Fear

[epistler]

Wow, this place has really gone dead lately. Rest assured, though, that the next chapter spork should be posted soon! Promise!

Meanwhile something has occurred to me, which is that at some point during Eldest, Eragon stops ever feeling any sort of (believable, shown on the page) fear. I think the last time it ever happens is when he tells Saphira he's scared because he doesn't know when he's going to have another back scar pain attack and doesn't know what to do about it. 

From pretty much that point onward he acts like a goddamn robot in dangerous situations. He doesn't panic, he doesn't get sweaty palms or a racing heartbeat - but rather more relevantly, his decisions and behaviour don't ever change as a result of feeling fear. He doesn't irrationally lash out or make stupid decisions because he's afraid. He doesn't freeze up or retreat or even say something stupid because he's afraid. In fact the only time Paolini really bothers to give him some token show of fear or trepidation, it's when he has to... give a speech. Not when he has to, oh, face off against the ultimate evil king of evilness (let's pretend) and his dragon who's the size of a goddamn castle. Nope. Cool as a cucumber. He's calm and clear-headed all the way through.

And it's both unsympathetic and fucking ridiculous.

Comments

[hidden_urchin]

So many people think that a badass character has to be fearless. What they don't quite get is that what makes a character badass is when they're shown overcoming the obstacle despite their fear.

[epistler]

Exactly! Courage is all about overcoming fear - it has nothing to do with never experiencing fear in the first place. There is nothing brave about going into battle convinced that you'll be absolutely fine. That's just stupidity or overconfidence (which should be duly punished), or sociopathy (likewise).

[oblakom]

I think he also kind of panics in that chapter where Saphira tries to ra--ahem tries to seduce Glaedr and then attacks him and Glaedr puts her back in her place. He doesn't know how to reach her and has a panic moment (that Oromis immediately solves by telling his to use the Sue-Horse).

[epistler]

He doesn't in the English version. In fact he's incredibly blasé about it. "Oh no I can't contact Saphira. Well that's annoying I guess."

Hell, I'll quote it for you.

Saphira! cried Eragon. He reached for her with his mind and, to his bewilderment, was deflected by impenetrable barriers that she had erected around herself. He could barely feel her. It was as if he were trying to grasp an orb of polished granite coated with oil. She kept slipping away from him. He looked at Oromis. “Something’s happened to them, hasn’t it?”

[snip]

Eragon joined him, thinking of everything — probable and improbable — that might have befallen Saphira. The two dragons had left at noon, flying north to a place called the Stone of Broken Eggs, where the wild dragons had nested in ages past. It was an easy trip. It couldn’t be Urgals; the elves don’t allow them into Du Weldenvarden, he told himself.

[snip]

“What about Saphira, though? I still can’t contact her.”
“You must go to her,” said Oromis. “She is hurt, in more ways than one. Glaedr said little of what transpired, but I have guessed much, and you would do well to hurry.”
Eragon glanced about for any means of transportation and groaned with anguish when he confirmed that none existed. “How can I reach her? It’s too far to run, there’s no trail, and I can’t—”
“Calm thyself, Eragon. What was the name of the steed who bore you hence from Sílthrim?”
It took Eragon a moment to recall. “Folkvír.”
“Then summon him with your skill at gramarye. Name him and your need in this, the most powerful of languages, and he will come to your assistance.”
Letting the magic suffuse his voice, Eragon cried out for Folkvír, sending his plea echoing over the forested hills toward Ellesméra with all the urgency he could muster.
Oromis nodded, satisfied. “Well done.”

He's so unemotional about it that they might as well be talking about a trip to the shops to buy some milk.

[oblakom]

In Italian it has a bit more emotions. I don't know what is it? Maybe the translators tried to help a bit XD

But it's a pity, really, because the way people face fear is one of the differences between heroes and villains in many stories.

[hidden_urchin]

It's a subset of a larger problem in amateur storytelling: writers overlooking that genuine internal conflict is critical to establishing character and generating empathy.

[epistler]

You're completely right, and it all boils down to learning how to see your characters as people rather than, well, just "characters", i.e puppets you're using to tell your story. You have to learn how to empathise with every single one of them, no matter how terrible or outlandish their actions are, and you have to understand what led to them making the decisions which led to those actions in the first place. Even if you don't really want to. If you refuse to truly put yourself in the shoes of your villain, then you'll end up with a villain who just does bad things because they're Bad. And likewise with your hero. We never get any real justification as to why Eragon is fighting the Empire, beyond petty revenge. He has no grasp of the bigger picture, and that never becomes an acknowledged issue. He doesn't even know what he wants to replace the Empire with or how his cause will improve the lives of the people he claims to be fighting for. He just fights the Empire because that's his pre-assigned "hero" role, and there's no more depth to it than that.

[rhyson]

Yoda never freaks out. I get the sense he's been tempered by age, is past the point of caring about the small worries like other people's opinions, and knows by now that panic doesn't help.

Oromis never freaks out. I get the sense that he just doesn't care. The sooner he gets Eragon out of his hair, the sooner he can get back to staring at a wall. Oh, but he has to make it a teaching moment so he can pretend he did his job.

[rhyson]

I wonder if Eragon being a middle-class, American boy is what helped him sell in the first place? He's not just relatable to the intended audience, he's one of the intended audience. Your average middle-class American doesn't have to worry about dragons swooping in from the sky, but public speaking, ooh, what a nightmare.

[rhyson]

When I say it like that, it seems likely...

[torylltales]

He doesn't irrationally lash out or make stupid decisions because he's afraid.

I was about to argue, but then I realised that "because he's afraid" is the qualifying statement. ;)

[baronleduc]

Wow, this place has really gone dead lately.

Well, if you want, I can share with you my crappy writings and my recents WIPs, so you will spork the shit outta them. Can't confirm if they'll be better than what you're working with TSiaSoS at the moment. :P

Anyway, on the subject!

I do not have my Eldest hardcover copy with me, but I do remember this precise part you put out as an example of Eragon's turn into psychopath. However, was it before or after he turned as a super vegan elven ?

[epistler]

It might have been interesting if Eragon's overly aggressive, violent behaviour actually was being caused by fear or anxiety - and realistically he should have plenty of both considering what he goes through. A well written, human character would have had way more reaction to being thrust into the middle of savage warfare when they're just sixteen years old and sheltered.

[epistler]

It was pretty much right after he got elfified. After that stupid scene you never see him experience believable fear or hesitate over killing and torturing other sentient beings again. Probably just a coincidence, but a more talented author could have done some really interesting things with it.

[epistler]

You could well be right. He sure as hell doesn't act like someone who had a hard-knock upbringing in a violent fantasy world. He acts like some sheltered privileged brat from the suburbs. Which probably does make it easier for some readers to put themselves in his shoes, tbh. He only really worries about the small, petty shit they worry about.

[epistler]

Maybe the translators tried to help a bit XD

It definitely wouldn't be the first time.

But it's a pity, really, because the way people face fear is one of the differences between heroes and villains in many stories.

It really is.

[torylltales]

I've started to notice that with Kira, too. Aside from a few hints here and there of Kira being afraid of fighting, of the alien jellies, or concept of being host to a sentient parasite, etc., she's mostly just emotionally blank for most of the book. There's little to no fear or worry about anything much, not even laser gun battles with Lovecraftian horrors in a foreign environment.

[epistler]

I noticed that too. And really, if the main character doesn't care, why the fuck should we?