History Main / NoSympathyForGrudgeholders

* In ''Film/HomeAlone'', Buzz humiliates Kevin during the Christmas concert, and between Buzz's prank and Kevin's retaliation, the concert is ruined. Later, in front of the family, Buzz (insincerely) apologizes to Kevin for what he did, then covertly taunts Kevin about it. Kevin refuses to accept the apology or apologize for his own actions. The result is that Buzz receives no punishment while Kevin is banished to the attic for the night. Have we mentioned that Kevin's family are far from embodiments of the Christmas spirit? Even when the family, having found out they accidentally left Kevin behind, express concern for his safety, Buzz refuses to be concerned, going so far as to chide the others for it, on the grounds that Kevin could use some time in the real world.

* ''VideoGame/LifeIsStrangeBeforeTheStorm'' reveals that Rachel Amber's father James [[spoiler:took her away from her biological mother Sera after he found Sera overdosed or high while baby Rachel was crying. While this is a legitimate reason to not want her to be Rachel's caregiver, he insists on completely cutting her off from Rachel over a decade later, even after Sera has gotten clean, has been voiding his checks to her which he had been paying as bribes to have her stay away from Rachel, and has been trying to send letters to her (which James hides), culminating when it is revealed that James has hired Damon Merrick to intentionally cause Sera to relapse by injecting her with heroin.]]

Alice has done wrong, which upsets or enrages Bob. But Alice sincerely apologizes to Bob and asks for his forgiveness, hoping the two of them can start all over again. Much to Alice's displeasure, Bob [[RejectedApology rejects her apology and vows to never forgive her for what she's done]].

And along comes this trope. As a result of Bob's unforgiving approach and his tendency to hold a grudge, he is [[WhatTheHellHero receiving criticism and antagonism from other characters for not being forgiving to Alice]]. They knew that Alice's apology was very sincere, and it was appropriate for Bob to forgive. They may think that the more Bob holds a grudge, [[HeWhoFightsMonsters he'll be just as bad as the one who wronged him]]. Either way, someone else starts losing sympathy for Bob because of the rejected apology.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada decides to leave them to their own mess since they both made Shiraishi miss an important test and blackmailed Yamada to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, even after Ushio agrees to set things right, Yamada still refuses to help, due to a past event where he and Ushio end up in a street fight near the beginning of school, a fight that ''Ushio himself'' started, and he pins the blame on Yamada, resulting in his AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls Yamada out on holding a grudge,]] he begrudgingly agrees to help Odagiri.

-->-- '''Matthew 6:15''', ''Literature/TheBible''

* Victims of [[DomesticAbuse abuse]], [[TheBully bullying]], or {{rape|IsASpecialKindOfEvil}} often receive this reaction from those who firmly hold the belief that forgiveness is the right option, especially if either the victims are unwilling to let go of what they did or if their aggressors are truly sorry for what they've done. This mentality can backfire if the abusers themselves [[TheUnapologetic aren't truly remorseful]].

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada decides to leave them to their own mess since they both planned to have Shiraishi to miss an important test and blackmail Yamada to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, even after Ushio agrees to set things right, Yamada still refuses to help, due to a past event where he and Ushio end up in a street fight near the beginning of school, a fight that ''Ushio himself'' started, and he pins the blame on Yamada, resulting in his AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls Yamada out on holding a grudge,]] he begrudgingly agrees to help Odagiri.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada decides to leave to them in their own mess since they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an important test as well as blackmail him in order to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, even after Ushio agrees to set things right, Yamada still refuses to help, due to a past event where he and Ushio end up in a street fight near the beginning of school, a fight that ''Ushio himself'' started, and he pins the blame on Yamada, resulting in his AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls Yamada out on holding a grudge,]] he begrudgingly agrees to help Odagiri.

And along comes this trope. As a result of Bob's unforgiving approach and his tendency to hold a grudge, he is [[WhatTheHellHero receiving criticism and antagonism from other characters for not being forgiving to Alice]]. They knew that Alice's apology was very sincere, and it was appropriate for Bob to forgive. They may think that the more Bob holds a grudge, [[HeWhoFightsMonsters he'll be just as bad as the one who wronged him]]. Either way, someone else starts losing sympathy for Bob because of his rejected apology.

