"Scarlet" as a name has always invoked an air of passion and sensuality. Usually a female-oriented trope, the name "Scarlet" (sometimes with two T's) often denotes a woman with a fiery, indomitable personality and complicated morality. If she's a hero, she'll be on the aggressive side. If she's a villain, she's almost never straightforwardly evil. As one can expect, she is often a
Lady in Red and/or a
Fiery Redhead, especially if "Scarlet" is actually a nickname or codename.
While male examples exist (
Captain Scarlet and
The Scarlet Pimpernel come to mind), they usually have a much different feel, playing up the boldness of the color red rather than any direct sexualization.
Examples:
- Scarlett O'Hara from Gone with the Wind, possibly the Trope Codifier.
- The Scarlet Witch from Marvel Comics.
- Scarlett, the most well-known female hero from G.I. Joe. Her backstory is an homage to Gone with the Wind, as her birth name is Shanna O'Hara and she's from Atlanta.
- The sultry Miss Scarlet from Clue.
- Miss Scarlet from Perry Moore's Hero, a superheroine with fire powers to match her temper.
- On The Critic, Jay's boss Duke meets Alice's Southern Belle sister Miranda at a costume ball and is instantly smitten with her, nicknaming her Scarlet.
- The vampires Remilia and Flandre Scarlet from the sixth Touhou game, Embodiment of Scarlet Devil
- Erza Scarlet from Fairy Tail. Her last name was chosen for her by Jellal because of her red hair.
- The Scarlet Empress, one of the primary villains in Exalted.
- Real Life example: Famed sex worker advocate Carol Leigh, aka "Scarlot Harlot"
- While not the name of a person, The Scarlet Letter invoked this trope in its title as far back as 1850.
- Final Fantasy VII's Scarlet, who is a mid-level villainess, a Corrupt Corporate Executive and a Lady in Red.
- Scarlet's Walk is an album by Tori Amos where the character, Scarlet, travels the U.S. post 9/11.
