Joseph McElroy and Duncan Campbell are both white men of Scottish descent living on Orcas Island in the late 19th century. The two men are in direct opposition, though, in terms of their perspective on the value of other human beings. While Campbell is the primary antagonist of the novel, both to Mei Lien directly and to Inara via inheritance, Joseph is the representation of open-minded kindness and the alternative to prejudice. The two characters remain static, entirely formed before the novel’s opening. Their differences, however, offer a dual perspective on the potential choices available to white men at the turn of the 20th century. That perspective undermines a popular historical argument that those who did terrible things were merely “products” of their time.

Campbell has a dual purpose in the novel. Initially, he’s portrayed as an exemplar of immigrant success and the benefactor of Inara’s entire family:

Duncan Campbell was their great-great-great-grandfather on their mother’s side of the family, and the man who had single-handedly launched the maritime trade industry in Seattle. He’d emigrated from Scotland in the late 1800s to what had been little more than a muddy logging town and built an international shipping company from practically nothing. Because of him, Seattle was known as a major port for trade. If not for Duncan Campbell, Seattle might never have been put on the map and Seattleites knew it, having named buildings after him and devoted a whole section to him at the museum of History and Industry (5).

As the novel progresses, however, he’s revealed to have been a racist murderer, more concerned with his own status and success than the value or success of any other person. Inara’s father describes Campbell’s attitudes thusly: “Your grandmother told your mother about the incident, how Duncan referred to it as ‘dumping the worthless ballast.’ He knew not to talk about it in public, but privately he was proud of what he did” (163). In other words, Campbell never regretted ordering the murder of more than 300 innocent people, including Mei Lien’s father and grandmother. 

Campbell also regularly threatens Mei Lien, even though she’s under Joseph’s protection. However, he also demonstrates his cowardice throughout the narrative. After Mei Lien disappears, Campbell is terrified of her ghost coming to haunt him. He threatens Mei Lien and Joseph many times, but never personally acts violently—instead, he orders others to do his dirty work for him.

Joseph, on the other hand, views every person he meets as an individual human being. He rescues Mei Lien from the ocean and brings her home to his cabin. When she wakes up, he gives her space, and is respectful and kind to her even before he has any sense of her identity. He conceals her identity to keep her safe, believing her when she tells him about Campbell’s racist murder of her family. He marries her because he loves her, but also to keep her safe. Joseph actively defends her on multiple occasions, even before they’re married. He is also characterized as frequently baffled by the unfounded hatred he sees performed by his fellow islanders and white people. 

It is Joseph who empowers Mei Lien to embroider her own story on the blue silk he gives her—not just by providing the material, but by loving and respecting her so fully that she can feel secure in her own identity. When Inara’s father tells her that “people didn’t understand about other cultures and ethnicities” and “fear drives people to do horrible things” (163), Joseph shines on from the past as an example of someone who did understand and chose not to do horrible things, never using fear as an excuse.