Dragon Pearl

The author uses the first quarter of the book to establish the basic rules of Min’s society and engage in some essential world-building for the reader’s benefit. The exposition also establishes the urgency of Min’s quest to escape the local authorities and seek out her brother to learn what has become of him. In a classic example of “the Hero’s Journey,” Chapters 1-3 depict Min willingly leaving the only existence she knows in order to undertake a dangerous voyage across space for the sake of her brother. During this section, the heroine’s first few interactions aptly illustrate the normality of the world she knows, firmly establishing the hierarchy of the various planets and cultures in the story. Of particular significance is the mysterious Dragon Pearl, the lost device that holds the power to terraform lifeless worlds into lush habitats where both life and economy may thrive. In addition to creating a rich and vibrant world, the author also ensures that it functions logically according to larger, “intangible” concerns such as economic status. A prime example of this occurs with the mention that only the wealthiest planets can afford dragon-based terraforming in the absence of the much more efficient Dragon Pearl. Because the situation further enriches the wealthy and perpetuates the destitution of the poor, the author uses the story not only to relate an exciting adventure, but also to create a relevant social commentary that will instruct younger readers on multiple levels. At the book’s outset, Min is frustrated with the destitution of Jinju and infuriated by her family’s need to scrounge for basic food and supplies. She longs for more, but as long as Jinju remains an un-terraformed planet, the economy will stagnate, and this becomes yet another impetus for her to embark upon The Evolution of Personal Identity that her Hero’s Journey will unfold.

Min’s family also remains on Jinju because the planet’s poverty and the simple lifestyle of its people allow them to go unnoticed. The story world is heavily steeped in Korean mythology, featuring foxes (kumiho), goblins (dokkaebi), and other mythical beings as well. In Korean mythology, the kumiho is an often evil-tempered nine-tailed fox, but in the novel, foxes may have up to nine tails, with fewer tails indicating less power. Min’s true form is a red fox with a single tail, and thus, her physical attributes reflect her relative inexperience with Charm magic. Both in Korean mythology and within the lore of the novel, foxes are regarded as untrustworthy and dangerous. Tales told by characters throughout the story often depict foxes as monsters who feed upon human flesh or as tricksters who use Charm to control a person’s free will. While some foxes, like Nari, actively use Charm for coercive purposes, not all foxes do, and this contradiction marks the introduction of the major theme of The Conflict Between Ethical and Self-Serving Actions, for Min must ultimately decide upon a larger code of ethics that will govern her use of her Charm magic. In the beginning of the story, Min is frustrated with her mother’s ethically motivated rules about when to refrain from using Charm, for Min believes that the family should instead make much greater use of their magic to improve their everyday lives. When the girl strikes out on her own, she quickly finds herself relying on Charm to trick those around her, but this tendency will ultimately cause her more trouble than it’s worth, thus illustrating The Damaging Effects of Lying. Min’s character arc exemplifies the major themes mentioned here as she comes to terms with what it means to be a fox and how both her personal decisions and her fox nature influence those around her.

The inciting incident is contained in Chapter 3, when Min’s family decides to send her away for her own safety. The prospect of being hidden away while her brother might be in trouble motivates Min to seek him out, and this decision initiates her epic journey across Jinju and into space. Her time in the city also serves as another ideal world-building opportunity for the author, who wastes no time laying out more complex rules for both Jinju and the wider universe. For example, the guards in Chapter 5 illustrate the corruption in the ranks and the desperation of those on Jinju. They target Min because she unwisely conjures jewelry that indicates her to be of a wealthier class. Her new appearance therefore makes her a target worth pursuing to those who don’t know of her fox nature, and the eagerness with which the guards surround her and talk her into buying drinks shows that they aren’t above exploiting their position to obtain others’ wealth and get what they want. Similarly, the casual way in which the guards tend to gossip about the Fourth Colony suggests that they also have no qualms with giving information to anyone who walks by, and this is an attribute that Min uses to her advantage. Thus, even the first steps of her journey serve to indicate The Damaging Effects of Lying, whether in word or in deed, for her clever disguise of wealth garners her far more attention than she bargained for.

Chapters 7 and 8 mark the first time that Min truly realizes how limited her current understanding of the world actually is. Up until now, she has enjoyed a fairly sheltered existence under her mother’s roof, begrudgingly accepting her family’s poor lifestyle and strict rules about not using Charm or drawing attention to themselves. By contrast, Nari and her gambling den represent a very different and far more daring life, and the realization that Min’s mother once worked at the den makes Min both angry and curious—curious because she wants to know more about her mother and angry because her mother once broke all the rules she now sets down. The den is Min’s first lesson in the moral implications of using Charm to manipulate the actions of others. Thus, she gets her first unpleasant glimpse into The Conflict Between Ethical and Self-Serving Actions. At first, Min becomes somewhat intoxicated by the power of her Charm magic, but as she watches the people she Charms disregard their own growing desperation and continue to lose money at the gambling den, she suddenly realizes that her magic can be misused for selfish gain. Her realization of Nari’s self-serving aims makes her uncomfortable, because the overt philosophy that runs the gambling den greatly resembles her own desire to use Charm to get everything she wants for herself and her family. For the very first time, she finds herself forced to consider the ethical consequences of such manipulative tactics.

In addition to such social considerations, the introduction of gates and “jumps” serves to establish the rules of interstellar travel, as well as the risks of undertaking this particular form of travel and foreshadowing the difficulties that will soon befall the heroine. Because gates lead to a different type of space that allows ships to travel great distances in a short amount of time, the ethereal realm of gate space is also more dangerous than regular space, both because of its very nature and because mercenaries tend to lurk there. Gate travel also has different physical effects on various travelers, and this phenomenon is demonstrated when Min experiences a more intense reaction than most with her enigmatic dream of her father becoming a tiger. As it happens, this dream foreshadows the climactic events at the very end of the novel, although it will be quite a while yet before Min fully realizes the significance of her vision.