The fool - man or woman?

[Amelia Faulkner]

There's always the possibility that the Fool is nonbinary, regardless of biological sex (which in itself is a can of worms which extends far beyond male, female, and intersex).

 

[Warren Kramer]

I did not vote, since the answer I've long suspected is not among the choices.

As you can see, I chose an older Fitz as my avatar. Obviously, the series—and this question—means something to me. So before I tell you my longtime suspicion, let me make a few points.

1. This is a purposeful mystery by the author. If, after 9 Farseer books, she does not reveal the answer, she wanted this exact type of discussion to occur. Therefore, the Fool may be neither or both by design.

2. Robin Hobb still had something in mind besides the mystery though. She envisions the Fool as some gender.

3. Fitz cannot possibly NOT know the answer. Not only did Fitz (as others have pointed out) save the Fool on multiple occasions in situations in which it would've been difficult for Fitz not to discover the answer, Fitz also shared minds with the Fool. For a stretch of time, they knew each other's every thought. Fitz could not have linked minds with the Fool without knowing whether he "dangles or dimples" as the Fool once put it.

4. I see this discussion has been going on for a long time (years), with no definitive word one way or the other, as Hobb likely hoped. I have not read every post, but I don't think my view on this has been mentioned...

So, what is my view? What if the Fool is a hermaphrodite? This would explain why the Fool is so shy about anyone seeing him/her naked. That would also explain how Fitz could be of a single mind with the Fool, yet come away with no better insight into this question than before this mind link.

So does the Fool dangle or dimple? The answer is both. The Fool is either a hermaphrodite or the equivalent of this, peculiar to the species from whence the Fool comes.

 

[Alexa]

Hello Warren and welcome to the Chrons !

I suppose you didn't read the last series and see how it ends, did you ?

 

[Warren Kramer]

Hello Warren and welcome to the Chrons !

I suppose you didn't read the last series and see how it ends, did you ?

Hi Alexa, Yes, I've read all nine of the Farseer books. Did I miss something? Am I mistaken in concluding that the author left the question open?

 

[Alexa]

It depends what kind of books you've read. We have The Farseer Trilogy (3 books), The Livership Traders Trilogy (3), The Tawn Man Trilogy (3), The Rain Wilds Chronicles (4) and the last one ended last year, The Fitz and the Fool Trilogy (3).

If you still wonder about the Fool's gender, I suspect you have a few more books to read.

 

[Warren Kramer]

It depends what kind of books you've read. We have The Farseer Trilogy (3 books), The Livership Traders Trilogy (3), The Tawn Man Trilogy (3), The Rain Wilds Chronicles (4) and the last one ended last year, The Fitz and the Fool Trilogy (3).

If you still wonder about the Fool's gender, I suspect you have a few more books to read.

I've read all but the Liveship Traders Trilogy and came away with the impression that Robin Hobb never fully committed to an answer on this question. Readers all over the web, including many who've read all your listed books, continue to discuss this issue as if it were unsettled. So either I (we) missed something, the definitive answer is in the Liveship trilogy, or your reference is to some information that other readers do not consider the definitive word on the subject.

 

[Orwinz]

I’m not sure if this has been already said and therefore many apologises if they have. i read that Fitz shared a body with the fool when he brought him back to life so he knows what gender the fool is and understands it doesn’t matter. He loved the fools soul and he loves his which is why they had to be together, friends not just lovers can hold that place in your heart and I don’t personally have never seen them as having a sexual connection. my truest friend I could spend forever with and never be want to be apart from them. I think Molly was Fitz‘s love, his one ideal of a perfect life and love whom he wanted in a physical way forever. He saw his love and feelings of her reflected back at him And that was contentment in a way that had nothing to do with the horrors of his life. In the fool was everything he could ever express, all the good times of laughter and shared fun and adventure as well as the person he could be so angry with and argue with that it seemed almost hatred for what they represented in his life. He was him, and his opposite and his whole.the gender of the fool is as significant as of the gender of nighteyes or Fitz. Love is love and the love that Nighteyes, Fitz and the Fool shared was pure and untainted by Lust or want, give or take. it was just being and giving freely.

 

[jd73]

I find in the Fool a classic nonbinary
Mostly male, and yet not entirely

 

[SilentRoamer]

I have only read 6 of the Farseer book and I was certain the Fool was a man. Not sure if the fool was androgynous looking though as he was always described as sort of non descript.

No idea what "mostly male" means to be honest. The fool is either Male or Female and we might not really get to know either way, however I never saw it as an ambivalent question - not like characters in say "Ancillary Justice" by Ann Leckie. Must admit I never noticed whether Hobb used gender neutral pronouns when people referred to the Fool. I always just assumed the Fool was a man.

Im looking forward to reading the rest of the Hobb books however - she is a really good author and I love how she gets into the minds of the characters she writes. I felt a massive connection to Fitz even though his whiny annoying inner monologue drove me crazy.

 

[Astro Pen]

Thought this might be an interesting aside.

A Brief History: Jane the Fool

Guest article by Stephanie Stohrer The earliest references to what we know as court jesters, or fools, date back to the 5th dynasty of Egypt, whose Pharaohs employed Pygmies as dancers and buffoons…

tudorsdynasty.com

 

[Overread]

I have only read 6 of the Farseer book and I was certain the Fool was a man. Not sure if the fool was androgynous looking though as he was always described as sort of non descript.

You want to read the Liveship Traders series (ideally between the first and second trilogies of the Farseer series). It's in Liveships that she fleshes out a whole key area and a massive world development. If anything the events in Farseer stories are small compared to the world shattering events of the Liveship Traders.

 

[Hilarious Joke]

You want to read the Liveship Traders series (ideally between the first and second trilogies of the Farseer series). It's in Liveships that she fleshes out a whole key area and a massive world development. If anything the events in Farseer stories are small compared to the world shattering events of the Liveship Traders.

I guess that's the benefit of having multiple POV characters instead of just one! I do love Fitz though...