The Last Mapmaker

“One result of winning a war meant that all the conquered places got new names, which was a pretty good deal for someone in the mapmaking business.”

Sai has some insight into how people can benefit from imperialism early in story. However, it isn’t until she sees the lands Mangkon has conquered and colonized that she truly understands imperialism’s destructive effects. She eventually uses the knowledge she gains to redefine mapmakers’ roles in exploration missions.

“Without Paiyoon, without a diploma, and with no lineal to help dazzle my way through a job interview, the best I could hope for was to go back to the Harbor Market and deliver shrimp for the rest of my life.”

These details help to clarify how a person’s social status at birth can limit their social and economic mobility. Sai is smart and willing to work hard, yet opportunities aren’t open to her. Sai’s vision of a life spent delivering shrimp spurs her to action on her own behalf, and she defiantly seeks to use any means she can to overcome her lowly background.

“The Tail Is the Teeth. I had heard those words all my life. They meant that no matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t escape who you were or where you came from. But they couldn’t be true. I wouldn’t let them be true.”

Mangkon’s motto uses symbolism to illustrate a complex idea. The circle formed by the dragon swallowing its own tail acknowledges the cyclical nature of life common in Eastern philosophies. In Mangkon, this abstract symbolism has a very concrete interpretation about how one’s ancestry determines one’s value as a citizen. Sai’s refusal to accept this idea forms a central aspect of her characterization.

“‘But I’m going to disclose all the risks to them in my letter.’ He wagged his finger at me. ‘I won’t have us setting sail under any deception.’ ‘Of course not, sir. None at all.’”

In addition to symbolism, Christina Soontornvat regularly uses dramatic irony. This scene is ironic because Sai and the reader both know that Sai is deceiving Paiyoon, despite her response. As it turns out, Paiyoon has secrets of his own, and this adds further layers to the irony that threads the narrative.

“‘Do you think they crossed the fiftieth parallel?’ ‘Possibly. Or others like them have. But of course it doesn’t ‘count’ unless you hoist a Mangkon flag over your head when you do it,’ he said with a snort.”

In this exchange, Paiyoon reveals his cynicism toward Mangkon’s imperialistic goals. He has witnessed the empire’s arrogant habit of claiming ownership of any land it comes across and ignoring any historical realities that limit its power. This insight offers a critique on both formal colonialism and the imperialist mentalities that persist even after colonialism is abandoned.

“We had something in common, didn’t we? Her family hadn’t given her a lineal, either. I doubted she had a background as low as mine, but whatever her station was in life, she had risen above it. I longed to know how. I still clung to the hope that somehow I could do it, too.”

Rian shares Sai’s low-class background and mirrors her ambition to rise above it. By emphasizing this common ground, Rian acts to deliberately ingratiate herself to Sai with an eye toward manipulating her. The two appear to be friends and allies for a while, but the narrative eventually reveals Rian’s true role as the story’s villain. She is also an embodiment of the shapeshifter archetype from the Hero’s Journey, for she mirrors the dark side of Sai’s psyche and serves as an example of what Sai might become if she follows the same path.

“Loyalty, Sai. Even a dog knows how important it is. I didn’t owe that kid any loyalty. He would have robbed me clean and not felt bad about it. But I still didn’t feel right about getting him in trouble. I didn’t even want to think about what jail was like on that island.”

Though Sai’s resentment toward her father has made her oblivious to any wisdom or goodness that he might possess, her subconscious retains the lessons that he has taught her. Eventually, she will come to see him in a more nuanced light, recognizing both his merits and his failings. In the meantime, his words about loyalty aid her when it comes to making Bo a friend and ally.

“More than that, a lineal was a key, just as Rian had said. One that would open all sorts of doors for me and let me hold my head high wherever I went. It would be like starting life over as a completely different person. And I would never, ever need to return home to Mud.”

Lineals are important symbols in this story. Sai initially believes that the Lineal of Honor is the only thing that will let her achieve her goals and exert control over her own destiny. The possibility of earning this status symbol becomes so tempting that it leads Sai to betray her integrity and her mentor.

