Tess Struan
Encyclopedia
Hag Struan redirects here.
Tess Struan (1825-1917) is a character in the James Clavell
novels Tai-Pan
and Gai-Jin
. She is the daughter of Tyler Brock
, Tai-pan of Brock & Sons Trading Company. Tess marries Culum Struan, who is the son of Dirk Struan
, founder of Struan's trading company and main rival to her father. It is recounted in the novel Noble House
that after her father-in-law's death, she ruled Struan's through successive tai-pan
s, smashing her father's company. She would later be known as "Hag Struan", becoming a bitter old woman whose children all died unnatural deaths.
Tess Struan harbored passionate feelings for her husband's father, Dirk Struan, from the very start of her relationship with Culum. After Dirk's death Culum came into power but proved to be an ineffectual leader. Out of necessity Tess rose to become a hard-as-nails leader and merciless adversary of any trading company opposing the Noble House. Despite being the daughter of Tyler Brock, Tess Struan used information provided by Edward Gornt to bring about the utter ruin of her father's company with the help of Jeff Cooper. Tess exercised control over the Noble House until the early 1900s in which time she beat back many attempts to ruin the company. Having been a figure of such surprising strength for so many years she became known by all those around her as "the Hag". This title was known by Tess and she rather enjoyed her reputation for ruthlessness; she was intent that the Noble House be taken seriously.
Tess Struan (1825-1917) is a character in the James Clavell
James Clavell
James Clavell, born Charles Edmund DuMaresq Clavell was an Australian-born, British novelist, screenwriter, director and World War II veteran and prisoner of war...
novels Tai-Pan
Tai-Pan (novel)
Tai-Pan is a novel written by James Clavell about European and American traders who move into Hong Kong in 1842 following the end of the First Opium War. It is the second book in Clavell's "Asian Saga".-Plot summary:...
and Gai-Jin
Gai-Jin (novel)
Gai-Jin is a 1993 novel by James Clavell, chronologically the third book in his Asian Saga, although it was the last to be published. Taking place about 20 years after the events of Tai-Pan, it chronicles the adventures of Malcolm Struan, the son of Culum and Tess Struan, in Japan...
. She is the daughter of Tyler Brock
Tyler Brock
Tyler Brock is a fictional character in the novel Tai-Pan. He is the Tai-pan, or "supreme leader" of Brock & Sons Trading Company, and the novel's antagonist. He is married to Liza Brock and has several children, including his sons Gorth, Morgan and Tom, and daughters Tess and Elizabeth...
, Tai-pan of Brock & Sons Trading Company. Tess marries Culum Struan, who is the son of Dirk Struan
Dirk Struan
Dirk Lochlin Struan is the fictional main character of James Clavell's 1966 novel Tai-Pan. The title comes from a Cantonese term that Clavell loosely translates as "supreme leader", and Struan is the taipan or head of his own trading company in China, Struan's...
, founder of Struan's trading company and main rival to her father. It is recounted in the novel Noble House
Noble House
Noble House is a novel by James Clavell, published in 1981 and set in Hong Kong in 1963.It is a massive book, well over 1000 pages, with dozens of characters and numerous intermingling plot lines. In 1988, it was adapted as a television miniseries for NBC starring Pierce Brosnan...
that after her father-in-law's death, she ruled Struan's through successive tai-pan
Tai-Pan
The term tai-pan was originally used to describe a foreign businessman in China or Hong Kong in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Cantonese colloquialism is now used in a more general sense for business executives of any origin...
s, smashing her father's company. She would later be known as "Hag Struan", becoming a bitter old woman whose children all died unnatural deaths.
Tess Struan harbored passionate feelings for her husband's father, Dirk Struan, from the very start of her relationship with Culum. After Dirk's death Culum came into power but proved to be an ineffectual leader. Out of necessity Tess rose to become a hard-as-nails leader and merciless adversary of any trading company opposing the Noble House. Despite being the daughter of Tyler Brock, Tess Struan used information provided by Edward Gornt to bring about the utter ruin of her father's company with the help of Jeff Cooper. Tess exercised control over the Noble House until the early 1900s in which time she beat back many attempts to ruin the company. Having been a figure of such surprising strength for so many years she became known by all those around her as "the Hag". This title was known by Tess and she rather enjoyed her reputation for ruthlessness; she was intent that the Noble House be taken seriously.