Questions About Lord Foul's Bane (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, #1)

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Answered Questions (4)

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Tina Willis Personally it just adds a bit of flavor...it enhances, subltly, the idea of and feel for a "different" world/time/culture etc. …morePersonally it just adds a bit of flavor...it enhances, subltly, the idea of and feel for a "different" world/time/culture etc. (less)

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Costa

This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)[Will mark as *spoiler*, but I'll try not to give plot away, just my thoughts on the 'character', subjective is they may be.

This is a hard question to answer - I've jus started re-reading the series (having first read them well over twenty years ago, reading them again in preparation for the Final Chronicles) - Thomas Covenant is (deliberately) completely unlikeable. He's an a**hole. Yes, he has had hard times, but it's twisted his real-world persona, and this is reflected his character in "The Land". From what I remember, and from what I'm discovering now that I'm getting close to halfway through, no - Thomas Covenant doesn't become any more likeable, though he does start to show regret and change. The horrible scene of which you speak is, unfortunately, the driver for Covenant's character in much of the First Chronicles, and has a very deep resonance in the Second Chronicles, and from what I've read is only fully resolved in the Final Chronicles.

And I haven't answered your question, but will try to now: Thomas Covenant is deliberately unlikeable. I think it is the author's intent that we don't like him, he is cast as a hero who has the burden of greatness thrust upon him rather than having inherent heroic qualities, and in fact is a cowardly and somewhat cruel man in response to his "real world" ills. Deeds he performs later are tainted by his treatment of a girl who did nothing but save him and show him hospitality.

The series, though, the Land, the inhabitants - even now I am happy to spend time in their company, to worry about the future of The Land, and the characters for whom we fear and care are the periphery characters to Covenant. As a whole, the series (both the First and, surprisingly, the Second Chronicles - which I enjoyed more) are satisfying, the fantasy land rendered fully and in ways that I don't think I've encountered before or since. You will have to spend time with Thomas Covenant and his crime, and his unlikeable nature.

I hope I've helped? I think I've waffled on far too long. I'll try to summarise in a sentence: Covenant is a jerk by varying degrees throughout all the books - the characters I care for are The Land and the many other inhabitants with whom he interacts, and I'm hoping that by the time I get to the last book of the Final Chronicles that Lena is given some measure of recompense. (hide spoiler)]

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Where can i BUY / find physical copies that use THOSE (points at pic) version 2 CLASSIC PAINTINGS? Amazon does not have the 1st Chronicles with this kind of cover art, but it does have 2nd Chronicles with those paintings. Where can i find the 1st Chronicles to buy physical copies with this cover art? I WANT my hard copies to have these classic paintings (i know they are not the original book cover art)

Jennifer Use goodreads to copy the isbn number of the cover/edition you like.
Then paste the ISBN as your search term into Abebooks.com or Thriftbooks.com or e…moreUse goodreads to copy the isbn number of the cover/edition you like.
Then paste the ISBN as your search term into Abebooks.com or Thriftbooks.com or even Amazon.com (their marketplace is a goldmine!)

That will bring up precisely the one you want!(less)

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Alright, so I'm halfway through the book, and there's one thing I don't understand. Could somebody PLEASE explain Thomas Covenant to me? Just when I start to think that he makes sense, you have something completely out of left field. So, he's a leper, fine, he's emotionally distant because if he weren't, he'd commit suicide. Ok. Then Chapter Seven happens. And he moves on as if nothing happened. Does not compute.

David Stone Covenant is a strange character, no doubt. He is the eyes and ears for the reader, yet he seems inherently dislikeable.
The only explanation that I co…moreCovenant is a strange character, no doubt. He is the eyes and ears for the reader, yet he seems inherently dislikeable.
The only explanation that I could find is that he really, truly, believes that he is dreaming. This is highlighted within the first book by the fact that everything that happens has been foreshadowed by the events that we witness in town, before he is transported to the Land. This includes his wistful gazing at the young ladies in the shops he passes, which foreshadows the events of chapter seven. (Bear in mind with this that he is only in his twenties, his hormones are soaring. His sexual desire is just as strong, but he has been rendered unable to fulfil it)
The main problem arises because we, the readers, are assuming that the Land and everyone in it are 'Real' and therefore Covenant's actions have consequences. This leads us to view his actions as repugnant. Covenant, however, truly believes he is deep within his own mind, living the embodiment of his illness in a psychotic delusion. To him, there is no crime, there are no consequences and all he can do is live through the dream and hope to wake up at the end of it.
Even within book one, he comes to realise that his previous actions were unwarranted, and he tries to make amends, but even then he still can't allow himself to believe the Land is real, so he still believes it's all a dream. He does begin to take more care over his actions, creating 'boundaries' that he will stay within, but that is mainly because he perceives that any violence he does to the 'people' of the 'Land' is being done TO HIMSELF and would leave psychological wounds when he wakes.
That, as I understand it, is the essence of Covenant's character within the first trilogy in general, and within the first book in particular: He truly believes that he is dreaming, and any actions will only have consequences within his own psyche.
Perceiving the character in this way doesn't make him any more likeable, but it does make him more understandable.(less)

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