History Literature / AFrozenHeart

** Since Hans lied about so much else, Anna doubts that his family is as bad as he claimed, thinking it's best if they sort out his penalty. As such, Kristoff, Anna, and Elsa are totally unaware that not only is this the ''one thing'' he did not lie about, they're actually even ''worse'' than he told.

'''[[Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned ALL spoilers on this page are UNMARKED.]]'''

* DarkIsEvil: The EvilOverlord king of the Southern Isles lives in a palace made of gleaming black rock. Even Hans feels it's too sinister.

* EvilTowerOfOminousness: Hans views his father's palace as imposing in that it looks like a big SeaMonster from a distance due to its long, stony walls. It's implied the king built it to tell his subjects that he lords over them. The castle's interior is filled with mirrors to show the royal family's ItsAllAboutMe mindset.

* FatalFlaw: Despite exploiting Anna and Elsa's flaws, Hans is unaware that his own weakness is [[AmbitionIsEvil ambition]]. He becomes too desperate in getting what he wants [[DidntThinkThisThrough while ignoring the consequences]] when he takes unethical routes. [[IgnoredEpiphany At times, he knows what he's doing is wrong and even scolds himself]], yet he impulsively goes through it. Being abused by his family for his ineptitude slowly becomes the breaking point and [[WellDoneSonGuy ultimately pushes him into desperately attempting to win his distant family's respect]]. Hans corrupts his own morals while serving as his father's gofer, committing things he once hated. As such, the time he spent prepping up on Arendelle is wasted because he couldn't contain his issues and went to the extreme of attempting regicide. Only at the end does he have a HeelRealization, but by then, he's in damage control mode as nobody trusts him by then.

* TheSocialDarwinist: Deconstructed. A ruthless man who admires power and despises weakness, Hans's father is a combination of the Straw Meritocrat, the [[MiseryBuildsCharacter Struggler]], and the [[VirtueIsWeakness Weakness Punisher]] types. To him, his sons must be "lions, not mice", as considers Hans to be an useless "spare". He even goads his sons to torment each other while deliberately picking favorites among the more useful and loyal ones. However, this renders the entire Westergaard clan dysfunctional.
* TheSociopath: Hans's father seems to care nothing for his family unless they're useful to him. He also treats his subjects like trash, prone to DisproportionateRetribution and even having subjects who come to ask him for help attacked. He also emotionally abuses his sons so they'll be transformed into his sycophantic loyalists.

* SuccessfulSiblingSyndrome: Hans often feels envious of Caleb being heir and fantasizes what it's like being the crown prince. Plus, [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex feeling less than his brothers]] and being in their shadow for years [[WellDoneSonGuy causes]] him to develop an obsessive desire to earn his family's respect. It's implied the other eleven brothers do feel the same regarding Caleb considering the latter frequently brawls with them.

* TieInNovel: ''A Frozen Heart'' is almost like a {{novelization}}, except that it is from the [[PerspectiveFlip perspectives of Anna and Hans]]. It also goes in depth on aspects of their backstories and characters, such as how Hans' DarkAndTroubledPast shaped him.

** Hans used to be the NiceGuy he pretends to be during his time in Arendelle. He opposed his family's wanton cruelty towards their subjects (and was even mocked for it as well), felt repulsed by how his father and brothers treat their spouses, and even felt pity for the people of Arendelle when its king and queen died in a shipwreck. By the end of the story, he's a [[BecameTheirOwnAntithesis remarkably different person from what he used to be]], courtesy of the time he spent as the king's gofer and years of abuse.

* VillainOfAnotherStory: Hans's father is a sociopath who abuses his sons into being sycophants totally loyal to him and squeezes every penny out of his subjects via high taxes. If this were Hans's story, he would be TheHero rebelling against his abusive family. Unfortunately, [[WellDoneSonGuy his issues]] made him the villain of Anna and Elsa's story.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Like the film, it's never explained what became of Sitron. In his final chapter, as Hans is being deported, no mention is ever made of his horse, leaving Sitron's fate still unknown.
* WhatDoesSheSeeInHim: Hans wonders why any woman would be willing to court his brutish twin brothers and can't figure out how Runo's wife ended up marrying him despite initially assuming she'll be immune to his slick charms.