* In {{Comicbook/Magneto}}'s backstory, his wife leaves him because he killed the people who prevented him from rescuing their daughter from a fire, causing him no end of confusion.

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* In ''Fanfic/AmbienceAFleetSymphony'', the shipgirls who can't let go of their hatred of America because of their wartime experiences are usually depicted more negatively than those who have learned to move on.
* ''[[FanFic/BurnTheWitchMiraculousLadybug BURN THE WITCH]]'':
** Since Ladybug and Marinette both called Lila out on her [[ConsummateLiar constant lying]], she despises both of them for ''existing'' -- enough that she considers said grudge [[SkewedPriorities far more important]] than dealing with the [[VigilanteMilitia angry mob]] stirred up by Witch Hunter. Suffice to say, this does her no favors.
** Marinette also has no sympathy for her ''own'' grudge against Lila, believing that she's not ''allowed'' to have any [[MomentOfWeakness moments of weakness]]. This is shown to be an unhealthy mindset, but when Tikki tries reassuring her that she's allowed to be angry over everything Lila's done to her, Marinette dismisses that as her kwami being [[NotHimself under the akuma's influence]].
* A more justified example than most in ''Fanfic/CatarinaClaesMustDie'': [[OriginalCharacter Henrietta]] is the reincarnation of a horribly bullied otaku who found some InUniverseCatharsis in getting the Bad Ends in ''Fortune Lover'' and seeing [[AlphaBitch Catarina]] get killed. When she reincarnates in the game's world, she refuses to accept, against all evidence, that ''this'' version of Catarina is [[KindheartedSimpleton completely]] [[AllLovingHero different]] from the game version, and refuses to let go of her grudge, to the point of [[spoiler:plotting to kill Catarina herself]].
* ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainBlossomingTrail'':
** Chloe's [[TheResenter resentment]] of her neglectful father, estranged childhood friend, and a class full of bullies poisons her relationships with others, such as Ash. Not only does this undermine her efforts to navigate the challenges of the Infinity Train, it gradually eats away at the general perception of her plight.
** Parker becomes convinced that those who hurt his sister were not punished ''enough'', with his grudges towards them snowballing into ''disastrous'' developments in Act 2.
** Mr. Bradbury tried to warn Professor Cerise about how Chloe was struggling, even recommending a therapist... something the Professor completely ignored. He [[IWarnedYou makes a point]] of rubbing this in her father's face at every opportunity, until Professor Cerise finally calls him out on the sheer ''pettiness'' of continuing to harp on the same point.
** Delia ''despises'' both Chloe and Parker for how they took out their personal issues on her son, and makes a point of spelling out to both of them how [[RejectedApology she refuses to forgive either of them]] for their actions. This creates strain between her and Ash, and ultimately bites her ''hard'' in the end: her grudge against Chloe spurs her to [[SkewedPriorities prioritize harping on her failures]] over [[spoiler:watching over Goh so that the Train can't collect ''him'' next]].
* ''Fanfic/OnlyFlowersFall'': Lillie's refusal to forgive Lusamine for [[AbusiveParents abusing and]] [[ParentalNeglect neglecting her]] gets her judged harshly by those who don't know the full story, as they only see a daughter rejecting her ailing mother.
* In the sequel to ''Fanfic/ProjectSunflower'', after months of silent treatment, Meadowlark walks in on Erin having dinner with Marigold at Ditzy and Dinky's house, in violation of Meadowlark's demand for Erin to stay away from her daughter. It leads to a confrontation between Ditzy and Meadowlark the next day, and when the latter threatens to break up Marigold and Dinky's friendship if Erin doesn't move house, Erin snaps and tells her that she's given them more than enough time. "If you want our friendship to be over, that's fine! Just tell me so I stop hanging on and hoping you'll forgive me one day. But I won't let you blame me for your decisions!"
* ''Fanfic/RosarioVampireBrightestDarkness'':
** In Act II, a blood transfusion from Kokoa turns Tsukune into a ghoul, and the first thing the ghoul does is murder Apoch and Astreal in cold blood. When the two are resurrected in Act III, Astreal, after discovering that Kokoa was the one who did so, albeit accidentally, tries to shoot Kokoa dead on more than one occasion, and is called out on it by the others every single time; even Apoch, who ''also'' blames Kokoa for their deaths, disapproves of Astreal trying to shoot Kokoa.
** In Act VI, Talon Ryashen is out to kill everyone who was ''ever'' a part of Fairy Tale for ''any'' reason because they kidnapped him off the streets and turned him into a HalfHumanHybrid. It's not enough that the ones who were truly responsible for his transformation are already dead; Talon blames ''everyone'' in Fairy Tale for his condition, regardless if they were simply receptionists or {{Unwitting Pawn}}s, and strives to kill them all. For this reason, even Tsukune's group (sans Kyouko) deem him a violent psychopath who needs to be stopped.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' fic ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/20744306 running through rose thorns]]'', this trope is criticized. Apparently the anguish of being successfully framed for '''assault''' doesn't go away within days, [[SarcasmMode who knew]]?
-->'''Marinette:''' Alya ''knows'' I didn't do anything, but she still talks about me needing to get over my jealousy and forgive Lila and be more welcoming to her, like I'm just supposed to forget any of it happened.
* In ''Fanfic/WhereTalentGoesToDie'', the protagonist, Kaori Miura, earns admission to Talent High School by defeating Shiro Kurogane, the Ultimate Shogi Player, despite never having played before, thus causing Kurogane to hold a grudge against her. When the two of them are investigating the school along with Akito Sakuragi and Sae Edogawa, Kurogane not only [[RejectedApology refuses to accept Miura's apology]], but he makes snide remarks about her, and gives her a vicious TheReasonYouSuckSpeech when she tries to apologize again. Edogawa and Sakuragi call Kurogane out on his attitude, and Kuro Akasaka even suggests that Kurogane is being less mature than her six-year-old sister. [[spoiler:Sakuragi later takes advantage of Kurogane's grudge against Miura, killing him and trying to frame her for it.]]
* ''Fanfic/TheVictorsProject'': {{ZigZagged}} in the meeting between Rebel victors [[spoiler:Luxe St. James and Nolan De Naro]]. [[spoiler:Luxe]] is very sympathetic to the absolutely ''brutal'' hardships that [[spoiler:Nolan]] describes about District 9, but he also makes it clear that thinking The GrassIsGreener in District 1 is an incorrect assumption, making a NotSoDifferentRemark[=/=]WeAreStrugglingTogether speech about what a CrapsaccharineWorld District 1 has turned into under President Snow and Luster Lancaster, ending with a WhatTheHellHero line towards [[spoiler:Nolan]]. for his blind hatred of the inner districts and ignorant assumptions about [[spoiler:Luxe]].
-->[[spoiler:'''Luxe:''']]. You're too young to remember, but you should have known that my name came out of a reaping bowl, same as Plat's, same as yours. Don't act like either of us chose this life. So don't you ever call me ''Career'', boy. Do you understand?
[[/folder]]

