What Kind Of A Stupid Superpower Is Heart Anyway?

What kind of a stupid superpower is Heart anyway?

The post about Frodo from earlier got me thinking about the underuse of Heart as a superpower in modern fantasy, by contrast to perhaps its overuse in older texts.

The idea that I started to get at in the tags is that Frodo is “above average” in a non-standard sort of a way, and that is in compassion.  His name, Maura, means Wise, and he’s very deliberately named after Froda, doomed king of the Hathobards, famed as a (failed) peace maker.  And that is what makes Frodo “special.”  He has other virtues, sure - heading off on the quest because it needs to be done even though he hasn’t got a clue what he’s doing takes a huge amount of gumption.  But that if anything goes into “hobbits are just kinda great that way.”  The thing that sets Frodo specifically apart is the wisdom to make peace and show compassion.  The Taming of Smeagol, which is for one reason or another really the last thing Frodo actually does as Main Character ™ is the single thing that allows the quest to succeed, and it is above and beyond what is normal and expected (contrast Sam’s reaction).  Because although Frodo ultimately falls, he does not, in fact, fail.  It takes Sam’s loyalty and determination to get them to Mount Doom, and it takes Gollum to get the ring into the volcano.  And it took Frodo’s compassion (and Bilbo’s pity) to get Gollum.

And this is a thing about Frodo.  He takes mercy on Gollum with the Taming of Smeagol, and he takes mercy on Saruman in the Scouring of the Shire.  It’s something he grows and develops into, but you can see the roots of this flavor of Wisdom even in how he reacts to Sam’s eavesdropping in the very beginning (despite the absence of eaves on Bag End).  Taking Sam along is the first major step towards ensuring the success of the quest.  It’s not just that Frodo needs help, it’s that (with some token stubbornness) he’s wise enough to accept help.  Kindness, Mercy, Compassion.

There’s an old style of fairy-tale which I have referred to as a “gift fairy-tale.”  And in it, the heroine’s superpower is, once again, kindness.  I had a book called Old Bony Legs, which was a version of the Baba Yaga story, and it went about like this.  There’s a little girl, who goes to see the witch, and packs a lunch - bread and butter, and a little meat.  When she gets to the gate it creaks, and so she gives it her butter to oil her hinges.  The gate is grateful and swings easily.  She likewise gives her meat to the cat and her bread to the dog, who in return giver her a magic comb and a magic mirror, and instructions on how to use them.  When she has to escape (because the wants to eat her), well, the gate opens easily before her, not even creaking to give away her flight, the comb becomes a thick forest, impeding the witch, and the mirror becomes a vast lake, ensuring her escape.  There’s a number of these sorts of stories, and the common pattern is this:

random acts of kindness/compassion –> gifts/debts from the powerful –> PROFIT

What makes the hero or heroine special, then, is the decision to be kind.  All the magic and power and whatever comes from outside, from the beneficiaries of that kindness.  The heroine succeeds not because she is Great, but because she gets help, and she gets help because she is compassionate.  Kindness, Mercy, Compassion.

So, my childhood was shaped, even before Tolkien, primarily by impoverished itinerant do-gooders called the Doctor.  Let’s talk about the other one.  Doctor Doolittle’s superpower is that he can talk to animals, right?  WRONG.  Doctor Doolittle’s superpower is that he’s a really nice guy.  One of the crucially important things in universe is that talking to animals is not an innate ability - anyone can learn it, if it occurs to them to try.  Tommy Stubbins, the Doctor’s apprentice, is training to be a great naturalist and he can talk to animals as well, or at least is learning.

The story is this.  John Doolittle, successful physician, acquires at some point an African Grey Parrot and names her Polynesia.  And, in an act of kindness, rather than training her to repeat a few words, goes all the way and just  teaches her English.  And she, in return, teaches him Parrot.  And, upon realizing that animals have languages and personalities as rich as humans, he gives up his practice and his respectability to be an animal Doctor - not a vet, but a Doctor who can actually communicate with his patients.  Because he cares.  He gives a voice to the voiceless and then stops and listens to what they have to say.  And, importantly, anyone could have done this, but only John Doolittle does, because only John Doolittle cares enough to try.

Dr. Doolittle has no superpowers.  He’s small, unassuming, quiet, unsuccessful (by human standards), penniless, a disgrace to his family, a joke to his colleagues, kind to a fault, trusting to the point of naivite, assuming the fundamental goodness of every living thing and returning it without question.  And every animal on earth (and on the moon, eventually) knows his name, and would do anything for him.  He is the Great Man.  And what’s so great about him?  Only this: he took the time to be kind.  Kindness, Mercy, Compassion.

There was a really fun comic about why all superpowers suck, if you only get one, and the only power that gets you everything without the drawbacks is Being Rich, as long as you don’t waste all your time angsting about your dead parents or trying to kill Superman.  But Dr. Doolittle is penniless, and flies to the moon on the back of a giant moth, and moves mountains with the help of some friendly whales.  Frodo Baggins sells everything he has to set off into the vast unknown - but he has a magic sword given in friendship by a King of Dwarves, a light when all other lights go out given in friendship by a Queen of Elves, and a loyal friend to wield them both (not to mention a King of Men as a guide through the wilderness).  Little Sasha has only her lunch and she gives that away - and yet throws behind her magics powerful enough to defeat Baba Yaga herself.  One of my favorite lines in one of my favorite Doctor Who episodes is this:

“We couldn’t change our future - but we talked to people, influenced them, and they changed it for us.”

The best superpower is Heart.