Woman in White: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

 

 

 

All the [[Color Coded for Your Convenience|symbolism behind the color white]] may be involved, but it might just be fashion. If it's just fashion, then it implies a fastidious neatness, and an ability to "keep clean" even if one is not, usually by "not getting their hands dirty". If symbolism is to be had, it can range from purity to death.

[[Chiaroscuro]] may be used to make the white even more vivid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

== Anime and Manga ==

** Also, the Girl from the Illusionary World/{{spoiler|Ushio Okazaki}} is shown only in a white dress.

* Aura, from ''[[.hack]].'' She's got the white hair, too. It's actually a very pale lavender but it's close enough.

** Helba as well. She takes the darker forms of this trope. Within the setting, she's an infamous hacker, though she is portrayed as one of the protagonists as, unlike most of CC Corp, she actually knows and cares what's going in in The World (the game the series takes place in) and takes it seriously and works to find a true solution rather then just shutting the game down. Her name is also pulled from the Queen of Darkness in the Epic poem The World is based on.

* ''[[Madlax]]'' {{spoiler|and Margaret}}, final episodes, ''the white cocktail dress''.

* From ''[[Bleach]]'', Rukia Kuchiki, during the Soul Society Arc. Later, {{spoiler|Orihime Inoue}}.

** Also, every single female Arrancar falls under this trope.

* Rei Ayanami from ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]''.

** And her tragic [[Expy]], Tomoe from ''[[Rurouni Kenshin]]''.

* Sailor Cosmos from ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' is a sailor senshi from a future where {{spoiler|Chaos has destroyed nearly everything and she is the last hope. She transforms into Sailor Chibi-Chibi to assist Sailor Moon in the present to prevent her bleak future from occurring. Sailor Cosmos is actually Sailor Moon in the future.}} Her costume is all white, including her hair. Of course, this isn't the case in the anime.

* C.C. from ''[[Code Geass]].''

* Kirakishou from ''[[Rozen Maiden]]'' originally had white hair and a white dress, though sometimes she is also shown with a pale pink dress, pale pink hair or both. {{spoiler|Kirakishou only exists in the manga and is the seventh doll. In the anime she only appears for a few seconds in the last episode of ''Rozen Maiden Träumend''.}}

* Miyu from ''[[Vampire Princess Miyu]]'' usually wears a white short kimono with an either red or lilac sash.

* Oriko of ''[[Oriko Magica]]'', at least in her [[Magical Girl]] outfit.

* Kanzeon Bosatsu from ''[[Saiyuki]]'' is a Man/Woman in white

* [[Axis Powers Hetalia|Austria's]] Nyotalia form is often portrayed as one, in contrast to Fem!Prussia.

 

* More [[Marvel Comics]] examples:

** Silver Sable's costumes are pale enough to pass for white, only slightly darker than her hair.

* Done with Elisa Cameron, the protagonist of the Dark Horse comic ''Ghost''.

* [[Wonder Woman]], in her "New Wonder Woman"/"Diana Prince" stories from the early '70s, frequently (though not invariably) wore all-white outfits, including a [[Spy Catsuit]] that came to visually define that version of the character. She owned a mod clothing boutique in these stories, so it was probably a fashion statement.

* The Stunt-Girl Counterspies of ''[[Jet Dream (Comic Book)|Jet Dream]]'' wear all-white jumpsuits on the job.

* The Dangerous Woman in ''[[A Prairie Home Companion]]'' wears a white trenchcoat.

* Asami Yamazaki in ''[[Audition]]'' is shown dressed in white throughout the film, {{spoiler|although during the torture scene, she is wearing a black leather apron and gloves, but other than that she is still dressed in white}}.

* Diane from ''[[Say Anything]]'' tends to wear white.

* ''[[Cool World]]'s'' Holli Would dresses in white (albeit her clothes are quite [[Stripperiffic]] as a cartoon); besides being slutty as hell, she is the closest to a villain we get.

* Averted with Switch in ''[[The Matrix]]''. All of the other human characters dress in black inside the Matrix, but Switch doesn't play any particularly important role (other than her death).

* Princess Leia Organa from ''[[Star Wars]]'':

* Melie, heroine of noir film ''Rider on the Storm'', is dressed in white through the entire movie. It works symbolically, as relates to her character; but since the actress is a gamine dark-skinned brunette, it's also rather odd.

* In ''Dead End'', a mysterious woman in a white dress repeatedly appears to a family lost in the woods on vacation.

* Iris in ''[[The Natural]]'' wears a white dress and a huge white hat to watch Roy play against the Cubs. He's in a bad slump, but in his last at-bat, he turns around and glimpses her standing in the brilliant afternoon light. Naturally (ha), he smacks a home run into the scoreboard clock and the papers the next day read ''The Knight and the Lady in White''.

* Juliet in ''[[William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet]]'', until after her wedding to Romeo. She also dies wearing a white dress.

