Gallivespian

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Gallivespian is a fictional creature invented by Philip Pullman for his bestselling trilogy of novels His Dark Materials. They appear in the third volume of the trilogy, The Amber Spyglass.

These creatures are essentially humanoid, but also very different from a normal human, and they come from an alternate universe; creatures have been crossing between universes by use of windows either manually made or by the use of The Subtle Knife.

Gallivespians are tiny, no higher than ten or so inches. They seem to be half-insect, having spurs on the backs of their heels which can be dug into an enemy to deliver a poison that will paralyse and cause intense pain for many days. This poison builds up in their heels over time, and so cannot be used non-stop.

Gallivespians due to their size are used invariably by Lord Asriel of the books as spies. They have been crossing the universes to join Lord Asriel under his banner in the rebellion against The Authority. They come from a world where 'big people' and 'little people' (the Gallivespians) are constantly at war.

Gallivespians are proud and arrogant by nature, compensating for their small size with their massive egos. They are honourable creatures however, despite the inherent cunning of being natural-born spies.

Gallivespians use a fictional variant of the Dragonfly for their transport. They carry larvae on them which may be cultivated into a fully grown Dragonfly in a short time. Once it has grown, they may ride on its back until the end of its short life. Gallivespians themselves also have a very short life, living perhaps no more than ten years.

In The Amber Spyglass, the two Gallivespians that are most important are the Chevalier Tialys and the Lady Salmakia, male and female twin-spies respectively. They are sent to protect and watch Lyra, the protagonist, and Will Parry, the second protagonist, Lyra being Lord Asriel's daughter. They are also instructed to bring them back to Lord Asriel, especially considering that Will is the bearer of The Subtle Knife, which is said to be the only thing that can win Lord Asriel's rebellion. Tialys and Salmakia eventually befriend and help Will and Lyra before they die. The only two other named Gallivespians in the story are Lord Roke, commander of the spies in Lord Asriel's Adamant Tower, the central fortress for the rebellion, and Madame Oxentiel. who succeeds to Lord Roke's position after his death.

[edit] Name source

The name appears to be derived from that of an insect called the "gall-wasp," as "vespa" is Italian for wasp. This creature forms a round, shiny, often colored chrysalis on a tree in the Dead Sea region of the Middle East. Although there are other explanations of the name, this object has been called the "apple of Sodom" in literary guides. So it would seem to be with a bit of sarcasm that Pullman chose this name.