Examples of such outsiders include Tully, Nhi Vanye, Sten Duncan, Bren Cameron, Hallan Meras, Bet Yeager, Sandor Kreja, Fletcher Neihart and Tristen.
Examples of strong-willed, competent leading females in her work include: Morgaine, Pyanfar Chanur, Bet Yeager (Rimrunners), Ariane Emory I and II (Cyteen), Signy Mallory (Downbelow Station) and others.
[8] Cherryh's most in-depth exploration of this theme may be found in the Foreigner series of novels, in which the main character Bren Cameron plays the role of translator between several alien and human societies.
[9] Specifically when handling human-alien encounters with the Other, Cherryh frequently employs the device of a human protagonist required by circumstances to adapt themselves to alien cultures, viewpoints or behavioral norms.
[10] Cameron is again a good example here, and others include Kurt Morgan (Brothers of Earth), Sten Duncan (the Faded Sun trilogy),[11] Raen a Sul Meth-Maren,[12] Tully (The Chanur novels),[2] and Thorn (Cuckoo's Egg).
Examples of this device in Cherryh's fiction include Serpent's Reach,[12] Hunter of Worlds, Forty Thousand in Gehenna,[15] and the Gene War books, Hammerfall and Forge of Heaven.
The novel Wave Without a Shore and the Merovingen Nights series go even further to describe special cases in which a human sub-culture has actually denied certain alien realities, failed to adapt to these truths, and suffered negative consequences.
In addition, because Cherryh's protagonists are usually comfortable within established hierarchies of social class, and in fact often act forcefully to preserve such systems, the politics described in her writing is perhaps less egalitarian and more conservative (in the classic sense) than that of many science fiction authors.
The implied preference for maintaining the political status quo in her work has its limits, however, particularly if the established order has become corrupt or self-serving, or if it is failing to deal effectively with external challenges or internal threats.
An example of the former type of character is that of Master Saukendar in the world of The Paladin as he restores the integrity of the Imperial dynasty, whereas Signy Mallory takes the latter route when she breaks from existing military order and helps form the new Alliance government in Downbelow Station.
[18] When combined with the disdain for superstition frequently expressed by her protagonists and an evident mistrust of magical power (even in many of her works of fantasy), Cherryh's fiction can therefore be said to endorse at least a moderately empiricist philosophy and a rationalist or realist world view.
The story of the Mri Wars, for example, as described in the Faded Sun trilogy, is told primarily from the point of view of Sten Duncan, a special forces soldier in the Alliance military.
The professional Assassin's Guild of the Atevi species from the Foreigner books is also a quasi-military order, charged with gathering military intelligence and managing security in addition to their direct combat responsibilities.
[19] In Downbelow Station, the author further explores the issue of loyalty within the armed forces by portraying combatants from opposing sides of a war who must reconcile the conflicting dictates of their missions with their sense of honor, even to the point of contemplating treason.