Mistaken for Servant: Difference between revisions

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* The Helpless [[The Everyman|Everyman]] who is unable to correct the other person's error and ends up stuck with either a live creature [[Badly-Battered Babysitter|they have to keep safe until they can give it back]], or a valuable that's sought after by some less scrupulous fellows. Generally he gets no respect for the effort. Sometimes, if the person who mistook them for the help is a [[Jerkass]], they can retaliate.

* The scoundrel who promptly takes advantage of the situation, generally to poke fun at the victim's supposed bias or stupidity - such as a wealthy older man who presumes that a younger person at the posh club is a valet and gets his Mercedes-Benz stolen.

* A [[Prince and Pauper]] situation where for one reason or another, a person of status is mistaken for a servant, or even a slave and is forced to work - learning humility and [[Nice to ~~The~~ Waiter|kindness toward the lower class]].

* A [[Prince and Pauper]] situation where for one reason or another, a person of status is mistaken for a servant, or even a slave and is forced to work - learning humility and [[Nice to the Waiter|kindness toward the lower class]].

* The character is a spy, or has another reason to want access to a certain person's possessions, and just happens to be mistaken for the hired help for the fancy dinner bash the other person is throwing.

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* In ''[[Area 88]],'' [[The Ojou|Ryoko]] first meets Shin while he's a student at a flight school. She takes him for a skycap and asks him to stow her luggage.

* ''[[Otaku no Musume San]]'': Taeko gets mistaken for a waitress in an Akihabara [[Maid Cafe]], because on the one hand all waitresses on that day were dressed up in school uniforms (and Taeko was wearing one) and, on the other hand, she looks older than her actual age. A completely reverse case (mistaken for a schoolgirl) happens once to her mother who looks younger than her actual age, and is actually a waitress in a [[Cosplay Cafe]].

* In several versions of ''[[Ghost in ~~The~~ Shell]]'', the Major is mistaken for a [[Robot Girl]] servant because of her prosthetic body conforming to certain standards.

* In several versions of ''[[Ghost in the Shell]]'', the Major is mistaken for a [[Robot Girl]] servant because of her prosthetic body conforming to certain standards.

* ''[[Hanaukyo Maid Tai]]'': When the Ryuuka first appeared, she mistook Taro for a new servant.

* In ''[[Medabots]]'', Ikki thinks Karin is {{spoiler|either doing chores around the rich private school she attends because she's being punished, or because she's poor and is doing it to pay for tuition. Turns out, Karin's doing the chores because she likes doing them.}}

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== Film ==

* In the [[So Bad It's Good|the Live-Action]] ''[[Mortal Kombat (~~Film~~)|Mortal Kombat]]'' movie, Johnny Cage thought Liu Kang was simply a bag boy (or possibly a loitering nobody who wouldn't mind earning a few extra bucks) and foisted his excessive luggage on him. Liu Kang retaliates by taking the money and immediately dumping the luggage into the water.

* In the [[So Bad It's Good|the Live-Action]] ''[[Mortal Kombat (film)|Mortal Kombat]]'' movie, Johnny Cage thought Liu Kang was simply a bag boy (or possibly a loitering nobody who wouldn't mind earning a few extra bucks) and foisted his excessive luggage on him. Liu Kang retaliates by taking the money and immediately dumping the luggage into the water.

{{quote| '''Cage''': "Thank God I didn't tell him to park my car."}}

* In ''[[Seven Days]]'', Parker was mistaken for a butler by the princess. Insulted, he took her glass and threw it away.

* In ''[[~~Casino Royale (Film)|~~Casino Royale]]'', a guy mistakes [[James Bond (~~Film~~)|James Bond]] for a valet for the resort they are in and orders Bond to park his car. Bond coolly replies "Certainly, sir" and proceeds to crash it, causing a commotion which he takes advantage of to sneak into the hotel's security room. And to top it all off, [[Parking Payback|he tosses the guy's keys into a hedge]].

