On the Hunt for the Fourth Knight
When a KDrama title doesn’t make sense so you write a blog about it explaining your theories.
Tags: #CinderellaAndTheFourKnights #KDrama #TheDamselSavesHerself #DamselInDistress #RomanceTropes
This is what we know about the popular KDrama Cinderella and the Four Knights (tvN 2016; available on Netflix): working class high school graduate Eun Ha-won gets invited by the filthy rich chairman of the Haneul Group to join his three grandsons in their big-ass mansion to complete missions that will make the cousins grow closer and truly become *sparkle* family *sparkle*. As the title suggests, the show features one Cinderella-like character and four knights. At a first glance, it seems Ha-won represents Cinderella while the Kang cousins are three of the four knights. So, who is the mysterious fourth knight? The drama doesn’t exactly make it obvious, though it seems that the Internet has its thoughts and so did we. Naturally, we embarked on a journey to ‘hunt’ for the fourth knight (get it, it’s the blog title).
We began by devising a very rigorous point-based scale to evaluate each character’s actions in each episode of the drama. These points were loosely based on the Code of Chivalry, a mediaeval moral code that idealised qualities every knight should embody. This was not a strict set of rules, but was still an “important part of the society and lives of people who lived during Medieval times” (Medieval Life and Times, n.d.). Some of these ideals, taken from the Song of Roland (Anonymous, 11th century) included: protecting the weak, serving a liege faithfully, telling the truth, giving generously, and never refusing a challenge. We also incorporated the Code of Chivalry described by the Duke of Burgundy in the 14th century (Medieval Life and Times, n.d.), which included virtues such as justice, diligence, valour, and hope. Based on our point scale, it became obvious which characters fulfilled which roles in the original Cinderella fairytale.
The Most Likely Ones: The Family Portrait
At the top of the list are our ‘most likely’ contenders: Ha-Won, Hyun-Min, Ji-Woon, Seo-Woo, and Yoon-Sung. The Chairman – or the ‘king of the castle’ – keeps the group photo from Ha-Won’s ‘birthday’ surprise party as his phone background. Based on our observation, each character embodied several of the virtues to varying extents.
Contender 1: Ha-Won
Ha-Won comes from a (poor-ish) working class family. She lost her mother when she was young and her father remarried soon after. This leaves her at the mercy of her abusive step-mother and step-sister who treat her like garbage and make her sleep on the balcony whenever her father goes off to work for an extended period of time. This doesn’t stop Ha-Won from putting loyalty above anything else; she’s doggedly loyal to the Chairman. She is loyal to her father and late mother. She is even loyal to her abusive stepmother and stepsister.
Ha-Won is also brave and faces her problems head on. She stands up for herself, continuously claiming her agency. For example, we see this when she admonishes both Ji-Woon for trashing her with his preconceptions and Hyun-Min when he makes unwanted advances. She is always ready to jump into action when her help is required, particularly when it comes to protecting an underdog. This includes catching hand-bag thieves, providing space for friends who lost their home, and convincing people to do ‘the right’ thing. Indeed, it isn’t until the end of the drama that she takes a 180 degree turn, throwing her valour out the window and abandoning her newfound family.
Our score: there is a 80% chance she is one of the knights.
Contender 2: Hyun-Min
Hyun-Min, or ‘the Player’ as the Chairman refers to him, is one of the three cousins. He generously throws his money at problems to pay for them to disappear rather than actually dealing with them. We get it, money may buy happiness to some extent but have you considered therapy instead?
Over the course of the series, Hyun-Min undergoes healthy character growth and eventually learns to open up and embrace his family rather than shutting everyone out. He appears to have always carried deep, strong feelings for his loved ones, but was afraid of showing them. Yet, it isn’t until the end of the drama that he actually seems to appreciate his grandfather and cousins openly. He even confesses to his first love and childhood crush, Hye-Ji, and apologises for treating her poorly over the past decade – out of love, of course. (Side note: treating people like shite because you care about them is not a good enough reason to treat people like shite and is, in fact, abusive behaviour.) So, it seems like in Hyun-Min’s case true love prevails in the end; a knight got his princess.
Our score: there is a 70% chance he is one of the knights.
Contender 3: Ji-Woon
Ji-woon, dubbed the thug by his grandfather, was the most recent addition to the family and Haneul House. Raised by a single mother, he was orphaned at a young age and left to fend for himself until he was discovered by his grandfather’s secretary. His character swings widely between showing genuine care for his friends and open hostility to everyone. He has a short temper and often disappears from the house for long periods of time.
