The
damsel in distress or
persecuted maiden is a classic theme in world literature, art, film and video games. She is usually a beautiful young woman placed in a dire predicament by a
villain or
monster and who requires a
hero to achieve her rescue. After rescuing her, the hero often obtains her hand in marriage. She has become a
stock character of fiction, particularly of
melodrama. Though she is usually human, she can also be of any other species, including fictional or
folkloric species; and even divine figures such as an
angel,
spirit, or
deity.