Bren Cameron: The Ultimate Underdog

One of the most popular character types in fiction is that of the underdog.  We feel for Harry Potter, for example, because he is an orphan, and his aunt and uncle treat him so poorly.  Harry, to a certain extent, is a modern, male version of Cinderella, who was mistreated by her stepmother and stepsisters, and like Harry, needs magic to elevate her status in life.  In Science Fiction, the name Ender Wiggin stands out.  In Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, Ender is a young boy who eventually saves Earth from a powerful alien species through his training, fortitude, and intelligence.  To this list I would add one more: Bren Cameron in C. J. Cherryh’s novel Foreigner.

After writing yesterday’s blog, I realized that I really hadn’t told you much about the novel, aside from that one moment, near the end of the book, in which Bren’s worldview is suddenly transformed, and he must prove his worth.  For those of you who follow my blog, but will not read every book I recommend, that may be enough for you.  But I felt I simply had to tell you more about Bren’s journey, because of all our favorite fictional characters, underdogs are often the ones we identify with the most.  Consequently, their portraits of courage, determination, and endurance help sustain us during the difficult phases of our lives.

Unlike Harry Potter, Cinderella, or Ender Wiggin, Bren Cameron is a grown man.  He has worked hard to achieve his status in life.  He alone, on this world of the Atevi, has been allowed to leave the island where the rest of humanity is consigned to live.  He works as an advisor to an important Atevi player in world politics, and acts as an ambassador for all his fellow humans.  He sees himself as having acted properly in every respect during his years of service, and as having served as a positive force for both races.  So when he awakens one night to find an Atevi breaking into his house, he is shaken out of his comfort zone.  

He debates whether he could call and alert his fellow humans on their island, but his Atevi security force and household staff assure him he has nothing further to fear.  Compounding his dilemma is that he defended himself with a gun that, according to Atevi/human agreements, he is not supposed to possess.  Soon afterward, Bren is summoned to his Atevi boss, the Aiji, who sends him to hide out in his aunt's castle.

As a former political player, the Aiji’s aunt has argued against the current state of Atevi/human relations.  Bren wonders if he can trust her when he shares a cup of tea with her and nearly dies.  After he is nursed back to health, he is nearly assassinated again by another Atevi assassin.  Bren lives from day to day in a constant state of worry, plagued by more questions than answers.  Who among his staff (and the aunt’s) can he trust?  Can he even trust the Aiji anymore?  He is cut off from everything he has formerly depended on, including any source of news.  

Compounding his anxiety is the Atevi psychology.  They view life as a complex web of allegiances, and follow orders out of loyalty to their superiors, seemingly without regard to whether or not they personally like an individual.  In fact, there is no Atevi name for liking a person.  Every time Bren tries to convince someone that he likes them, that he regards them as a friend, the Atevi walks away from the encounter wondering why Bren has just equated them with his taste in salads. 

As much as he has studied them, and as long as he has lived among them, Bren will never truly understand the Atevi.  It doesn’t help that they are taller and stronger than him: even with his skill in martial arts, he is no match for them physically.  And, as the incident with the tea showed, much of the native plant life is hostile to humans, making him utterly reliant upon their good graces for his survival.

When events arouse widespread hostility against humans, not only Bren’s life is threatened, but that of every human on the planet.  I don’t wish to ruin the story for you, but I’ll leave you with this.  Unlike Harry Potter and Cinderella, Bren has no magic to aid him.  Unlike Ender Wiggin, he possesses no superior mental skills.  He alone, through hard work and great effort, may be able to save the current situation and preserve Atevi/human relations.  But to do that, first he must survive overwhelming odds on a hostile planet peopled by giants.  

For me, this makes Bren Cameron the ultimate fictional underdog.  Of all the literary examples mentioned, his profile of courage, determination, and endurance will sustain me through the trials that lay in my future.  If my recommendation of him consequently comes to your aid during your own dark days, I will have considered writing this blog post well worth the time and effort expended.

With warmest regards,

Dragon Dave

P.S.  Who are your favorite fictional underdogs?  I'd love to hear about them, and about how they've helped you through your own times of trial, if you'd like to share your opinions and experiences with me.

Steven Brust: Taking the Chance

Vlad Taltos: a profile of courage.

In his Vlad Taltos novels, Steven Brust moves backward and forward chronologically, depicting his central character at key stages of his life.  Sometimes, as in Taltos, he also moves backward and forward within a particular novel.  In doing so, Brust frames the narrative with relevant moments or memories that have contributed to Vlad’s present circumstances. 