'''Buzz:''' No, for three reasons: A, [[ItsAllAboutMe I'm not that lucky]]. Two, we use smoke detectors. And [[BookDumb D]], we live on the most boring street in the whole United States of America, [[TemptingFate where nothing even remotely dangerous will ever happen. Period.]]

* In ''Literature/TheHouseOfNight'', [[TheDragon Rephaim]] [[spoiler:murders Dragon's wife]]. He later switches sides, and Zoey is shocked that Dragon doesn't forgive Rephaim.

* Hilariously played in ''Series/TheFreshPrinceOfBelAir'' episode "The Script Formerly Known As...". Will and Hilary beg for Philip's forgiveness for bringing a dismissed juror of his trial to Hilary's talk show. As Philip watches the apology, an old woman comes up to him and yells outs "You should be ashamed of yourself!" and hits him with her purse.

* ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'': The infamous episode "Arnold Betrays Iggy" overlaps this trope with CassandraTruth. Arnold accidentally discovers that Iggy wears bunny pajamas for sleeping and Iggy makes him promise he won't tell anybody. When Sid and Stinky figure it out themselves [[JokeAndReceive by pure coincidence]], Iggy is convinced that Arnold betrayed him, even when he tries to defend himself. When Arnold gives up on that and tries to apologize through gifts and doing things for him, Iggy refuses to let go of the grudge unless Arnold walks around in bunny pajamas for everyone to see, which he does. Right before, Iggy overhears Sid and Stinky talking about how they figured it out themselves, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone making him realize too late that Arnold was telling the truth.]] [[LaserGuidedKarma The roles are now reversed]] with Iggy being the one desperately trying to apologize, while Arnold (more understandably) ignores him.

