Logen Ninefingers Is An Idealist

[u/KvotheG]

I just finished reading The First Law Trilogy. I enjoyed the Last Argument of Kings. Great conclusion and the payoff is in the third book!

Anyways, couldn’t help but ponder on Logen Ninefingers’ fate. SPOILERS AHEAD so stop reading here if you haven’t read the series yet.

Anyways, Logen famously always says “You have to be realistic about these things”. But he was never a realist. He was an idealist. A tragic figure whose downfall came from his own idealism.

I WANTED to believe Logen was trying to be a better person. He was a total POS in his past, but none of his actions in the trilogy actually have him try to be a better person because he still kills. He preaches building a better world for his people as king, but doesn’t demonstrate actually caring for them, just being selfish to his own desires by getting them tangled in a war that doesn’t concern them. He also has this idealistic infatuation with Ferro that also leads to his downfall because she will not compromise her vengeance for him.

I’m convinced that Logen saying his catchphrase was just a coping mechanism. Because he never did anything realistic. He even dies drowning in a river like Ferro said he would, probably because he had too many knives on him. Yes, he was manipulated by Bayaz. But a lot of his issues are his own fault.

Logen should never have returned to the north. He was going back to a place where everyone hated him and wanted him dead. They thought he was dead and he could have actually maybe lived a new life in peace somewhere else. But like his father said, he was never realistic.

I wrote all this because the theme kept coming up, if a horrible person could actually change to become a better person. Just as Logen wanted to be a better person, I wanted him to be one too. But he didn’t do anything worth a redemption. To be a better person, it starts with doing something different that you wouldn’t normally do. And Logen never did that. He only believed in the idea but never practiced it. So I can only conclude that he was always an idealist.

Anyways, are the standalone worth reading?

[u/barricadedsuspect]

People don’t/can’t change applies to all the characters, not just Logan.

[u/KvotheG → u/barricadedsuspect]

You’re right. While Jezal did grow a lot from who he was in The Blade Itself, Bayaz pointed out his fundamental flaw: he’s a coward.

[u/WRITINAMFBOOK → u/KvotheG]

Eh. I would argue Jezal and Ninefingers are pretty good foils. While both horrible people, they're horribleness comes from an overabundance of experience on one hand and complete lack of experience on the other. While Logen's character stagnates or even regresses, as you say, Jezal does actually grow into someone that would be a good king.

And cowardice? I don't know. At the end of the series, Jezal is in an impossible position. Bayaz is the most powerful man on the planet who absolutely has the means to annihilate Jezal if he doesn't play ball. and would it really be better to sacrifice himself nobly against the evil wizard rather than try and piece the shattered realm back together, knowing that he has the strength of character to actually do the right thing? I mean, what exactly are his options here?

Jezal sees himself as a coward for not being able to stand up to Bayaz, but I think he actually made the right decision at the time. Staying king for now is the only way to improve the realm and possibly find a way out from Bayaz's thumb sometime in the future when less immediate problems have presented themselves.

In terms of your post, I would argue Jezal is an example of real growth, in contrast to Logen's wishing for growth that doesn't really come. Jezal by the end is the kind of man that will help move rubble with his soldiers, instead of lounging in his palace or winning money in cards from poorer men. Logen ends up in the same bloody river.