Cherryh's interest in anthropology anchors her creation of fascinating extraterrestrial cultures. The mri of The Faded Sun possess religion, history, traditions whose origins are lost in time, practices Cherryh never explains directly; she allows the mri to reveal them only reluctantly and Duncan to grasp them as hesitantly. This twoedged point of view, bought at perilous price, achieves uncanny verisimilitude.

Within the People, Niun sees mri customs through eyes so familiar that he cannot gauge their significance until he is forced to risk Duncan's life to acclimate him to them. Looking on the mri from without, the observer Duncan cannot penetrate their superficially terrifying appearance until he overcomes his fear of them that paralyzes him; he must develop the humility of the Kath and live by the elaborate warrior etiquette of the Kel before he can be accepted by them, or perish.

Cherryh's other academic background, linguistics, also...