Why Did CP Make Eragon "Annoying"?, What is his intent with the character? Options

[Kvetha Fricai]

Yes.. But who is to say he wasn't as immature as eragon when brom was his age... Just becuase and egg hatches when the kid is young doesn't make them instantly mature..

[ND]

Well when you are young most of the time you are emotionaly unstable.

Yes but I'm not talking about the real world here, just the series. Like I said before, it's entirely disproportionate in my opinion because Eragon is not the only young adult and yet he is the only one expressing emotional instability. Like I said before, it's not like his peers are in their thirties. Katrina is at best a year older than Eragon, Roran and Nasuada two and Murtagh maybe three. But they all have an adult quality that Eragon doesn't and not just by a little but by alot. Arya may be a century old but compared to her race it is the equivalent of what any of the above characters are to humans. Same with Orik. Eragon just by his experiences alone should have seen more maturity than he has shown overall which is why I wish they kept in that first deleted scene because that's the Eragon I expected to see at this point. The last half of Brisingr I was more relieved to see him starting to act more like his peers so I expect to see nothing but that side of Eragon in book four.

[Kvetha Fricai]

I've just went back and kind of skimmed the last part of Brisingr and I would have to say I agree with you.. I didn't notice before but the way he takes things in and handles them is showing improvement.. If he continues to act that way then I can see him being more mature in book four.. Although, I don't expect to see the change as fast as would like it to.

[Jm33]

Well when you are young most of the time you are emotionaly unstable.

Yes but I'm not talking about the real world here, just the series. Like I said before, it's entirely disproportionate in my opinion because Eragon is not the only young adult and yet he is the only one expressing emotional instability. Like I said before, it's not like his peers are in their thirties. Katrina is at best a year older than Eragon, Roran and Nasuada two and Murtagh maybe three. But they all have an adult quality that Eragon doesn't and not just by a little but by alot. Arya may be a century old but compared to her race it is the equivalent of what any of the above characters are to humans. Same with Orik.

You're right. Eragon, Roran, Katrina, Murtagh, and Nasuada are basically the same age. However, I think the way CP portrayed Eragon is accurate considering his upbringing, and here are my reasons why:

Roran: He grew up as the older brother. This alone accountants for his maturity level. He had more responsiblity growing up. And those of us who grew up as the eldest know first hand how immature our younger siblings could be.

Katrina: She grew up an only child. She had to take on all of the responsibilties that would otherwise have been shared if she had a sibling. Plus, her mother died when she was young which added even more repsonsiblity to the pile. And those of us who have had a parent die when we were young know how quickly you grow up.

Murtagh: His upbringing doesn't need an explaination. From the time he could walk he had to fend for himself.

Nasuada: She was groomed from an early age to be able to step into the role she currently holds. It's not like being given the leadership of the Varden was something unexpected.

Eragon: He was brought up as the younger brother. And we know how annoying our younger siblings could be. They ask stupid question after stupid question until we feel like smacking them on the head, or as Brom would say, "box his ears". And then, without warning, the fate of the entire land is thrust into his lap. He's doing the best he can considering.

So in my opinion, CP's portrayl of Eragon is an accuratre portrayl. He's an annoying younger brother who's been put in a situation that the best of us would have crumbled under. And I'm happy that CP portrayed Eragon this way. It's more believable. If he made Eragon too perfect, then we'd be sitting her saying that CP didn't make Eragon real enough.

This post has been edited by Jm33: Nov 17 2009, 07:01 PM

[ND]

If he made Eragon too perfect, then we'd be sitting her saying that CP didn't make Eragon real enough.

I'm not looking for perfection, just more maturity. I'll be the first to say there should be some fall out but not to the point where I can compare it to a modern day sixteen year old kid but I cannot do the same for his peers who are basically as young as he is. Like you said, the burdens, responsibilities and losses his peers have suffered matured them one way or the other, made them adults. That didn't noticeably happen with Eragon throughout most of the series even though throughout the series, he has experienced (and in some greater amounts) losses, heavy burdens and the what not. Some of his experiences should have forced maturity out of him just as it did and has done with his peers. We see Roran and Katrina struggling to hold their relationship together in the midst of Sloan's betrayal, leaving Carvahall, Katrina's kidnapping by the Ra'zac, her pregnancy, the war, etc. We see Nasuada struggling to lead the Varden as she deals with a corrupt council, adequate protection from assassination, controversial negotiations, etc. Arya, we see trying to learn how to connect with people again (namely Eragon) and recover from the death of her best friend/lover and the torture she suffered for months under Durza. And yet these people are seen as adults and Eragon as a child though he is in their age group and has suffered his own amount of burdens, losses and responsibilities. Not really because of his age (which is old enough to be considered a man in the Inheritance "society") but because of how he acts.

