Personality and Appearance
Lord Asriel is perhaps one of the best examples of men who believe that the end justifies the means. Though he willingly sacrifices people, even children, to achieve his goal, he does not hesitate to give his own life in the course of achieving it. He acts not for selfish gain but to achieve a world which, in his eyes, is the best possible world for humanity.
He appears at first as a cold-hearted and seemingly unapproachable person, domineering to his servants and stern to his peers and niece. He shows little emotion, though several times throughout the story he displays sadness and regret for what is necessary, and in the end he shows his love for his child and his old flame, Marisa Coulter, appearing particularly angry when he thinks that fate has brought him Lyra to use as his 'sacrifice' to bridge worlds (Although he calms down when Roger is revealed to also be available).
Asriel is an intimidating presence, both physically and intellectually; he appears equally adept at outmanoeuvering his adversaries using his considerable wits and academic knowledge as he is at achieving his objectives through brute strength. He is a tall, broad and powerful man, with Lyra noting that in rooms he has the air of a "wild animal held in a cage too small for it". In the film adaption he has a beard, though no mention is made of it in the books. He is also mentioned to have lively, "black" eyes, glittering with "savage laughter", indicating that beneath his cold and harsh appearance he is really a man with powerful emotions. His characterizing traits are his commanding nature and immense willpower - he is a man who literally shifts worlds. As one of the characters remarks, he accomplishes things in his relatively short lifetime that some would not be able to do in hundreds of years.
Read more about this topic: Lord Asriel
Famous quotes containing the words personality and, personality and/or appearance:
“Personality and mind, like moustaches, belong to a certain age. They are a deformity in a child.... Leave his sensibilities, his emotions, his spirit, and his mind severely alone. There is the devil in mothers, that they must provoke personal ... response from their infants.”
—D.H. (David Herbert)
“The great pines stand at a considerable distance from each other. Each tree grows alone, murmurs alone, thinks alone. They do not intrude upon each other. The Navajos are not much in the habit of giving or of asking help. Their language is not a communicative one, and they never attempt an interchange of personality in speech. Over their forests there is the same inexorable reserve. Each tree has its exalted power to bear.”
—Willa Cather (1873–1947)
“What! Would you make no distinction between hypocrisy and devotion? Would you give them the same names, and respect the mask as you do the face? Would you equate artifice and sincerity? Confound appearance with truth? Regard the phantom as the very person? Value counterfeit as cash?”
—Molière [Jean Baptiste Poquelin] (1622–1673)