Douzi/Cheng Dieyi is the son of a prostitute who, after seeing a performance by a group of boys from an opera training school, puts her son in the school in the hope that he might have a better future there. The other students initially treat him as an outcast because of his mother's profession.
* ''Literature/FiftyShadesOfGrey'': Christan Grey's biological mother was a drug addicted prostitute who committed suicide when he was four because her pimp was abusive.
* In ''Literature/{{Gone}}'' there's Sanjit, although in the one mention we've got of his mother he doesn't really seem to mind it.
** Hinted at with Drake. Diana asks, "What is it with you and [[StrawMisogynist hating women,]] by the way? Found out your mother was a whore?" Drake then gets so enraged that he whips Diana to the point of fainting.
* ''Literature/GrandmasterOfDemonicCultivationMoDaoZuShi'': Meng Yao, later renamed Jin Guangyao, is the son of Sect Leader Jin Guangshan and the prostitute Meng Shi. Calling him "son of a whore" is an excellent way to get killed, as [[spoiler:Nie Mingjue]] learns the hard way.
* ''Literature/HarryBosch'' is an LAPD detective whose mother, a prostitute, was murdered when he was young. The crime was never solved, but her death was a motivator for Bosch.
* In ''Literature/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame'', [[spoiler:Esmeralda's]] birth mother Paquette became a prostitute after being seduced by a noble man. Paquette was lonely until her daughter was born, however [[spoiler:Esmeralda (then known as "Agnes")]] was stolen by Romani thieves and [[spoiler:replaced with the deformed Quasimodo]].
* Daine, in ''Literature/TheImmortals'' series. While her mother isn't a ''whore'', it is implied throughout the series that she was rather loose, sexually. (Daine says at one point, "Ma had a lot of men friends" or something similar.) Daine's real sore point, however, is in her last name: Sarrasri - meaning "Sara's daughter" in Daine's home country; it's a statement that Daine's mother never married, and Daine doesn't find out who her father is until halfway through the last book. There are several quiet hints scattered throughout the earlier books, though, that Daine's father is [[spoiler:at least a minor god. Not just anyone can get a badger god to watch over their kid, after all.]] It turns out that Daine's father is [[spoiler:a god of the hunt from her home region - which rather neatly explains just ''why'' she's so filled with Wild Magic that animals see her as one of their own.]]
* ''Literature/InDeath''
** Series star Eve Dallas is the Daughter Of A Whore, and really lost the parent lottery all around. Her mother was an awful person who hated her, and her father planned to sell her. Her name is a LineOfSightName from the [=DCFS=]-equivalent that found her, because her progenitors (hard to call ''them'' parents) never ''gave'' her one.
** John Blue from ''Visions In Death''. His mother was a hooker who abused him, and when he got older and refused to give him anything in her will, he responded by raping and murdering her, and then raping and murdering women who resembled his mother.
* In ''Iron Dawn'', the villain is the son of a small-town prostitute and the heir to the throne of Egypt. Unusual in that it's the ''latter'' connection that led to his being spoiled rotten, as prostitution wasn't as demonized in ancient Egypt as today; his half-brother and chief henchman plays it straight, having been forced to work in the brothel from an early age.
* In ''Literature/JonathanStrangeAndMrNorrell'', a character tries to insult Childermass by calling him "whoreson." Childermass simply shrugs it off, commenting "Better a whoreson than a thief."
* Phèdre from ''Literature/KushielsLegacy'' describes herself as a "whore's unwanted get." Less of a stigma about the "whore" part than is usual with this trope, because prostitution is a sacred calling in Terre d'Ange culture and women don't conceive unless they want to (she was also married to Phèdre's father). If anything, the fact that Phèdre's mother deserted her is really more shameful.
* In ''Literature/TheLarkAndTheWren'', while her mother wasn't a whore, Rune ''was'' born out of wedlock. Despite Stara claiming to be a [[FalseWidow widow]], the village figured out the truth, and because Stara acts like a loose woman, several teenage boys have told Rune that she is the daughter of a whore/slut and will end up one herself.
* Newt from ''Literature/LonesomeDove'' was the son of the town's 'sporting woman', Maggie.
* In the ''Literature/MalazanBookOfTheFallen'', Koryk grew up in a whore house, although it's not specified if his mother worked there, merely implied. What he took away from it was that innocence is sacred, as the whores used to try to protect the children growing up among them, and a deep dislike for priests and religion, as the local priests used to make a show of stoning any sex worker they came upon on holy days.
