{"id":42705,"date":"2024-11-25T06:30:56","date_gmt":"2024-11-24T17:30:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?p=42705"},"modified":"2024-11-24T16:53:13","modified_gmt":"2024-11-24T03:53:13","slug":"relooking-at-leadership-in-speculative-fiction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/2024\/11\/25\/relooking-at-leadership-in-speculative-fiction\/","title":{"rendered":"Relooking At Leadership in Speculative Fiction"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve been a tad under the weather this week, which inclined me toward refeaturing a backlist post. In pursuit of which I stumbled on an earlier series on “Twelve Great Leaders of SFF” — so I hope you will forgive me for a “reprise” week.<\/p>\n

The characters featured are in alphabetical order by name, so no preference should be inferred from the order in which they appear. \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n

~*~<\/p>\n

Twelve Great Leaders of SFF: Part 1<\/h3>\n

\"\"B<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is for\u00a0Bitterblue\u00a0<\/strong>from Kristin Cashore\u2019s\u00a0Bitterblue<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0<\/strong>(Genre: YA; Fantasy)<\/span><\/p>\n

I have always been a fan of Kristin Cashore\u2019s Bitterblue. In terms of why, I can\u2019t really say it better than Kristin Cashore herself did, during\u00a0our interview in June 2012<\/a>:\u00a0\u201c\u2026I love her loyalty\u2026I love how hard she tries, and I love her refusal to give up.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 A big part of what Bitterblue is trying so hard to do is be a good head of state for Monsea, the kingdom traumatised by the rule of her father, King Leck. In addition to Kristin\u2019s comments, my own take on Bitterblue was that:\u00a0\u201cI was also impressed by her generosity, as well as her \u201cfidelity\u201d:\u00a0 the way she strives to keeps faith with her subjects, and the truth of the past\u2026\u201d
\n<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

So, yes, Bitterblue is definitely on my \u201cgreat leaders of SFF\u201d list.
\n.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Deadhouse_Gates\"<\/a>C<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is for\u00a0Coltaine<\/strong>, nomad horseman and a general of the Malazan empire in Steven Erikson\u2019s\u00a0Deadhouse Gates<\/strong><\/em>, the second of the\u00a0Malazan Book of the Fallen<\/strong>\u00a0series. (Genre: Epic Fantasy)<\/span><\/p>\n

Coltaine is another one of my favourites, a \u201cbarbarian\u201d outsider regarded with suspicion by many, who puts his doubters to shame through his\u00a0 leadership, courage, and sacrifice. This includes holding together a fighting retreat known as the \u201cChain of Dogs\u201d, a \u2018great march\u2019 in the face of constant privation and hardship as well as battle. Throughout, Coltaine is courageous and astute, a strategist and leader. He is also very human, neither invulnerable nor infallible, but able and determined.
\n.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"StartideRising(1stEd)\"<\/a>C\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>is also for\u00a0Creideiki\u00a0<\/strong>from David Brin\u2019s\u00a0Startide Rising<\/strong>. (Genre: Space Opera, SF )<\/span><\/p>\n

Creideiki is the dolphin captain of the Terran spaceship\u00a0Streaker<\/em>, in a future where humans are constantly skirmishing to maintain their independence in a far-from-friendly alien universe\u2014and where dolphins and chimpanzees have been \u201cuplifted\u201d to sentience. When the story opens, he has managed, despite almost overwhelming odds, to outsmart and elude pursuing alien fleets, proving himself a leader who performs under pressure. He is also a thinker and a philosopher, pursuing\u00a0keneenk<\/em>, a hybrid style of reasoning that combines human logic and cetacean philosophy. Creideiki is brave, smart, and resilient, but\u00a0 I\u2019ve also always thought him an interesting and credible as a non-human protagonist.
\n.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Princess<\/a>E<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is for\u00a0Elfrid<\/strong>, in Ru Emerson\u2019s\u00a0The Princess Of Flames\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(Genre: YA; Fantasy)
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Elfrid is a character who has leadership thrust upon her when she must stand in for a kinsman as the general of a mercenary army. As such she is no figurehead, but must both lead in the field and devise military and political strategy. She is a trained warrior and shares the same magical gifts as the general she is pretending to be, but is challenged by the responsibility for others\u2019 lives. A reserved personality herself, Elfrid also finds it difficult to emulate the general\u2019s easy bonhomie and \u201ccommon touch.\u201d She is an excellent example of a person who teaches herself to become what she naturally is not, succeeding as much through hard work as natural gifts.
\n.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Lord<\/a>F<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is for\u00a0Faramir<\/strong>\u00a0in JRR Tolkien\u2019s\u00a0The Lord Of The Rings\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(Genre: Epic Fantasy)
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I know what you\u2019re thinking, \u201cWhy not Aragorn?\u201d Unquestionably, the latter is a great leader of SFF, but so too is Faramir (imho) and in the books he\u2019s also a much more human and accessible character than Aragorn. The qualities that make him a great leader include that, like both Galadriel and Aragorn, he is able to refuse the temptation of the ring. This demonstrates insight, personal integrity and strength of will. However, although a good start, on their own they do not a great leader make. But Faramir not only holds Osgiliath longer than anyone thought possible, but once it is overrun he also holds together a fighting retreat \u2018against the odds\u2019. Although readers learn from other parts of the story that the soldiers of Minas Tirith not only respect but love Faramir as a leader, I suspect the defence of and retreat from Osgiliath make that clear in any case.
\n.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Paladin<\/a>I<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0is for\u00a0Ista<\/strong>\u00a0in Lois McMaster Bujold\u2019s\u00a0Paladin of Souls\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>(Genre: Fantasy)
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Ista is a middle-aged dowager Queen, recovering from a prolonged period of magic-induced mental illness. She sets off on a pilgrimage, not so much to find herself as to escape from a stifling existence, but gets caught up in\u00a0 sequence of events that force her to once again assume a leadership role in her society and also to confront the exact same magic that led to her illness. Her leadership arises from an interesting mix of events, social hierarchy (she is the dowager Queen after all), but also from dogged determination, forcing herself to do what she sees as her duty, gradually accepting her own power \u2014 and finally, the willingness to take personal and political risks. Ista is a great example of an individual\u2019s transition and\/or rehabilitation back into a leadership role.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’ve been a tad under the weather this week, which inclined me toward refeaturing a backlist post. In pursuit of which I stumbled on an earlier series on “Twelve Great Leaders of SFF” — so I hope you will forgive me for a “reprise” week. The characters featured are in alphabetical order by name, so […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-epicfantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42705"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42705\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42721,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42705\/revisions\/42721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}