History Sandbox / ForcedIntoServitude

* In ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'', once Saito becomes Louise's familiar his new life consists of waiting on Louise practically both day and night. This includes washing her laundry and helping her get dressed, among other things. Louise eventually mellows out, more or less, later on.

* ''Film/EverAfter'' starring Drew Barrymore, situates the story of Cinderella in medieval France and gives her UsefulNotes/LeonardoDaVinci instead of a FairyGodmother.

* Fanny Price of Creator/JaneAusten's ''Literature/MansfieldPark'' is, ironically, sent to live with her rich uncle and aunts because they could logically offer her a better life than her parents could. Her aunt, [[NamesTheSame Mrs. Norris]], turns out to be a WickedStepmother in all but name, and even though her uncle and other aunt show her kindness, Mrs. Norris never allows Fanny to forget that she is a charity case.

* After being [[BalefulPolymorph cursed and forcibly transformed]], Sabrina Bunahr of ''Literature/Birthright2017'' is pressed into servitude [[ManInTheIronMask in order to keep her hidden]]. Rather than the traditional housekeeping, however, Sabrina is instead forced to do manual labour, carrying building materials around a construction site.

* In ''WesternAnimation/OverTheGardenWall,'' [[IllGirl Lorna]] is being raised by [[HonoraryAunt Auntie Whispers]], who uses a magic bell to [[MindControl force her]] to work constantly. Auntie Whispers insists that she has no choice, as otherwise Lorna would "fall into wickedness." [[spoiler:It turns out to be BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood--Lorna suffers from DemonicPossession, and the evil spirit has to be constantly occupied or it goes on a killing spree]].

* ''Manga/VictorianRomanceEmma'': Emma was born in a seaside village where she was given tough jobs and regularly physically and verbally abused. Luckily, she gained a better life after Kelly Stowner took her under her wing and trained her to be a maid.

* In One Eye, Two Eyes, Three Eyes, a witch has 3 daugthers, each having one more eye than the other. Because the middle child was common as others, because she had two eyes, [[MiddleChildSyndrome she was mistreated, only given food scraps to eat, and forced to walk the goat everyday]].

%%* ''WesternAnimation/{{Cinderella}}'', of course.

* ''Film/CinderellaFourByFour'' starring Creator/DaryaMelnikova.
* The movie ''Film/ACinderellaStory'' starring Hillary Duff.
** And the spiritual sequel, ''Film/AnotherCinderellaStory'' starring Selena Gomez.
* ''Film/{{Clue}}'': Wadsworth the butler claims this is what Mr. Boddy did to him and his wife after blackmailing her (for the horrible crime of "having friends who were Socialists"). After she died, he swore revenge on Mr. Boddy. [[spoiler:The final ending reveals Wadsworth is lying through his teeth. He's Mr. Boddy himself.]]
* The Mexican movie ''El ceniciento,'' (male "Cinderella") has this as its central theme. When a peasant comes to the big city to stay with some wealthy relatives, he mentions that he has a parcel of land and livestock, and he is treated like a close member of the family. After he reveals that the parcel of land is just a shack, and the livestock included some chickens and a goat, [[WorkOffTheDebt he is forced to do menial labor around the house to pay off what he consumed.]]

[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
* Wrestling/{{WWENXT}}: After LA Knight won the [[Wrestling/TedDiBiase Million Dollar Championship]] and later [[FaceHeelTurn turned against DiBiase]], Cameron Grimes fought him again after losing the belt, but with the stipulation of if Grimes loses, he will be LA Knight's servant. Eventually he lost the fight and became his butler against his will, but being the {{Troll}} he is (even as a face), Grimes doesn't lose an opportunity to make the orders in his own way just to piss off LA Knight.
[[/folder]]

* ''Literature/HarryPotter'', before he gets sent off to Hogwarts, and even afterward his Uncle Vernon never does stop treating him like crap.

* In ''Literature/TheHandmaidsTale'', all of the women?s status are reduced to handmaid, and their freedoms are taken away from them, because of The Republic of Gilead, which has replaced the United States of America. Offred is to serve the commander and his wife, and is forced to be a BabyFactory.