* In Creator/StevenPerry's ''Literature/MatadorSeries'', there are several:
** Dirisha, one of the Matadors, is the daughter of a whore from [[WretchedHive planet]] 313-C, commonly known as [=OhShit=] (the first thing most people say when they see it). She ran away rather than follow in the family trade. She's rather matter-of-fact about her background, but it does inform her personality (specifically her cynicism about love) and determination that she will never be another person's belonging.
** Markus Jefferson Wall is the son of an Albino Exotic, a mutant strain of humans who were genetically designed to be the ultimate sex object (including the ability to consciously control their pheromones to enhance or diminish sexual attraction in the people around them). Most Exotics become sex workers of some nature; the only real difference is how high up the ladder from street whore to HighClassCallGirl they end up. Markus's mother was on one of the lowest rungs. Markus was expected to also take up the trade, but murdered the pimp and ran away instead. He has completely disguised his Exotic background, (although he still occasionally uses the pheromones and charisma he gets from it,) and is deeply upset when Khadaji lets him know that he knows about it.
** Juete and Veate, respectively Khadaji's true love, and her daughter by him, who pairs off with Saval Bork. Both of them are Albino Exotics, fully aware of what that means, and are quite matter-of-fact about it. Juete was an exotic dancer and sometimes HighClassCallGirl. Her position (and Khadaji's financial support) made it possible for Veate to stay out of the sex trade completely.
* ''Literature/LesMiserables'':
** Cosette is the illegitimate ''daughter'' of Fantine and a man who abandoned her. After her birth her mother became a prostitute and Cosette never explicitly finds out her mother's story.
** Inspector Javert was born in a prison- he says his mother was a UsefulNotes/{{Roma|ni}} FortuneTeller and his father was a galley slave. It's entirely possible his mom was turning tricks. In any case, even if he's not a SonOfAWhore, he's still a Son of Criminals, which is quite a big FreudianExcuse.
* Sunny [=McCreary=] in ''My Godawful Life'', a parody of MiseryLit. His mother was a quadriplegic so he was forced to move her limbs for her to give the punter the impression that she was enjoying it.
* Keith in ''Literature/MyNextLifeAsAVillainessAllRoutesLeadToDoom'' is the son a minor Sorcier noble and a prostitute. He was legitimized by his father by the age of three and lived with him, yet he's been continuously insulted for his parentage while he lived there. Whatever timeline he was in, he was no longer insulted as ''this'' after he was adopted as heir of Duke Claes at eight.[[note]]Although in two of the three possible timelines he was subjected to a [[AffairBlameTheBastard different kind of abuse]] due to [[MistakenForCheating a misunderstanding]].[[/note]]
%%
%%Which nightfall?
%%* The Protagonist in ''Literature/{{Nightfall}}'' is also the son of a whore. When asked for a Patronymic after he's caught, he replied he has none for he's no man's son.
* Bones from the ''Literature/NightHuntress'' books was the son of a prostitute, and was raised by the madam of the bordello. He grew up to adopt the profession himself, since he had no family connections for a respectable career and he turned out to be rather good at bedsport.
--> "You bastard!"
--> "Since the day I was born."
* Swedish writer Vibeke Olsson gives us a subverted example with Onesimus, a poor slave boy in the ancient Roman empire. his mother was a prostitute for some twenty years, but she was sold away from the brothel before Onesimus was conceived. And thus, she technically wasn't a whore anymore.
* Otto Stahl, the AntiHero protagonist of the [=WW2=] action-comedy novels by Leo Kessler.
* ''Literature/OutOfTheEasy'' has Josie. Her mother Louise is a prostitute and took up work at Willie's brothel. Oddly, Willie (and the other prostitutes) acts more akin to family to Josie than Louise does.
* Fergus from ''Literature/{{Outlander}}'' is one of these-- raised in a brothel, unsure of which of the girls there was his mother. It's strongly implied (and shown, once) that male customers also took advantage of him, simply because he was there.
* Mary Brown's medieval fantasy novel ''Pigs Don't Fly'' has the rather memorable opening line "My mother was the village whore and I loved her very much." Obviously, the heroine has fewer issues with her mother's profession than most characters of this sort do.
* The unnamed son of Belle Watling [[spoiler:and Rhett Butler]] in ''Rhett Butler's People''.
* ''Literature/TheRiftwarCycle'': Jimmy The Hand's father was [[spoiler:the Upright Man]], which Jimmy wasn't supposed to ever know, but eventually found out or figured out on his own.
