In the epic 'Son of Nobody,' Yann Martel gives footnotes a starring role

Yann Martel's Dual Narrative: "Soad" Fragments on Top, Harlow Dunn's Life Scenes Below

Yann Martel structures "Son of Nobody" using a dual narrative across two tracks of half-pages. Above the line appear fragments from the SOAD, the lost epic, while below the line are footnotes and scenes from the family life of Harlow Dunn. Martel explains that this approach allows each narrative to have its own space and exist independently. He avoids confining the story to a single time frame or relying solely on flashbacks, which would relegate the lost epic fragments to the background. Instead, this structure connects and separates the ancient lost epic and Harlow Dunn’s story, letting each breathe on its own terms. Fragments of the lost tradition occupy the upper space, while modern family life and analysis unfold beneath.

Martel's Use of Central Footnotes to Highlight Unique Perspectives In Storytelling

Martel elevates footnotes to a central narrative function rather than leaving them as afterthoughts. He says he likes the idea of letting a footnot ...

Jan Martel’s novel, Son of Nobody, offers a shift from the traditional epic focus on elites to the often-overlooked "common person" in stories about the Trojan War. Scott Simon describes how Martel’s protagonist, Harlow Dunn, a Canadian classicist, discovers a lost epic through a pottery shard—not about kings or demigods, but a commoner, Soad.

Elite Focus In Iliad vs. Common Soldier In "Soad"

Yann Martel observes that in Homer’s Iliad, the narrative is dominated by the voices of kings, queens, gods, and princes. Only a single commoner, Thersites, is heard—and when he dares to question Agamemnon’s authority and the war’s purpose, other Greek soldiers don’t rally to his side. Instead, Odysseus beats him and the rest cheer, while Thersites is described derisively, even as the “ugliest man” in the army.

Martel explains that Thersites’ rebellion echoes Achilles’ resistance but is dismissed by the narrative and his peers, despite modern readers finding sense in his questions. Thersites asks why ordinary Greek soldiers should suffer and die for the sake of a single man’s wife—pointing to issues of power and exploitation that resonate today. In contrast to the soldiers’ obedience in the Iliad, Soad in Martel’s novel persistently questions the war’s purpose, challenging the elites and encouraging a reevaluation of whose stories matter in epic tales.

Martel emphasizes the madness of war and how both Achilles and Soad are driven to reckless confrontations: Achilles fights for glory, while Soad, an ill-equipped common soldier, attempts to face a Trojan prince out of a desperate urge to end the violence. Soad’s struggle highlights the perspective of those at the margins rather than at the top of epic storytelling.

Martel: "Ordinary" Voices Are the Essence, Epic Tales Built From Quieter Voices

Martel argues that there is no tru ...

Yann Martel draws a direct parallel between the mythic siege of the Trojan War and contemporary personal struggles, particularly the dissolution of a marriage and the pursuit of passionate goals. He argues that revisiting the past, like the Trojan War, can shed light on the present, illuminating the human cost and complexity at the heart of both ancient and modern conflicts.

Martel's Parallel: Trojan War and Harlow Dunn's Marital Conflict

Martel highlights the deep resonance between the catastrophic clash of Greeks and Trojans and the painful unraveling of a family in today’s world. He sees not just the external warfare of the ancient world but “a war writ small” in the personal sphere—a couple, Harlow Dunn and Gale, falling apart while navigating their daughter Helen’s presence, echoing Helen of Troy. Harlow receives a prestigious academic offer from Oxford to pursue his “life-making project,” mirroring how the Greeks left their homeland to fight far from home. His decision to leave Canada for England becomes his own personal campaign, one that brings a chance for discovery and glory but at great personal cost, just as the Greeks’ supposed victory led to the decline of their civilization.

Martel points out that Harlow’s passion for his work—uncovering the tradition of Trojan War narratives lost to history—consumes him. This drive, likened to the all-absorbing focus of Howard Carter’s discovery of Tutankhamen’s tomb, causes him to drift further from his family. Yet, Harlow dedicates his work to his daughter, trying to turn his sacrifice into a gift of glory for her as the Greeks sought eternal renown through their struggle and loss.

Modern Conflicts and Marriage Breakdowns Can Parallel Historical Wars

Martel contends that family breakdowns and modern strife parallel historical wars in both their destructiveness and potential for meaning. ...

Martel's View: Richness Lies In "Quieter Voices" and "Footnote" Stories, Not Just Grand Narratives

Yann Martel emphasizes that the true essence of life is found in "footnotes"—the quieter, less celebrated stories and perspectives. He suggests that these stories offer valuable insights and illuminate the present, much like the lost epic "Soad" for the Trojan War. Martel points out that the grandeur of something like the Iliad was not the creation of a single genius, but the collective result of hundreds of bards. These bards, with their countless personal stories and iterations, accumulated a richness through their "footnotes," building up to the epic narratives now revered. Martel believes that celebrating these quieter voices reveals the real richness of the human experience.

No Truly "Ordinary" Person Exists; Every Story and Perspective Is Worth Telling and Celebrating

Martel rejects the idea that any person or story is truly "ordinary," including himself as someone with a middle-class background. He ...