* WorseWithContext: Played for Drama. Hans tells Anna about the time some of his brothers teased him. It seems like a classic case of sibling teasing, except it lasted ''two years'' and he downplays it as "what brothers do." It's clear the constant abuse and neglect [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove warp Hans's mindset]] on normal blood ties.

* DarkIsEvil: The EvilOverlord king of the Southern Isles lives in a palace made of gleaming black rock.

* EvilTowerOfOminousness: Hans views his father's palace as imposing, being that it looks like a big SeaMonster from a distance due to its long, stony walls. It's implied the king built it to tell his subjects that he lords over them. The castle's interior is filled with mirrors to show the royal family's ItsAllAboutMe mindset.

* FakedKidnapping: The phony "ransom note from a King Gotya" prank that Hans's older brothers pull off against him when he was a small boy. He took the bait, believing that "King Gotya" will only "release" one of his brothers if he ran around the entire castle ''three times in just his underwear''. It's implied he ended up being the fall person despite his older brothers being the ''real'' culprits.

* FelonyMisdemeanor: The king of the Southern Isles reacts [[CantTakeCriticism poorly to criticism against his rule]]. It's implied the peasant who insulted him was brutally beaten up and possibly executed.

* {{Foil}}: Notably, anything related to Hans or his family life seems to be the polar opposite of the sisters or that of Kristoff.

** In a nutshell, Hans [[ShadowArchetype is a darker Anna]]: used to being friendless and feeling inadequate, but unlike Anna, Hans grows up to be a self-centered man who sees all love as weaknesses and thinks competition means success. Sadly, he never reconciles with his own family and remains friendless at the end of the movie.

* GoodParents: Hans' mother is implied to be loving towards her sons, and wants them to stop abusing each other.

* HappyMarriageCharade: Deconstructed. Most of the royals don't get along with their spouses, but pretend to be happily married for social reasons. Noting how Caleb's pregnant wife is uncomfortable with how he ignores her, how Lars gave up on reconciling with his wife, and how his mother has been used to being ignored, Hans notes that his own family is absolutely miserable with each other.

** Double subverted for Hans, as he started out a decent man opposing his family's violence and has vile persons in his family, [[WellDoneSonGuy but his fears of forever being the "throwaway" son]] and returning home made him desperate enough to follow his father's example.

* LeftHanging: Potentially due to BroadStrokes, and likely because Anna and Elsa won't visit the Southern Isles, it's left unknown on what has occurred since Hans was sent back home (except for a brief cameo in ''Frozen Fever''). Nobody knows what's become of his relationship with Lars, how his mother reacted to news of his crimes, the gender of Lars's child, or if he and Helga ever learned to get along.

* RousseauWasRight: Hans initially wants to become TheGoodKing and shows no desire to hurt anyone, but his abusive father and brothers gave him a serious and massive inferiority complex and convince him VirtueIsWeakness, and he ends up becoming as ruthless and cruel as them.

** It's implied Hans's brothers didn't start out as mean bullies, but their father's toxic influence changed them into the king's yes-men. That they don't get along with each other shows the psychological damage that's been done.

* WhatDoesSheSeeInHim: Hans wonders why any woman would be willing to court his brutish twin brothers, and can't figure out how Runo's wife ended up marrying him despite initially assuming she'll be immune to his slick charms.

* WorseWithContext: Deconstructed. Hans tells Anna about the time some of his brothers teased him. It seems like a classic case of sibling teasing, except it lasted ''two years'' and he downplays it as "what brothers do." It's clear the constant abuse and neglect [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove warp Hans's mindset]] on normal blood ties.

* AwfulWeddedLife: The king of the Southern Isles thinks of his wife as a BabyFactory and hasn't cared for her ever since they were married. His 12 older sons don't get along with their wives either - Caleb treats his wife like wallpaper, the middle sons want more babies, while Lars's wife Helga remains unhappy being "shipped off" to the Isles.

* EvilerThanThou: The king of the Southern Isles thinks Hans isn't tough enough and needs to learn to be more like his older bullying brothers.

