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{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|''"Lips red as the rose. Hair black as ebony. Skin white as snow."''
|'''The [[Magic Mirror]]''', ''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney film)|Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs]]''}}
Dark hair and pale skin as an indication that a character is beautiful. In Western culture, this is a [[Cyclic Trope|once-dead, now reviving trope]], thanks to the [[Goth]] and Retro movements bringing an increased awareness of this and the 1950s pin-up style regaining popularity. In addition, the
Commonly a requirement for the [[Yamato Nadeshiko]] type and is also known as the Yamato Nadeshiko look. In fact, a
There is crossover between this look and [[Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette]], in the form of attractive [[Goth
Contrast [[Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette]], where this look is seen as, well, ''eerie'', and [[But Not Too White]]. Compare [[Dark-Skinned Blond]], its visual inverse.
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And please, people, before adding to this list, consider whether or not the character was clearly meant to be attractive, explicitly stated to be attractive, and/or regarded as attractive by any other characters. Do not add them to this list just because [[Your Mileage May Vary|you find them to be attractive]].
{{noreallife|this is a trope about how characters are depicted in media.}}
{{examples}}
* ''[[Sayonara, Zetsubou-sensei
▲== Anime & Manga ==
* ''[[Black Jack]]'': one episode featured a strong example of
▲* ''[[Sayonara, Zetsubou-sensei|Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei]]'': Kiri Komori and Itoshiki-sensei are both seen as this.
▲* ''[[Black Jack]]'': one episode featured a strong example of this -- Souno, a [[Yamato Nadeshiko]] young girl from an old and rather traditional Japanese family, who had been kept indoors all her life due to suffering form a debilitating disease that would cause her life to drastically shorten if she was exposed to sunlight (as well as killing her off before she turns 18 even if she avoids it). She's spent most of her life in a sealed room, practicing Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arrangement, under the watch of her very severe [[Overprotective Dad]]; thus, Souno is perfectly pale, with perfectly black hair, and a perfectly exquisite face...a beauty in a bottle. (Remember, the "Nadesico" part of [[Yamato Nadeshiko]] refers to a particular type of flower -- probably a deliberate parallel in this case.) Fortunately, Doctor Blackjack is there to help -- along with his [[Cheerful Child|lively assistant]], Pinoco, who strikes a really cute [[Intergenerational Friendship]] (sorta) with Souno and gives her the courage to get the treatment she needs.
* ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]''
** Negi is awestruck when he accidentally spies on Setsuna in the bath, because of her incredibly pale skin and raven-black hair. Chamo even refers to her as a [[Yamato Nadeshiko]] due to her looks! {{spoiler|She later turns out to be a [[Heroic Albino]]; her hair is dyed to fit in better.}}
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* In ''[[The Secret Agreement]]'', Iori is a male example. He's more of a [[The White Prince|White Prince]] than a [[Yamato Nadeshiko]], though.
* Saori from ''[[Wandering Son]]'' is a [[Dude Magnet]] and fits this trope.
* Mariko Shinobu and "Mona Lisa" Komabayashi (who's nicknamed "Mona Lisa" both for her stoic attitude ''and'' her [[Tall, Dark and Bishoujo]] looks) from ''[[Oniisama e...
* Kaede Rukawa of ''[[Slam Dunk]]'' is incredibly pale and handsome. Ironically, he tans the easiest out of everyone.
* Saya Kisaragi from ''[[Blood C]]''.
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* Naru from ''[[Ghost Hunt]]'' is this, as frequently noted by Mai.
* Hana of ''[[Gate 7]]'' definitely is [http://www.mangareader.net/gate-7/9/3 this]. [http://www.mangareader.net/gate-7/9/11 Everybody in-universe agree with me.]
* In ''[[Kodomo
* Sebastian from ''[[Kuroshitsuji]]'' is a male example.
* Ruri "Kuroneko" Gokou from ''[[Ore no Imouto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai!]]'', especially when she is in [[Elegant Gothic Lolita]] garb.
== [[Comic Books]] ==▼
== Arts ==▼
* This trope is quite popular in 1950s pin-ups, and modern women like Rita Von Squeeze have helped bring the art style back to life.▼
▲== Comic Books ==
* Death and Desire from ''[[The Sandman]]'' qualify (two other members of the Endless have the right hair and skin for it, but Morpheus is extremely gaunt and [[Looks Like Cesare]] and Despair is a [[Gonk]]); Death was based on a myth (Kabbalistic, I think) in which the Angel of Death appears to the deceased as a woman so beautiful [[Even the Girls Want Her|their]] soul leaves their body in ecstasy, and, being [[Your Heart's Desire|the personification of desire]] and all, Desire is ([[Informed Attractiveness|supposed to be]]) the embodiment of perfect androgynous beauty.
