Netorare, also known as NTR, is a subgenre of anime, manga, and other media that focuses on the theme of betrayal in romantic relationships. This genre explores infidelity among couples, whether they are dating, married, or any type of bond that involves a minimum of commitment and loyalty.
These stories are usually presented from the perspective of the betrayed person, who in most cases is portrayed as a man. In this article, we will delve deeper into this subgenre, analyzing how it reflects aspects of Japanese reality and the way betrayal is approached in different cultural contexts.
Table of Contents
The meaning of the word Netorare
Netorare [寝取られ] literally means to betray a loved one with another, or “to put horns,” as it is popularly said. The term comes from the verb netore [寝取れ], which, in its passive form, means “to have the spouse or lover stolen.” The verb netoru directly refers to the act of stealing someone’s partner.
The word netorare is composed of the kanjis [寝], which means “to sleep” or “to go to bed,” and [取], which means “to take,” “to grab,” “to steal,” among others. Interestingly, Google often struggles to translate this word, precisely because Japanese ideograms have a wide range of meanings and synonyms.
Furthermore, netorare can be written using only one of the ideograms or even without them, but the meaning remains the same. However, Google frequently generates peculiar and incorrect translations, such as “to have sex in sleep,” “to be naughty,” or “to take a delight,” which makes no sense. Therefore, it is always useful to refer to reliable dictionaries like jisho.org.
Sometimes, netorare is abbreviated to NTR. The main objective of this genre is to evoke jealousy in the audience by presenting stories in which the protagonist loses their beloved, who is seduced by another person. Variations of the verb netoru, such as netori, netorimasu and netorimashita, also refer to the act of stealing someone else’s spouse.
Animes and Mangas about Netorare
When people search for netorare, they are looking for related Japanese works. Whether anime or manga, people apparently enjoy seeing the suffering of others; this mix of feelings of love and hate tends to be very exciting.
If you don’t already know, most anime in the netorare category are hentais, but there are some Ecchi or innocent shoujo stories that address the theme, such as White Album, which is a music and drama anime.
Read the article: The 20 Best NTR Anime of Betrayal
Loyalty vs. Reality
To understand the true “soul” of the Netorare genre, it is essential to understand the meaning of loyalty. After all, for betrayal to occur, there must be some degree of loyalty, even if it is unilateral. If you are not yet familiar with the concept of loyalty, here is a summary:
Loyalty is the practice of being faithful, demonstrating care and respect for someone or something. It involves consistency in the commitments made to other people.
With these terms clarified, we can deepen our explanation of Netorare. To begin with, betrayal is something common in many types of anime, manga, and other genres. If this seems confusing, think of that cliché where the villain eventually changes sides and joins the hero.
This type of betrayal can also be found in various stories, but what makes Netorare unique is that in this subgenre, betrayal occurs in a romantic and intimate context, usually involving the loss of a partner to another person. While in the example of the villain, betrayal is aimed at power or friendship alliances, in Netorare, the betrayed person is emotionally closer, making the impact much more personal.
And to make the idea even more impactful, in some cases, the level of intimacy in a Netorare can be equivalent to or even greater than the relationship between villain and hero in terms of emotional betrayal. The factor that differentiates Netorare is that it explores this betrayal intensely, seeking to evoke jealousy and even despair in the viewer through the loss of the loved one to another.
Why is romantic betrayal so shocking?
Have you ever heard the phrase “nothing lasts forever”? It applies to everything, and this is no exception; even the universe will not last forever; sooner or later, it will disappear at the same speed it appeared.
But even though we know this, people insist on continuing to believe that love is eternal. And this thought is so ingrained in society that for people, love is a sacred thing.
This love mentioned does not have a specific type; it is vague. This is because there are various forms of love, and that is why this paragraph above was left so vague. However, we can sift through these types and leave only one: the love between couples.
As this is so often cited in books and movies where one does everything for the other. But there are details they do not mention. For example, over time, this love diminishes, or even in moments when love ends.
I believe that because of this thought and the lack of dissemination of others, we are so shocked by romantic betrayals. I am, of course, generalizing this statement because I know very well that although these things affect most people, they are not universal.
Development of Netorare
In this type of Japanese genre, it is usually the woman who betrays the man with another man, but other types can also happen, such as betraying with another woman, or even homosexual relationships between men. In short, the possibilities are many, but it does not change the fact that someone will betray their partner.