* In the ''Series/EerieIndiana'' episode ?Who's Who", Sarah Bob was a virtual slave who had to cook and clean and mend the clothes of her brothers and father despite being about 12-years-old.

* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' had the boys participating in the reenactment of a Civil War battle, with Stan and Kyle making a bet with Cartman that if the Confederacy lost the battle (which it historically did), he would be their slave, and vice versa, which he stupidly accepts. After leading the Confederate re-enactors to take over the US and being stopped by the boys, Stan and Kyle start mocking him about losing the bet just in time to be informed [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome that slavery is illegal, so Cartman has no obligation to be their slave.]]

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1565053906016206400
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[[quoteright:350:[[Film/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents2004 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lemony_snickets_1.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Rather unfortunate indeed.]]

%% ->''"Work hard enough, and you can go to the ball...room. Which is even dirtier."''
%% -->-- '''Count Olaf''', ''Series/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents2017''

When characters are forced to become servants, doing menial work often for a person of higher class or power.

The newly-impoverished individuals have to find a way to success and happiness: sometimes through hard work, sometimes through outside intervention. In most cases it's implied -- if not outright stated -- that everyone can see the inner superiority that they possess as members [[InTheBlood of a better class]], despite their current humility. RagsToRiches may ensue, especially with stories which tend to end with a HappyEnding.

When this trope is used in the context of a CinderellaPlot, it can overlap with RichSiblingPoorSibling, with the impoverished people’s situation making them the Poor Sibling, while their sibling or step-sibling is spoiled and pampered by the cruel parent. However, the poor characters don’t need to have spoiled siblings or sibling-figures to be forced into servitude.

ChangelingFantasy is a more upbeat variation of the concept in which the slave imagines themselves to be a {{Foundling}} of RoyalBlood instead of an unappreciated servant. See also WickedStepmother and EvilUncle. Not quite the same thing as RagsToRiches.

SisterTrope to MadeASlave and KidsHateChores. May overlap with CinderellaPlot. Compare with RichesToRags, a more specific example for when a character who was once rich becomes poor.

Compare SculleryMaid, GuessWhoImMarrying. Contrast ''Literature/TheFrogPrince'' and related stories where the heroine must learn to live with an animal (often as a metaphor for making the best of an ArrangedMarriage).

----
!!Examples:
[[foldercontrol]]

-->''Do not stare at me because I am swarthy,\\
because the sun has burned me.\\
My brothers have been angry with me;\\
they charged me with the care of the vineyards:\\

* In ''Literature/TheHandmaidsTale'', all of the women’s status are reduced to handmaid, and their freedoms are taken away from them, because of The Republic of Gilead, which has replaced the United States of America. Offred is to serve the commander and his wife, and is forced to be a BabyFactory.

* ''Literature/SweetValleyHigh'' had a spin-off called ''Elizabeth'' in which Elizabeth Wakefield, who has run away to London, has to work as a servant in a manor house because she didn't get the student grant she was expecting and is now stranded with no money. Although there's no stepparent, she is bullied by the young earl's snobby aristocratic fiancée.

* In the ''Series/EerieIndiana'' episode “Who's Who", Sarah Bob was a virtual slave who had to cook and clean and mend the clothes of her brothers and father despite being about 12-years-old.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In the fifth installment of the ''VideoGame/DarkParables'' series, the character Katherine has this as her backstory. A small side story within the game explains that after their parents' deaths, she and her stepsister Cyrilla were left in the care of an EvilUncle who forced them to basically work as unpaid domestic servants. This is particularly fitting since Katherine is the title character of the game - ''The Final Cinderella''.
* In ''VideoGame/PunishingGrayRaven'', Liv's father remarried, and her new step-family promptly began neglecting her and treating like a servant, until her fortunes turned around. Though in this case, Liv didn't meet a prince and marry into royalty: she enlisted in the army as a medic in lieu of her step-siblings, nearly died saving soldiers on the frontline, and was transformed into a combat cyborg lauded as a war hero, who is still fighting when the game begins.

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* In Webcomic/{{Strays}}, [[https://web.archive.org/web/20110830151231/http://www.straysonline.com:80/comic/140.htm Meela's fate, briefly]].