* Molly Bolt, the protagonist of Rita Mae Brown's ''Literature/RubyfruitJungle'', finds out from her adopted mother that she's the daughter of local whore during an argument:
-->"You ain't so fine as you think you are, and you ain't mine neither. And I don't want you now that I know what you're about. Wanna know who you are, smartypants? You're Ruby Drollinger's bastard, that's who you are. Now let's see you put your nose in the air."
-->"Who's Ruby Drollinger?"
-->"Your real mother, that's who and she was a slut, you hear me, Miss Molly? A common, dirty slut who'd lay with a dog if it shook its ass right."
* ''Literature/{{Sharpe}}'': Richard Sharpe fits this trope exactly. In his own words on the miniseries, "I was born in a whorehouse and hope to die in the army." Total badass.
* ''Literature/TheShipWho'': One of the secondary protagonists from ''The City Who Fought'' describes himself as "the son of a pimp and dockside whore".
* Apropos of everything, ''Literature/SirAproposOfNothing''.
* [[spoiler:No. 72]] of Creator/ChuckPalahniuk's ''Snuff'' [[spoiler:thinks he's the son of porn queen Cassie Wright. Turns out it was her assistant.]]
* In ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', there's a minor character named Satin who was raised in a brothel in Oldtown. It's heavily implied that he worked there, too. Robert is also stated to have scored illegitimate children with prostitutes.
** The series also has a female example in the form of Obara Sand, whose mother was also an Oldtown whore. But as she is one of the Dornish prince's brother's acknowledged bastards (and lives pretty well in the Dornish palace), she doesn't seem too impeded by it. She does have a fierce hatred of Oldtown, however, and would leap at any excuse to burn that city to the ground.
** The prequel novella ''[[Literature/TalesOfDunkAndEgg The Mystery Knight]]'' features Ser Glendon Ball, the son of a camp follower who slept with famed war hero Quentyn Ball the night before his death. Glendon's mother brought him up to believe he's Quentyn's son, but the chivalry of Westeros point out to him repeatedly that his mother very probably slept with a dozen other men as well.
* Shakur of ''Literature/TheSovereignStone'' trilogy is this; with the addition of his mother ''allowing her clients to pay for his services when he was a young boy''. Perhaps one of the only examples of actually pitying a bad character for a horrific background.
* The title character of Creator/JacquelineWilson's ''Literature/TheStoryofTracyBeaker'' series is implied to be this. Although Tracy believes that her mother, Carly, is a Hollywood movie star, it is clear to an adult reader that the latter is actually a pornographic actress. Tracy does eventually learn that Carly is neither famous nor in Hollywood, but as she is only ten, she [[InnocentInaccurate still does not realize the "pornographic" part of her mother's career.]]
* Drefan Rahl in the ''Literature/SwordOfTruth'' series.
* Scarpa from ''Literature/TheTamuli'' is stated to be the child of an Arjuni whore and a Styric renegade [[spoiler:who happens to be Zalasta, the guy running the mortal side of the bad guys.]]
* Dimitri from ''Literature/VampireAcademy'' is a minor example, since the dhampir women who end up single mothers (blood-whores, as they're called) genuinely thought that the Moroi guys they slept with loved them.
* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'': Talos, Hunter of the One Soul [[Literature/NightLords and prophet of the VIII legion]] is in his own words, the son of a [[TurnOutLikeHisFather hereditary]] [[VillainousLineage murderer]] and an [[SexSlave indentured]] [[TeenPregnancy teenage]] [[HookerWithAHeartOfGold prostitute]]. He averts most of the baggage associated with the trope, and generally shows little emotion at in [[{{Pun}} relation]] to his paternity. However, a dream flashback shows he genuinely cared for his mother, [[UsedToBeASweetKid at least as a child]].
* ''[[EmbarrassingFirstName Whoreson]]'', [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin obviously]].
* In ''Literature/TheWolfDenTrilogy'', Paris and Felix are both the children of prostitutes.
* Waln from ''Literature/WolfsHeadWolfsHeart'' is a prostitute's son. The thing he seems to hate most is that his mother named him Walnut (he insists on going by Waln), and has never told him why.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action Television]]
* Patsy's mother from ''Series/AbsolutelyFabulous'' was a self-absorbed bohemian who was prone to mood swings and treated Patsy like a a hindrance to be dismissed or swept away, never caring enough to find out who her biological father was. Very little is made of her sex life, but the fact that she's ''abusive enough to make Patsy look sympathetic'' is no small feat.
* Connor from ''Series/{{Angel}},'' technically. Darla was a prostitute dying of syphilis (and not the [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer funny kind]]) in Colonial Virginia when the Master (not [[Series/DoctorWho that one]]) turned her. Of course, by the time he was born Darla had been a mass murdering vampire for a couple centuries, so her previous occupation probably rated low on his list of concerns.
