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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pawsplay" data-source="post: 4302942" data-attributes="member: 15538">There's an interesting sci-fi series where humans, a backwater race, get drawn into a galaxy-wide conflict because of their value as warriors. Compared to other civilized races, humans are semi-sociopaths with an unnatural response to danger. Eg: alien startles an unexceptional looking human. The human grabs his arm. The alien sees this motion almost as a blur, and marvels at the human's swift, powerful grip, and only many hours realizes the human is not some sort of soldier or wildman. In Tolkien, humans are the "young" race, brash, corruptible, proud, but perhaps less vain than elves and dwarves. They are Eo's chosen because of their love of life and industry, qualities despised by Morgoth's jealousy.In Moon's Paksennarion books, humans are disorganized, uneducated, and lacking in magical might compared to other races. Their sole advantage seems to be a stubborn ability to reinvent themselves in the face of adversity. For instance, the disciplined gnomes despair of teaches humans formation tactics, but eventally teach down a dumbed down form and gain respect for human's unpredictable courage and inventiveness. The elder, fey-like races view humans with a fair amount of contempt, but fear their numbers and resilience.In Howard and Lovecraft, humans are the natural race, a sort of vain and morally troubled hairless ape, who nonetheless draws our sympathies as kinfolk when confronted with true monsters.</blockquote>

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