* In ''[[Casino Royale]]'', a guy mistakes [[James Bond (film)|James Bond]] for a valet for the resort they are in and orders Bond to park his car. Bond coolly replies "Certainly, sir" and proceeds to crash it, causing a commotion which he takes advantage of to sneak into the hotel's security room. And to top it all off, [[Parking Payback|he tosses the guy's keys into a hedge]].

** In ''[[~~Never Say Never Again (Film)|~~Never Say Never Again]]'', Domino mistakes [[James Bond]] for the masseur. As she is an attractive woman in a towel, he doesn't correct her and does the job.

** In ''[[Never Say Never Again]]'', Domino mistakes [[James Bond]] for the masseur. As she is an attractive woman in a towel, he doesn't correct her and does the job.

* In ''[[Bringing Down the House]]'', the [[Gold Digger]] mistakes Queen Latifah's character for a waitress at the club. Not a good idea...

* In ''[[Chairman Of The Board]]'', Edison reports to the boardroom of McMillan Industries for his first day of his new job there; as soon as he gets there, the old men who make up the company's board of directors immediately mistake him for a gofer (understandable, given that Edison is dressed casually and is played by Carrot Top) and give him a bunch of orders for coffee, tea, muffins, doughnuts, etc. It's only when Edison brings back all of what they'd asked for that they learn who he really is: when Mr. McMillan had recently died, he bequeathed Edison all of his stock in McMillan Industries, making him the new chairman.

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{{quote| '''Pascal Sauvage''': ''[to English]'' Pascal Sauvage. The jumped-up Frenchman. [...] Of course, you are Johnny English. I've heard all about you. And between you and me, I'm not so keen on the French myself.}}

* In ''[[Confessions of a Shopaholic]]'' Becky Bloomwood is mistaken for a waitress at an important dinner. In the catering manager's defense, her black-and-white dress looks exactly like what the waitresses are wearing.

* [[Exploited Trope|Exploited]] in ''[[A Hard ~~Days~~ Night]]''. As Paul's Grandfather is gambling at the Le Cercle club, he runs out of money. So he writes a "tab" on a piece of paper, puts on a plate, and he places a napkin on his arm and walks over to a patron, who "pays" him. He then uses the money to get back in the game.

* [[Exploited Trope|Exploited]] in ''[[A Hard Day's Night]]''. As Paul's Grandfather is gambling at the Le Cercle club, he runs out of money. So he writes a "tab" on a piece of paper, puts on a plate, and he places a napkin on his arm and walks over to a patron, who "pays" him. He then uses the money to get back in the game.

* In ''[[Air America]]'', Senator Davenport arrives in Vietnam. On the airfield, he hands his suitcase to General Lu Soong, mistaking the general for a servant.

* Happens twice to Taye Diggs in ''[[Go (~~Film~~)|Go]]'' because he's a black man wearing a gold blazer. First a man in the bathoom tips him for handing him a paper towel, and then a man tosses him the keys to his Ferrari, mistaking him for a valet. At this second incident, Diggs has had enough and takes a joyride in the sportscar as revenge.

* Happens twice to Taye Diggs in ''[[Go (film)|Go]]'' because he's a black man wearing a gold blazer. First a man in the bathoom tips him for handing him a paper towel, and then a man tosses him the keys to his Ferrari, mistaking him for a valet. At this second incident, Diggs has had enough and takes a joyride in the sportscar as revenge.

* In the opening scene of the film ''[[~~Mash~~ (~~Film~~)|Mash]]'', Hawkeye notices that the zipper on his bag is busted, and uses his rank insignia to pin it closed while waiting on his driver. Duke shows up, sees Hawkeye without insignia, and tells 'the driver' to hop to it. Hawkeye goes with it, effectively stealing the jeep, and doesn't bother correcting Duke until they are eating lunch at the 4077th and are introduced to Col Blake.

* In the opening scene of the film ''[[M*A*S*H (film)|Mash]]'', Hawkeye notices that the zipper on his bag is busted, and uses his rank insignia to pin it closed while waiting on his driver. Duke shows up, sees Hawkeye without insignia, and tells 'the driver' to hop to it. Hawkeye goes with it, effectively stealing the jeep, and doesn't bother correcting Duke until they are eating lunch at the 4077th and are introduced to Col Blake.