“‘Yesterday I caught a new species of tuna,’ he said brightly. ‘I believe I’ll name it after myself.’”

Mr. Lark, the ship’s naturalist, is eager to fill the Queen’s museums with new specimens that he discovers on the voyage. He gives little or no thought to the history of these specimens or the areas that he is exploring. In his mind, anything that happened prior to his arrival has no significance; thus, every discovery he makes is seen as a “new” species, and he embraces the arrogant assumption that he has the right to name such things himself. In this way, Mr. Lark epitomizes the ethnocentric attitude at the heart of imperialism.

“I should have known that snobbery would be a better disguise than a haircut. I would have to remember to play up the spoiled manners and accent whenever Grebe was around.”

By recognizing the power of snobby mannerisms, Sai highlights the importance of social status in Mangkon society. Her decision to sell her deception by playing up the spoiled manners and accent helps her in the short term. However, in another example of irony, it causes trouble for Sai in the long run.

“‘What’s An Lung like?’ asked Bo. It would take me all night to explain my beautiful, vicious, magnificent, dirty hometown. So I just said, ‘Rains a lot.’”

The driving force behind Sai’s journey is her conscious desire to leave An Lung. This line belies that desire by revealing a complex but loving attachment to the city. It suggests that for Sai, leaving An Lung is her way of trying to erase her past. She will have to confront this reality as part of her transformation.

“He smirked and rolled his eyes. ‘I can’t see why any of you put up with all the lineal stuff. No one’s going to tell me I’m worth less than some other kid just because they wear a stupid metal bracelet.’ ‘It’s not that easy.’ ‘Not that hard, either.’”

Rising above her social status in a class system as rigid as Mangkon’s seems impossible to Sai. She has come up with two possible ways to accomplish this: by lying about who she is and earning a Lineal of Honor, or by finding the Sunderlands. However, both attempts cause her more problems and require her to sacrifice her integrity. Bo’s statement in this quote eventually makes Sai realize that her thinking has been limited by Mangkon’s misguided standards, and she will ultimately reject the lineal as a determinant of her worth.

“I know that’s how everyone talks, Sai. I talked that way, too, once. Our queen is sending ships out in every direction to ‘discover’ new places. I’ll put money on it that every place our ships land was already discovered long ago—just not by us. That won’t stop us from planting our flags there, of course. A growing kingdom needs lumber, materials, food. Why pay for it when you can claim it and call it your own?”

Paiyoon’s straightforward critique of imperialist exploitation makes the novel’s theme and message on the subject clear. While elsewhere the author relies on symbolism and subtext to develop important concepts, in scenes like this one, she elucidates her ideas on the subjects directly. A distressed mood and cautionary tone bolster the intended effect.

“Do you know what it looks like for one country to take over another? Do you know what happens to the people who live there? […] Mangkon has grown into a bloated beast, devouring all her neighbors. And how does she find her next meal? She uses my maps.”

This metaphor about Mangkon’s imperialism exemplifies Soontornvat’s use of figurative language to illustrate complex ideas. It also explains Paiyoon’s guilt. In his mind, his maps have led a predator to the doorstep of its innocent victims.

“‘The Tail Is the Teeth,’ he said quietly. ‘I have never believed that, have you? That the path behind and the path ahead are one and the same? I cannot change the path behind me, Sai. But I can chart a new course ahead.’”

Paiyoon’s wisdom makes him a great mentor. He and Rian both cite and reject Mangkon’s motto in conversation with Sai, but they represent two diverging paths that Sai might take from there. She can choose Rian’s path and sacrifice her integrity to achieve her ambitions, or she can choose Paiyoon’s path, accepting her past and focusing on charting the right course for her future.

“Everything I had, she had. Except for two things: a lineal and our name. I realized long ago that that combination—showering her with gifts while denying her worth—twisted her into the person she is now.”

