He did that too when he had returned from war
he didnt want to rape her. he was forced to do it. they said they will check if they really slept together or not. remember u are seeing everything through maxi's pov. she doesnt know everything
dawg it’s a story, people be too woke
His POV story retroactively contradicts everything you just said.
A crap story that romanticizes toxic relationships. If my critique upsets you then disregard and get lost.
Oh, absolutely. The manhwa made the scene slightly more digestible, but in the novel, it was so hard to read through.
You missing the forest for the trees. This is a Korean work, one of the worse countries currently when we talking about abuse of women. She is suffering abuse constantly, her father abused her, made her feel like shit, like she was the ugliest and useless thing in the word, she suffered moral, physical and mental abuse her whole live. Then a creepy decides he wants her, her father sells her to this dude, the dude never even spoke to her or tried to woo her. He rapes her, and when he comes back he gets angry and blame her for not doing what he expects of her. She continues to be treated like an object the whole time, he only wants her to look pretty and spread her legs. He keep telling her that she is not needed, that no one wants nothing from her. He refuses to listen to her, to consider her point of view, to see her as a human being with feelings. She’s now completely taken by a Stockholm syndrome, she loves him while he treats her like shit over and over and over again. For him, she’s nothing but a rebellious dog, a possession that insist in being disobedient.This “romance” is the story of a struggle of a woman that is not allowed to be a person constantly. It’s a reflection of the experience of a woman in Korea, it is full of misogyny and violence. In the real world, a woman like Maxi ends up dead, killed by a fit of rage by her husband one day.
Look, I get where you're coming from, but you’re describing exactly what the text shows, and it actually proves my point, not contradicts it. Everything you list—abuse from her father, being sold into marriage, being raped, being treated like an object—is why this is sexual assault, not a “forest-for-the-trees” argument. None of those things erase the fact that Riftan raped her; they CONTEXTUALIZE how much worse the situation is, which only strengthens my criticisms. The historical or cultural setting doesn’t excuse sexual violence either, and past abuse from her father or society doesn’t make the assault any less real—if anything, it amplifies how horrific and harmful it was for someone as sensitive and fragile as Maxi. Riftan’s actions are deliberate: he continues the sexual act despite her pleas, blames her afterward, and repeatedly treats her as an object rather than a human being with feelings, or even a woman that he's allegedly been in love with since childhood. Maxi’s developing attachment under trauma doesn’t retroactively make what happened consensual or acceptable; trauma bonding or survival coping strategies do not erase assault. And while the story may depict misogyny or reflect extreme abuse, it completely fails to critique it in a meaningful way, instead romanticizing and excusing the abusive behavior.
All of this reinforces that what Riftan does is rape, plain and simple, and I'm sorry, but cultural context, past trauma, or narrative framing does not change that fact.
Well, if you want healthy relationships, I would recommend Fallen to Paradise.
Having morale is good but keeping in mind that this is a story and that it shouldn’t be view at a « better » world than the real is more important. Because we appreciate a character that is obviously flawed and disgusting according to modern moral doesn’t mean we will say it’s normal behavior. That doesn’t mean the good side disappeared or that there is no room for amelioration.
The right men's activists will flame you but you are right
If my analysis/rant about the sexual assault debate upset you, deal with it. Enough of the excuses of "bUt LOok aT tHe nuAncEs," or my favorite, "iF yOu rEaD hiS POV stOrY...!" No. Enough is enough. Riftan raped Maxi on their wedding night, plain and simple. There *are* no nuances in the situation. Sure, in an actual scenario where, unfortunately the man is forced into sex, then yes, there is *nuance,* but the moment you realize that Riftan had more agency in the situation than the narrative implied, then all "nuance" is lost. Once he has the power to prevent harm and *doesn’t,* the “nuance” of external coercion no longer applies to the sexual encounter, and what you have left is a disgusting, selfish man, assaulting his wife on their wedding night.
Stop excusing/romanticizing problematic dynamics and behavior.