Jordan's death caused an intersting paradigm shift in me. (Oh don't
worry it's not some cliche crap about mortality.) I think I might not
be a fan anymore. I used to be a fan of a lot of things -- Robert
Jordan's
writing was one of them. He's still a favourite authour... but I'm not
a fan. I'm not quite sure what the distinction is, but it's important.
This could be a coincidence of timing. I've felt these obsessive
fanish tendencies erode over the past couple years, and the death of
RJ might have been the last straw. Funny thing is, I think I'm glad.
It's oddly liberating to be able to silently enjoy something, without
wearing in on a t-shirt or going to conventions, or reading message
boards or trying to convince my friends/neighbours/coworkers of how
great it is. In that respect, I have closure.
Now plot closure. The last volume? You know, if a Memory of Light
never gets published... I think I might not mind. When I started
reading this series, I read it for very different reason than I do
now. More than anything Robert Jordan's work was a bridge between the
escapism that I loved as a teen and the more chracter-driven lit that
I read now. For that, I'll always value it. The value that I put on
the character development and interaction of WoT can't be diminished
by the absence of an ending. I've always been a little apprehensive
about the end of the Wheel of time. Would it live up to the hype? Were
my expectations too high? The lack of a conclusion is quite relieving
to me, and ironically fitting, considering the circular subject matter
of the series. What I think the ending might be is probably far more
spectacular than it could ever be.
I wouldn't respect Wile E. Coyote nearly as much if he actually caught
roadrunner.
More to say later
--
RM
|