* In ''Series/{{Being Human|UK}}'', Hal claims he was both in a brothel and never knew which of the six prostitutes was his mother. As each of them died due to illness, violence or old age; he mourned each of them as if they were his mother.
* ''Series/BoardwalkEmpire'': Jimmy Darmody was born when his mother [[TeenPregnancy was 14 years old]], after she was pimped out by Nucky to [[spoiler:the Commodore, who had to have been in his ''sixties'' even then]]. And no, [[BerserkButton you should not say a single ill word about his mother]].
* As in the Michael Connelly novels, Harry Bosch is portrayed as the son of a prostitute in ''Series/{{Bosch}}''. His efforts to close her unsolved murder make up an overarching sideplot of the series.
* According to the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' book ''Go Ask Malice,'' [[DarkActionGirl Faith's]] mom did some hooker work. Faith's father was not a customer. He was a convicted murderer who rotted in prison since Faith's childhood. [[ParentalSubstitute No wonder she preferred]] [[FamilyValuesVillain the Mayor]].
* Karen, the adopted daughter of UsefulNotes/VietnamWar vet Boonie on ''Series/ChinaBeach'', is actually the daughter of KC Koloski, the [[HookerWithAHeartOfGold base tramp]] back in Vietnam, and Lt. Col. Mac Miller, one of KC's main customers.
* Pops up from time to time in ''Series/CriminalMinds'', given the association of this trope with [[SerialKiller serial killers]]. Two prominent examples are Frank and [[FreudianExcuse The Prince of Darkness]].
* One killer on ''Series/{{CSI}}'' was the son of a hooker. When she brought in a John, he was forced to hide under the bed while she worked. Watching her perfectly painted toenails hang over the edge of the bed was what gave birth to his trademark foot fetish later in life.
* On ''Series/DarkAngel'', Max compares the surrogate mothers paid by Manticore to carry her and the other X5s to term to "working girls."
* In the ''Series/EmeraldCity'' episode [[Recap/EmeraldCityS1E3MistressNewMistress "Mistress - New - Mistress"]], Anna is dismayed to learn her mother was one of the prostitutes in West's brothel. It seems the Wizard was a favorite client, though West claims he isn't her father.
* A variation in ''Series/TheFeastOfAllSaints''. Cecile, mother of main character Marcel and his younger sister Marie, isn't actually a prostitute. However, Marie does view the practice of ''placage'' (formalized relationships between white men and women of color) with disdain since she thinks of it as being owned by the man, like a slave. When Cecile tries to force Marie into ''placage'' to help the family financially, Marie realizes that her mother is completely willing to sell her (literally AND figuratively) and says she has the "soul of a whore."
* An episode of ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' called "Heart of Gold" is about the crew protecting a brothel from a man wanting to kidnap his unborn child. As the battle is going on the "whore" gives birth. Once the man is captured she goes out to show him his son, looks him in the face, and puts the man down with one shot.
* La Croix's daughter Divia in ''Series/ForeverKnight''. It's not stated explicitly, but can be inferred based on dialogue with a little knowledge of Roman customs of the time (first century AD).
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': In "Breaker of Chains", Daario Naharis admits this about himself without shame.
* ''Series/{{Holocaust}}'': {{Invoked}}. Nazi officials in Auschwitz make the Jewish prisoners call their parents pimps and whores while taking their personal details. Those who naturally object are beaten for it.
* Charlie from ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia.'' He seems to be pretty oblivious to this until Mac explains to him what all of those "Santas" were at his house for on Christmas. [[UnstoppableRage He doesn't react pretty well]] when he sees Santa at the mall. [[spoiler:There's a good chance that Frank, one of her customers, is his father]].
* In the first season of ''Series/LawAndOrderSVU'', there's a serial killer cop who has been killing prostitutes for ''thirty years'' because of the FreudianExcuse that his mother was a prostitute. When she had a john in, she'd leave saltines out on the porch as a signal not to come in the house. It was the only thing he'd get for dinner and he had to stay out there even when it was rainy or freezing cold until she was done.
* Implied to be Vicky Pollard's situation in ''Series/LittleBritain''. When Vicky discovers that she is pregnant, the doctor asks her to be chaperoned to her first scan, to which Vicky says that she isn't going to take Shelly with her because "she's a [[ReallyGetsAround slag]]". The doctor recommends her mother but it turns out that Shelly ''is'' Vicky's mother.
