Reading WoT for the first time⊠4/X
Recapping my thoughts on: Book I â The Eye of the World
Tag for previous posts or to block: #WoT first time read
Chapters 40-47: Caemlyn & Fal Dara
I didnât expect to meet Elayne in this book, having met her in the Amazon series only in season 2 I think. I get why they left her out of season 1 though, itâs really a brief introduction here. But I was glad to see that sheâs very likable in this first introduction as well, having liked her before in the series already.Â
Chapter 40 is actually filled with lots of introductions: Elayne, her brothers, her mother Morgase, Elaida⊠I know Elaida is a dangerous woman, and thatâs exactly the impression she gives here. Meanwhile, Morgase impressed me by granting Rand the benefit of the doubt. He really behaved like a bit of a fool here, though perhaps that was simply his taâveren-ness being at work (not auto-correct trying to change âtaâverenâ to âtavernââŠ).
After Rand is let go we get a lovely reunion, everyone is happy that everyone is alive, and Mat gets healed by Moraine more or less. Itâs a bit regretful that he barely remembers his journey with Rand. They had a lot of bonding moments there I think, and for Mat itâs mostly forgotten now? I never like when that happens, but I guess Rand still remembers it, and it was a good reading experience either way. Just nothing to further Matâs character growth I guess?
What follows then is lots of exposition: everyone throws in some bits and pieces of knowledge, plans are made, plans are updated, and since the plot, pardon, the Wheel gave them an Ogir as a guide for the Ways, thatâs where they are going.Â
This together with the way through the Ways, followed by the short stop in Fal Dara, was where the book slowed a bit down for me. I suppose this is all setup in a way and necessary for the story to move on, but itâs not my favourite part of the book.Â
It was interesting to get more information on Lanâs background though â although as already teased, it wasnât all that surprising, given his resemblance to Aragorn. There is a huge tragedy in his backstory, when there is literally a whole kingdom wiped from the map by the Blight, and thereâs basically nothing left of Lanâs home and people. Yet in a way I feel this is too huge a tragedy for Lan here â itâs barely imaginable, really, how terrible that must have been, how terrible it must still be, and yet through Lanâs coldness and distance this tragedy, too, remains distant in a way. Maybe thatâs necessary for the character because otherwise he would simply break, and maybe itâs necessary for the reader as well, because otherwise that tragedy would eclipse the present looming danger? Maybe thatâs it. It still feels weird to kind of skip over this, considering how huge a deal this is for Lan and how massively it has affected him.Â
Padan Fainâs appearance irritated me a bit. How and why is he still around? Is this the Gollum of Wheels of Time, following the fellowship through Moria/the Ways? Heâs a creepy character, and at first I didnât get why he turned up at that time.
Chapters 48-53: The Eye of the World
The end of the book isnât the strongest part of the story. Itâs a bit all over the place, describes some events and actions in a bit confusing way where itâs not all that clear what actually happens, and it randomly introduces the Green Man only to get rid of him shortly after.
If the Green Man was hinted at early in the books, I donât think I remember any of it, and maybe thatâs my bad. I know Loial mentioned him but aside from that he is introduced really late as a player in this game, and his main purpose seems to be a sort-of backup in the fight against the Forsaken so that he can be sacrificed in the fight in order to avoid that the good side comes out victorious without any loss. After all, the main characters canât die at this moment, right? And why is both the Horn of Valere and the Dragon banner here? It feels like getting to loot a chest with quest items for the next chapter, only that in games itâs less awkward if the loot isnât necessarily connected to the place itâs found in. I mean, maybe there is a reason for all of this being here, and I just didnât get it? Maybe itâs going to be revealed later? At the moment, it mostly feels a bit too convenient. All in all these arenât particularly elegant writing choices.
The fight of Rand vs Aginor and eventually Baâalzamon was hard to understand because I didnât get a good grasp at what the Eye of the World was doing, what the One Power can do, and what was happening with Rand and Baâalzamon. I suppose this is particularly on me, because when I reached that part of the story I was a bit disconnected with the story due to losing interest a bit in the previous chapters. But how the fight is written, jumping from this to that, makes it difficult to determine where the characters are and what truly happens and whatâs only visions. After all the dreams where it wasnât reality, now there is a fight between the army of Shienar and the Trollocs, and Rand intervenes, but what this actually connects to is easily missed. So is the moment with Randâs mother â was that real, or just a vision? It works either way, but it causes more confusion. I hope to get more clarity out of the end in a re-read, because first going through it was a strange experience.Â
Robert Jordanâs story is the strongest, I feel, when he examines what the events that have happened actually mean for the affected characters. I think Randâs realisation of what he has done and what it means for him: that he can wield the One Power â that turns the last chapters around again. The action before that is necessary to get to this point, but this point is what brings the story full circle. This is why Moraine had come to the Two Rivers, this is what Baâalzamon had been looking for as well all this time. The tragedy is in that moment when Rand realises and Egwene turns away from him for a moment, before hugging him. Itâs such a vulnerable and raw emotional moment.
Perhaps itâs not a new trope: the idea of turning into a âmonsterâ that parents tell their children about at night has been used in many stories, but if done well itâs a very fascinating story to tell. It has the potential for many interesting and also emotional stories: the exploration of the nature of the âmonsterâ, the confrontation with the origin of the âmonstersâ as well as the fight against the truly monstrous aspects of this transformation. And of course all the emotional turmoil that brings both for the person in question and every relationship he has with anyone, past, present and future. Jordan positioned Rand perfectly in this scenario, and that continues to make him an incredibly fascinating protagonist.Â
One note on this comment from Moraine though: âA tool made for a purpose is not demeaned by being used for that purpose.â â Dear Moraine, reducing any human to a tool is indeed dehumanising and therefore demeaning. It may be part of the Pattern or the Wheel or whatever, yet there is still a human being there no matter what the personâs purpose for the fate of the world is. If anything, showing some compassion surely canât hurt? You may have had years to figure out your role in all of this, but the boy in question here is pretty young and pretty new to all of this.
Randâs last words in the last chapter are pretty sad, all in all: âIâm going away, but not home. Not ever home.â He never wanted to leave his home, he wished to go back home all the time. Now itâs closed to him, and at best he is now hoping to find a place where he can be alone so that he wonât hurt anyone. This hurts me, and thatâs how I know I want to continue reading.
Next Up: The Great Hunt
(As soon as I find time to write down my thoughts... it may end up less detailed.)
