A Timely Look at 'Eragon'
Posted on 15 March 2008 by James Cormier at 2:20 AM | Comments (0)
Tags: Christopher Paolini, Eragon, Genre, Reviews, The Inheritance Cycle
Liz Rosenberg had it right when she wrote, in her 2003 review of Christopher Paolini's novel Eragon, that it's difficult to approach the book without certain preconceptions: the author's age is almost impossible to ignore. The story is old hat to any modern fantasy fan: Paolini began writing Eragon, book one of the Inheritance cycle (of which Eldest is the most recent volume, with Brisingr set for a September 2008 release), when he was 15 years old. Four years later, in 2003, the novel had been acquired by Knopf and Paolini became a New York Times bestselling author. Needless to say, I was impressed before I cracked the spine -- thus the problem of preconceptions.Eragon was published as a work of young adult fiction; as such, it's tempting to judge it by young adult standards. Add to that the temptation to judge Paolini's abilities according to his age at the series' inception and one finds that the deck is heavily stacked in the author's favor before the reader even turns a page. Trust me, I was tempted. I was tempted to lead a proverbial parade in Paolini's favor, praising to the skies his nascent creativity and holding his story up as an example to America's troubled youth: Write! Create! Wallow no more in the television's equivocal glow! But though the reading world may still view Mr. Paolini as a precocious teen, he is now 24 years old, an adult writing a teenager's story. He still sees himself as a writer of young adult fiction, but his intelligence and the insightful manner in which he has been known to talk about his work demand a more mature critique. With that in mind, I have chosen to give him no quarter. I will review his work as an adult reader and as an artistic endeavor now continued by an adult writer, whatever his age may have been at the start. Though I find Eragon itself to be above all a derivative work, so to speak, it is clear that Paolini's heart is in the right place.
In the spirit of the Bard's ongoing reviews of older works, let's take a look back at the book that gave Potter a run for its middle school money.
Eragon has been reviewed many, many times at this point, and the focus of most of those reviews, positive and negative both, has been the influences Paolini drew upon to create his story. Most often it has been compared to Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, and Anne McCaffrey's Pern series, due to obvious similarities between these works and Paolini's world of Alagaësia. I won't belabor the subject by listing the similiarities here; the Wikipedia entries on Paolini and Eragon both address the critical reception of the book and its influences.
Suffice it to say that Alagaësia is a world ruled by a cruel king and awaiting the return of the legendary Dragon Riders -- powerful wizard knights who ride intelligent dragons to whom they are telepathically linked. Young Eragon, the main character, comes across a dragon egg accidentally and suddenly finds himself the first Rider in over a century. This places him in an unfortunate position: like it or not, he has suddenly become a valuable asset to both King Galbatorix and the rebellious Varden. Galbatorix, the last of the original Riders, slew his fellows and assumed power over the land; the virtual immortality granted to Riders by virtue of their link with their dragons means his reign is nigh on interminable. The novel follows Eragon and his dragon Saphira's journey from home to the wider world, where he must decide what to do next. As you might guess, he ends up fighting for the good guys. For those of you still following along, it should be obvious by this point that Eragon is heartily steeped in fantasy archetype.
Paolini is upfront about his influences, ranging from the obvious ones -- Tolkien and McCaffrey -- to the more academic, such as Norse literature and language. Critics love to belabor Tolkien's influence when reviewing fantasy, but as time passes the comparison is growing stale and rather obvious; arguably, every modern epic fantasy has been influenced by J.R.R. Tolkien in some way. Paolini actually talks about the genre in a refreshingly honest way, happily admitting that his own fantasy reading directly influences his writing. In a Q & A on Shurtugal.com, the leading Inheritance fan site, he talks about the inspiration for his world in terms of what has come before:
But I digress. This is supposed to be a review, not an essay on genre. With that in mind, I think I can cut to the chase. Eragon, while a proud accomplishment for so young an author, is a mediocre novel by an inexperienced writer. In this first book, Paolini ultimately fails to take the myriad of influences he so honestly acknowledges and make them his own. The story is too familiar, the plot too predictable, and the characters too obviously drawn.
The problem is not so much concept but execution. Eragon, from whose point of view the entire story is told, speaks and thinks in a trite, awkward manner that cannot be explained away by the fantasy setting or the character's youth. Eragon has a tendency to wonder in an embarassingly simplistic manner about the broader questions of life, typically at chapter's end. Like many inexperienced fantasy writers, Mr. Paolini also has difficulty with exposition, and tends to have his characters unrealistically recite relevant facts in conversation. The dialogue in general is often stilted and overly complex; characters sometimes speak in clauses and sub-clauses -- dialogue that was written to be read, not written as it might actually be spoken.
Imperfect technique can be forgiven, of course, especially in a first novel, if the substance is there. But Eragon, at least from an adult reader's point of view, is too wrapped up in its own cliches to allow the story itself to take over. Paolini describes the features of his world well -- the book is full of elaborate description -- but in the end he fails to demonstrate that he has done anything new. Eragon's tale -- the classic Hero's Journey -- has been told many times by many great writers. To attempt it today, even in young adult fiction, requires a level of creative reinvention that Eragon just doesn't reach.
The plot itself is a bit haphazard. Eragon leaves home (accompanied by Saphira and Brom, the requisite Wise Old Mentor character) under the pretense of seeking revenge against evil minions of the king who attacked his home while seeking him out. Although the revenge concept sets Eragon's departure from home apart from the cliche (come on, how many fantasies begin with the protagonist being in danger at home for one reason or another?), Paolini never really follows up. Eragon has no burning need for revenge, and at no time really comes across as very angry. He seems to leave home mostly because Paolini needs him to. This is something of a theme with Paolini's style: he often hints that he might have more up his sleeve than mere regurgitation of tired ideas, but rarely delivers.