* Jin of ''Series/{{Lost}}''. It's unclear if he knows. But when Sun spoke to her, she made it very clear that if Jin were to ever find out his mother was alive, she wouldn't be for long. The man who raised Jin isn't even sure if he's actually Jin's biological father, but he doesn't care and loves him anyway.
* ''Series/LukeCage2016'': Famed stockbroker Raymond "Piranha" Jones was born to one of [[MissKitty Mama Mabel's]] prostitutes, with his biological father being a married banker who used her services. While he's not on speaking terms with his father, he has a very good relationship with his mother and, after becoming a success on Wall Street, set her up for life financially and gladly showed his father the door when he came looking for a handout.
* Dick Whitman in ''Series/MadMen''. [[spoiler:Also known as... Don Draper.]] His birth mom, a prostitute hired by his father, actually died in childbirth. His alcoholic dad followed a when he was about 10, leaving him in the care of his stern stepmother. She remarried a brothel manager, where he spent a good chunk of his childhood and even lost his virginity to one of the girls.
* Buck Wilmington of ''Series/TheMagnificentSeven'' is entirely angst-free about it; it just makes him even fonder of prostitutes [[ChivalrousPervert than he would be otherwise]]. (And god help you if you mistreat one in his presence.)
* Played with on ''Series/MurdochMysteries''. Constable Crabtree was a foundling raised by a preacher and several "aunts" - all of them prostitutes who the preacher housed in order to keep them safe.
* In one episode of ''Series/{{NCIS}}'', a serial killer's FreudianExcuse was that his mother was a prostitute. [[spoiler:She was his first victim. When he was a teenager.]]
* Possibly Trigger on ''Series/OnlyFoolsAndHorses'', whose birth certificate states his father as "some soldiers."
* ''Series/SacredGames'': Ganesh Gaitonde's mother worked as a prostitute to supplement the family income, given that her husband's work as a beggar did not make much money. It seems to have been an OpenSecret around the town, and we see a young Ganesh get bullied for it. [[spoiler:"Yayati" reveals that Ganesh himself murdered her and her client when he returned home one day, framing his father for it.]]
%%* ''Series/{{Sharpe}}'': Richard Sharpe. Sgt. Harper's son might or might not count. %% Zero Context. Please provide context before uncommenting.
* Toral, the illegitimate son of Duras who first appeared in the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' two-part episode "Redemption", was spoken of disparagingly by Gowron as likely being found in "a harlot's bedchamber". (It's never established who his mother actually is.)
* ''Series/{{Taboo}}'': Daughter of a whore, but it turns out that Winter is actually Helga's daughter. She's also a mulatto, which makes her a double pariah in conservative Regency England. She gets along fine with James though, ''because'' of his connection to the paranormal.
* ''Series/TimeAfterTime'': Antagonist John's mother it turns out was a prostitute. It's mentioned this might be why he killed prostitutes as Jack the Ripper, but he denies this, saying it was just [[DisposableSexWorker because they're vulnerable]].
* ''Series/TheUntamed'': Meng Yao[=/=]Jin Guangyao, like in [[Literature/GrandmasterOfDemonicCultivationMoDaoZuShi the novel]]. The angst this causes him is downplayed in the series, but mentioning it remains his BerserkButton.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* "Fils de joie" by Music/{{Stromae}} is about a deceased sex worker. The chorus is sung from the point of view of her son, whereas the verses are respectively done by a customer, a pimp and a policeman.
* In the Dear Hunter's Acts I, II and III, the eponymous Dear Hunter was the son of one Ms. Terri, a whore, and one of her patrons.
* Music/{{Metallica}}'s music video for [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOibtqWo6z4 Turn the page]] features a much-abused stripper and her daughter as the main characters. [[spoiler:The video's TwistEnding is that she's ''also'' a whore.]]
* The titular character of the Music/{{Queen}} song "[[Music/Queen1973 Great King Rat]]" is called a son of a whore. This is as he's being described as a [[SirSwearsALot foul-mouth]], outlaw, and DirtyOldMan, so it's hard to tell if the description is literal.
* OC Smith's ''Son of Hickory Hollow's Tramp''.
* In Music/RandyTravis's ''Three Wooden Crosses'', it turns out that [[spoiler:the preacher telling the story to his congregation is the son of the hooker who survived the crash, who read the Bible that the preacher who died gave her to him]].
* Music/FrankZappa's ''Idiot Bastard Son'', whose mother's a hooker somewhere in LA.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
* [[Wrestling/DeanAmbrose Jon Moxley]] is this, and its an important part of his backstory/psyche. His rival Wrestling/JimmyJacobs has scathingly said, "You've said your mother is a whore... I can only assume you were named for what your father was."