[Silverine]

Yes but I'm not talking about the real world here, just the series. Like I said before, it's entirely disproportionate in my opinion because Eragon is not the only young adult and yet he is the only one expressing emotional instability. Like I said before, it's not like his peers are in their thirties. Katrina is at best a year older than Eragon, Roran and Nasuada two and Murtagh maybe three. But they all have an adult quality that Eragon doesn't and not just by a little but by alot.

My thoughts exactly. I think the most eye-catching difference is between Eragon's and Roran's maturity because they had the same upbringing. Roran is 2 years older maximum and he can act like a grown-up. I know their problems are not the same as Eragon being a Rider and all, but Roran has his own problems as well that shouldn't be underestimated, such as protecting a pregnant wife along with taking part in the war and fighting.
It's okay that Eragon can't be compared to the much tougher Murtagh considering the differences in their upbringings but I think Eragon can in some measure be compared to Roran. And in the "maturity-competition" Roran would undoubtedly win.

[Jm33]

If he made Eragon too perfect, then we'd be sitting her saying that CP didn't make Eragon real enough.

I'm not looking for perfection, just more maturity. I'll be the first to say there should be some fall out but not to the point where I can compare it to a modern day sixteen year old kid but I cannot do the same for his peers who are basically as young as he is. Like you said, the burdens, responsibilities and losses his peers have suffered matured them one way or the other, made them adults. That didn't noticeably happen with Eragon throughout most of the series even though throughout the series, he has experienced (and in some greater amounts) losses, heavy burdens and the what not. Some of his experiences should have forced maturity out of him just as it did and has done with his peers. We see Roran and Katrina struggling to hold their relationship together in the midst of Sloan's betrayal, leaving Carvahall, Katrina's kidnapping by the Ra'zac, her pregnancy, the war, etc. We see Nasuada struggling to lead the Varden as she deals with a corrupt council, adequate protection from assassination, controversial negotiations, etc. Arya, we see trying to learn how to connect with people again (namely Eragon) and recover from the death of her best friend/lover and the torture she suffered for months under Durza. And yet these people are seen as adults and Eragon as a child though he is in their age group and has suffered his own amount of burdens, losses and responsibilities. Not really because of his age (which is old enough to be considered a man in the Inheritance "society") but because of how he acts.

I'm not disagreeing. In some ways he is annoying and immature. I'm just trying to figure out why he acts the way he does. And the reason why I think he does is as following. He grew up as the annoying younger "brother" and then out of nowhere without any warning he had all of this thrown at him. The others had years to cope with their situation in life. Do you think Nasuada would be able to lead the Varden if she wasn't groomed by Ajihad from a young age? Or would Kartina be different if she had a sibling and her mother didn't die? Would Roran be any different if his and Eragon's birth orders were reversed? Brom said it best...(not a direct quote but paraphrased) Eragon is a stone headed dolt who asks too many questions.

This post has been edited by Jm33: Nov 18 2009, 05:47 PM

[ND]

I'm not disagreeing. In some ways he is annoying and immature. I'm just trying to figure out why he acts the way he does. And the reason why I think he does is as following. He grew up as the annoying younger "brother" and then out of nowhere without any warning he had all of this thrown at him. The others had years to cope with their situation in life.

But not all of them. Whether it happened years or five minutes ago, they still handled the situation like adults. Eragon doesn't in the sense that we never see him do so. We do not see a solid chain of growth. As Kvetha Fricai so accurately put it, just accepting something doesn't make you mature. In my opinion, that is CP's fault. Eragon's problems should be wearing down on him, not on the the reader. This is why people are not more sympathetic to his situation like they are the others such as Murtagh and Arya. With Eragon, we're forced to go backwards. We are forced to question, why haven't his experiences made an adult out of him yet? On top of that, for example, Brom alludes to the fact that he wouldn't have handled Eragon's situation as well as he has done if he were his age. The problem is that it is only said not shown. It's even more difficult when everyone the equivalent of his age bracket is more mature than he is.

I keep mentioning this but this is something I liked about the first deleted scene in the Brisingr deluxe edition. It's not because Eragon initially refused to help the wife of this man who was asking for his help. It was because you could see Eragon was starting to accept and understand his own immortality and the mortality of others. It showed genuine maturity.