Captain Sangra says this about Rian, her half sister. Understanding how Rian’s background influences her current actions adds depth to Rian’s character. The scene demonstrates that although she is the villain of the story, Rian does not represent pure evil. Instead, she is just a flawed human who represents the product of an unfair class system.

“I searched for both her and my son when we docked at Pitaya, but I couldn’t find them. They had disappeared.”

Ironic twists escalate the story’s conflict and move the plot along. In this example, Captain Sangra was looking for Bo in Pitaya while he was sneaking onto her ship, trying to get to An Lung to find her. He hides on board for weeks while the captain mourns her failure to find her son. Neither has any idea the person they’re looking for is right under their noses until Sai figures it out.

“And I don’t care what the Queen thinks of me anymore. I have served her all these years without question—and what has it been for? So that we could make Mangkon into a great empire? An empire of cowards and thieves—that’s what we are.”

Before Sai rejects the lineal as a determinant of her value, Captain Sangra rejects the divisive class system that kept her from being with the man she loved and helping to raise their son. Her fear of being disowned by her royal family led her to make choices that she now regrets. Her change of heart, as expressed in this quote, spurs Sangra to campaign for social reform in the book’s resolution. As a revered hero, Captain Sangra is a powerful role model. Taking this stand shows Sai that she can do the same.

“‘If Mud hadn’t stepped in…’ He winced as if from a blow. ‘Don’t know why he did it, helped me like that. No one else did. He got himself a broken leg for his trouble. And two more months’ time for striking a guard.’ I shuddered as the memory flooded back to me. I’d had to stay in a girls’ home while Mud was in jail. And when he finally got out and came to pick me up, he was on crutches. He’d told me he got in a fight but never said what for. Don’t feel sorry for me, Sai-girl. This way I won’t have to go to war. Get to stay with my baby.”

Grebe’s revelation adds depth to Mud’s character, showing Sai that Mud has the potential for selflessness and a protective instinct. Grebe’s descriptions of the event characterize Mud as someone who refuses to play the victim, unlike many stereotyped versions of characters in similar circumstances. They also help her to realize that her father loves her and has always wanted to be there for her.

“I would never call Mud a good father. But he had wanted me to have a better life. He’d wanted it so badly that he would have done anything to give it to me. I couldn’t see it then, but I could see it now.”

Sai’s changing perceptions of her father are part of her overall transformation. She learns to see the good in him alongside the bad. Letting go of her bitterness allows her to heal from her past resentments. It also helps Sai to accept her connection to her family and her past, while still taking accountability for her future.

“I had been trying so hard to run from my past. But the past was like mottlefish ink. Even if it fades, it’s still there, and not even the ocean can wash it out. I couldn’t change what had come before. But I could change what I did next.”

This quote encapsulates the most important lesson that Sai learns on her voyage. She gains insight into her own motivations for leaving An Lung and finds new clarity in her quest to take control of her destiny. Like many important lessons, this one is conveyed through expressive figurative language that emphasizes the intricate depths of the author’s world-building.

“I tended to the little stone altar we had set up beside the boat. We had put out offerings of fresh water and fruit, and Bo had woven a small garland of flowers. We had no incense, but the smoke from our fire smelled sweet and clean. Surely the spirits here would feel honored. We certainly owed them our thanks for letting us stay in a place like this.”

By erecting an altar to honor and thank the Sunderlands’ local spirits, Sai and Bo eschew the ethnocentrism that condones imperialist exploitation. Though this aspect of the novel is never stated explicitly, scenes like this imply that Sai’s attitude of respect allows her to reach the Sunderlands safely and remain there unharmed.

“Master Paiyoon told me once that every place he ever went had already been discovered by someone else. So maybe that Pramong mapper wasn’t the first either.”

Paiyoon’s insights help Sai to understand and recognize the ethnocentrism inherent in Mangkon’s approach to exploration and discovery. This simple statement illuminates the fallacies of the explorers’ tendency to claim ownership of lands that they encounter on their voyage.