In Eclipse, Edward forbid Bella from travelling outside of Forks (like going to Seattle) because vampires were running around and he could not easily protect the frail, fragile, clumsy, accident-prone human from getting killed. He also told her to stay in contact with him at all times so he would know where she is, and he also tried to tell her who she could and could not spend time with (like Jacob, for example). He even goes so far as to trash Bella’s truck so she can’t drive it anywhere and so Edward has to take her places until the “threat is taken care of”.
He did way more than this, but this was the most relevant example I could come up with this quickly. Now, any reasonable person would see this and say, “Wow, this behaviour is controlling, abusive, and frankly disgusting.” That person would be right. That is disgusting.
Why? This man is telling a woman that she is unable to make her own choices, should not be allowed to make those choices because she doesn’t know better, and that she is so frail and weak that he has to decide what she does, where she goes, and who she associates with. And when she disobeys him, he punishes her by further taking away her agency.
What Rumple did was, truly, not that different. He trapped Belle on the ship with magic so she could not leave, making the choice for her that she would stay there. We all know how that ended up.
Rumple then slaps a cuff on her (a fucking cuff. Do we see the symbolism there??? Or are we willfully ignoring this shit too???) that would let him know Belle’s location at all times. How is that different from Edward telling Bella she needs to disclose her location all the time? It’s actually worse because Belle can’t even ignore that “request”; she has no magical ability or way of taking the cuff off or negating its power. Rumple will always know where she is all all times.
In both instances, this is a HUGE breach of privacy and shows a complete lack of trust.
The excuse of “he was just protecting her!!!” is fucking garbage and we all know that. Belle never made a request that Rumple use his powers to “protect” her in tough situations. He didn’t even ask, so Belle never consented to being trapped or being cuffed. Belle’s agency was fucking steamrolled in favour of a man making these decisions for her.
Here’s a possible solution that makes more fucking sense and is a lot fucking healthier: Rumple grabs a charm and puts a spell on it, so if Belle is ever in danger, all she would have to do is touch it and call for help and he would come for her. Or poof her away. And he would OFFER the charm. This way, Rumple is still giving Belle a choice in the matter. He’s not forcing her into a situation or telling her what to do; he’s offering his help SHOULD SHE REQUIRE IT AND CHOOSE TO USE IT.
But that’s too sensible for this show. But anyway… I drew the Twilight comparison because you seem to be perfectly fine with a man taking away a woman’s agency and ability to make her own choices and basically infantilize her, so I just assumed you liked Twilight.
But I guess the thing for you is Edward is a “teenage hearthrob" and Rumple is a “middle-aged hearthrob"
Ok so…saying that Rumple did what he did to Belle because he was frustrated with her is really fucking gross and I’m gonna tell you why:
1) You’re putting the blame on Belle.
“Well, he only told her to shut up ‘cause she was talking too much!”
“Well, he only pushed her ‘cause she was in his way!”
“Well, he only punched her ‘cause he was frustrated with her for not doing x when he told her to!”
You see where this shit is leading? DO NOT EVER BLAME SOMEONE FOR THE TOXIC SHIT DONE TO THEM.
I don’t know if you meant it or not, but how you phrased that is really fucking loaded. You said “Rumple was frustrated with his wife for not listening to him so he trapped her on a ship and cuffed her.” Considering a wife used to be property and was expected to be 1000% subservient to her husband, this sounds like Belle should be listening to Rumple no matter what and if she doesn’t, he automatically has the authority to override what she thinks or does. That’s shitty.
Also…just because one person’s actions were shittier than someone else’s, doesn’t mean that the less shitty actions are ok!!! You people really have to stop making excuses for your white male fave.