* Elysia is like an angel in [[Warriors of Virtue]].

* Helen Mirren in the 2010 movie ''[[RED]]''.

* Dame [[Judi Dench]]'s character in ''[[The Chronicles of Riddick]]''.

 

 

== Literature ==

** There's also Eowyn, the White Lady of Rohan.

* Lanfear in ''[[The Wheel of Time]]'' usually wears white.

* In the novel of ''[[Welcome to The NHK]]'', Misaki is introduced wearing all white.

* In ''[[The Secret Garden]]'', Mary wears white. This is because her mother has died, and her guardian finds black too much for such a young child. (In Victorian times, children could wear white, though no colors, in mourning.)

* In Jim Butcher's ''[[Dresden Files]]'' novel ''Turn Coat'', Harry observes that when they meet Madeline, she is "of course" all in white.

** Not to mention [[Femme Fatale|Lara Raith]]. Though it almost seems to be [[Lady in Red|Lady in White]].

** There's also [[The Fair Folk|Queen Mab]], THE Lady in White. She pulls this off especially well when appearing for the first time.

* Lydia, the mother of Rosilda and Arild {{spoiler|and Carolin}} in Maria Gripe's ''...och de vita skuggorna i skogen'' ("...and the White Shadows in the Forest") only ever dressed in white or black, depending on her mood (a trait she took over from her mysticist mother), and usually carried a bouquet of white roses as well. {{spoiler|The "white shadows" Rosilda sees in the forest around the castle turn out to be Lydia, who is watching over her children after faking her own death.}}

* Kahlan Amnell of the ''[[Sword of Truth]]'' series. She is introduced as a very mysterious woman who is obviously very important, matching the archetype. It is later revealed that a white dress is the official dress code of the Mother Confessor, the most powerful woman in the Midlands.

* Sephrenia, in the ''[[Elenium]]'' trilogy by [[David Eddings]], always wears a white robe, somewhat clerical in nature. As she eventually explains, she ''is'' a member of the clergy, being the High Priestess of the Styric goddess Aphrael.

* Camilla from ''[[The Secret History]]'' is mentioned as often wearing white, in contrast to everyone else at Hampden, who generally wears black. (She frequently borrows [[Man in White|Charles']] [[Twincest|clothes]], too. The two are described at one point as looking like "long-dead celebrants from some forgotten garden party".)

 

* ''[[Highlander the Series]]'' has Rebecca Horne, Amanda's mentor.

** There are also all the girls in white nightgowns who get killed by the [[Monster of the Week]], or the girl in the white hospital gown who caused people in her town to act out fairy tales... Let's just say that women wearing white on Supernatural are either going to be the victim or the villain.

* ''[[Dollhouse]]''. Dr. Saunders (technically {{spoiler|Whiskey}}) in {{spoiler|Epitaph One}}.

** Although usually a [[Lady in Red]], Head-Six wears white on Kobol (home of the Gods) and in the Opera House visions.

** D'Anna (the Cylon 'Three' model) wears white in the Season 3 episodes where she becomes obsessed with the connection between life and death. Eventually, her religious fervour, plus her forbidden inquiries about the Final Five, cause her entire line to be boxed.

** A mysterious woman wearing all white and credited only as "The Woman" appears in "The End of Time", giving mysterious messages mostly to Wilfred Mott. {{spoiler|She is eventually seen among the Time Lords who turn out to be behind the near-disaster the episode is named for, as one of the two who voted against it. After the last meeting with her, Wilfred mentions her, and the Doctor looks significantly toward Donna. However, [[Word of God]] said she was originally planned to be the Doctor's mother - and that we should also pay attention to the ''other'' Time Lord who voted against the plan.}}

** River Song, the mysterious woman hinted to play a hugely important role sometime in the Doctor's personal future, first appears in the two-parter "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" dressed in a white spacesuit. She ends the two-part story dressed in a white gown.

* When we first see Monica, the main character of ''[[Touched By an Angel]]'', she's barefoot and wearing a simple white dress.

* ''[[Smallville]]'', Season 10, episode 12: {{spoiler|Chloe Sullivan}} returns, seemingly with magical powers, dressed all in white. As it turns out, the cast are actually {{spoiler|trapped in a virtual world}} and her white-clad status indicates that she is hacking in from the outside.

* In ''[[True Blood]]'', Sookie Stackhouse in season one (particularly before she sleeps with Bill for the first time) is often dressed in white. Her waitress uniform includes a white t-shirt (where she first meets Bill and frequently afterward); in episode two, where she and Bill take a walk together and share their first kiss, she wears a white dress; during both of her dream sequances about Bill, her night gown is white (and so is her dress within one of the dreams); the night of her grandmothers funeral, just before losing her virginity to Bill, she removes her black funeral dress and puts on a long white one. A few days prior to this she and Bill go to Fangtasia, the local vampire bar, and she meets her other love interest Eric Northman. On the ride over to the bar, Bill says she "looks like vampire bait". She is wearing a white and red floral dress.