* In the 1951 movie The Mating Season, a young bride mistakes her new working class mother-in-law for 'help'. Ouch. Fortunately the mother-in-law thinks it's an understandable mistake, but the girl is both humiliated and furious at her husband for 'playing along'.

* In ''[[Slumdog Millionaire]]'', Jamal is standing under a waiting spot for tours of the Taj Mahal when a German couple, assuming he is a tour guide, ask for a tour. Jamal initially tries to tell them that he is not a worker there, but when the woman offers money for his services, he decides to play along. He makes up a wildly inaccurate backstory for the Taj Mahal, but luckily for him, the couple are apparently completely ignorant about the landmark.

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== Literature ==

* In ''[[~~The Whipping Boy (Literature)|~~The Whipping Boy]]'', the titular boy - who unlike the spoiled prince had learned to read and write (The Prince shirked his duties) and is so well-behaved that the [[The Highwayman|highwayman]] who took the two thought the clueless prince was the servant.

* In ''[[The Whipping Boy]]'', the titular boy - who unlike the spoiled prince had learned to read and write (The Prince shirked his duties) and is so well-behaved that the [[The Highwayman|highwayman]] who took the two thought the clueless prince was the servant.

* ''[[Alice in Wonderland]]'' had the titular girl being mistaken by the White Rabbit for his maid Mary-Ann, allowing her to get into more trouble.

* In ''[[Babysitters Club]]'', Mallory's [[Black Best Friend]] Jessi was mistaken by Mal's little sister for a maid. Turned into an [[Aesop]] when Mal explains that the only time her sister had seen black people in their predominantly white neighborhood was when a cleaning service sent two black ladies to the house.

* A variant is referenced in several [[PG ~~Wodehouse~~ ~~(Creator)~~|PG Wodehouse]] stories where someone visiting a stately home meets the proprietor wandering about the gardens in his casual clothes and assumes him to be the gardener. [[Hilarity Ensues|Hilarity invariably ensues]]. In the novel ''A Damsel in Distress'', this happens to Lord Marshmoreton every six months or so; he finds it funny and tends to play along, to the extent of putting on a [[British Accents|rustic accent]].

* A variant is referenced in several [[P. G. Wodehouse|PG Wodehouse]] stories where someone visiting a stately home meets the proprietor wandering about the gardens in his casual clothes and assumes him to be the gardener. [[Hilarity Ensues|Hilarity invariably ensues]]. In the novel ''A Damsel in Distress'', this happens to Lord Marshmoreton every six months or so; he finds it funny and tends to play along, to the extent of putting on a [[British Accents|rustic accent]].

* [[GK Chesterton]] uses this in at least two of his ''[[Father Brown]]'' detective stories. {{spoiler|In ''The Queer Feet'' the thief deliberately uses the fourth version of the trope to masquerade alternately as a waiter and as one of the gentleman guests. In ''The Strange Crime of John Bulnois'' the title character takes advantage of the second version to get out of a party he doesn't wish to attend.}}

* [[G. K. Chesterton]] uses this in at least two of his ''[[Father Brown]]'' detective stories. {{spoiler|In ''The Queer Feet'' the thief deliberately uses the fourth version of the trope to masquerade alternately as a waiter and as one of the gentleman guests. In ''The Strange Crime of John Bulnois'' the title character takes advantage of the second version to get out of a party he doesn't wish to attend.}}

* [[Perry Rhodan]] is [[Mistaken for Servant|Mistaken For Engineer]] at least once. Being an all-around nice guy, the [[Canon Sue|benevolent immortal nigh-god emperor of all humanity]] ends up repairing a snooty cadet's spaceship.

* In ''[[~~Xanth (Literature)|~~Xanth]]'', the Magician Humphrey was mistaken for an assistant by one of the supplicants--it doesn't help that by then he looks like a shrunken gnome, and he plays along for a good while.

* In ''[[Xanth]]'', the Magician Humphrey was mistaken for an assistant by one of the supplicants--it doesn't help that by then he looks like a shrunken gnome, and he plays along for a good while.