As it is more common for women to be the betrayers, we will treat the examples within this type. Let’s take the cliché example: the woman betrays her partner with another. As in most cases, we will observe the situation from the perspective of the protagonist, who is the one who was “replaced.” In his view, they had the perfect screen. He talked to her normally, went out with her, had fun together, had some spicy moments, etc.
It really seems that the woman is wrong in this case, but before throwing stones at her, let’s ask what led her to do this. We will then see from her point of view how the screen between them was, after explaining some reasons that lead women to swap their partners (attention, for men who identify with the theme, I advise you to pay close attention).
Reasons for Betrayal
Distance: Whether physical or emotional, the lack of closeness between the couple inevitably causes wear and tear on the relationship, which often culminates in betrayal. When there is a disconnection, over time, the relationship tends to weaken.
Neediness: If one party does not receive the affection or attention they desire from their partner, there is a good chance they will seek it in another person. The lack of affection in the relationship paves the way for betrayal to become an alternative.
Betrayal: It may seem paradoxical, but just as kindness begets kindness, betrayal also begets betrayal. A mistake can easily trigger a spiral of distrust and infidelity.
Time: As already mentioned, nothing lasts forever. When love comes to an end, what remains are two people who share an empty relationship. When both have difficulty accepting this, they seek to satisfy their emotions elsewhere, even if they do not admit it.
Having feelings for another person: Although less common, it also occurs. The person remains in a current relationship only as an attempt to forget another for whom they still have feelings. However, this is only a temporary solution, and if the loved one gives any sign of reciprocity, betrayal is almost inevitable.
Lack of sex in the relationship: In my opinion, women value sex as much as men do, although they often hesitate to admit it due to cultural pressures. The lack of sex can reflect the absence of care, affection, and pleasure in the relationship, which can eventually lead to the loss of fidelity.
Jealousy: Excessive jealousy is fatal for any relationship. As they say, “whoever seeks, finds,” or “a lie repeated a thousand times becomes the truth.” Constant distrust corrodes the relationship, opening doors to infidelity.
Lack of innovation: Monotony, like jealousy, is a great enemy of relationships. When life as a couple becomes predictable and boring, irritation and emotional weariness take over, making the relationship unbearable. The ending, in these cases, is almost always the same.
These are some of the reasons why many men in Japanese society end up allowing betrayal to infiltrate their relationships.
Points of View in Netorare
As promised, we will now present the girl’s point of view regarding the relationship. The fact is that the protagonist was not interesting to her. In her view, they had a routine that was good at first, but over time it became predictable and dull.
She knew what would happen today, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the day after the day after tomorrow. In short, it became monotonous and boring, and she didn’t want that anymore.
Why didn’t she say this? Well, there may be cases where this can happen, but in this case, they suffered from another problem that is also on the list above: distance.
The fact of being in a relationship does not mean being intimate with the other person. It can take time to happen, months or years to get close enough, years or decades to almost fully understand the partner.
From his point of view, the relationship was perfect, but they were not close enough for him to know what she was thinking, and she was not secure enough to say she wanted new things. Given the points of view, whether to throw stones or not is up to each one.
Netorare – Post-Swap
There are cases where the couple separates, in others the couples stay together, but without one knowing about the other’s betrayal, and in other cases, the partner knows about the betrayal but does not want to separate.
In the first example, fidelity is broken by both, in the second case fidelity is not broken, and in the third case fidelity may or may not be broken.
In short, these three cases can fit into this Japanese genre, but the common one is the third, with fidelity being broken by one of the parties. That is, in the example, the woman betrays her partner and then they separate.
After the relationship ends, we will see all the lamentations and regrets that the protagonist has. If it were to define it in one word, that word would be lamentation.
And these lamentations are the basis of the psychological drama of the entire main plot and even some additional ones that may occur.
Basically, after being betrayed, the protagonist begins to feel sad, lonely, and other adjectives of the genre. With this lamentation, he may or may not try to move on and whether or not he will overcome this fact.
Conclusion of the Article
We have reached the end of this article. Personally, I rarely consume this type of Japanese genre, perhaps because it is not so common. After all, we are used to the cliché of the protagonist who rejects girls, while they, in turn, do not think of anyone else. This is such a deep-rooted pattern that few dare to break it.
I confess that I appreciate when there is a break from this cliché. It may sound a bit sadistic, but I enjoy seeing protagonists who, by being passive or apathetic, end up suffering the consequences. This gives me a sense of realism. It’s not that I root for the misfortune of others, but rather for the honesty of the narrative. Sometimes, it’s good to see that not everything ends in the idealized way and that, just like in real life, actions (or the lack thereof) bring consequences.
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