#journey notes

[icouldneverbeme]

I'm pulling this quote out because I think it says it all, both about why people might find it easy to resonate with Elhokar's arc and why his redemption doesn't quite amount to much positive change at that short distance at which we can observe Elhokar before his death.

I think Elhokar's greatest drawback is that, despite what he may aspire to do or become, he lacks any solid identity. With him, it's always “will be” and “could be”, but never “is”. He might have goals, but no clear direction, and he is more than willing to tag along with other people's opinions of him. He “overcomes” his dependence on Dalinar's counsel by picking Kaladin as his new point of reference, proceeding to pump him for guidance in Dalinar's stead. Which isn't to say that what anyone needs in order to grow out of one's flaws is to be left alone with no one to fall back on for help and advice. No. But as Wit points out, Elhokar comes at the problem from the angle of how he can change people's opinions of him, not how he can change for the better himself per se.

Elhokar does admittedly care about what effect he has on those around him, but there's a difference between impact and impression, and he's evidently much more preoccupied by the latter. It's easy to relate to Elhokar because his shortcomings and struggles are very human, in a down-to-earth sense. Hell, I find myself relating to him, too. He doesn't have a solid grasp on who he is; he does not possess personhood beyond others' expectations of him, he does not understand himself, and so clearly he cannot know how to become who he wants to be as he lacks a starting point. This is what insecurity and anxiety will do to a person, and it's a simple thing to sympathise with.

But it also means that Elhokar isn't exactly capable of adequate self-reflection, and awareness of the impact of one's actions and decisions is crucial for a king and a leader. And this is perhaps what gets him killed in the end. As was the case with the Chasmfiend hunt, Elhokar wanted to be heroic because he assumed that would allow him to grow in stature in the eyes of his men, but it was not the time and place to try and prove anything to anyone, and his desire ultimately proved reckless.

Of course, the fact that Elhokar was a shitty leader and admittedly had an insufferable personality does not at all mean that he deserved to be murdered. But with him being a king and thus being able to exert certain influence over a very large portion of population of his country, if not all of it, his shortcomings couldn't not have tangible consequences. Elhokar could live to be a better person and a better ruler. But sadly, the deep crisis Alethkar and the whole Roshar faced wasn't the time that could allow the luxury of deferment on capable leadership just because Elhokar deserving a second chance as a person should have been recognised.

[icouldneverbeme]

Laral turns out to have become an excellent character. Not in a 'this is a character I like for her sympathetic personality' way, but rather in a 'she pisses me off, and I like that because of everything a depiction of a character like her brings to the thematic content of the narrative' way. Between her and Shallan, there is a pattern when Kaladin expresses a very legitimate grievance concerning the way they, and lighteyes in general, treat him with biases inherent to nobility in a rigidly stratified society (which they may not recognise, being products of that same society, but it doesn't excuse their doubling down on their rightness when pointed at the shortcomings in their attitudes), and gets shamed for not understanding that the other side of this arrangement of oppression doesn't have it easy, either. Which would all be great for portraying social injustice and disparity and the way they manifest themselves in individuals in a realistic light — if it weren't for the fact that the narrative seems to genuinely believe it is Kaladin who needs to learn a valuable lesson in compassion in these situations.

[icouldneverbeme]

It's interesting that Wit says this:

And then a couple of chapters later, this happens:

[icouldneverbeme]

The placement of the Heralds' portraits at the head of 'Four Lifetimes' feels very intentional: Vedel first to convey Kaladin's beginnings as a surgeon, then Taln standing in for his time as a soldier, and finally Jezrien to symbolise him growing to accept his role as a Windrunner and a Knight Radiant. But I can't decipher the connection between Kal's story and the order of Dustbringers. I think it has to do with his experiences as a bridgeman in Sadeas' army and a slave, but I'm unable to go farther than that in my assumptions. Any thoughts?

