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| Image of the drama’s promotional poster was taken from the drama’s official website (MBC) and reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
In the previous post, we looked at the drama The Forbidden Marriage, which used a potential romance between the female lead and the man she was once supposed to marry to underline her agency as a fully developed adult character and as the heroine the story needed. Classic K-drama Princess Hours (궁, MBC, 2006) presents a variation of the same plot, showing how the female lead’s choice between her two suitors can be an empowering action not just for her, but for both of them as well.
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| Yoon Eun-hye plays Shin Chae-gyeong. Photo from the drama's official website (MBC), reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
Princess Hours is set in an alternate present-day Korea still ruled by an imperial family. The plot involves an arranged marriage between 19-year-old Crown Prince Lee Shin and his high school classmate, commoner Shin Chae-kyeong. The second male lead, Shin’s cousin Yul, is in love with Chae-kyeong; she cherishes his friendship but cannot accept his love. Yul is presented as a sort of kinder, gentler double of the cold and aloof Shin, and the cousins’ backstory reinforces this doubling, as Shin now occupies the position that should have been Yul’s, if not for his late father’s disinheritance and Shin’s father’s accession to the throne many years before the story began.
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| Joo Ji-hoon plays Lee Shin. Photo from the drama's official website (MBC), reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
Both Shin and Yul have emotional wounds connected to their upbringing as members of the royal family. Shin believes his father only cares about him as a successor, not as a son. Yul suffered banishment for his parents’ misdeeds, and his mother cares only about restoring his position for her own gain, with no concern for his happiness. These two men have been taught all their lives that they are only valued for their position as princes, which also leads them to believe–Shin in fear and Yul in hope–that one could easily replace the other as Chae-kyeong’s husband.
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| Kim Jeong-hoon plays Lee Yul. Photo from the drama's official website (MBC), reproduced under Fair Dealing for educational purposes. |
Essentially, the entire story is premised on this idea that one prince can easily be substituted for another, on both a public level–regarding the line of succession–and a private level–regarding the marriage with Chae-kyeong. Chae-kyeong actively debunks this idea, through her ability to see both Shin and Yul as people, to recognize and value each as an individual, and to act toward each in a way that is faithful to her feelings. She is the best friend she could be possibly be toward Yul, at great personal cost, and she continues to love Shin and act in his best interest even when he shows nothing but the barest glimmer of warmth toward her. This becomes an empowering and healing experience for both men. In the end, regardless of who gets the girl, with Chae-kyeong’s help, both Shin and Yul are able to overcome the damaging belief that they have no intrinsic worth apart from their ability to occupy the position of prince.
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