* Domino and Sage from ''[[X-Men (Comic Book)|X-Men]]''.
== [[Fan Works]] ==▼
* Dethany Dendrobia from ''[[On the Fastrack]]''.▼
* ''[[Nemi]]''.▼
* The eponymous [[Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (novel)|Snow White]], the "fairest of them all" princess, making this trope [[Older Than Radio]].▼
▲== Fan Works ==
* Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way from ''[[My Immortal]]''.
{{quote|"Hi my name is Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way and I have long [[Department of Redundancy Department|ebony black]] hair (that's how I got my name)
* Terra from ''[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5330983/1/Convergent_Paths
* The young assassin
* Before [[J. K. Rowling]] revealed his actual gender and ethnicity in ''[[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (novel)|Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince]]'', the default fanfic version of Blaise Zabini was a Sicilian-looking girl with, yes, raven hair and ivory skin. This now-forgotten and obsolete [[Fanon]] Blaise is probably best exemplified by her appearance in ''[http://draco664.fanficauthors.net/Apprentice_Potter/index/ Apprentice Potter]'' and its sequels by "Draco664".
* Amélie ([[Audrey Tautou]]) from ''[[Amelie]]''.
* ''[[Casino Royale (2006 film)|Casino Royale]]'': Vesper (her actress [[Eva Green]] is [[Dye Hard]]).
* ''[[Girl, Interrupted]]'': Susanna.
* Quorra (Olivia Wilde) from ''[[Tron: Legacy]]''.
* Several ladies from the
* The titular character of ''[[La Reine Margot (film)|La Reine Margot]]'', as played by Isabelle Adjani who actually has this coloring.
* The heroine of ''[[Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (novel)|Snow White]]'' retelling ''[[Snow White: A
** The same goes for ''[[Snow White and the Huntsman]]'', ''[[Mirror Mirror (film)|Mirror Mirror]]'' and any other live-action ''Snow White''.
== [[Literature]] ==
* ''[[Fool]]'': in this [[Perspective Flip]] retelling of ''[[King Lear]]'', Pocket describes Lear's daughter Regan:
{{quote|''... there she stood, raven-haired and violet-eyed, snowy fair and finely fit, as if carved by the gods from a solid block of desire.''}}
* The ''[[Gemma Doyle]]'' Trilogy's Pippa is renowned for her beauty and fits this trope to a T.
* [[J. R. R.
* ''[[Romance of the Three Kingdoms (novel)|Romance of the Three Kingdoms]]'': the Qiao sisters were this, and the book plays up that part of the reason Chi Bi happened was that Cao Cao was after them because of this trope.
* The titular characters of [[Edgar Allan Poe]]'s ''Berenice'' and ''Ligeia''.
* ''[[The Wheel of Time]]'' gives us Lanfear, dark-haired, pale-skinned, [[Statuesque Stunner|roughly 6 feet tall]], and [[Evil Is Sexy]].
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* Scarlett O'Hara, the heroine of ''[[Gone with the Wind]]'', has black hair and very fair skin.
* Alice Cullen from ''[[Twilight (novel)|Twilight]]''.
* Melisande Shahrizai from ''[[
* Many tragic heroines in 18th century Gothic Horror novels are described this way.
* Yennefer from ''[[The Witcher]]'' books. She is pale with raven black hair and wears only black and white. Like all sorceresses, she is incredibly beautiful.
* Irene/Attolia from ''[[The Queen's Thief]]'' is one (fair skin, very beautiful, dark haired).
* Inverted in ''[[Fairest]]'' with Ava, described to have black hair and pale skin, but is ugly.
* Several of Robert E. Howard's ''[[Conan the Barbarian]]'' stories use this trope. Many of the women that Conan becomes involved with are described as having dark hair and pale skin, some of the more notable ones being the pirate queen Belit and the slave girl Zenobia.
* In ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'':
** Septa Lemore is considered "handsome" by Tyrion Lannister.
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* [[Big Bad|Tom Riddle (AKA Lord Voldemort)]] from ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'' had pale skin and dark hair, and was frequently noted to be very handsome before he started ripping out chunks of his soul and putting them in [[Soul Jar|Horcruxes]].
== [[Live-Action TV]] ==▼
▲== Live-Action TV ==
* Blair Waldorf from ''[[Gossip Girl]]''.
* Marian from ''[[Robin Hood (TV series)|Robin Hood]]''.
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* Gwen Cooper from ''[[Torchwood]]''.
* Jane Margolis from ''[[Breaking Bad]]''.
* Lila from ''[[Dexter]]'' and Stacie from ''[[Hustle]]'', both plated by Jaime Murray.
* Bay from ''[[Switched At Birth]]''.
* Lady Mary Crawley and Lady Sybil Crawley from ''[[Downton Abbey]]''. They get inherited it from their mother, Cora.
* Abby from ''[[NCIS]].''