** Hans's father is the polar opposite of Agnarr. He deliberately picks favorites among his sons, lets them torment each other out of cruelty, and is at best indifferent to his wife. And while both fathers are responsible for a child developing depression, Agnarr only wants to keep Elsa and Anna safe, but Hans's father is unfeeling to his sons.

** In a nutshell, Hans [[ShadowArchetype is a darker Anna]]: used to being friendless and feeling inadequate, but unlike Anna, Hans grows up to be a self-centered man who sees all love as weaknesses and thinks competition equals success. Sadly, he never reconciles with his own family and remains friendless at the end of the movie.

* GoodAllAlong: Downplayed and subverted with Hans. While the book is marketed at readers who already know the plot of ''Frozen'' and that Hans is a villain, it starts off with Hans as a rather decent person, [[BlackAndGrayMorality especially in comparison to his family]]. But as the story progresses, his actions become more morally ambiguous, before JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope. While his initial plan [[GoldDigger to seduce either Anna or Elsa so that he could marry up]] is dishonest and manipulative, it's partly motivated by wanting to escape his awful life in the Southern Isles and he does legitimately want to do good. By the end of the book though, he goes from selfish with some noble desires to becoming unashamedly cruel.

* BecauseYouWereNiceToMe: Because Lars treats him nicely and shows a desire to help him escape their awful home, Hans genuinely respects him.

* BigFancyCastle: The Southern Isles' royal castle remind people of a sea serpent due to its long walls, but it's actually a palace made of rocks only found within the kingdom. While the locals view it as the kingdom's crown jewel, Hans finds it too ugly.

* CentralTheme: How childhood experiences can shape one's perspective on love of all types. Most notably, it asks whether LoveIsAWeakness that leads to poor decisions and [[SillyRabbitRomanceIsForKids is only good for childish fairy-tale romances]], or if it can be [[ThePowerOfLove a source]] of one's inner strength and help [[LoveRedeems redeem]] people.

* DinnerAndAShow: When Hans finally shows up to attend his mother's birthday after standing outside the door for 20 minutes, his father scolds him for being late and daydreaming, while his brothers taunt him for being a MommasBoy and toss objects at him as he exits the room.

** Barring Lars, Hans views most of his older brothers as obnoxious bullies and immature {{manchild}}ren.

** Since Hans lied about so much else, Anna doubts that his family is as bad as he claimed, so she figures it's best if they sort out his penalty. As such, Kristoff, Anna, and Elsa are totally unaware that not only is this the ''one thing'' he did not lie about, they're actually even ''worse'' than he suggested.

** What motivates Hans to seek a throne for himself stems from the jealousy he harbors against his older brothers for being favored by their father.
** In turn, it's implied that the ParentalFavoritism shown by Hans's parents towards Caleb and Hans respectively caused their brothers to develop a MiddleChildSyndrome.

* FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse: Anna says that Hans' home life doesn't excuse his actions, since he's a grown man.

* TheGoodKing: What Hans wants to be as a ruler, after seeing his own father's wanton cruelty towards their subjects.

** As in the movie, this is played straight with Arendelle. It has a genuinely loving royal family that cares for its citizens, and the locals are appreciative of the queen and her sister.
** Inverted with the Southern Isles. Its government is a totalitarian regime that [[AmbiguousSituation is implied to use disproportionate punishments against]] citizens for minor reasons.

* HiddenDepths: Implied. Some of Hans' thoughts regarding Caleb's behavior suggests he always knew his father would only see his sons as henchmen and a fan club.

** Hans often dreams of [[SoProudOfYou his family appreciating him]] of who he is, but they always have a hint of sadness to them. Upon noticing how Arendelle's citizens reacted when they saw Anna's horse return without its owner, he briefly wonders if his family would even care to rescue him if he were to be in a similar situation.

* IntimidatingRevenueService: Viewing them as his personal PiggyBank, The king squeezes every penny from his subjects and reacts violently when they don't pay him. Hans feels nauseated and almost throws up when he gives an account of the tax collection he "conducted."

