Robert Jordan: Genius or Hack?

Few critics and fans are able to agree on The Wheel of Time. Some say this series grows more exciting with each new volume. Others say that the first three or four books held promise and excitement before the series descended into a complex mess of boredom. Some view the female characters as being so strong that they believe Robert Jordan is actually a woman writing under a pen name; others say the women inhabitants of Randland (as fans refer to it) are dull caricatures of feminist extremists. Some fans are so obsessive that they’ve set up large-scale role playing games and sites of worship for ‘the Creator.’ There are also people hold Jordan in contempt for getting them hooked on something that- in their opinion- turned into a pile of crap.

What is this monstrous work that has inspired so much contradiction? Is ‘the Creator’ a clueless copycat author, or a true genius?

I admit that Robert Jordan shares a notch with Stephen King at the very top of my authors-to-worship list. But in truth, there is really only one work created by Jordan which I hold in such high regard: The Wheel of Time series. Almost every other work of fiction I have read pales in comparison. If not for the Wheel of Time, I never would have touched the genre of fantasy.

There are certainly some elements in this unique series which have sparked legitimate criticism. In The Eye of the World, the first volume, the influence of J.R.R. Tolkien is undeniable. We are introduced to an isolated farming village centered around a Brandywine Inn. The main protagonist’s friends are named Mat, Perrin, and Egwene, which sound rather like Meri, Pippin, and Eowyn. The Trollocs speak like Orcs. And yes, those ogiers are about as hasty and formidable as Ents.

A line may be drawn between honorary tribute and true copying. By the second volume, these Tolkien-esque elements all but disappear, and we begin to realize that Randland is not Middle Earth by any stretch of the imagination. Instead of remaining innocent, the protagonists grow powerful and cynical. Instead of facing an enemy with a single agenda, the enemies multiply, and each has a different set of priorities. Magical abilities are exclusively the province of gifted human beings. Not a single elf, dwarf, balrog, or wizard is ever encountered. Those original hobbit-like elements, in fact, seem to have been used intentionally by the author; altered for his purposes, but deliberately left recognizable to any Tolkien fan... much like those references Stephen King makes to our real world in his Dark Tower series. If The Wheel of Time ever becomes a timeless classic- or grows to dominate the genre of fantasy literature- then Jordan has ensured that the man who paved the way will never be forgotten.

Deliberate, too, is Jordan’s construction of each volume. No matter how many new subplots are introduced (or solved), the reader is assured of a specific beginning and a specific climax at the end. Rand will battle one or more of his most powerful enemies. In between, love triangles and quadrangles twist around with all the contrivance of a soap opera. Jordan seems to follow whichever character he deems most important at a certain point. There are occasions when a main character is entirely left out of a volume, much to the frustration of that character’s devoted fans.

Does all of this indicate a formula, or amateur writing? Or is this art?

We know that Jordan has outlined his entire saga. He alone knows how it will end- but he has assured readers time and again that he does know. Thus, it seems likely that he meticulously plans each volume.