 

== Music ==

* Lights in the video for [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPLRkyGU3cM&ob=av3e Second Go]. Until she gets covered in paint, anyway

* [[Evanescence|Amy Lee]] loves this.

 

== Video Games ==

* Namine in the ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' series.

* In the game ''[[Summoner]]'', there is a mysterious Woman In White who turns out to be {{spoiler|Flece's mother and the Empress of [[Fantasy Counterpart Culture|Orenia.]]}} In her first appearance, King Belias mistakes her for a ghost.

* Merrill's upgrade outfit in ''[[Dragon Age 2]]'' is white and polished silver.

* In ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'', Rinoa's first appearance is in a short white dress.

* In one of the endings of the first ''[[Silent Hill]]'' games, one of the names of the End Boss is Women in White.

* In ''[[The Path]]'', there's a mysterious girl in white who inhabits the woods.

* Let us not forget the lovely Kirie from ''[[Fatal Frame]]'', as well as the second game's Sae {{spoiler|somewhat- she's got quite a bit of blood on her...}}.

* In the ''[[Touhou]]'' fan game ''Concealed The Conclusion'', the final battle with {{spoiler|Reimu}} has her dressed in white, mainly because {{spoiler|Gensokyo is her dream, and she's waking up, causing [[Dream Apocalypse]]}}.

* In ''[[The Path]]'' for PC/Mac, a girl literally named Girl In White by the game developers leads you back to the path to Grandmother's house if you stay still long enough. Some speculate that she is a spirit who wants to protect the granddaughters from meeting their Wolves while others suggest she is a long-lost sister to the granddaughters or perhaps the grandmother herself. Curiously, while the Girl in White does indeed wear all white and is young, her skin tone and hair color are fairly dark.

* ''[[Fire Emblem]]'' has numerous examples:

** Rena, Elice and Maria in ''Dark Dragon and the Sword of Light / Mystery of the Emblem''.

** Edain, Tailto, Lana (or her expy Manna), Deirdre, Yuria, and Linda in ''Geneaology of the Holy War''.

** Safy, Selphina and Linoan in ''Thracia 776''.

** Ninian, Isadora and Eleanora in ''The Blazing Blade''.

** Natasha and L'Arachel in ''The Sacred Stones''.

** Leanne in ''Path of Radiance'', and Micaiah in ''Radiant Dawn'' after her second class change.

* In ''[[Hellsinker]]'' we have the human form of {{spoiler|Lost Property 771}}.

 

** [[Horny Devils|White Len]] also fits, following the [[Creepy Child]] variant.

 

== Web Comics ==

** [[Arc Words|"...she died and we did nothing."]]

** Lately, Ms. Jones has been seen wearing white. {{spoiler|And busting down retaining walls while wearing white, too.}}

* In ''[[Girl Genius]]'', the Geisterdamen (German for "ghost maiden") are a race of female monsters (it's not mentioned how they reproduce) who are entirely white, including hair, skin and clothing.

* In ''[[The Water Phoenix King]]'', Commander Corva's usual working clothes, which are her vestments as a priestess of a storm god, make her this; the outfit also has a [[Nice Hat|''very'' nice hat.]] Off-duty, she tends to wear earth tones.

* In ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'', Gwynn's counterpart in "the Dimension of Lame" mostly wears a white robe (and when she does, that's almost invariably the entirety of her outfit that you can see), which goes with her status as a good wizard of sorts whose power still came [[Power At a Price|at a price]].

 

== Western Animation ==

 

== Real Life ==

* Death is considered to wear white in some places in Asia. White is also the traditional colour of mourning in Islam.

* La Llorona, a Mexican myth about a crying ghost, is also called this.

* There is another myth about white dressed women, it's about the Mulher de Branco (it means exactly the trope name), in Brazilian North / Northeast. She is the ghost of a bride that died (mostly killed) before entering the church to marry, and now, searches for her groom near the place she died, usually in a dark, creepy forest. If she finds a man she thinks is like her groom, she takes him to the world of dead with her... Unless said man runs like hell, which they promptly do.

* A more recent one was "la rubia de Kennedy" ("blonde woman of Kennedy Avenue"). In [[The Seventies]], a young Chilean woman named Martha Infante died in an accident in said Avenue, and for several years, her ghost supposedly haunted the corner where she perished. The "ghost" was a blonde girl wearing a white coat who would ask for a ride, then tell the driver 'please don't drive so fast' and vanish.

* The standard description for female ghosts in the Philippines is a woman all in white with long black hair that obscures her face. Often believed to be virginal and the subject of a violent death (probably rape), she's commonly known as a "White Lady."

* In Oberlin, Ohio, there is a story of a woman in white that haunts the lake in a local park.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Characteristic Clothing Colors]]

[[Category:Tropes in White]]

[[Category:Our Ghosts Are Different]]

[[Category:Always Female]]

[[Category:Costume Tropes]]