** Also, King Roogna from the same series, whose talent was manipulating the magic of living things. In the middle of preparing for a battle, the protagonist came across a man in old clothes messing around with a cherry tree (he was turning them into [[Incredibly Lame Pun|cherry bombs]]), and assumed he was a gardener...

* Interestingly played with in ''[[The Good Earth]]'', as Wang Lung, a rich land owner who still works in the fields himself, realizes that other people would probably think he is his son's servant if seen side by side, as the son doesn't work himself and is well-dressed. Coupled with the fact that the son is starting to get rebellious, it kind of ticks Wang Lung off.

* In the book ''Golondrina de Invierno'' ("Winter Sparrow"), the male lead is mistaken by the main female as the manager of his huge country state.

* In [[George RR Martin]]'s ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novella "The Hedge Knight", Dunk is confused with a stableboy by [[Smug Snake|a pompous prince]]. And that bald kid that Dunk thinks is a runaway stableboy? Turns out to be said pompous prince's little brother.

* In [[George R. R. Martin]]'s ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novella "The Hedge Knight", Dunk is confused with a stableboy by [[Smug Snake|a pompous prince]]. And that bald kid that Dunk thinks is a runaway stableboy? Turns out to be said pompous prince's little brother.

* In a short story in [[Len Deighton]]'s ''Declarations of War'', a travelling salesman stops at a garage to fill up with petrol. He recognises the man he thinks is the mechanic from their army days when they served together and is quite patronising towards him. He drives off, never realising that the 'mechanic' was actually the local lord who used the facilities at garage to tune his own car as part of the rent arrangements with the owner.

* ''Tales of the Frog Princess: The Dragon Princess'' - Lord Eduardo mistakes Princess Millie's cousin Lord Francis and her best friend, Princess Zoe, for her servants because of their simple traveling clothes. The next morning, Ed still doesn't believe that Zoe is a princess, and, though her father really is a prince, Zoe doesn't dare mention that she's Princess of the Vampires. Eduardo insults her. [[Ship Tease|This]] [[Everyone Can See It|infuriates]] [[Aw, Look -- They Really Do Love Each Other|Francis.]]

* In ''[[Vorkosigan Saga|The Mountains of Mourning]]'', when Harra first sees Miles he's just returning from a swim, wearing only his trunks and leg braces, and she clearly doesn't know ''who'' he is. Miles entertains the thought that she might think that he's the court jester.

* In one of the ''[[Just William]]'' books, William develops a crush on an actress appearing in pantomime at a theatre near him, and sneaks into her hotel to try and meet her. [[Hilarity Ensues]], including his being mistaken for a laundry delivery boy.

* In ''[[Discworld ~~(Literature)~~/Unseen Academicals|Unseen Academicals]]'', Glenda thinks that Lady Margolotta's librarian is Lady Margolotta and vice versa, so while she doesn't ask the "servant" to do anything for ''her'', she does end up angrily complaining about the way Margolotta has treated Nutt and only afterwards realizes that she might not have been talking to the librarian after all.

* In ''[[Discworld/Unseen Academicals|Unseen Academicals]]'', Glenda thinks that Lady Margolotta's librarian is Lady Margolotta and vice versa, so while she doesn't ask the "servant" to do anything for ''her'', she does end up angrily complaining about the way Margolotta has treated Nutt and only afterwards realizes that she might not have been talking to the librarian after all.

* In ''[[Circle of Magic]]'', Tris is mistaken for a servant and is briefly annoyed before looking down at her nice but plain and sensible dress and understanding why someone might mistake her for a lady's maid.

* In a short story by [[Diana Wynne Jones]] that takes place in the ''[[Chrestomanci]]'' universe, the protagonist and her mother are let in by a plain (to them) woman in fancy attire, and the protagonist's mother whispers that she's "rather extravagantly-dressed for a servant." At the end of the story, the woman is too embarrassed to speak because the woman was Chrestomanci's ''wife.''

* Combined with [[Younger Than They Look]] in ''[[Teacher Trouble]]'' by Alexander McCall Smith, in which a girl starting at a new school is mistaken for a teacher and put in charge of a class.

