The fool - man or woman?

[Sar]

maybe neither. It's been a while since I read the series but I seem to remember that the fool said somewhere that He/she wasn't really human but something esle. So maybe the answer is neither and both. is that possible?

[dragonhawk]

Vote male because of the pail women an he where exact opposite

[mackomaz]

I think he is a man.

(Spoiler)
Near the end of the story, didn't the evil White Prophet mention that she was what the fool was only that she was female and right? Also, Fitz used the skilled to bring him back to life and didn't comment on the Fool being female, which he probably would have considering that the Fool stated when asked by Fitz after Starling started saying he was female that he was male.

[Hilarious Joke]

The more I think about it, the more I find it incredible that Fitz was able to bring the Fool back, for not only is it a tremendous feat in anyone's case, but the Fool wasn't even human! Fitz truly had the most powerful abilities, when he was able to use them.

[Rainswept]

Originally Posted by Blue Moon

The fool is definitely a man. Fitz would know, there were so many times when he cared for the Fool when he was sick. Especially when he died, clearly he would have seen the Fool's body naked.

This is definitely not the case. I remember noting in Assassin's Apprentice that there was debate over the Fool's gender, and I paid very close attention to this question as I read. The author was very careful from the beginning to never let anyone see the Fool nude. There were several instances where being shirtless would have been acceptable, or even expected, in a male, and in every case it mentions that the Fool never shows her torso.

I believed from the first book that this was because the Fool is female. You could make arguments that the Fool was just "too shy" or something, but realistically, that's rationalization. Think about when the Fool was badly beaten, and allowed Fitz to care for her face, then refused to remove her shirt despite it being clear attention was needed. How about when she shows her tattoos by only uncovering her back? There was also a point where she might have been shirtless in Fool's Fate, but was carefully described as face down.

My guess is that there was a White Prophet reason the Fool kept her gender secret. Perhaps a vision, perhaps there was a history of bad results when Prophet and Catalyst hook up, perhaps she knew she couldn't deal with his shorter lifespan, perhaps she didn't want to compete with Molly. Because this is unresolved, whites are very long-lived, and we have evidence that the Fool could grow darker still, I wouldn't be surprised to see a third trilogy where this answer is revealed. I could easily imagine Fitz far outliving Molly, because of the Skill (like Kettle) or as a result of having shared some of the Fool's essence when they switched bodies. Another trilogy wherein Fitz ends up with a dark woman...

[Jinxy Too]

That couldn't happen. I remember from Fool's Quest Fitz saying he could recognise the Fool anywhere. Besides, the Fool has always said although they loved Fitz, they knew he could never reciprocate and so wouldn't push it. Personally, I think the Fool is neither, or both. I'd ask you to suspend belief here, but we're debating a Fanatsy novel. The Fool appears as a female whilst Amber, but as a male whilst Lord Golden, which would take more than just good acting for a prolonged period. I think the Fool being part White makes gender redundant.

[Jinxy Too]

Erm, I do, of course, mean Fool's Errand. But I couldn't find the Edit Post button.

[Overread]

you only get a fixed amount of time before the edit butten gets removed - happens to all posts and prevents people going back and changing their arguments - which can lead to a real headache for mods

[Antubis]

It wouldn't surprise me if the Fool is neither male or female or something inbetween instead of a specific gender. Or it is as Pyan wrote:

Originally Posted by pyan

I incline to the theory that Whites change their orientation as they go through life, but always stay vaguely androgenous.

Meaning that the Fool will go through biological changes. He may or may not have control over it. It could be that it depends on the environment, his progress as White Prophet, the people he hangs out with, etc.

When I read the books I always see him as male. With the exception when he presents himself as female..I just go with whatever roleplay he is into The books are written from Fitz's perspective and Fitz always saw him as a male. So I automatically went with his view.

But as others have already written, I like the mystery of it. If I would ever get a definite gender specific answer, part of the Fool's appeal might just disappear. The Fool is meant as something of a enigma after all.

[pyan]

Originally Posted by Antubis

The books are written from Fitz's perspective and Fitz always saw him as a male. So I automatically went with his view.

Mind you, Fitz always struck me as being a couple of knives short of a drawer, myself. I've the impression that the Fool would have to tear her(?) clothes off and dance around him to make Fitz see she was female...