Shindere

Trigger Warning!
This page contains mature content not suitable for all ages or information, language or images that can be sensitive to some people! Precaution is advised.

Content Warnings: Mentions of death.

Spoilers Ahead!
Some examples listed below are spoilers, so read at your own risk!
Content Spoilers: "Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai.", "Shindere Shoujo to Kodoku na Shinigami", "Ushiro no Shindere-san" and "Wakaokami wa Shougakusei!"

I'm already dead. I'm a ghost. Other than you, humans can't see me.
— Miki, from Ushiro no Shindere-san

"Shindere" 死ンデレ is a term for a character who has died and become a ghost, but still has a love interest. Often their strong feelings of affection for their love interest and the regret of leaving them alone make them stick around instead of passing onto the afterlife. They may have also been revived, but with ghost-like powers which may have drawbacks.[1]

Meaning of the Name

Shindere (死ンデレ) comes from the words "shinu" (死ぬ), meaning "to die," and "deredere" (デレデレ), meaning "to be lovestruck".

Origin

The first use of the term "shindere" was in the manga "Ushiro no Shindere-san" (うしろノしんでれさん), published in 2010.^{[citation needed]} In the manga, Miki is a ghost who wants to become human again. She decided to play a shinigami's game where she must get the person she likes to return her feelings before an hourglass pendant she wears runs out of time, or she and that person will be sent to hell. The protagonist is the only person who is able to see her in the beginning, and she falls for him after he saves her from being hit by a truck.

Later on in the manga, he encounters another ghost who is the double of a living girl, Kozonoi Kurotama and Kozonoi Shirotama, respectively. Kurotama appeared when Shirotama had a near-death experience because of her illness, which seemed to grant Shirotama another chance at life. Kurotama also falls for the protagonist. This series was put on hiatus over 10 years ago, so it's unlikely to reach a conclusion.

Another, more popular manga that was published around the same time used the term "shindere", called "Shindere Shoujo to Kodoku na Shinigami" (シンデレ少女と孤独な死神).^{[citation needed]} In this series, Wakanae Akira gets a transfer student in her class who claims to be a shinigami, and warns everyone to stay away from him, or they will die. However, the two of them end up becoming the class presidents, so they are forced to interact. At first, she doesn't like him, since he threatened her friend, but she feels sorry for him after she hears of the people who have died in front of him.

They both go to a shrine to get some food, and after an altercation, the boy accidentally pushes her off the railing, killing her. Her ghost stays around for a moment in the physical world and she sees him despair over her death, blaming himself because he developed a crush on her. She is taken to the god of the island, who gives her a choice: she can die, or she may be revived, but her soul will shatter if she ever leaves the island, since the god's powers cannot extend past the island's radius. She chooses to come back to life, inhabiting her body once more. In the next chapter, she is killed again, but learns that the god is able to revive her as many times as she wishes, basically making her immortal.

Types of Shindere

There are two kinds of shindere characters: those who died and were reanimated as a ghost, and those who were brought back to life with ties to the supernatural.

Type 1: Ghost

Shindere characters who are ghosts usually cannot be seen by most people, thus living very lonely lives. When they find someone who can see them, they will follow that person around, since they want someone to interact with.

These types of shindere may not remember their life as a human. They can also either become human again by the end of the story, or, more commonly, ascend to the afterlife.

Type 2: Revived

Shindere characters who have been brought back to life but still have some ties to the supernatural. This can manifest in many ways, such as the ability to see ghosts and other supernatural beings, immortality, or powers related to spirits. These powers usually come with drawbacks, such as being unable to do certain things, or having to stay in a certain area, since they did cross the barrier of life and death.

These character can have any type of personality and can have any reaction to reaction to feeling in love. However, these characters usually fall for someone who knows of their power and of their past, of which the shindere told them after getting really close to that other person.

This dere type does not apply to those who died and were sent to another world, since they did not return to their own life, rather, they started a new one.

Differences From Other Archetypes

Shindere is similar to zondere, since they are both dere types who have been revived. However, shindere characters are brought back as ghosts or humans, while zondere characters are brought back as zombies.

Similar Japanese Archetypes

Monster Danshi: A term for a beautiful male character who share traits with a monster, often which is a ghost.
Monster Musume: A term for a beautiful female character who share traits with a monster, often which is a ghost.
Zondere: A term for a character who has become a zombie, but still has a love interest.

Characters with this Personality

See Shindere/Anime Characters to see characters from anime media.
See Shindere/Western Characters to see characters from western media.

Gallery

References

Dere Types
Japanese	Standard	Bakadere ♥ Biridere ♥ Bokodere ♥ Butsudere ♥ Darudere ♥ Deredere ♥ Dorodere ♥ Erodere ♥ Gandere ♥ Goudere ♥ Gundere ♥ Himedere ♥ Hinedere ♥ Kamidere ♥ Kichidere ♥ Kiredere ♥ Kiridere ♥ Kuudere ♥ M Dere ♥ Nyandere ♥ Onidere ♥ Ojoudere ♥ Rindere ♥ Roshidere ♥ S Dere ♥ Shindere ♥ Teredere ♥ Tsundere ♥ Undere ♥ Usodere ♥ Utsudere ♥ Uzadere ♥ Wandere ♥ Yandere ♥ Yoidere ♥ Zondere ♥
Japanese	Variations	Deretsun ♥ Tsun-Aho ♥ Tsundora ♥ Tsun-Pure ♥ Tsunshun ♥ Tsuntere ♥
Western	Standard	Bocchandere ♥ Byoukidere ♥ Dandere ♥ Kanedere ♥ Kekkondere ♥ Nemuidere ♥ Oujidere ♥ Smugdere ♥ Teasedere ♥ Thugdere ♥
Western	Variations	Ahodere (Western) ♥ Kidere ♥ Mayadere (Western) ♥ Megadere (Western) ♥
Other	Unofficial Dere ♥