* One of the reasons the Dwarves of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' don't get along with other races is because their grudges are treasured from generation to generation (no matter how minor or long ago), even kept in a BigBookOfWar that they take to battle. It goes without saying that their attempts to resolve one results in more dead dwarves, meaning more grudges to be settled later on. Humans, who have a much shorter memory, don't understand why they won't drop it (for example, a noble who'd commissioned a castle from them paid three boatloads of gold, and his name went in the book because the sum was three pieces short). It's not only grudges, either; they're just as obsessive if they consider themselves in your debt.

* Victims of [[DomesticAbuse abuse]], [[TheBully bullying]], or {{rape|IsASpecialKindOfEvil}} often receive this reaction from those who firmly hold the belief that forgiveness is the right option, especially if either the victims are unwilling to let go of what they did or if their aggressors are truly sorry for what they've done. Can become a DeconstructedTrope if the abusers themselves [[TheUnapologetic aren't truly remorseful]].

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada decides to leave to them in their own mess since they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an important test as well as blackmail him in order to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, even after Ushio agrees to set things right, Yamada still refuses to help, due to a past event where Ushio pins the blame on him for a street fight they were involved in near the beginning of school, a fight that ''Ushio himself'' started, resulting in Yamada’s AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls Yamada out on holding a grudge,]] he begrudgingly agrees to help Odagiri.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada refuses to help since they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an important test as well as blackmailed him in order to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, it's implied that the real reason he refused is due to Ushio pinning all the blame on him for a street fight they were involved in near the beginning of school, a fight that ''Ushio himself'' started, resulting in Yamada’s AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls him out on this,]] he begrudgingly agrees.

* ''Manga/RurouniKenshin'': The main antagonist of the Jinchuu arc, [[ArcVillain Yukishiro Enishi]], is angry at Kenshin Himura for having [[spoiler: unwittingly killed his sister Tomoe during the Bakumatsu]]. Even though Kenshin believes Enishi is entitled to his revenge and that his grudge is perfectly understandable, [[DisproportionateRetribution the methods he and his comrades resort to are rather extreme.]] Kenshin calls him out on these unjustified acts of violence that have resulted in people being injured and nearly losing their lives as Enishi didn't focus on him specifically. At the end though, the two resolve their conflict with a fair duel, which Kenshin is happy to accept.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada refuses to help since they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an important test as well as blackmailed him in order to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, it's implied that the real reason he refused is due to Ushio pinning all the blame on him for a street fight they were involved in near the beginning of school, a fight that ''he'' started, resulting in Yamada’s AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls him out on this,]] he begrudgingly agrees.

* In ''Literature/TheHouseOfNight'', [[TheDragon Rephaim]] [[spoiler:murders Dragon's wife]]. He later switches sides, and Zoey is shocked -- ''[[MoralDissonance shocked]]'' -- that Dragon doesn't forgive Rephaim.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada's former friend Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her resulting in her falling in love with Yamada.]] Yamada refuses to help since they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an important test as well as blackmailed him in order to gain an edge in an election for student council. However, it's implied that the real reason he refused is due to Ushio pinning all the blame on him for a street fight that they both were involved in near the beginning of school, resulting in Yamada’s AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. When Shiraishi [[ArmorPiercingSlap calls him out on this,]] he begrudgingly agrees.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': When Yamada's former friend, Ushio asks to help lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her]], Yamada refuses on the grounds that they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an important test. However, it's implied that the real reason is due to Ushio pinning all the blame on him for a street fight they both were involved in near the beginning of school, which led to Yamada’s AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. Shiraishi calls him out on this.

* ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'': Yamada refuses to help his former friend, Ushio lift the charm power off Odagiri [[HoistByHerOwnPetard when it backfired on her]] on the grounds that they both orchestrated a plan to force Shiraishi to miss an imortant test. When he apologizes and agrees to take any form of comeuppance for it, Yamada still refuses, holding a grudge for him pinning all the blame on him for a street fight they both were involved in, which lead to Yamada’s AllOfTheOtherReindeer status. Shiraishi calls him out on this.