With Taltos, the fourth novel in publication order, we meet Vlad just after he has taken over his operation, and long before the marriage problems he faced in the third novel, Teckla.  At this point, Vlad has yet to meet Cawti, the woman who will become his wife, or any of the powerful people who will aid him in later adventures.  In Taltos, Vlad has just started running his business, following the death of his former boss.  The various activities he oversees include, as Vlad puts it, “untaxed gambling, unlicensed brothels, making loans at illegal rates, dealing in stolen goods…that sort of thing.” 

Lacking first-hand experience at running his territory, Vlad hires experienced people to assist him.  One is Kragar, with whom he’s worked for years.  Another is Quion, a recent hire.  Unfortunately, one day Quion skips town with some of Vlad’s money.  In the House of the Jhereg, which oversees all such under-the-radar activities, any sign of weakness is an invitation for your competitors to move in on your territory.  So regardless of whether or not he liked Quion, and regardless of the amount the man stole, Vlad must capture and kill him.  To do less means risking war with other bosses (such as that depicted in the second published novel of the series, Yendi) that will drain his resources, and may cost Vlad his operation, if not his life.

Kragar tracks the man’s moves, and learns that before he teleported to Dzur Mountain with Vlad’s money, before he even started working for Vlad, Quion visited Castle Black.  This places Quion within the company of people more powerful than the other territory bosses of House Jhereg.  Sethra Lavode, a legendary figure, supposedly lives in Dzur Mountain, although few have ever seen her and lived to tell about it.  She’s a shape-shifter, holds a Great Weapon, and is probably the most dangerous wizard of all.  If she doesn’t kill trespassers, she could easily turn them into animals.  Also, as a vampire, Sethra is a minimum of fifteen thousand years old.  Likewise, Morrolan is no slouch.  He’s a sorcerer, a wizard, a higher-up in the House of the Dragon, and a friend of the Empress.  His fiefdom includes Dzur Mountain, which suggests a link between himself and Sethra. 

With his back against the wall, Vlad knows what he must do.  In the hopes of tracing Quion’s movements, he requests an invitation to Castle Black.  When Morrolan extends this courtesy, Vlad knows the visit may cost him his life.  He may be trained in both witchcraft and sorcery, but Morrolan is a master of both.  As a Dragaeran, Morrolan is hundreds, if not thousands of years old.  Think of all the knowledge, skill, and power he must have accumulated during that time.  Meanwhile, Vlad is a human like you or me (or at least like me).  He is probably in his early twenties, and his lifespan therefore limited to several decades.  Vlad may be an accomplished swordsman, and practiced in the use of other weapons, yet more than likely, Morrolan is his superior in all these areas as well. 

Against Kragar’s pleading, and against Loiosh’s wishes (Loiosh is Vlad’s familiar, a sentient animal called a jhereg that is psionically linked to him, and the namesake of his House), Vlad decides to visit the floating castle without either of the two people he trusts most.

Alone.

As I work on my dragon novel, I fear the rejections that accompany the submission process.  If I’m lucky enough to sign with an agent, only to find we don't get along?  If I’m lucky enough to see my manuscript sell, what if the editor at my eventual publishing house doesn’t like my work?  Or what if the editor who adores my work moves on, and my novel isn’t to his or her replacement’s tastes?  And then, there’s the most irrational (but no less worrisome) fear of them all: what if I don’t like how my life changes after I am published?  

After Vlad decides to visit Morrolan, he ends up talking with Nielar, his first boss in the Jhereg and now one of his employees.  Of Nielar, Vlad says, “I never know how to take Nielar.  I mean, he could have had the position I hold if he’d been willing to fight a bit, but he decided he’d rather stay small and healthy.  I can respect that, I guess, but, well, I’d respect him more if he’d decided to take the chance.”

Faced with so many dangers, yet yearning to achieve my ambitions, I take comfort in Steven Brust’s character of Vlad Taltos, a man who knows what he has to do, and does it.  He risks everything to pursue the life he has chosen.  If I truly believe that Fiction has much to teach us about life, if I truly believe that Fiction often contains more truth than so-called NonFiction, then I must follow Vlad’s example, or…. 

No.  Anything else is unthinkable.

Heading toward my own first meeting with Morrolan,

Dragon Dave

Related Dragon Cache entries

Steven Brust: My Ultimate Weapon

Steven Brust: The Complete Package

Related Internet Links

Dream Café

The Dragaera Timeline

Cracks and Shards

Dragaera Wiki