Characters You Care About

[Tegid]

I'm wanting to pick your collective brains again and sound you out on various characters in SRL's books. What I'd like to do is select one character at a time and focus on this question:

At what point did you begin to realize or feel that you cared about this person? What was there about this person's character, or what incident took place, that first caught you up and made you become involved in what was happening or would happen to him or her? How did it become plain that this person wasn't going to be just another member of the cast to you, but that this person would be a major vehicle through which you could gladly involve yourself in the goings-on around you in the story? What initially drew you to that person?

(On the other hand, if it is a major character that never connected with you in this way, why do you think that's so?)

For the first character, I'd like to name Aidan.

[Child of Immanuel]

I really, really liked Aidan. It was the contrast between adventurer and timid monk.

[dinadan]

To be honest, Aidan annoyed me more than many of SRL's protangonists. It wasn't until his stint among the Muslims that I really came to like him.

[Margim]

dinadan said:

To be honest, Aidan annoyed me more than many of SRL's protangonists. It wasn't until his stint among the Muslims that I really came to like him.

Agree wholeheartedly. Loved the book, enjoyed the character, but thought Aidan was a whinging, pious wuss until he finally got out of the protected shelter of his monastery and got a taste of what 'real' medieval life was about.

Women, wine and song... yarr.

[dinadan]

Well, let's face it...during the ninth and tenth centuries, Islam's caliphates were pretty much the source of refinement, culture, education, art, philosophy, etc. God bless them, or else the West would never have rediscovered Plato and Aristotle.

[Tegid]

childofimmanuel said:

I really, really liked Aidan. It was the contrast between adventurer and timid monk.

And did you from the very beginning? When you first read about his dream of Byzantium, did you feel that way right away? Or was there some point later on when you started to be aware of this?

dinadan and Margim, you both mention that your attitude toward him definitely changed later in the book. If you'd like, would you talk more at length about that?

[dgan]

I think it was the hardships and horror during and following his work in the mines. That is when he went from immature, whining brat to a hardened man with a realistic outlook on life, death, and spirituality. At least from what I remember.

[aelfric]

I thought Aiden was a superbly drawn portrayal of a young lad from a very sheltered background pitched into a very cruel, savage world for which he is totally unprepared. This shakes his most deeply held certainties and causes him to question and for a time reject everything he has been brought up to believe in yet he emerges from his experience strengthened and renewed. But yeah I thought he was a whining little wuss for much of the book too !

[Margim]

Strangely, I think the turning point for me was on Aidan's failed attempt to secure a 'companion' in Trebizond... it showed that he was human after all, he lost some of his pious edge, seemed to become a little more down to earth.

I think it was this reason Dugal was my favourite character in the book from the begninning... his 'good guy' nature made a nice contrast with the obvious fact that he had deliberately sabotaged a fellow monk for his place on the pilgremage, making him somehow more earthy and real. Aidan seemed to pick up some of this earthiness in Trebizond.

[dgan]

I view Aidan more as a medium that SRL uses to tell the story. Maybe its just semantics, but I felt like Aidan was less of a figure and more of a reference point. For much of the book, he has little influence on everything that happens, but just happens to be at a location and time where things are happening. I'm not sure if that makes sense.

Things often don't after you've been up all night...or so I am told...

[chrystalized]

I completly understand what you mean, I felt the same way about his character. I enjoyed how he wasn't the focus. I find it almost easier to picture things in my mind when the story is about events instead of the people.

[DanTheMan]

I was going to disagree with everyone and say I liked Aidan from the start, but I can't. The more I think about it, I don't know that I ever cared about him. Which I find curious since he is the main character. I found him interesting and enjoyed reading about him. But I'd have to say my favorite character in Byzantium was Gunnar. The change in him was awesome, and I enjoyed his humor and honesty.

[dinadan]

I'll be honest and say that SRL's characters rarely inspire much in me in the way of empassioned feeling. I enjoy them, and I want things to work out well for the good characters (but that's my nature, not the lure of the characters), but I don't have any real attachment to them. I'm more concerned with the overall story in SRL's books.

There are three exceptions that I can think of to this. Llew in SoA, Merlin (PC), and James (Avalon). At the moment, I'm not sure why, other than that they are charcters with whom I personally identify with.

[chrystalized]

I really have to agree with you, especially with james
I have seen you the media can treat people horriblly, I could understand his problems

[CynanMachae]

IMO, Mr. Lawhead did such a good job with Patrick, in "Patrick," that I really felt what Patrick was feeling...

I'm also a big Cynan fan from SoA. SRL did a good job there.