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Harem (ハーレムもの, hāremumono; "from harem") in anime and manga is an emphasis on polygamous relationships characterized by a protagonist surrounded amorously by three or more members of either the same and/or opposing gender, sex, and/or love interests. When it is a yuri or male-hetero oriented harem series, the polygynous relationship is informally referred to as a female harem or seraglios. When it is a yaoi or female-hetero oriented harem series, the polyandrous relationship is informally referred to as a male harem, reverse harem, or gyaku hāremu (逆ハーレム).
Contents
Etymology
The word derives from Harem, which was a term used to refer to the most private rooms of a household in the Islamic world, especially among the upper class where only Women and close relatives were permitted inside.
Structure
Because romance is rarely the main focus of an entire series, a harem structure is ambiguous. The most distinguishable trait is the group of polyamorous females and/or males who accompany the protagonist; in some instances cohabitate with the protagonist. While intimacy is just about customary, it is never necessary. When it is present, it is always a minimum of three supporting characters who express romantic interest in the protagonist.
Harem anime usually combine various comedic genres into their stories, as the members of the harem try to seduce the protagonist into liking them. This causes rivalries between the love interests, as they will compete for the protagonists attention with actions that vary from making them food to dressing in revealing clothing such as lingerie. The protagonist usually ends up in awkward situations for the most part such as accidentally walking in on a love interest when they are naked, a member sneaks into their room or they accidentally bump into them causing the protagonist and/or member to trip and get caught in an awkward pose or embarrassing scene. This in turn leads to the protagonist being hurt or punished, usually with a punch to the face or a kick to the stomach; not enough to severely hurt them, since they still love them, but painful enough to remember not to repeat the same mistake again.
Fantasy or sci-fi is often associated with harem anime/manga, as most stories consist of surreal story themes such as magic, aliens, monsters, imaginary social structures (e.g. Ladies versus Butlers!) or mechs. However, some stories can exclude these themes such as Love Hina, where the protagonist is a simple high-school graduate who inherits a hotel with an all female staffing team.
Harems need not be strictly heterosexual; instead of having a male lead character that all the female characters fawn over and desire to be with, a Yuri-themed harem, for example, forgoes this "classical" harem and omits the male lead character. Additionally, it is not essential for there to be one exclusive boy or girl. Many protagonists can exist as long as they are given less attention or the story calls for an unusually obscure sex ratio.
Insignificant-protagonist
With characters such as Haruhi Fujioka (Host Club), Issei Hyoudou (High School DxD) and Keima Katsuragi (The World God Only Knows) being the rare few exceptions, the main "love interest" protagonists of any "harem" anime, manga or video game, are rarely given much focus, character development or personality. These characters are "blank slates" meant to literally allow the reader, player, or viewer to pretend they're the protagonist and apply their own personality. Harem protagonists are generally designed to make females and/or males within the "harem" more attractive while highlighting interesting aspects of their personalities like kindness, courage and the will to protect/support their friends.
These protagonists usually end up with a harem accidentally, because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time due to some unforeseeable circumstance, an accident, random chance or because a character simply chose the protagonist for their own reasons. Most protagonists don't even want the harems they start, as they mostly only have one "main" love interest and all other members of their harem simply fell in love with him or her because they deeply admire some part of their personality and the protagonist can bring themselves to tell them to leave, the sole exception being Issei Hyoudou from High School DxD who is a fantasising pervert that actually wanted to have a harem before he was reincarnated as a demon.
Their appearance is typically that of a handsom teenager or young adult with very simple clothing attire.
Harem ending
Some visual novels offer a "harem ending" route, where the main character pursues a romantic relationship with multiple other characters simultaneously. This is usually with the consent of the other characters. In some cases, the harem ending is unavoidable.
Notable series
In fan fiction
The harem genre can also be seen in fan fiction, such as that based on the Naruto series.