[icouldneverbeme]

On my way through Moash's second chapter in OB I noticed something similar between thoughts and conversations that Moash has in it and some of Kaladin's past moments:

“Dangerous”:

(Oathbringer, Part Two, ch. 45)

(Oathbringer, Part One, ch. 20)

“What do you want?”:

(Oathbringer, Part Two, ch. 45)

(Words of Radiance, Part Three, ch. 41)

And some more subtle. For example, the way they both feel they're bound to fail, no matter what they try:

(Oathbringer, Part Two, ch. 45)

(The Way of Kings, Part Four, ch. 57)

Or the way they both feel set apart, cast off and cut out from the rest, until their differences are finally welcomed and embraced in Bridge Four:

(Oathbringer, Part Two, ch. 45)

(The Way of Kings, Part Four, ch. 57)

[icouldneverbeme]

The War of Reckoning was never truly about honour, was it? The reaction which Elhokar's call for vengeance elicited among the highprinces was stunned silence, and it in and of itself suggests that his proclamation of war against the listeners wasn't a by-the-book response.

Surely, the listener leaders who issued the assassination were already held responsible for their crime. The only thing that could provoke further action on the Alethi part was the escape of the larger group of listeners after the king was dead, giving a reason for the humans to believe there was a larger scheme at play and thus larger responsibility, and the loss of the elite cavalry troop sent after them. But Elhokar's decision still came off as rather impulsive; I do not think that it was a well-thought-out political maneuver, and I doubt that he understood the ramifications of what he started in its entirety.

But there were, of course, those who did understand. It's notable that the first highprince to enter the pact was Sadeas. As a newly-fledged monarch ascending the throne after his already legendary father, Elhokar needed a strong cause to support his authority and solidify the highprinces' vassal allegiance to his reign. A war waged in honour of the late king, which was presumed to be a quick and decisive endeavour, appeared fitting enough for both purposes, and Sadeas jumped at the opportunity. And it supposedly followed the code of Alethi honour, albeit nobody really seemed to be bothered with figuring out the specifics of what honour exactly they were reaping.

What I'm saying is, the modern understanding of honour appears to be a concept just vague enough for the Alethi politicians to twist and turn, should they desire, until it fits their goal. I don't doubt that there are solid historical and cultural underpinnings to the honour-based morality — I mean, there was a god named Honour that actually lived and exerted his very tangible influence over the world — I'm just not there yet on my read-through to comprehend it fully. But, as is the case with justifying the lighteyed despotism on the grounds of their resemblance to the Radiants of the old, honour grew to a rudimentary form (pun intended), perverted in the hands of those who wished to exploit it.

[icouldneverbeme]

Life before death is the principle learnt first in a Radiant's pursuit of understanding who they are. So of course those are the words Kaladin and Dalinar choose to salute each other with over spanreed while Kaladin's away on his solitary mission to ensure Hearthstone's safety. That's how they know who the other is, with certainty. A motto of recognition, unity, and cohesion of intentions, and a wish for safety and caution. They put enough trust in each other's abilities to know that the other will cope with the dangers of their respective responsibilities, and they cannot do much else. Those words are all the support they can offer each other on their diverging journeys. I don't know, man, that short exchange between them made me emotional.

[icouldneverbeme]

I'm reading my way through Oathbringer, and it has just been brought up in the text, so I'm thinking. To the best of my understanding, Kaladin haven't actually killed Syl, albeit strode to it too close for comfort, right? This would require a magicky explanation of him bringing her back to life with the sheer power of his renewed resolve and reaffirmed purpose, which doesn't sit quite right with me for whatever reason. I read it as Stormfather forcefully removing Syl from Kaladin when he started down the path that would've eventually led to her death, and then telling Kaladin he killed her so that he wouldn't call upon his bond with her and reignite it. That would also explain Kaladin hearing Syl weep as he fell into the chasms. Syl defied her father's will when she broke away from him once more and broke through to Kaladin before he swore his third ideal. Hence all the screaming.