One of my favourite fictional characters is from Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, Rand al’Thor. I’ve followed the development of this character from the first book when he was just a young, naïve farmboy,to the 11th book where he now held the power and influence equal to or more than a king.
Why I like him? Well, there are several reasons for that. One of them is the enigma surrounding him, like his origin for example. As a baby, he was found abandoned near a scene of a bloody battlefield. His adopted father Tham al’Thor found Rand’s dying mother and she entrusted Rand to his care. All that was known about her (at that time) was that she was one of those called the Maiden of the Spears, a group of highly skilled and much feared female warriors, and had fought bravely in the battle. Rand was the only survivor. Tham brought Rand home to a small isolated village called Emond’s Field and raised him as his own. No one else suspects anything much less Rand himself who was happy being a shepherd. When his village was attack however, Tham was forced to reveal the secret. Rand then decided to travel to seek his destiny and find out more about his parents.
Another aspect of him that I find both funny and frustrating is his love life. Early in the series, it was prophesied that he would fall in love with 3 very different women. A princess, a former Maiden of the Spears and a tomboy. The 3 women had known about the prophecy early on and they took some time to contemplate the situation and how to deal with it. However Rand had no idea about it and he often felt guilty and confused over his feelings for all 3 women whom he loved differently. He loved the princess Elayne, because of her beauty and grace. He loved the former warrior, Aviendha for her determination and courage and he loved Min because of her compassion and understanding. It’s funny that he could face an army of a thousand soldiers alone but he could never get the nerve to confront the women and discussed his feelings for them He could talk to head of nations and gets away with anything but he always felt awkward around the women and didn’t know how to handle them. In fact he often runs away from them, complicating his relationships much further. His background as a shepherd often makes him feel inferior to the women. Unbeknownst to him, the women felt more ill at ease around him because they felt that he is very smart and often gets the best of them, making them more helplessly in love with him. His clueless demeanor despite his confidence and courage in other aspects endear him to me as it shows the rare side of his insecurities despite his tough and confident appearance.
Being the reluctant savior of the world, Rand fought many battles with his trusted friends and allies at his side. One of his most powerful allies is the Maidens who felt strongly connected to him as his mother was one of them. What hurts him is when the Maidens died in battles. He understands that it was inevitable and the Maidens themselves consider it an honour to die for him. However he took it very hard and he vowed not to let another woman die for him. However, the Maiden consider it an insult when he would not let them fight for him. After every battle, he will go around the dead and commit the name of the dead Maidens into his heart. This way he felt that he could let them live on in his memories. He often recites the list of names to himself to remind himself the prize he has to pay for being a leader. I find this very fascinating because I see it is a jab at the leaders of the world. The soldiers are the ones sacrificing their lives for these leaders and their deaths are most often than not brushed aside by the leaders. Rand is always faced with the difficult choice of protecting his followers or letting them fight for him. A part of him recognizes the logic, they are in war and casualties are the norm. Yet he felt guilty for leading these people into their deaths. This did not make him any less efficient as a leader. Instead it made him a better one because he weights his every decision carefully for fear of making the wrong one and causing the deaths of his followers.
His followers either fear him or highly worship him. Those who are in the first category dare not defy him because they fear his temper while those who worship him are too in awe to question his actions. However there are a select few who sees him as a normal human being. They are not afraid to point out his mistakes and reproach him when he goes too far and unsurprisingly these are the people that he trusts the most. I like the fact that Rand did not let power cloud his judgement.
All in all, Rand is one of my favourite characters because of the different layers of his personality which at times confuse both his allies and enemies. At times he is a fearless leader who will stop at nothing to win the war, but he also fears for the safety of his family, friends and followers. Sometimes he is confident and knows exactly what he wants, while at other times he is clueless about what to do and doubts his ability. These conflicts make him real and relatable to the reader because these are common issues we deal with in our life regardless of who we are.
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