He is surprisingly honest about his feelings, gently rejecting Hye-ji and straightforward with Ha-won, planning his confession early on. Once he makes up his mind to donate part of his liver to his grandfather, despite his potential complications with an allergy to anaesthesia, he is determined to go through with the procedure. He also refuses to take Ha-won’s vague explanation for their break-up, persisting in overcoming their troubles together.
Our score: there is a 60% chance he is one of the knights.
Contender 4: Seo-Woo
Seo-Woo, not-so-lovingly called the ‘good-for-nothing’ by his grandfather, is the final cousin and a burgeoning KPop idol beloved by his fans. This is really not surprising as he is the only actually genuine human in this show. Seriously, he is way too good for the remaining cast.
Despite coming from a wealthy background, he doesn’t treat other people as less than. He is incredibly thoughtful, paying attention to the likes and dislikes of others and noticing when someone needs some cheering up. For example, when Ha-Won is sad, he takes the time to cook for her despite his busy idol schedule. Despite Ja-Yeong’s obvious fan-girling, he treats her with decency and like a normal human being.
At the same time, he respects people’s boundaries and doesn’t overstep them. When Ha-Won doesn't reciprocate his feelings, he honours this and does not continue his pursuits. Instead, he supports her decision and cheers her on from afar while coming to terms with the situation and his feelings.
Our score: there is a 100% chance he is one of the knights.
Contender 5: Yoon-Sung
Yoon-sung is the secretary to Chairman Kang, the king. He is often considered one of the knights, as the Chairman makes several comments likening him to a son. Technically, Yoon-Sung is the Chairman’s step-son, though no one finds this out until the end of the drama.
Yoon-Sung does genuinely care for the cousins and Ha-Won and is loyal to the ‘kingdom’ until the very end, even going as far as ruining his mother’s plans in order to protect the Chairman. After witnessing his father’s abuse, he studies Taekwondo, with the hope of protecting the people he loves. He is considerate to Ha-Won, to the point that she often teases him for not calling her by her first name, though they are both employees of the Chairman and friends by extension.
Our score: there is a 75% chance he is one of the knights.
The Runner Ups: The Castle Has Many Visitors
We also have a few characters on our list who were considered as possible fourth knights. On occasion, these characters showed one or more knightly traits, but fell short in the end. Here are the runners-up:
Contender 6: Ms. Beolgyo
As one of Ha-Won’s supporters, Ms. Beolgyo gets a spot on the list. She is the head of the household staff in Haneul House and quickly adopts an almost mothering role towards Ha-Won. They often talk over problems in the kitchen and bond through their support of the cousins. She wants the best for all of the Kang children and, because she lives and works at Haneul House, knows a lot of background and insider knowledge. Ms. Beolgyo doesn’t meddle, per se, but she aids both Ha-Won and Hyun-Min with their respective romantic endeavours. As a loyal supporter of both Chairman Kang and Ha-Won, we rated her at a 40% chance of being a knight.
Contender 7: Ja-Yeong
Ja-Yeong is Ha-Won’s best friend and a major fan of Seo-Woo and his music. In fact, her dedication to Seo-Woo led us to put her on the list; She helps him escape from the school after being cornered by a bunch of screaming schoolgirls. She doesn’t invade his space when they are on vacation together. She even puts her own feelings aside when she believes that Ha-Won and Seo-Woo are dating. In the end, her efforts are rewarded by Seo-Woo making her his new assistant manager when he embarks on his busking journey. So, she surely is a knight to Seo-Woo; that makes her 35% likely to be one of the titular knights.
Contender 8: Hye-Ji
Hye-Ji is the childhood friend and love of Hyun-Min and, actually, also part of the KDrama’s promotional photos so of course she had to make it onto our list one way or another. She comes to the defence of Ha-Won on more than one occasion, for example, when Ha-Won is attacked by the evil fake-crocodile-handbag-lady or when Ha-Won is in need of a place to sleep. She is also a kind person, rooting for her friends and even bringing them flowers for their achievements or when they need to be cheered up. While this drama didn’t dare to actually cross the line into queer relationships, we did get one moment where Ha-Won was clearly crushing heavily on Hye-Ji and her beauty. Overall, we suggest there is a 40% chance she is one of the knights.
The Definitely Nots: A Tale of Evil Step-Members
Not everyone can be a knight. The following five characters were surely trying everything to get that title thrown out the window. We’ve included the list of characters that fill important Cinderella fairytale roles, but who definitely cannot be considered a knight.
