39,327
edits
Dueling Scar: Difference between revisions
m
Mass update links
prefix>Import Bot (Import from TV Tropes TVT:Main.DuelingScar 2012-07-01, editor history TVTH:Main.DuelingScar, CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported license) |
m (Mass update links) |
||
Line 6:
These scars resulted from a peculiar tradition, euphemistically called [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_fencing Academic Fencing] - which is still practiced - mostly in Germany, but also in Austria, Switzerland, Estonia, Latvia, Poland and Flanders. In Germany the weapon is known as a ''schlaeger'', also known as the [[Fan Nickname|"soup-plate of honour"]] due to large size of the hand guard.
In one of these bouts (called a ''Mensur'') two students stand a fixed distance from one another wearing armor that covers everything but their cheeks, forehead and lips and attempt to slash at the exposed skin of their opponent. There are no points, you lose by flinching or dodging and win by getting sliced in the face. The scar that results is the goal of this practice, the bigger the better! Students would even go so far as to [[Worst Aid|badly sew the edges together]] or even [[Squick|sew horsehairs into the wound]] to ensure a big, visible scar. The resulting scar is a ''Schmiss'' or Dueling Scar. Until [[World War II]] this was seen locally as a [[Good Scars, Evil Scars|Good Scar]] as it showed that the wearer was educated and brave.
If that's all there was to it this wouldn't be a trope, it would be mentioned in [[Useful Notes/Germany|Useful Notes - Germany]] and that would be the last of it. However, a number of Nazi officers had dueling scars and after the war no serious villainous ''movie'' Nazi would be seen without one. From there the dueling scar became a standard adornment any time casting wanted a quick way to tell the audience that this character was a military man and serious about it, even if the character was not from a country that practiced academic fencing, even if they weren't from Earth at all.
Line 12:
To qualify for this trope, the scar needs to be on the face and used to make a character look more militarized and [[Badass]]. The scar need not necessarily be from a sword or an actual duel, although writers should get extra credit if they know the origin of the trope.
{{examples
== Anime & Manga ==
Line 63:
== Real Life ==
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Skorzeny Otto Skorzeny] shows off some dueling scars, and why most of the world views these as [[Good Scars, Evil Scars|evil scars]].
* [[Otto Von Bismarck|Otto von Bismarck]]
| |||