Anonymous Benefactor: Difference between revisions

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Oh, woe is [[The Pollyanna]]! Her humble aspirations are practically a [[Tragic Dream]] because she's poor / [[Heartwarming Orphan|an orphan]] / [[The Woobie|meant to suffer]] at [[The Chew Toy|the whims of the cosmos.]] But what's this? She wakes up one morning to discover the exact thing she wanted / needed at the foot of her bed!

Oh, woe is [[The Pollyanna]]! Her humble aspirations are practically a [[Tragic Dream]] because she's poor/[[Heartwarming Orphan|an orphan]]/[[The Woobie|meant to suffer]] at [[The Chew Toy|the whims of the cosmos.]] But what's this? She wakes up one morning to discover the exact thing she wanted/needed at the foot of her bed!

Method of delivery may vary, but [[It Was a Gift|this gift]] is the hallmark of the '''Anonymous Benefactor''', someone whose "altruistic" motives and identity are a mystery. Usually it's someone who knows her (or him) and wants to help her while maintaining anonymity. This may be because they: would [[Hidden Heart of Gold|rather not lose]] their [[Jerkass]] reputation by [[Pet the Dog|revealing their good nature]], want to avoid breaking some stuffy officious rule by showing favoritism, or to avoid getting caught by the authorities if they're a fugitive.

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See also [[Help Your Self in the Future]] and [[Unexpected Inheritance]]. Related to the [[Mysterious Employer]], where the benefactor offers the character in question steady work, at the cost of not asking too many questions.

== Anime and Manga ==

* Hayate in ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]] A's'' has the mysterious uncle who provides for her every need ever since her parents died. He's later revealed to be {{spoiler|[[Well-Intentioned Extremist|Admiral Gil Graham]], [[Apocalypse Maiden|who knew that she possessed]] [[Artifact of Doom|the Book of Darkness]] and [[Sealed Evil in a Can|was planning to permanently seal the book with her when the time is right]]}}.

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** He's [[Heel Face Turn|much nicer now]]. {{spoiler|Raising sheep in Australia}} will do that apparently.

* In ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'', Harry receives his Invisibility Cloak from an anonymous benefactor as a Christmas present his first year. Two years later (exactly), he's given an expensive, top-of-the-line broomstick from another benefactor. Both times, he discovers who it was by the end of the year.

** Later, in ''[[~~Harry Potter/~~Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire|Goblet of Fire]]'', a "benefactor" enters Harry into the Triwizard Tournament and gives him assistance by proxy, although his motives are less than benevolent.

** Later, in ''[[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (novel)|Goblet of Fire]]'', a "benefactor" enters Harry into the Triwizard Tournament and gives him assistance by proxy, although his motives are less than benevolent.

* ''[[A Little Princess]]'' has one for the main character.

* In [[Tamora Pierce]]'s ''[[Tortall Universe|Protector of the Small]]'' series (a follow-up to her ''Song of the Lioness'' quartet), Kel, the main character, receives gifts from an anonymous benefactor. These gifts, like specially-made armour and a sword, help her in her quest to become the realm's second Lady Knight (the first being ''SotL'''s Alanna). At the end of the third book, after two books worth of build-up, we learn the Anonymous Benefactor is... {{spoiler|Alanna herself. Kinda let-down, in the end}}.

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* The entire plot of ''Daddy Long Legs'' is that orphan Judy gets sent to college by an anonymous benefactor that she is required to write letters to.

== Live Action TV ==

== Live-Action TV ==

* A [[Christmas Episode]] of ''[[M*A*S*H (television)]]'' has [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold|Charles Winchester]] as the Anonymous Benefactor, carrying on a Family Tradition from back in Boston. They'd leave a Christmas feast for some poor family at their doorstep. In Korea Charles left candy at the orphanage, which the head of the orphanage subsequently sold on the black market. Charles discovered this and confronted him; he said he traded it for blankets, etc., which the orphans ''really'' needed, much moreso than candy. Charles realized that was the point of his tradition, to help ease the suffering. However, the rest of the unit didn't know about the tradition, and treated Charles like a greedy Scrooge since they were unaware he was the Anonymous Benefactor, or even that there was one.

* A [[Christmas Episode]] of ''[[M*A*S*H (television)|M*A*S*H]]'' has [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold|Charles Winchester]] as the Anonymous Benefactor, carrying on a Family Tradition from back in Boston. They'd leave a Christmas feast for some poor family at their doorstep. In Korea Charles left candy at the orphanage, which the head of the orphanage subsequently sold on the black market. Charles discovered this and confronted him; he said he traded it for blankets, etc., which the orphans ''really'' needed, much moreso than candy. Charles realized that was the point of his tradition, to help ease the suffering. However, the rest of the unit didn't know about the tradition, and treated Charles like a greedy Scrooge since they were unaware he was the Anonymous Benefactor, or even that there was one.

** All except Klinger, who overhears Charles talking with the orphanage head. The scene where he reveals his knowledge to Charles is one of the show's true [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|Crowning Moments Of Heartwarming]].

* A Christmas episode of ''[[The Jeffersons]]'' had George doing this for the family that lived in the same crummy apartment he grew up in.