* Victims of [[DomesticAbuse abuse]], [[TheBully bullying]], or {{rape|IsASpecialKindOfEvil}} often receive this reaction from those who [firmly hold the belief that forgiveness is the right option, especially if either the victims are unwilling to let go of what they did or if their aggressors are truly sorry for what they've done. Can become a DeconstructedTrope if the abusers themselves [[TheUnapologetic aren't truly remorseful]].

* In ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' Nico holds a book-long grudge against Percy for [[spoiler:Bianca's death]], even if it wasn't his fault and Percy apologizes profusely. Bianca herself tells him to knock it off, and that holding grudges is the FatalFlaw for children of Hades. In the sequel series, Nico splits the difference: he's mostly forgiven Percy [[spoiler:(having a crush on him helped)]], but he's still got a lot of negative feelings towards the Hunters of Artemis, which Bianca joined. He was willing to contact their leader, Thalia Grace, for help, but is absolutely furious when they kidnap his friend Reyna and leave him a note that they'll bring her back and warning him to stay put. On the other hand, he admits that he just can't resent [[spoiler:his romantic rival]] Annabeth, because she's always been kind to him.

* Victims of [[DomesticAbuse abuse]], [[TheBully bullying]], or {{rape|IsASpecialKindOfEvil}} often receive this reaction from those who firmly hold the belief that forgiveness is the right option, especially if either the victims are unwilling to let go of what they did or if their aggressors are truly sorry for what they've done.

* ''Fanfic/TheVictorsProject'': {{ZigZagged}} in the meeting between Rebel victors [[spoiler:Luxe St. James and Nolan De Naro]]. [[spoiler:Luxe]] is very sympathetic to the absolutely ''brutal'' hardships that [[spoiler:Nolan]] describes about District 9, but he also makes it clear that thinking The GrassIsGreener in District 1 is an incorrect assumption, making a NotSoDifferent[=/=]WeAreStrugglingTogether speech about what a CrapsaccharineWorld District 1 has turned into under President Snow and Luster Lancaster, ending with a WhatTheHellHero line towards [[spoiler:Nolan]]. for his blind hatred of the inner districts and ignorant assumptions about [[spoiler:Luxe]].

Many {{revenge}} plots will involve a character successfully carrying out their revenge on their tormentor, but as a result, their loved ones become ashamed of him, telling him that he's crossed the MoralEventHorizon- which may or may not be true at all. It's possible for the character to feel [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone remorseful for carrying out their revenge]], and may [[TheAtoner undo the damage that revenge has caused.]] [[IgnoredEpiphany Or maybe not.]] Expect this trope to be enforced in a work focusing on a character to [[AnAesop learn]] how to {{forgive|ness}}.

The opposite of PunishedForSympathy where a character receives contempt from others for showing pity, kindness, and mercy to the offender. This can be one of the ways where a character is MadeOutToBeAJerkass. A subtrope of TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong. Often overlaps with FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse and UsefulNotes/VictimBlaming. If the character has deeply injured a third party, the OrderedApology may be demanded for forgiveness. Can be due to the belief that IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim or IfYouTauntHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim.

* ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'': Dan wants the enforcers to destroy a Mc Donalds near his house, because they rejected him for a job... back when he was in high school. The other two guys tell him to get over it.

* A more justified example than most in ''Fanfic/CatarinaClaesMustDie'': [[OriginalCharacter Henrietta]] is the reincarnation of an horribly bullied otaku who found some InUniverseCatharsis in getting the Bad Ends in ''Fortune Lover'' and seeing [[AlphaBitch Catarina]] get killed. When she reincarnates in the game's world, she refuses to accept, against all evidence, that ''this'' version of Catarina is [[KindheartedSimpleton completely]] [[AllLovingHero different]] from the game version, and refuses to let go of her grudge, to the point of [[spoiler:plotting to kill Catarina herself]].

** Chloe's [[TheResenter resentment]] of her neglectful father, estranged childhood friend, and class full of bullies poisons her relationships with others, such as Ash. Not only does this undermine her efforts to navigate the challenges of the Infinity Train, it gradually eats away at the general perception of her plight.