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Religion and Mythology]]
* Jephthah, one of the [[Literature/TheBible Biblical]] judges. His original band of soldiers were also various kinds of social outcasts, but prove remarkably effective against the invading Philistines because of {{God}}'s favor.
* The prophet [[Literature/BookOfHosea Hosea]] married a prostitute, who notably did ''not'' give up her profession, making the parentage of her children dodgy at best. (For the record, God [[ArrangedMarriage ordained the marriage]] to make a point about His relationship to Israel even as they "whored" themselves out to other gods.)
* According to the New Testament, Boaz, the son of Salmon, was the son of a woman named Rahab, presumably the reformed prostitute from the Literature/BookOfJoshua. (Jewish tradition, however, says that Rahab married Joshua.)
* Possibly Romulus and Remus, the founders of AncientRome. The most well-known story is that they were [[RaisedByWolves raised by a she-wolf]] as infants, but many think that their foster mother may have been a human prostitute, since the word used to describe their adoptive mother in the earliest versions could have meant either "she-wolf" or "prostitute" in context.
* Myth/HinduMythology: The ''Chandogya Upanishad'' relates that the sage Satyakama Jabala was the son of the whore Jabala, who did not know who Satyakama's father was. As a child inherits the caste of the father, this meant that Satyakama did not know his own caste. When Satyakama wished to study the sacred knowledge, although only Brahmins are allowed to study the Veda, Jabala advises him to call himself Satyakama Jabala (Satyakama son of Jabala), which conceals that Jabala is a woman. When Satyakama goes to the teacher Haridrumata, Haridrumata asks from what family he came. Satyakama replies that his mother had been a prostitute and does not know who his father is, and that therefore she has advised him to call himself Satyakama Jabala. To which Haridrumata replies that only a Brahmin could have told the truth so openly, and therefore agrees to teach Satyakama.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theater]]
* The trope name is actually used in the opening lines of ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}'' [[note]]Note, however, that as far as we know Rachel Faucette - Hamilton's mother - only committed adultery with James Hamilton, Sr. That didn't stop her husband from suing her on the charge of "whoring with everyone".[[/note]]:
--> How does a bastard, orphan\\
son of a whore and a Scotsman\\
dropped into the middle of a\\
forgotten spot in the Caribbean\\
by Providence, impoverished, in squalor\\
grow up to be a hero and a scholar?
* Aldonza in ''Theatre/ManOfLaMancha''.
-->And, of course, there's my father. I'm told that young ladies\\
Can point to their fathers with maidenly pride.\\
>Mine was a regiment, here for one hour;\\
I can't even tell you which side!
* The Engineer in ''Theatre/MissSaigon''. Turns out he began his career as a pimp as a child, helping his mother find customers.
** Tam, Kim and Chris's son, come to that.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* Drirr from ''VideoGame/{{Albion}}''. He doesn't like to talk about his past for this reason until he gets to know the protagonist better, but that's about all it ever amounts to.
* According to [[AllThereInTheManual supplementary materials]], Nero of ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry4'' is the son of a prostitute and Dante's twin brother Vergil.
* In ''{{VideoGame/Dishonored}}'', Slackjaw, leader of the Bottler's gang, was raised by prostitutes and born illegitimate, implying this trope. [[spoiler:The Heart, who knows the secrets of the people who you interact with, notifies you that he's actually royalty and doesn't know it]].
* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'': Zevran's past has him raised in the brothel until sold to the Crows.
* Yuri's description in ''Videogame/{{Fire Emblem Three Houses}}'' matter-of-factly states that his mother is a prostitute, which is weirdly straightforward for a game that is otherwise very [[{{Double Entendre}} coy, nudge-nudge, wink-wink]] about sex. Most of this more questionable actions are done to protect her.
* The late Johnny Winter from ''VideoGame/HeavyRain'' applies. Before his death it's implied he constantly stood up for his mom when her profession was brought up. [[spoiler:In one of the epilogues, his mother avenges him.]]
* Tiffany Maye of ''VideoGame/HuniePop'' is a female example, being the daughter of porn star Jessie Maye. Needless to say, this mere fact alone has put quite a strain between the two's relationship, to the point where the latter outright blocked the former on social media in the [[VideoGame/HuniePop2 sequel]].
* [[spoiler:Goro Akechi]] from ''VideoGame/Persona5'' is revealed to be this; his mother was DrivenToSuicide when he was a child due to her family's abuse over having a child out of wedlock, resulting in him being passed around a number of neglectful foster homes. If any of it became public knowledge, it'd almost certainly destroy his career. To make matters worse, his biological father is [[spoiler:CorruptPolitican Masayoshi Shido]]. He's hellbent on making said father suffer for what he and his mother went through.