* In ''[[~~Septimus Heap (Literature)|~~Septimus Heap]]'', the Guardian of the House Of Foryx mistakes Beetle for being Jenna's servant in ''Queste'', causing a rebuff by Jenna.

* In ''[[Septimus Heap]]'', the Guardian of the House Of Foryx mistakes Beetle for being Jenna's servant in ''Queste'', causing a rebuff by Jenna.

== Live-Action TV ==

* In one episode of ''[[Hustle]]'', Mickey approaches a mark and is told to bring the man a drink. He quickly corrects the assumption.

* ''[[Arrested Development (TV)|Arrested Development]]'': Lucille is at a party for the Desi awards (given to the stars of Spanish telenovelas), where most of the attendees are Latino. She complains, "A sea of waiters, and no one will take a drink order!"

* ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'': Lucille is at a party for the Desi awards (given to the stars of Spanish telenovelas), where most of the attendees are Latino. She complains, "A sea of waiters, and no one will take a drink order!"

* In ''[[The Fast Show]]'' TV spinoff movie ''[[Ted And Ralph]]'', Ralph takes his groundskeeper Ted to a fancy party; while everyone assumes Ted is a landed gentleman, Ralph is taken for a waiter, and is too shy to correct anyone on this point.

* Nina on ''[[Just Shoot Me]]'' once gave the Chinese Minister of Culture her room key. "I can't help it if the entire nation dresses like bellboys!"

** In another, Elliot mistakes a client for a delivery boy. Coincidentally he is also Chinese (or possibly Chinese American).

* Hyacinth does this at least twice to the owners of the stately homes she likes to visit on ''[[Keeping Up Appearances]]''.

* In ''[[Scrubs]]'', this trope was shown to be the reason Marco (Carla's little brother) hates Turk, as Turk had mistaken him for a valet at a funeral when they first met, and Turk was kinda a [[Nice to ~~The~~ Waiter|dick to him when he thought he was a valet]] too.

* In ''[[Scrubs]]'', this trope was shown to be the reason Marco (Carla's little brother) hates Turk, as Turk had mistaken him for a valet at a funeral when they first met, and Turk was kinda a [[Nice to the Waiter|dick to him when he thought he was a valet]] too.

* ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel Air]]'' had an [[Inverted Trope]] racial version when an aunt and her new husband came to visit at the Banks' mansion -- the family assumed the white man carrying in luggage was a taxi driver or somesuch, and tried to tip him and shoo him away, instead welcoming in the (black) driver with open arms, leading to a very awkward long pause when the real couple embraced and they realized their mistake.

* ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]]'' had an [[Inverted Trope]] racial version when an aunt and her new husband came to visit at the Banks' mansion -- the family assumed the white man carrying in luggage was a taxi driver or somesuch, and tried to tip him and shoo him away, instead welcoming in the (black) driver with open arms, leading to a very awkward long pause when the real couple embraced and they realized their mistake.

** Their valet Geoffrey pulls another when a (black) neighbour woman drops by and asks him for cleaning tips. He assumes she is a maid and a budding (and reciprocated) romance springs up. Until it turns out she's actually a wealthy and high-status socialite who is just humble enough to want to clean up her own mess.

* Occurs off-screen in one of the CeeBee Awards episodes of ''[[Frasier]]'': Niles has been nominated for a ''technical'' award, which turns out not to be in the same glitzy area as the presenter awards, but in a small room down the corridor. When he gets back, he reports that he was the only person there wearing a tuxedo, and had to keep explaining he wasn't the waiter.

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== [[Theatre]] ==

* Rossini's Opera ''[[Cinderella (~~Theatre~~)|Cinderella]]'' has the prince and his valet trading places to invoke this trope intentionally. The prince uses it as an opportunity to learn the real character behind the women vying for his hand. The valet uses it to... [[Crowning Moment of Funny|eat as much fancy food and talk to as many pretty girls as possible, as well as relishing in the fact that the prince has to bow to him.]]