Contender 9: The Chairman
The Chairman cannot be a knight, but he is very obviously the king. As the head of Haneul group, he has more money than he can burn. He is very generous at times, offering Ha-Won an outrageous amount of money to whip his grandsons into line, but will also use money as a threat. He often remarks on the class difference between the commoners like Ha-Won and his esteemed family members. He has a temper as well, often acting out of anger without bothering to listen to the full story. With only generosity, often with an ulterior motive, we cannot say there is any chance of him being a knight. 0%
Contender 10: Hwa-Ja
The Chairman’s fifth wife, Hwa-Ja, tries to take over her husband’s company after realising her son, whom she abandoned, is working for Haneul group. Did we mention the Chairman was in a coma when this was going on? Though she claims to love the Chairman, it doesn’t seem like her actions agree. She also lies to Ha-Won, convincing her that the relationship with Ji-Woon is the reason behind the Chairman’s ill health. For being a non-entity for the first half of the drama, Hwa-Ja comes in strong with a 0% chance of being a knight.
Contender 11:Soo-Kyung
Soo-Kyung cares about two things: her biological daughter Yu-Na, and her new husband, Ha-Won’s father. Consequently, she is abusive to Ha-Won while pretending that they live a harmonic family life whenever her husband returns home for a few days – a classic case of domestic violence. Overall, she seems to embody the everyday ‘peasant’ of the kingdom who maybe listens just a little bit too much to her biological daughter. At her job, she tends to gossip, eventually costing her her position when the newfound Queen – the chairman’s wife – is having none of her confidentiality breach nonsense. Overall, let’s be honest, there’s a 0% chance she is a knight.
Contender 12: Yu-Na
Similar to her mother, Yu-Na treats her stepsibling like her personal servant. While we do support her life goal to just marry rich, she has a tendency to treat people like garbage, pretending she is somehow better than the other peasant folk. At the end of the day, her attitude is beyond annoying; she cannot do anything herself, and her treatment of people as less than will likely not get her far in life. Like her mother, there’s a 0% possibility that she is a knight.
Contender 13: Gi Sang
Imagine you think your late wife was lying about having an affair and you doubt that you are the biological father of the child you raised together. Then, once your wife tragically dies in a fire, instead of getting a paternity test, you go and marry another woman, but then abandon both your new wife and, now, two daughters to work in the countryside while searching for the mysterious potential ‘other man’ and resent both your first daughter and your late wife the whole time. At least, Gi Sang seemed to show genuine remorse at the end and apologised to his daughter for his horrendous behaviour. He even ended up uniting Ha-Won and Ji-Woon thanks to a ring and an old funeral story. Listen, it’s a KDrama, of course there are some twisted fates. This nonetheless, makes Gi Sang about 2% likely to be a knight.
Conclusion: What Is Actually Going On Here?
This is the thing. In a surprising and modern take, Cinderella and the Four Knights actually provided a new interpretation on the gender and relationship dynamics of a classic fairytale. What do we mean? Opposing the popular idea that Ha-Won is Cinderella and the cousins and Yoon-Sung playing her knights, we propose that Ji-Woon is the true star of this KDrama.
The Chairman is without a doubt the king. As such, his loyal subjects, Yoon-Sung and Ha-Won must be knights. Hyun-Min, as the heir apparent, and See-Woo, working for the entertainment businesses in his grandfather’s empire, also fall into the category of knights. Ja-Yeong supports Seo-Woo’s role as a knight; she is clearly his squire.
Ms. Beolgyo, as a caring and nurturing figure, transforms the lives of those living in Haneul House with her thoughtfulness and magical food. She takes on the role of fairy godmother, though it could be argued she is more of a regular godmother instead. Hye-ji, a fashion designer, takes on the role of Cinderella’s mice. She can generally be regarded as a lady’s maid, to keep with the mediaeval theme.
As the Chairman’s wife, Hwa-Ja is the queen of the castle. She is also the evil stepmother to both Cinderella and the knights. This leaves Soo-Kyung and Yu-Na to take on the roles of the evil stepsisters, indirectly supporting the evil stepmother’s schemes.
Finally, we are left with Gi Sang. As the reuniting bridge between Cinderella and his Knight, Gi Sang is none other than the infamous glass slipper. Who would have seen that coming?
It seems we were asking the wrong question. The mystery is not ‘who is the fourth knight’ but ‘who is Cinderella’. Case closed.
Sources:
Anonymous (11th century | 1996). The Song of Roland. Reprint under The Project Gutenberg, https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/391/pg391.html
Medieval Life and Times (n.d.). Code of Chivalry. https://www.medieval-life-and-times.info/medieval-knights/code-of-chivalry.htm?fbclid=IwAR33r1wW_9t68pLT3lww-wprGi6wExS1hQeIcCeGWzn3FEzjmqPj1OerWf8