* {{Implied}} in ''Videogame/{{Psychonauts}},'' with the campers' [[CharacterBlog fake social media accounts]]. Elton, a wimpy boy who wears a sailor's hat, says that his father died at sea, but his mother often receives visits from other sailors who are paying their respects...at the "special hotel for all ladies" where they live. Elton is usually instructed to practice his accordion in the closet during such visits.
* ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption'': John Marston and his son Jack are both this, but it doesn't have any Negative effects on either. Heck, Jack's mother is actually a pretty nice person.
** It's still used as a taunt by the Bureau toward Marston though.
--> '''John Marston''': Son of a whore.
--> '''Edgar Ross''': As I recall, it is ''you'' who is the son of a whore, Marston.
* ''Two'' of [[PlayerCharacter Saori's]] potential love interests in ''VisualNovel/ShallWeDateNinjaShadow'' were mothered by prostitutes, were bullied and harassed due to their "muddled" origins, and have developed lots of emotional/mental issues as a result. One of them is Saori's fellow Vigilante [[spoiler:Yuzuki Hirano]] (who for worse [[spoiler:has come to [[HeManWomanHater distrust all women]] since he can't forgive his mother for leaving him]]) and the other is [[spoiler:Tsubaki Kusunoki]] (who [[spoiler:is the son of a rich Dutch man, meaning he ''also'' was subjected to HalfBreedDiscrimination]]).
* The artbook in ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse'' all but states that Hallelujah's mother Ayako was a prostitute.
* Implied in ''VideoGame/SilentHillShatteredMemories'', as the dressing room in the brothel has children's crayon drawings hanging on the walls. Upon examining them, Harry muses, "Everyone loves their kids."
* Vernon Roche, King Foltest's spymaster/special forces commander, is one of these in ''VideoGame/TheWitcher2AssassinsOfKings''. [[BerserkButton Call him "whoreson" at your own risk]].
** Of course, that doesn't stop him from [[HypocriticalHumor calling others "whoreson"]] at every opportunity.
* ''VideoGame/YakuzaLikeADragon'''s prologue chapters reveal Ichiban Kasuga had been raised by the manager and the working girls of Kamurocho's soapland, Shangri-La, since his mother left him there. It left him no hurry to know who his mother was, but it does leave him with a ChekhovsSkill later on when he and the party do end up working in Otohime Land, a rundown soapland in Ijincho. He's also not ashamed of fact and thinks fondly of his adopted family.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]
* Wolfgang Schreiber from ''VisualNovel/DiesIrae'' was born the son to a prostitute mother. However, his childhood was anything but a nice one. His mother specifically wanted a daughter for the sole purpose of continuing the family business, so she really didn't take kindly to Schreiber being born a boy. As such she castrated him and forced him into prostitution anyways under the name of Anna. And when he ended up popular with the patrons she grew even more abusive from envy eventually culminating in her gouging out one of his eyes. And all this while Schreiber himself only wanted to be a good son/daughter to make his mother happy. Eventually he snapped and killed her before going on a giant murder spree while at the same time having developed a severe aversion to physical touch.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* It's heavily implied in ''Webcomic/EnnuiGo'' that Izzy and Addy were the result of their mother prostituting herself for drug money. Admittedly, the prostitution was less of an issue for them than the fact that [[AbusiveParents she was a violent psychopath]].
* Junuka from ''Webcomic/FarToTheNorth''. It's one of the reasons he comes across as something of a HeroicBastard even though he's part of a gang of slavers.
* Bernadette in ''Webcomic/{{Flipside}}'', which is ironic because her girlfriend can best be described as a nymphomaniac.
* Geilein in ''Webcomic/{{Garanos}}'', who herself is a prostitute. She's not ashamed of it, and seems to genuinely enjoy her profession.
* ''Manhwa/IBelongToHouseCastiello'': Estelle's mother was a prostitute who had a fling with the Duke of Castiello that produced Estelle.
* ''Webcomic/MegaTokyo'': Megumi's grandmother used to be a prostitute, and casually references "your grandfather, whoever he was." When Ping is naively trying to have sex for money (''everyone'' involved is jumping to ''many'' conclusions), Megumi's grandmother gives her some very frank business advice on the subject without judgment.
* Two examples from ''Webcomic/QuestionableContent'':
** Faye has a short FreakOut when she realizes one of her Civil-War-era ancestors was a whore, rather than Faye's preferred interpretation, that she was [[PirateGirl a pirate]]. (The point of commonality? A [[{{Pun}} "boarded by se(a)men"]] joke.) Dora tries to calm her down by pointing out that "it ''is'' TheOldestProfession -- statistically, we probably ''all'' are".