* Rossini's Opera ''[[Cinderella (film)|Cinderella]]'' has the prince and his valet trading places to invoke this trope intentionally. The prince uses it as an opportunity to learn the real character behind the women vying for his hand. The valet uses it to... [[Crowning Moment of Funny|eat as much fancy food and talk to as many pretty girls as possible, as well as relishing in the fact that the prince has to bow to him.]]

* The obscure Renaissance play ''Thomas of Woodstock'' has a scene in which the title character (who is Duke of Gloucester, and the king's uncle) is mistaken for a servant by an overdressed courtly messenger, because of his plain clothing. When the truth is revealed, the Duke insists the courtier pay him the sixpence he offered for walking his horse, remarking that it's the first honest work he's done in forty years.

* In ''[[Of Thee I Sing]]'', when Wintergreen is being received in the [[Smoky Gentlemen's Club]] as the National Campaign Committee's presidential nominee, he mistakes vice-presidential nominee Throttlebottom for a waiter, and snatches away the drink Throttlebottom has poured for himself. "And get me one of those dill pickles, will you?"

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== [[Video Games]] ==

* In ''[[~~Baldurs~~ Gate]]'', you can obtain the golden pantaloons from a noble at the Friendly Arm Inn who mistakes you for the maid. Maybe the real maids wear armor and carry swords, too.

* In ''[[Baldur's Gate]]'', you can obtain the golden pantaloons from a noble at the Friendly Arm Inn who mistakes you for the maid. Maybe the real maids wear armor and carry swords, too.

* In ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]]'', a visit to one of the cantinas on Taris can result in you being mistaken for a waiter by one of the richer customers. Again, she appears not to notice that you're also holding a deadly weapon; however, trying to explain the situation (even politely) results in the noblewoman storming out of the cantina in a huff, and reappearing close to the entrance with [[Disproportionate Retribution|two armed thugs.]]

** The worst part? She runs away and isn't a valid target, so it's impossible to kill her. ...She started it.

* In ''[[Dragon Age Origins]]'', city elves can be mistaken for labor workers in Ostagar. Can be a bit sad, since back home in the Alienage neighbors of yours were being evicted and forced to work there. We don't assume they're treated very nicely.

** The quartermaster will mistake any elf for a servant. Even if the elf is wearing face markings that designate him/her as one of the elves who swore never again to submit to human authority, or, more interestingly, wearing an outfit and a weapon that suggest that he/she is a mage. He backs down fairly quickly though, and seems incredibly embarrassed once he realizes his mistake.

* An odd example occurs in ''[[Fire Emblem Tellius ~~(Video Game)~~|Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance]]''. Ike is consoling Jill after the death of her father, when a Daein woman from the region approaches them. She recognizes Jill as Shiharam's daughter, and assumes that Ike is her bodyguard. The woman immediately starts praising Jill's father and remarking about how cruel and heartless it was for the Crimean Army -which Ike is the general of- to kill him, leading to a very sad (and awkward) moment for Jill and Ike.

* An odd example occurs in ''[[Fire Emblem Tellius|Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance]]''. Ike is consoling Jill after the death of her father, when a Daein woman from the region approaches them. She recognizes Jill as Shiharam's daughter, and assumes that Ike is her bodyguard. The woman immediately starts praising Jill's father and remarking about how cruel and heartless it was for the Crimean Army -which Ike is the general of- to kill him, leading to a very sad (and awkward) moment for Jill and Ike.

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** Cotton also seems to think Kahn is Hank's servant, as whenever he visits he always tells Kahn to bring in his bags. However, Cotton ''was'' able to correctly identify Kahn as Laotian at first glance (Hank and the gang kept asking him if he was Chinese or Japanese even after he said he was from Laos).

* On the first episode of ''[[Drawn Together]]'', Princess Clara mistook Foxxy Love for a maid. Clara's father refers to Foxxy as a "servant girl" on seeing her.

* ''[[As Told By Ginger]]'': Courtney thinks this of Sasha in the summer camp episode.

* ''[[As Told by Ginger]]'': Courtney thinks this of Sasha in the summer camp episode.