* Jenna Hamilton on ''[[Awkward (TV series)|Awkward]]''
* Lana Lang in ''[[Smallville]]'' has dark hair, possibly of French decent, and in her senior year was voted "Most likely to be a cover girl".
* Fiona Coyne and her blonde brother Declan are rich. With her dark brown curls she is referred to as a princess and one of the hottest girls at [[Degrassi]] school.
* ''[[Firefly (TV series)|Firefly]]''{{'}}s Inara Serra is a
* Chloe in ''[[Don't Trust the B---- in
== [[Music]] ==▼
▲== Music ==
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6hiKSJvHl4 This example] has black hair, pale skin, blue eyes, and is likening a boy to a constipated monkey through song.
* In [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1BLVEbqLCY "Goth Girl"] by Anthony and Those Other Guys, the main character has a crush on a black-haired and pale-skinned beauty.
* [[My Chemical Romance]]: Gerard Way ''used'' to be this. Then he went to white and now bright [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair|red]] hair. Apparently, he's dyed it back to black.
* [[The Eagles]]' song "Witchy Woman": ''Raven hair/ruby lips, sparks fly from her fingertips...''
* The models seen in those Robert Palmer videos like [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcATvu5f9vE "Addicted To Love".]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XST5L2lO2hQ "Your Lips Are Red"] by [[St. Vincent]] explicitly follows this this trope, with unsettling deconstructions.
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20110905004434/http://nogoodforme.filmstills.org/stvincent.jpg Annie Clark] herself fits the trope, which is remarked upon by [http://blogs.sfweekly.com/shookdown/2012/04/live_review_4_24_12_tune-yards_st_vincent_oakland_fox_theater.php?page=2 every] [http://www.spin.com/articles/style-issue-st-vincent single] [http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2009/05/just-the-gist-st-vincents-annie-clark journalist].
== [[Newspaper Comics]] ==
▲* Dethany Dendrobia from ''[[On the Fastrack]]''.
▲* ''[[Nemi]]''.
== [[Oral Tradition]], [[Folklore]], Myths
* A male example is Naoise, lover of Deirdre in the Ulster Cycle of [[Celtic Mythology]].
{{quote|'''Deirdre:''' ''(After seeing a raven drinking blood out of the snow)'' I will love a man with hair the color of the raven, skin as white as snow, and lips as red as blood.}}
▲* The eponymous [[Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (novel)|Snow White]], the "fairest of them all" princess, making this trope [[Older Than Radio]].
== [[Video Games]] ==▼
▲== Video Games ==
* In ''[[Persona 4]]'', Yukiko Amagi is seen as this and gathers quite a fan club because her looks.
* If someone in ''[[Fire Emblem Elibe|Fire Emblem 7]]'' is about to describe a Morph, there's likely three features to be mentioned: "1. Pale skin, 2. Hair like ebony,<ref>
* In ''[[Sengoku Basara]]'', we have Oichi (who was a certified [[Real Life]] example) and her sister-in-law, Nouhime.
* Setsuka in ''[[Soul Series|Soul Calibur 3]]''. She's actually a natural blonde, however; she dyes her hair to fit in, in Japanese society.
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* Zhen Ji from ''[[Dynasty Warriors]]''.
* Two of the five princesses depicted in the second ''[[Dark Parables]]'' game have this; of course, one of them ''is'' [[Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (novel)|Snow White]].
* Ashei, the lady knight in ''[[The Legend of Zelda:
== [[Web Original]] ==
* Amusingly averted by Weiss Schnee of ''[[RWBY]]'', who despite being based on Snow White is a platinum blonde. Her teammate Blake Belladonna, however, fits the trope to a T. (Ruby Rose would, too, except for the reddish highlights in her hair.) Among the adults in the cast, siblings Qrow and Raven Branwen, although Qrow displays some premature grey.
* The title character of the [[Reincarnation Fantasy|Isekai]] web novel ''[[Tori Transmigrated]]'' by "Aila Aurie". Unlike a lot of examples of this trope her hair isn't straight, but a rather intense mass of curls.
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* ''[[Fred's
* [[Betty Boop]] was designed around this trope.
* Kylie Griffin from ''[[Extreme Ghostbusters]]''.
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* Asami from ''[[The Legend of Korra]]''.
* [[Perky Goth|Gwen]] and [[Lovable Alpha Bitch|Heather]] from ''[[Total Drama Island]]''.
* Dr. Girlfriend from
== [[Other Media]] ==
▲* This trope is quite popular in 1950s pin-ups, and modern women like Rita Von Squeeze have helped bring the art style back to life.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:The Beautiful Tropes]]
[[Category:Black Index, White Index]]
[[Category:Hair Colors]]
[[Category:Raven Hair, Ivory Skin]]▼
[[Category:No Real Life Examples, Please]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
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