There is a man who gets shipwrecked on a faraway continent and captured by a cult that wants to marry him to a donkey (a female one of course). They want this so he can become part of the cult (although no other cult member has any marriage like this) and also to open him up to spiritual and demonic possession. I'm having trouble thinking of how to write this wedding scene. Basically the man and the donkey are brought to a beach to get wed and all that needs doing is for the man to kiss the donkey's snout, then the wedding is complete. I'm having trouble thinking of how to get this guy to willingly go ahead and kiss the donkey, I've thought of having him dragged out in chains or put under a hallucination to think he's marrying a woman instead. Can you help me?
Can't you just have a few dudes with big guns/knives standing by? Sure the MC doesn't want to kiss/marry the donkey, but in a situation where it's that or immediate death/dismemberment, most people aren't going to need to think very hard. His logic can be that if he 'marries' the donkey now he can still potentially escape afterwards, whereas if he dies now that goes out the window. Shotgun wedding logic at its finest!
Maybe he doesn't exactly understand that it's a marriage? If he doesn't speak their language or know their customs he wouldn't have the foggiest what was going on and would most likely go along with it as a survival tactic. Kissing a donkey's snout isn't exactly disgusting or anything....but also kissing, especially at weddings, isn't common in many cultures. You could have another type of gesture, like the two of them circling a hearthstone or something...it would be easier to coerce someone to do that if he was being prodded in the back with a knife...
The setup will be important and will answer this. There are a number of ways to do this: drugs / money / fear. A lot will depend on the nature of the novel that you are writing. If it's Stephen King like, then a nice horror scene with someone threatening to cut off his goolies might do it. If it's Jasper Fforde style, a pinch of humor and the offer of a big bag of cash might suffice.
Do the cult members speak another language? Anyways, I think it would be better if the tension isn't whether he marries the donkey but instead whether the donkey marries him. Maybe something like this guy has failed every initiation of this tribe and the only thing he's viewed as good for is being their next meal or a donkey groom. So they've already prepared a spit to cook him, got their knives ready and unless the donkey sniffs him and consummates the union by rubbing snouts he's going to be seaside barbecue.
Yeah, I'd go with that. Morals, ethics, and your normal way of doing things go out the window when the natives pull out their machetes.
It's simple. Reverse the genders. I know more than one woman who regularly wonder if they married a donkey. Some days I wouldn't have to leave home to start a survey. If your character's choice is something very unpleasant or matrimony sealed with a kiss, then pucker up. You want a good reason why this is significant for your cult, though. It's odd but your details aren't particularly heinous when considering what happens in the real world.
Based on your description of the story, I'm assuming it's a comedy. You could run a bait and switch gag where there's a smoking hot woman who acts real interested in the MC and the cult leaders ask the MC if he wants to marry Nancy (or whatever you named the donkey). The MC assumes the hot woman is nancy and once the priest/witch doctor/ship captain proclaims them man and donkey, hilarity ensues. If it's supposed to be a serious story, then I'd just go with the dudes with knives. Just be warned. If I was reading a story and some dude is marrying a donkey, serious just got launched out the window. Hope this helps.
Reminds me of the Thieve's Guild scene from the Charles Laughton Hunchback, where they were about to kill old what's-his-name, Grinoire I think, unless one of the women agrees to marry him, and Esmerelda does because she's so kind-hearted and can't bear to see him die. I suppose the scene is in just about every version of the Hunchback, but that's the one I'm familiar with.
Have it like Monty Hall at the end. He's said his vows and now he gets to see the bride. Curtain 1, 2, or 3?
How about this? The cult wants to marry this outsider to the donkey to appease and strengthen their ties to the island's deities. The man is escorted to the beach while being prodded in the back to meet his intended. The officiant shaman contacts the deity to bless and approve their union, which it does. The man and the donkey are brought closer together, when he is instructed to kiss its snout. He objects, saying he is already married but the cult doesn't care and has pointy weapons aimed at him. With the donkey waiting patiently, he places his hands either side of her head and kisses her snout. With that, their wedding is complete, their matrimony begins and he is now part of the cult. Fyi there is no bestiality in this story so don't worry. This is the most intimate they get. Also the donkey is the main antagonist.
"...you may now kiss the ass." (Sorry/not sorry, couldn't resist.) Yeah, gonna have to agree on the shotgun style ceremony. Sounds like a strange twist on The Gods Must Be Crazy, and instead of a jerk tossing a coke bottle out of a helicopter, a stranded guy gets married to a donkey to appease the Island Spirits. It might be best to portray the fear and awkwardness of the the whole ordeal, and it will depend on the reader's interpretation of the events to decide whether it is weirdly funny, or to take it seriously. Probably the best way to get worthwhile feedback is to write the scene out, and get some thoughts and suggestions on how to shore it up and get the tone of it the way you intend it to be. Good luck.