Brom said it best...(not a direct quote but paraphrased) Eragon is a stone headed dolt who asks too many questions.

The problem is, many people don't think that has changed and it should have.

[Silverine]

The others had years to cope with their situation in life. Would Roran be any different if his and Eragon's birth orders were reversed?

We don't know that. Roran and Eragon had the same upbringing, which as I've already told, in my opinion makes them comparable. Once in the book, Eragon mentions somehow bitterly that he wasn't even allowed to call Garrow dad, just uncle (which he was). Roran on the other hand was Garrow's real child. I don't say Garrow loved Roran more, but this tells me Eragon as the younger child wasn't spoiled more than Roran.
So I'm not sure Roran would be like Eragon if he was born later...

[Black hole]

I don't think Paolini deliberately made Eragon annoying. One of the main reasons people find him annoying basically seems to be "he's useless". That is, despite being all powerful and the saviour of the world, he seems to be incompetent and can't get anything done, and is constantly just relying on others. I think this is because of 3 rules Paolini writes by.

1. The main character must be the most important person in the world.

2. To keep suspense, the main character can't know too much about the story or about what he's going to do. Hence, he must have various mentors etc. throughout the story to tell him what to do.

3. To add suspense, the main character must get into dangerous situations that leave the reader wondering how he is going to get out. Since he can't get out of them himself, the author must use other characters / deux ex machina to save him.

The problem is that 2 and 3 contradict number 1. If the main character has no real plan, so relies on a constant stream of mentors / deux ex machinas to push him through the story, and constantly gets into impossible situations that require other characters / deux ex machinas to save him, then he isn't really the most important person in the world. But he is. Why? Because he's the main character. That's the rule.

This contradiction is one of the things that annoys me, and I'm guessing many other readers.

[bookwormgirl]

I don't think Paolini deliberately made Eragon annoying. One of the main reasons people find him annoying basically seems to be "he's useless". That is, despite being all powerful and the saviour of the world, he seems to be incompetent and can't get anything done, and is constantly just relying on others. I think this is because of 3 rules Paolini writes by.

1. The main character must be the most important person in the world.

2. To keep suspense, the main character can't know too much about the story or about what he's going to do. Hence, he must have various mentors etc. throughout the story to tell him what to do.

3. To add suspense, the main character must get into dangerous situations that leave the reader wondering how he is going to get out. Since he can't get out of them himself, the author must use other characters / deux ex machina to save him.

The problem is that 2 and 3 contradict number 1. If the main character has no real plan, so relies on a constant stream of mentors / deux ex machinas to push him through the story, and constantly gets into impossible situations that require other characters / deux ex machinas to save him, then he isn't really the most important person in the world. But he is. Why? Because he's the main character. That's the rule.

This contradiction is one of the things that annoys me, and I'm guessing many other readers.

Couldn't have said it better myself. I agree that CP did not make Eragon annoying on purpose. Unless you want your readers to dislike the main character, who would? Another thing to keep in mind, CP does not have that much experience. So far IC is all he's written. If he had written other books before, then I am sure Eragon would be a much less annoying and a much better written character.

[Kvetha Fricai]

I don't think Paolini deliberately made Eragon annoying. One of the main reasons people find him annoying basically seems to be "he's useless". That is, despite being all powerful and the saviour of the world, he seems to be incompetent and can't get anything done, and is constantly just relying on others. I think this is because of 3 rules Paolini writes by.

1. The main character must be the most important person in the world.

2. To keep suspense, the main character can't know too much about the story or about what he's going to do. Hence, he must have various mentors etc. throughout the story to tell him what to do.

3. To add suspense, the main character must get into dangerous situations that leave the reader wondering how he is going to get out. Since he can't get out of them himself, the author must use other characters / deux ex machina to save him.

The problem is that 2 and 3 contradict number 1. If the main character has no real plan, so relies on a constant stream of mentors / deux ex machinas to push him through the story, and constantly gets into impossible situations that require other characters / deux ex machinas to save him, then he isn't really the most important person in the world. But he is. Why? Because he's the main character. That's the rule.

This contradiction is one of the things that annoys me, and I'm guessing many other readers.

You say Paolini didn't make Eragon annoying diliberately, yet he managed to make three books of this...


I don't know whether to think it was done on purpose or not, but the fact is he's got some serious growing up to do.. Pretty soon he's going to own up to things for himself, and the next book should hold to that.. I don't think help will be worth anything when he faces Galbatorix..

This post has been edited by Kvetha Fricai: Yesterday, 04:07 PM