Robbie Arnott
The Rain Heron by Robbie Arnott builds a world with mythic qualities that conveys an ecological message about the importance of reciprocity in human interaction with nature.
The novel is in four parts. Part 0 establishes the mythic qualities of the rain heron and its magical powers to generate and withhold rain. It is designated Part 0 because it happens in a mythic realm, before recorded time when our ancient ancestors lived in harmony with nature and believed in its magical powers. Part 1 introduces Ren, a middle-aged woman who fled a military coup to live in a cave in the mountains. Soldiers, led by the relentless Lieutenant Zoe Harker, discover her hideout and torture her until she agrees to lead them to the rain heron. Part 2 takes us back to Zoe’s adolescence where she witnesses the catastrophic consequences of disrupting the reciprocal relationship with nature. In Part 3, Zoe, whose eye has been gouged out by the heron when she captured it, is on a road trip to take the bird to the animal sanctuary. And Part 4 sees another road trip in which Zoe returns the rain heron to its natural habitat.
This is a world in which climate change occurs rapidly, impacting the livelihood of local villagers. It is also a world in which civilians are fearful of military brutality. Lives are disrupted; villages are vacated; and nature wreaks havoc with the weather. The culprit is humanity’s greed and short-sighted desire to dominate nature. Catastrophe ensues when we assume nature’s resources are unlimited and that we can take and take and take without considering long-term repercussions. Nature can and does retaliate with a vengeance. Our environment becomes impoverished; our traditions are lost; our humanity is diminished.
After illustrating the disastrous consequences of the human instinct to dominate nature, the novel offers a redemption of sorts. It shifts from third person point of view to first person point of view as the final section unfolds in Zoe’s voice to reveal her atonement and restitution. But her transition from a cruel, heartless lieutenant to a penitent human eager to make amends is not entirely convincing and seems somewhat implausible.
Arnott excels in describing the natural environment in vivid and evocative detail. The vibrant colors of the squid as it sucks human blood is visually striking. The majestic heron’s transformations are breath-taking. The powerful imagery of the natural environment assumes an almost mythic resonance. This blend of myth with reality in which myth has a direct bearing on the internal and external environment is reinforced by Zoe. After losing her eye, she experiences an epiphany. She “sees” the truth, echoing Sophocles’ classical myth of Oedipus in which truth comes at a price. The novel suggests in order to re-establish a balanced relationship with nature and redeem ourselves, we must sacrifice our need for dominance. This entails a recognition of our mutual dependence on nature and our interconnectivity with all that lives.
Recommended.