An insight in the life and works of Stephen R. Donaldson, author of the fantasy series “The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant”.
His novels and series are in general not an easy read, containing dark themes and ethical questions, but they have definitely made a impact in the genre. Donaldson writes very intensely and, although set in an fantasy world, his stories have great depth and loads of morality, making him one of the major fantasy authors of our time.
Known for his Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (the unbeliever), Donaldson’s world and characters are even seen by many as rivaling those of Tolkien.
Biography
Stephen R. Donaldson was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1947 but lived in India (his father was a missionary) until 1963. He received his M.A. in English in 1971 but, when doing his Ph.D. afterwards, he decided to quit and start writing. He made his debute with the first novel in the now famous “Chronicles of Thomas Covenant” series in 1977.
Donaldson has kept on writing since, although he has not written that many novels. He now lives in New Mexico and is working on finishing “The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant”. Interesting to note is that Donaldson also has a Doctor of Literature degree and a black belt in Shotokan karate.
Style & Themes
The novels of Donaldson have a strong focus on the personality of the characters, especially the dark side of human nature. His stories involve many ethical choices and mistakes made by characters. Often psychological questions are addressed but not necessarily answered. A good example from the Covenant Chronicles is Thomas’ act of raping a girl in what he believes to be an imaginary world. Apart from being unsure wether or not the world is real, the question can be asked what this act says about Thomas and what the ethicial consequences are. Also, most of time the protagonist Thomas is unbalanced and moody to say the least. This results in him being quite an unlikeable person who is often difficult to relate to.
All together, this makes the books of Donaldson often difficult to read but at the same time also sets them apart and makes them all the more interesting. They are definitely not the standard high fantasy good versus evil stories we have grown used to.
Most important works
Stephen R. Donaldson made fame with his Thomas Covenant saga, describing the struggles of a leper who becomes an reluctant hero on alternate, fantasy world called The Land. Written in the seventies, the first two trilogies (The First and the Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever) of this series have become landmarks in the fantasy genre.
Currently, Donaldson is in the process of writing the Last Chronicles, which will finalize the story of Thomas Covenant.
As you will see below, Donaldson has also written several other novels over the years, most of them part of three other series he has created. These series also have fantasy or science-fiction settings.
The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever
The First Chronicles
1. Lord Foul’s Bane (1977)
2. The Illearth War (1978)
3. The Power That Preserves (1979)
The Second Chronicles
1. The Wounded Land (1980)
2. The One Tree (1982)
3. White Gold Wielder (1983)
The Last Chronicles
1. The Runes of the Earth (2004)
2. Fatal Revenant (2007)
3. Against All Things Ending (2010)
4. The Last Dark (to be released: 2013)
The Gap Series
1. The Gap into Conflict: The Real Story (1991)
2. The Gap into Vision: Forbidden Knowledge (1991)
3. The Gap into Power: A Dark and Hungry God Arises (1993)
4. The Gap into Madness: Chaos and Order (1994)
5. The Gap into Ruin: This Day All Gods Die (1996)
Mordant’s Need
1. The Mirror of Her Dreams (1986)
2. A Man Rides Through (1987)
The Man Who… series
* The Man Who Killed His Brother (1980)
* The Man Who Risked His Partner (1984)
* The Man Who Tried to Get Away (1990)
* The Man Who Fought Alone (2001)
Official website of Stephen R. Donaldson
Written between 1977 and 1983 by Stephen R. Donaldson, The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant tell the tale of a leper who is despised in real life and very frustrated with himself.
After an accident Covenant enters a magical Land (possibly in his own mind) where he is healthy again and is considered a hero destined to defeat an evil lord. Covenant struggles to believe the world is real and tries to prove it is not, while against his wil he does take upon himself the role of defeating The Despiser.
The story takes place in a fantasy world which is very well created and often regarded as of the same level as Tolkiens Middle-earth. However, the story itself and the characters are not that comparable to Lord of the Rings.
The main character, Thomas Covenant, is an unstable, bitter man and the story is dark and psychological, with deap meanings and moral issues. This might scare away the average, casual fantasy reader but at the same time it will grip the attention of many. I believe it is a series that should definitely be read.
In the late seventies and early eighties Stephen R. Donaldson wrote two Covenant trilogies, the first being “The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever” and the second aptly called “The second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant”.
“The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant” is currently in the making. Donaldson has written and published first three books and one more is still to come.