** Marten's mother is a successful fetish model. He says it's not weird to him, but it's still ''very'' awkward whenever she comes to visit.
* Oscar in ''{{Webcomic/Sister Claire}}'' was raised by Sabine, whom she called Maman, a UsefulNotes/{{transgender}} HookerWithAHeartOfGold who shelters the downtrodden in her home. Additionally, it's implied Oscar's biological mother may have been one too and her father is none other than [[spoiler:the King of Thronum Mare, with all that's known about her mother at this point being that she was ''not'' the King's legal wife.]]
* ''Webcomic/{{Terinu}}'' was of the "raised in a whorehouse" variety, albeit a PG-13 "Gentleman's Cabaret". The pirate the club owed to tithe dropped him off there as an infant, and he was raised there until he was eight by the cabaret's bookkeeper, [[MamaBear who regarded him]] as her own son.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* Joff in ''Literature/{{Addergoole}}''.
* Creator/TeamFourStar gives us Giuseppe's son in ''WebAnimation/FinalFantasyVIIMachinabridged'', who is upset that his father demands IWantGrandkids from “those-a big girls,” to get his father’s respect, and even more upset to learn this is how his parents met.
* David Wong in ''Literature/JohnDiesAtTheEnd''.
* Website/{{Killerbunnies}}:
** According to the Evans Triplets' profile, their mother, Ange was known to be fairly promiscuous but stopped when she had her daughters, though to better take care of them, [[SingleMomStripper she landed a job as a stripper]], often working nights.
** Constance was born to a prostitute named Wilamina.
* In ''Roleplay/OverlordAscendant'' the main Alex is the daughter of a prostitute and a non-human client. She has absolutely no problems with this, nor with the expectation that she was to enter the "family business". Her father was eventually revealed to be the Dragon who guards the treasury of a nearby city, who is apologetic for not being there for her growing up.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Video]]
* Jester Lavorre from the second campaign of ''Webvideo/CriticalRole'': her mother is the [[HighclassCallgirl famous courtesan]] the Ruby of the Sea. As a child, Jester was kept secret to not impede her mother's career and rarely left the house. This left her rather sheltered and with a crude sense of humor and pranks.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButthead'' claim each of their mothers are sluts.
** In one episode, Beavis specifies that his mother isn't a whore, she's a slut because she doesn’t charge for it.
* Skwisgaar Skwigelf from ''WesternAnimation/{{Metalocalypse}}''. Sadly, his mother was psychologically abusive, as she frequently exposed him to scenes of her having sex with unrelated men, not caring that seeing such things would deeply scar a child.
* [[spoiler:Joe, the bully]] from ''WesternAnimation/MoralOrel''. He's glad to meet his mother, [[spoiler:Nurse Bendy]] though, as his father was too old to be a good parent and he didn't get along with his PromotionToParent older sister. The episode where they reunite ends with them bonding ([[ItMakesSenseInContext by sticking their tongues out at each other]]) and a cameo in the final episode shows them skating together.
* ''WesternAnimation/ThePJs'': Walter Burkett was raised in a whorehouse. One episode has Thurgood telling a scary story about Red Moley, "the bastard son of a thousand maniacs", and Walter takes offense.
--> '''Walter''': Thurgood! I told you about my childhood in confidence!
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
** Homer Simpson's half-brother, Herb Powell, had a mom who worked at a carnival and did things Grampa Simpson's wife never did (i.e., have sex for money). When Grampa found out that he had a son with the carnie lady, Herb was given up for adoption and Grampa moved on, marrying Homer's mom (who knew about Grampa's affair with the carnie lady) and promised Grampa never to tell Homer about it. It didn't work.
** Frank Grimes, Jr., who tried to kill Homer to avenge his father's death. When Homer expresses surprise at the fact that [[EmbarrassingNickname Grimey]] had a child, he replies "My father happened to like hookers, okay?"
** Jimbo may also fall under this category.
** Nelson as well, though in his case, his parents were actually married, but his father left to buy cigarettes several years ago but never came back.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': "Cartman's Mom is a Dirty Slut" is the name of an episode for a reason -- Liane Cartman has slept with half the town, including the entire Denver Broncos team, [[spoiler:one of whom was Cartman's real father, which the town covered up.]] She's also done German pornography and posed suggestively for Crack Whore Magazine, neither of which Cartman is happy to know about.
[[/folder]]
----