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* The 1980s version of ''WesternAnimation/{{Pound Puppies|1980s}}'' has Holly, an orphan who is constantly abused/exploited by her aunt and cousin. By the end of the first season, it was implied she inherited their house and lived happily ever after. Then came the second season, where her aunt took over the pound and forced the pippies underground.
* In ''WesternAnimation/OverTheGardenWall,'' [[IllGirl Lorna]] is being raised by [[HonoraryAunt Auntie Whispers]], who uses a magic bell to [[MindControl force her]] to work constantly. Auntie Whispers insists that she has no choice, as otherwise Lorna would "fall into wickedness." [[spoiler:It turns out to be BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood--Lorna suffers from DemonicPossession, and the evil spirit has to be constantly occupied or it goes on a killing spree]].

ChangelingFantasy is a more upbeat variation of the concept in which the slave imagines themselves to be a {{Foundling}} of RoyalBlood instead of an unappreciated servant. See also WickedStepmother and EvilUncle. Not quite the same thing as RagsToRiches. SisterTrope to MadeASlave and KidsHateChores. May overlap with CinderellaPlot. Compare with RichesToRags, a more specific example for when a character who was once rich becomes poor.

* ''Literature/{{Cinderella}}'', including such variants as ''Literature/YehShen'',''[[Literature/TamCam The Story of Tam and Cam]]'', ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/stories/sheep.html The Sharp Grey Sheep]]'', and ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/stories/rushen.html Rushen Coatie]]''.

When characters are forced to become servants, doing menial work often for a person of higher class.

When characters in rich -- or at least comfortable -- situations suddenly find themselves at the bottom of the pile, often forced to become servants.

When this trope is used in the context of a CinderellaPlot, it can overlap with RichSiblingPoorSibling, with the impoverished children’s situation making them the Poor Sibling, while their sibling or step-sibling is spoiled and pampered by the cruel parent. However, the poor children don’t need to have spoiled siblings or sibling-figures to be forced into servitude.

When this trope is used in the context of a CinderellaPlot, it can overlap with RichSiblingPoorSibling, with the impoverished children’s situation making them the Poor Sibling, while their sibling or step-sibling is spoiled and pampered by the cruel parent. Can overlap with this trope, but the poor children don’t need to have spoiled siblings or sibling-figures to be forced into servitude.

In the case of a step-parent who has their own children, it can overlap with RichSiblingPoorSibling, with the impoverished children’s situation making them the Poor Sibling, while their sibling or step-sibling is spoiled and pampered by the cruel parent. Can overlap with this trope, but the poor children don’t need to have spoiled siblings or sibling-figures to be ForcedIntoServitude.

ChangelingFantasy is a more upbeat variation of the concept in which the slave imagines themselves to be a {{Foundling}} of RoyalBlood instead of an unappreciated servant. See also WickedStepmother and EvilUncle. Not quite the same thing as RagsToRiches. SisterTrope to KidsHateChores. Supertrope to CinderellaPlot. Compare with RichesToRags, a more specific example for when a character who was once rich becomes poor.

Compare SculleryMaid, GuessWhoImMarrying. Contrast ''Literature/TheFrogPrince'' and related stories where the heroine must learn to live with an animal (often as a metaphor for making the best of an ArrangedMarriage). Sister Trope to MadeASlave.

When characters in rich -- or at least comfortable -- situations suddenly find themselves at the bottom of the pile, often forced to become servants. Most examples are usually family related, because of family circumstances, the death of the main breadwinner may be involved, especially if Mom or Dad remarried before passing, because the step-parent isn't likely to give the "old children" any share in the estate, ''especially'' if they have children of their own. Another example is due to government control, where usually the lower middle-class residents are forced to work for the government or an organization.

ChangelingFantasy is a more upbeat variation of the concept in which the slave imagines themselves to be a {{Foundling}} of RoyalBlood instead of an unappreciated slave. See also WickedStepmother and EvilUncle. Not quite the same thing as RagsToRiches. SisterTrope to KidsHateChores. Supertrope to CinderellaPlot. Compare with RichesToRags, a more specific example for when a character who was once rich becomes poor.

Compare SculleryMaid, GuessWhoImMarrying. Contrast ''Literature/TheFrogPrince'' and related stories where the heroine must learn to live with an animal (often as a metaphor for making the best of an ArrangedMarriage).

