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Rothfuss XV: Move along, nothing to see here


Kyll.Ing.

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10 hours ago, Veltigar said:

Honestly, I have managed to avoid spoilers on ASOIAF/GOT for the past several years. Thanks very much for throwing random GoT spoilers around in a thread that is completely unrelated to it. And that without warning. Great.

My apologies.  It is in spoiler tags.  I will add a note as to it being GOT spoilers to further clarify.

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12 hours ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

My apologies.  It is in spoiler tags.  I will add a note as to it being GOT spoilers to further clarify.

Thanks

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On 5/22/2019 at 5:41 AM, The Marquis de Leech said:
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But the problem with Daenerys wasn't her villainy, but inconsistent characterisation. Nothing wrong with a villainous Kvothe, so long as it's written properly.

 

Now that we're at it, in this post of yours you quote Ser Scott and the spoilers he had accidentally posted are still plainly visible in the quote. It would be nice if you could redact that also.

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I’ve always found Rothfuss’ popularity strange. He seems to somehow appeal and have a major fanbase beyond “traditional” SF/F readers. I’m curious as to what drives this appeal to the masses

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3 minutes ago, HelenaExMachina said:

I’ve always found Rothfuss’ popularity strange. He seems to somehow appeal and have a major fanbase beyond “traditional” SF/F readers. I’m curious as to what drives this appeal to the masses

What’s really strange is that I think Kvothe will be a serious disappointment to those expecting a traditional “hero’s journey” or seeing Kvothe redeemed in the end.  It is odd to me that so many see Kvothe as the “hero” of the story.

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1 hour ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

What’s really strange is that I think Kvothe will be a serious disappointment to those expecting a traditional “hero’s journey” or seeing Kvothe redeemed in the end.  It is odd to me that so many see Kvothe as the “hero” of the story.

Not everyone reads at the same level...that being said, I suppose it's the idea that Rothfuss is trying to subvert the standard hero journey trope, but people don't want to see it? Truly, Kvothe is a terrible character. 

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1 hour ago, Jaxom 1974 said:

Not everyone reads at the same level...that being said, I suppose it's the idea that Rothfuss is trying to subvert the standard hero journey trope, but people don't want to see it? Truly, Kvothe is a terrible character. 

I think he’s, by design, a deeply broken person.  Who has very skewed ideas of “right and wrong”.

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3 hours ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

I think he’s, by design, a deeply broken person.  Who has very skewed ideas of “right and wrong”.

Kote seems pretty alright to me.

Kvothe on the other hand, is arrogant and self serving. I don't think his ideas of "right and wrong" is skewed, rather it is the "right and wrong" in relation to him personally that is skewed. Basically he is Ambrose with morals more decent morals. Still a massive jack ass and would likely do similar things as Ambrose if he were in a position to do so.

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8 hours ago, Proudfeet said:

Kote seems pretty alright to me.

Kvothe on the other hand, is arrogant and self serving. I don't think his ideas of "right and wrong" is skewed, rather it is the "right and wrong" in relation to him personally that is skewed. Basically he is Ambrose with morals more decent morals. Still a massive jack ass and would likely do similar things as Ambrose if he were in a position to do so.

That’s interesting.  So, are you saying that Kote isn’t fully Kvothe hence he seems kinder and more grounded.  More thoughtful about consequences and potential fallout?

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15 hours ago, HelenaExMachina said:

I’ve always found Rothfuss’ popularity strange. He seems to somehow appeal and have a major fanbase beyond “traditional” SF/F readers. I’m curious as to what drives this appeal to the masses

It began with the acquiring editors.  They were giddy with excitement about the first book.  They were so giddy they even sent me the ms, so eager were they to share it with the sorts of people they believed loved this sort of thing (I was doing a lot of writing and reviewing within the field then -- that's how long ago this was!).  And it performed even higher than their most optimistic hopes.

Then ... the troubles began, starting with a horizon shift in a significant segment of younger Fantasy enthusiasts, who found the primary a ridiculously immature sexist.  Then, of course, the enormous agony of getting the second volume, and now -- never the third, it seems, while the field's shifts only grow larger and affect more and more of the previously unexamined issues of sexism, colonialism, racism and the inclusion of many other diversities, in the 12 years (2007) since publication of Name of the Wind.

 

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1 hour ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:

That’s interesting.  So, are you saying that Kote isn’t fully Kvothe hence he seems kinder and more grounded.  More thoughtful about consequences and potential fallout?

I wasn't thinking in terms of names, though that may play a part, but Kote seems to be a changed person. More mellow and thoughtful. A regular person. Kvothe is a massive asshole.

Of course, he may just be playing the long con or we just haven't seen enough of him but we won't find out until we get book three

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Rothfuss’ wider popularity is probably partly right time and place, partly heavy industry interest and marketing push, partly well worn tropes.

And partly that he’s just a good writer. He’s got a slick prose style and a head for epic fantasy.  Criticism still valid, but the books are enjoyable.

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8 hours ago, Zorral said:

It began with the acquiring editors.  They were giddy with excitement about the first book.  They were so giddy they even sent me the ms, so eager were they to share it with the sorts of people they believed loved this sort of thing (I was doing a lot of writing and reviewing within the field then -- that's how long ago this was!).  And it performed even higher than their most optimistic hopes.

Then ... the troubles began, starting with a horizon shift in a significant segment of younger Fantasy enthusiasts, who found the primary a ridiculously immature sexist.  Then, of course, the enormous agony of getting the second volume, and now -- never the third, it seems, while the field's shifts only grow larger and affect more and more of the previously unexamined issues of sexism, colonialism, racism and the inclusion of many other diversities, in the 12 years (2007) since publication of Name of the Wind.

 

This does not answer my question.

5 minutes ago, john said:

Rothfuss’ wider popularity is probably partly right time and place, partly heavy industry interest and marketing push, partly well worn tropes.

And partly that he’s just a good writer. He’s got a slick prose style and a head for epic fantasy.  Criticism still valid, but the books are enjoyable.

I wasn’t really commenting on quality, moreso wondering why he seems to have acquired a wider following than typical SF/F readers

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Well ok, he’s a better writer than most prominent fantasy authors then. Quality attracts a wider variety of readers, surely?  Or rather I suppose, he’s a good writer while staying in the popular, easy to read mould.

Plus he seems to be read by a lot of teenagers who might not have read adult (more or less) fantasy before but aren’t going to be turned off by it.

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