The better parts of the book showcase its potential. I'm willing to be surprised, and willing to be proven wrong. Despite the unambiguous path they seem to be set upon, you can't help but root for Eragon and be pleased at his success; you hope that greater, more unique adventure lay ahead. I hope that with the remainder of the cycle, Paolini can take me to new and fascinating places and leave the derivative behind.
That said, look back soon for reviews of the remaining volumes in Inheritance.
Suffice it to say that Alagaësia is a world ruled by a cruel king and awaiting the return of the legendary Dragon Riders -- powerful wizard knights who ride intelligent dragons to whom they are telepathically linked. Young Eragon, the main character, comes across a dragon egg accidentally and suddenly finds himself the first Rider in over a century. This places him in an unfortunate position: like it or not, he has suddenly become a valuable asset to both King Galbatorix and the rebellious Varden. Galbatorix, the last of the original Riders, slew his fellows and assumed power over the land; the virtual immortality granted to Riders by virtue of their link with their dragons means his reign is nigh on interminable. The novel follows Eragon and his dragon Saphira's journey from home to the wider world, where he must decide what to do next. As you might guess, he ends up fighting for the good guys. For those of you still following along, it should be obvious by this point that Eragon is heartily steeped in fantasy archetype.
Paolini is upfront about his influences, ranging from the obvious ones -- Tolkien and McCaffrey -- to the more academic, such as Norse literature and language. Critics love to belabor Tolkien's influence when reviewing fantasy, but as time passes the comparison is growing stale and rather obvious; arguably, every modern epic fantasy has been influenced by J.R.R. Tolkien in some way. Paolini actually talks about the genre in a refreshingly honest way, happily admitting that his own fantasy reading directly influences his writing. In a Q & A on Shurtugal.com, the leading Inheritance fan site, he talks about the inspiration for his world in terms of what has come before:
I take what I like, ignore what I don’t, toss in my own ideas, and mix the whole batch until I have a coherent story. It’s the same with every genre. Think of murder mysteries. There’s always a dead body. There’s always a killer. And there’s always someone who has to figure out the whole mess. How you tell the story, though, determines the end result.This is a surprisingly apt description of the manner in which genre authors deal with genre formula, and a very postmodern way of thinking about fantasy. When it comes to epic fantasy, Paolini seems to be saying, the major influences are obvious to any good reader of the genre. Yes, things are formulaic to a certain extent, things are derivative, but that doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing. The creativity comes in playing with these preconceptions in a new way and telling a new story with familiar elements. Paolini is fond of saying that he writes what he likes to read, and thus what he seems to enjoy reading are books that put fresh faces on familiar themes. Like it or not, there will always be a place for this in fantasy. Genre fiction, by definition, is founded upon a core of common elements.
But I digress. This is supposed to be a review, not an essay on genre. With that in mind, I think I can cut to the chase. Eragon, while a proud accomplishment for so young an author, is a mediocre novel by an inexperienced writer. In this first book, Paolini ultimately fails to take the myriad of influences he so honestly acknowledges and make them his own. The story is too familiar, the plot too predictable, and the characters too obviously drawn.
The problem is not so much concept but execution. Eragon, from whose point of view the entire story is told, speaks and thinks in a trite, awkward manner that cannot be explained away by the fantasy setting or the character's youth. Eragon has a tendency to wonder in an embarassingly simplistic manner about the broader questions of life, typically at chapter's end. Like many inexperienced fantasy writers, Mr. Paolini also has difficulty with exposition, and tends to have his characters unrealistically recite relevant facts in conversation. The dialogue in general is often stilted and overly complex; characters sometimes speak in clauses and sub-clauses -- dialogue that was written to be read, not written as it might actually be spoken.
Imperfect technique can be forgiven, of course, especially in a first novel, if the substance is there. But Eragon, at least from an adult reader's point of view, is too wrapped up in its own cliches to allow the story itself to take over. Paolini describes the features of his world well -- the book is full of elaborate description -- but in the end he fails to demonstrate that he has done anything new. Eragon's tale -- the classic Hero's Journey -- has been told many times by many great writers. To attempt it today, even in young adult fiction, requires a level of creative reinvention that Eragon just doesn't reach.
The plot itself is a bit haphazard. Eragon leaves home (accompanied by Saphira and Brom, the requisite Wise Old Mentor character) under the pretense of seeking revenge against evil minions of the king who attacked his home while seeking him out. Although the revenge concept sets Eragon's departure from home apart from the cliche (come on, how many fantasies begin with the protagonist being in danger at home for one reason or another?), Paolini never really follows up. Eragon has no burning need for revenge, and at no time really comes across as very angry. He seems to leave home mostly because Paolini needs him to. This is something of a theme with Paolini's style: he often hints that he might have more up his sleeve than mere regurgitation of tired ideas, but rarely delivers.
The better parts of the book showcase its potential. I'm willing to be surprised, and willing to be proven wrong. Despite the unambiguous path they seem to be set upon, you can't help but root for Eragon and be pleased at his success; you hope that greater, more unique adventure lay ahead. I hope that with the remainder of the cycle, Paolini can take me to new and fascinating places and leave the derivative behind.
That said, look back soon for reviews of the remaining volumes in Inheritance.
On Tap
Copyright 2008 The Accidental Bard. Some Rights Reserved.
Leave a comment