* ''Fanfic/TheVictorsProject'': {{ZigZagged}} in the meeting between Rebel victors [[spoiler:Luxe St. James and Nolan De Naro]]. [[spoiler:Luxe]]. is very sympathetic to the absolutely ''brutal'' hardships that [[spoiler:Nolan]]. describes about District 9, but he also makes it clear that thinking The GrassIsGreener in District 1 is an incorrect assumption, making a NotSoDifferent[=/=]WeAreStrugglingTogether speech about what a CrapsaccharineWorld District 1 has turned into under President Snow and Luster Lancaster, ending with a WhatTheHellHero line towards [[spoiler:Nolan]]. for his blind hatred of the inner districts and ignorant assumptions about [[spoiler:Luxe]].

* In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban'', Harry has no sympathy for Snape whatsoever, and for good reason, unusually for this trope. Snape takes a lot of time to belittle and insult James, who saved Snape's life [[spoiler: from a fully transformed Lupin]], and Snape says that if there had been justice James would have been expelled for his actions. Of course, Snape then [[spoiler: outs Lupin as a werewolf, which forces the latter to resign at the end of the school year.]] It doesn't help that he badmouths James to Harry, his own son, without giving him any legit arguments about his grudge and merely insulting him the same way that he insults and mistreats Harry without any reason. Only when Harry sees what James did to Snape does he reconsider Snape's feelings towards the matter, but his tendency to still antagonise Harry and act like a villain, carries this case away from this trope and straight into RevengeByProxy and a few other tropes.

** Most of the problems in the feudal society happens because everybody holds on to grudges and refuses to learn how to forgive. Stannis Baratheon and Tyrion Lannister are both perpetually angry that they are not respected. Caitlyn Stark towards the Lannisters and later [[spoiler:the undead who returns to perpetuate her cycle of revenge]]. Likewise Daenerys Targaryen refuses to see the enemies of her psychotic father as anything other than "usurper's dogs".
** In-Universe, House Frey are seen this way. They hate their fellow nobles who look at them as NouveauRiche and upstarts, while their fellow nobles resent House Frey because they are petty in settling their grudges and refuse to render leal service to their Liege Lords without asking for the tiniest advantage and leg-up. This leads to a SelfFulfillingProphecy and even if, the Freys had genuine grievances towards Robb Stark, [[spoiler:their cruel massacre at the Red Wedding is so much a MoralEventHorizon that anybody who doesn't want the Freys explicitly ''dead'' is still unwilling to trust them and disgusted by having to work with them]].

** The Bible counsels forgiving someone before sundown at the very latest, because making people hold grudges is one of the Devil's favorite tactics.

* At the 1995 Royal Rumble, Wrestling/BamBamBigelow shoved Lawrence Taylor, who was sitting at ringside. Bigelow was ordered to apologize to Taylor, but refused and instead challenged him to a match, setting up their facing each other at [[Wrestling/WrestleMania WrestleMania 11]].

* Wrestling/{{Sting}}'s FaceHeelTurn in Wrestling/{{TNA}} was based off of the fact he still begrudged Wrestling/HulkHogan for everything he did in Wrestling/{{WCW}}, the Wrestling/{{n|ewWorldorder}}Wo not the least of which. It didn't really take as a ten minute baseball bat beating of Wrestling/RobVanDam couldn't stop fans from cheering Sting for long, so in the end he was proven correct with Hogan trying to do the same thing to TNA with Immortal, leading to an automatic HeelFaceTurn.
* [[Wrestling/HunterJohnston Delirious]]'s failure to turn face after being freed from The Eye Of Tyr in Wrestling/{{Chikara}} stemmed from the fact remembered everything he was forced to do under it's control and refused to forgive the resident SuperVillain Wrestling/UltraMantisBlack for using it on him, even after Black freed him from its control.
* Averted in when Kyle O'Reilly remained a {{face}} in ROH despite going AccuserOfTheBrethren on Wrestling/AustinAries for deserting ROH and all it's associated promotions for TNA, even though fans [[GreyandGrayMorality were happy to see Aries back.]]

* While Lin from ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' is a sympathetic character and a good person, her FatalFlaw is holding grudges. Her refusal to let bygones be bygones has serious consequences in her life. It’s ruined her relationship with her ex who genuinely tries to be her friend, her sister and her mom.

