tempestuously (
tempestuously) wrote2010-03-18 09:25 pm
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Levitas. :( Also, why the hell does Temeraire call Laurence by his last name when their relationship is supposed to be all bff/fathersonly? It just weirds me out. I'm inclined to believe Novik does this simply because she likes the name of Laurence more than William but that William is the more common name of the era. Still, it's dumb. Oh yes, book finished. Now onto "Throne of Jade."
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But yes, this confusion applies to Temeraire and Laurence in a much greater sense since Laurence is very much his father and Temeraire is very smart and obviously knows his trainer's first name. If Laurence's mother refers to him as "Will" and even someone as tertiary as Edith, so should Temeraire.
It's just a nitpicky thing, but like the Angel Sanctuary thing, it will probably forever boggle me.
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I mean, I see why it bothers you! That's just why it never really bothered me.
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And while we're on the names, I do hope Novik stops her habit of name-switching in the narrative by the next book as it makes it nearly impossible for me to figure out who half the characters are at any given time, save the very important ones. With the Roland family, it was just cruel and unusual punishment. I could see it if she switched from last to first name usage to show Laurence's shifting perspective since the story is told in third-person close, but I think she does it arbitrarily and when two characters share the same name... orz. Also, I personally like "Jane" more than "Roland" and since he established the younger as "Roland," she should stick with it.
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Temeraire probably heard Laurence being called "Laurence" more often than "William" in his early stages, so that would stick, also- believe me, it's still very informal, and affirms their closeness! But after studying Jane Austen's works for two years, informal surname usage is not that strange anymore. :)
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Now, explain Novik's wide world of name switches, please? ;;
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I believe that in what are meant to be "private"/"personal"/"emotional" moments and conversations, first names are used. Like Emily- she's a runner in his crew, she's a soldier, so she's "Roland" the majority of the time! But then we have times where she's a young miss worried for her mom, and see how fast Novik calls her "Emily". And Novik starts using "Jane" for Captain Roland after Jane has two(?) sexual encounters with Laurence- you can't get further into the private sphere than that! But then it's back to business, and she's "Roland" again. So, it depends on what is being emphasized- the soldier aspect or the person? ... sob an hour on this response, but I <3 analysis ... Does that sound reasonable?
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