* LeftHanging: Potentially due to BroadStrokes and likely because Anna and Elsa won't visit the Southern Isles, it's left unknown on what has occurred since Hans was sent back home (except for a brief cameo in ''Frozen Fever''). Nobody knows what's become of Hans' relationship with Lars, how his mother reacted to news of his crimes, the gender of Lars' child or if he and Helga ever learned to get along.

* AdultFear:
** When you/your daughter/sister unwittingly falls for a manipulator who becomes willing to do whatever it takes to get what he wants, even at the cost of people's lives.
** Finding out your brother/son who had been mistreated for years attempted to murder innocent people.
** When you come from an abusive home and you finally leave, only to cause all potential friends to turn on you and you've made your life worse than before.

* VillainOfAnotherStory: Hans's father is a sociopath who abuses his sons into being sycophants totally loyal to him and squeezes every penny out of his subjects via high taxes. If this were Hans's story, he would be TheHero rebelling against his abusive father and older brothers. Unfortunately, [[WellDoneSonGuy his issues]] made him the villain of Anna and Elsa's story.

* FakedKidnapping: The phony "ransom note from a King Gotya" prank that Hans's older brothers pull off against him when he was a small boy. He fell for the prank, believing that "King Gotya" will only "release" one of his brothers if he ''ran around the entire castle three times in just his underwear''. It's implied he ended up being the fall person, despite his older brothers being the ''real'' culprits.

* VillainOfAnotherStory: Hans' father is a cruel dictator who abuses his sons into being bullies and sycophantic abusers totally loyal to him, treats his family with complete indifference, and has people killed or imprisoned for either criticizing him or falling behind on taxes. If this were Hans's story, he would be TheHero rebelling against his abusive father. Unfortunately, [[WellDoneSonGuy his issues]] made him the villain of Anna and Elsa's story.

* IntimidatingRevenueService: The king squeezes every penny from his subjects, viewing them as his personal PiggyBank, and reacts violently when they don't pay. Hans feels nauseated and almost throws up when he gives an account of the tax collection he "conducted."

* EvilCannotComprehendGood: The book reveals that Hans's horrible childhood made him believe LoveIsAWeakness. He thinks Elsa grieving over her sister's supposed death makes her look like a coward, and becomes even more baffled on how Anna managed to reconcile with her sister.
* EvilCannotStandCuteness: Before he's deported back home, Hans is greatly perturbed upon witnessing the Great Thaw. Heck, he even finds it sickening to see Anna reconciling with her sister, the sound of children laughing, and trees blooming.

* EvilTowerOfOminousness: Hans views his father's palace as imposing, being that it looks like a big SeaMonster from a distance due to its long, stony walls. It's implied the king built it to send a message to his subjects that he lords over them. The castle's interior is filled with mirrors to show the royal family's ItsAllAboutMe mindset.

** Hans's father is [[EvilCounterpart the polar opposite]] of Agnarr. He deliberately picks favorites among his sons while letting them torment each other out of cruelty and is at best indifferent to his wife. And while both fathers are responsible for a child developing depression, Agnarr only wants to keep Elsa and Anna safe, but Hans's father is unfeeling to his sons.

** At times, he would also go to the docks to dream of escaping his horrible excuse for a family and [[StartingANewLife settling down some place else]] for good, with nobody mocking him for being a weakling.

* ItsAllAboutMe: It's implied that the king only cares for people when they're useful to him, as he only begins treating Hans better when Hans becomes his gofer, and he throws his wife's birthday celebration not for her sake, but to show off.

* LeftHanging: Potentially due to BroadStrokes, and likely because Anna and Elsa are unlikely to visit the Southern Isles, it's left unknown on what has occurred since Hans was sent back home (except for a brief cameo in ''Frozen Fever''). Nobody knows what's become of Hans' relationship with Lars, how his mother reacted to news of his crimes, the gender of Lars' child or if he and Helga ever learned to get along.

* AbusiveParents: Hans's father is quite an abusive man towards his 13 sons, [[FreudianExcuse emotionally manipulating them into becoming his sycophantic enforcers from the get-go]]. He encourages violence within his family as a way to indoctrinate them into his twisted beliefs. Hans later implies he was also physically abusive when saying that dodging Marshmallow's attacks is nothing compared to his father's.