* In ''Literature/TheHandmaidsTale'', all of the women’s status are reduced to handmaid, and their freedoms are taken away from them, because of The Republic of Gilead, which has replaced the United States of America. Offred is to serve the commander and his wife.

When characters in rich -- or at least comfortable -- situations suddenly find themselves at the bottom of the pile, often forced to become servants. Most examples are usually because of family circumstances, the death of the main breadwinner may be involved, especially if Mom or Dad remarried before passing, because the step-parent isn't likely to give the "old children" any share in the estate, ''especially'' if they have children of their own. Another example is due to government control, where usually the lower middle-class residents are forced to work for the government or an organization.

->''"Work hard enough, and you can go to the ball...room. Which is even dirtier."''
-->-- '''Count Olaf''', ''Series/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents2017''

As in the tale of Cinderella, the newly-impoverished individuals have to find a way to success and happiness: sometimes through hard work, sometimes through outside intervention. In most cases it's implied -- if not outright stated -- that everyone can see the inner superiority that they possess as members [[InTheBlood of a better class]], despite their current humility. RagsToRiches may ensue, especially with stories which tend to end with a HappyEnding.

For other tropes associated with ''Literature/{{Cinderella}}'', see WhenTheClockStrikesTwelve, TheGirlWhoFitsThisSlipper.

* ''Literature/{{Cinderella}}'', of course. Including such variants as ''Literature/YehShen'',''[[Literature/TamCam The Story of Tam and Cam]]'', ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/stories/sheep.html The Sharp Grey Sheep]]'', and ''[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/stories/rushen.html Rushen Coatie]]''.

When characters in rich -- or at least comfortable -- situations suddenly find themselves at the bottom of the pile, often forced to become servants. Most examples are usually because of family circumstances, the death of the main breadwinner may be involved, especially if Mom or Dad remarried before passing, because the step-parent isn't likely to give the "old children" any share in the estate, ''especially'' if they have children of their own. Another example is due to government control, where usually the lower middle-class residents are forced to work for the government.

ChangelingFantasy is a more upbeat variation of the concept in which the slave imagines themselves to be a {{Foundling}} of RoyalBlood instead of an unappreciated slave. See also WickedStepmother and EvilUncle. Not quite the same thing as RagsToRiches. SisterTrope to KidsHateChores. Supertrope to CinderellaPlot.

As in the tale of Cinderella, then, the newly-impoverished individuals have to find a way to success and happiness: sometimes through hard work, sometimes through outside intervention. In most cases it's implied -- if not outright stated -- that everyone can see the inner superiority that they possess as members [[InTheBlood of a better class]], despite their current humility.

RagsToRoyalty may ensue.

In the case of a stepparent who has their own children, it can overlap with RichSiblingPoorSibling, with the impoverished children’s situation making them the Poor Sibling, while their sibling or step-sibling is spoiled and pampered by the cruel parent. Can overlap with this trope, but the poor children don’t need to have spoiled siblings or sibling-figures to be ForcedIntoServitude.

ChangelingFantasy is a more upbeat variation of the concept in which the slave imagines themselves to be a {{Foundling}} of RoyalBlood instead of an unappreciated slave. Not to be confused with ChangelingTale, in which the child is [[RedHeadedStepchild abused and discarded]] because he's actually one of TheFairFolk (the original baby was stolen long ago). See also EvilUncle. Not quite the same thing as RagsToRiches. SisterTrope to KidsHateChores.

As in the tale of Cinderella, then, the newly-impoverished individuals have to find a way to success and happiness without the guaranteed support of their parents: sometimes through hard work, sometimes through outside intervention. In most cases it's implied -- if not outright stated -- that everyone can see the inner superiority that they possess as members [[InTheBlood of a better class]], despite their current humility.

When characters in rich -- or at least comfortable -- situations suddenly find themselves at the bottom of the pile, often forced to become servants. Most examples are usually because of family circumstances, the death of the main breadwinner may be involved, especially if Mom or Dad remarried before passing, because the step-parent isn't likely to give the "old children" any share in the estate, ''especially'' if they have children of their own.