* This can crop up in fandoms when DracoInLeatherPants, RonTheDeathEater and RootingForTheEmpire are in effect. Fans can often demand the hero should be expected to forgive a villain with little to no apology for no reason other than because the fans like the villain more and make excuses for their terrible actions.

* In the sequel to ''Fanfic/ProjectSunflower'', after months of silent treatment, Meadowlark walks in on Erin having dinner with Marigold at Ditzy and Dinky's house, in violation of Meadowlark's demand for Erin to stay away from her daughter. It leads to a confrontation between Ditzy and Meadowlark the next day, and when the latter threatens to break up Marigold and Dinky's friendship if Erin doesn't move house, Erin snaps and tells her that she's given them more than enough time. "If you want our friendship to be over, that's fine! Just tell me so I stop hanging on and hoping you'll forgive me one day. But I won't let you blame me for your decisions!"
* ''Fanfic/RosarioVampireBrightestDarkness'':
** In Act II, a blood transfusion from Kokoa turns Tsukune into a ghoul, and the first thing the ghoul does is murder Apoch and Astreal in cold blood. When the two are resurrected in Act III, Astreal, after discovering that Kokoa was the one who did so, albeit accidentally, tries to shoot Kokoa dead on more than one occasion, and is called out on it by the others every single time; even Apoch, who ''also'' blames Kokoa for their deaths, disapproves of Astreal trying to shoot Kokoa.
** In Act VI, Talon Ryashen is out to kill everyone who was ''ever'' a part of Fairy Tale for ''any'' reason because they kidnapped him off the streets and turned him into a HalfHumanHybrid. It's not enough that the ones who were truly responsible for his transformation are already dead; Talon blames ''everyone'' in Fairy Tale for his condition, regardless if they were simply receptionists or {{Unwitting Pawn}}s, and strives to kill them all. For this reason, even Tsukune's group (sans Kyouko) deem him a violent psychopath who needs to be stopped.

* In ''Fanfic/WhereTalentGoesToDie'', the protagonist, Kaori Miura, earns admission to Talent High School by defeating Shiro Kurogane, the Ultimate Shogi Player, despite never having played before, thus causing Kurogane to hold a grudge against her. When the two of them are investigating the school along with Akito Sakuragi and Sae Edogawa, Kurogane not only [[RejectedApology refuses to accept Miura's apology]], but he makes snide remarks about her, and gives her a vicious TheReasonYouSuckSpeech when she tries to apologize again. Edogawa and Sakuragi call Kurogane out on his attitude, and Kuro Akasaka even suggests that Kurogane is being less mature than her six-year-old sister. [[spoiler:Sakuragi later takes advantage of Kurogane's grudge against Miura, killing him and trying to frame her for it.]]
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' fic ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/20744306 running through rose thorns]]'', this trope is criticized. Apparently the anguish of being successfully framed for '''assault''' doesn't go away within days, [[SarcasmMode who knew]]?
-->'''Marinette:''' Alya ''knows'' I didn't do anything, but she still talks about me needing to get over my jealousy and forgive Lila and be more welcoming to her, like I'm just supposed to forget any of it happened.
* ''Fanfic/TheVictorsProject'': {{ZigZagged}} in the meeting between Rebel victors [[spoiler:Luxe St. James and Nolan De Naro]]. [[spoiler:Luxe]]. is very sympathetic to the absolutely ''brutal'' hardships that [[spoiler:Nolan]]. describes about District 9, but he also makes it clear that thinking The GrassIsGreener in District 1 is an incorrect assumption, making a NotSoDifferent[=/=]WeAreStrugglingTogether speech about what a CrapsaccharineWorld District 1 has turned into under President Snow and Luster Lancaster, ending with a WhatTheHellHero line towards [[spoiler:Nolan]]. for his blind hatred of the inner districts and ignorant assumptions about [[spoiler:Luxe]].
-->[[spoiler:'''Luxe:''']]. You're too young to remember, but you should have known that my name came out of a reaping bowl, same as Plat's, same as yours. Don't act like either of us chose this life. So don't you ever call me ''Career'', boy. Do you understand?

* ''Fanfic/OnlyFlowersFall'': Lillie's refusal to forgive Lusamine for [[AbusiveParents abusing and]] [[ParentalNeglect neglecting her]] gets her judged harshly by those who don't know the full story, as they only see a daughter rejecting her ailing mother.